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Class 6A
VIEW: 6A BRACKET
6A East
#4 Olathe North (8-2) at #1 Blue Valley Northwest (9-1) – Blue Valley Northwest
One of the marquee matchups in the state this week has traditional power Olathe North traveling to No. 2 Blue Valley Northwest. Both teams enter this contest having won three consecutive games.
Blue Valley Northwest has put together an exceptional year behind senior quarterback Mikey Pauley and running back Grant Stubblefield. The key to the Huskies success has been an athletic, powerful offensive line that has paved the way for more than 430 yards of total offense per game.
Pauley (6-5, 200) is the catalyst and one of the state’s best signal callers. He’s completed 67 percent of his passes this season for 1,531 yards and 22 touchdowns against only six interceptions. On the ground, Pauley has added 826 yards and 10 scores.
Stubblefield has put together an impressive junior season with 1,234 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns.
The Huskies’ receiving group is talented as well. Steven Whitter leads the team with 32 receptions for 544 yards and has scored five touchdowns. Nick Cusick has added 386 yards and nine touchdown receptions, while Max Muehlberger has 306 yards and four scores.
The Huskies will go against a talented Olathe North team that includes several veteran playmakers.
Senior quarterback Noah Palmer has had a strong year passing the football with 1,487 yards and 19 touchdowns. Palmer has always been a threat to run and has contributed 513 yards and 11 scores this season.
The Eagle backfield remains one of the state’s deepest with Jacob Parrish, Aquantez Love, and Jason Scoma. Parrish has rushed for a team-high 726 yards and scored ten times, while Love has 443 yards and three touchdowns. Parrish is also the team’s leading receiver with 484 yards and six touchdowns. B.J. Shields has added 34 catches for 473 yards and five scores.
Jackson Davis leads the Olathe North defense with 80 stops.
This should be an outstanding game between two teams worthy of a state semifinal appearance. Pauley’s playmaking ability gives a slight edge to the Huskies.
#7 Blue Valley West (6-4) at #6 Shawnee Mission Northwest (7-3) – SM Northwest
Two teams that pulled off “upsets” in terms of seeding will meet when Blue Valley West travels to take on Shawnee Mission Northwest.
Bleu Valley West advanced to the quarterfinals with a 35-28 win over Blue Valley. The Jaguars had dropped a 23-17 decision to the Tigers earlier in the season in a game which they led 17-10 after three quarters. This time it was Blue Valley West rallying from a deficit. The Jaguars trailed 21-7 at half but scored twice in the third quarter to tie the game. Running back Sage Huffman’s touchdown with less than two minutes remaining put West on top for good.
Huffman rushed for 168 yards and three touchdowns in the victory and has enjoyed a breakout sophomore season. He has rushed for 1,348 yards and 12 touchdowns and averaged more than 5 yards per attempt. Senior quarterback Gage Roach has passed for 1,433 yards and 14 scores and added 470 rush yards and four touchdowns.
Blue Valley West has four receivers with at least 15 catches and at least 268 yards. Charlie Johnson leads the group with 29 catches for 398 yards and a score, while Braxton Symonds, Andrew Coltharp, and Jack Schneider each have four touchdown receptions.
Junior Zach Darche leads the Jaguar defense with 83 tackles.
Shawnee Mission Northwest also reversed a regular-season loss with their victory over Olathe West. The Cougars lost 39-34 to Olathe West back in Week 2, but exploded for a 63-28 victory last week.
Northwest is led on offense by quarterback Blake Reeder who has had an exceptional year after transitioning from receiver a year ago. Reeder’s job lately has been to get the ball in the hands of playmaker Malik O’Atis. O’Atis rushed for 140 yards and scored five touchdowns in last week’s win over Olathe West.
When Reeder looks to pass, Jack Meylan has been his big-play threat this season. Those two connected on a long touchdown pass in the first half last week.
Shawnee Mission Northwest has won four consecutive games overall and seven of its last eight.
6A – WEST
#5 Lawrence Free State (6-2) at #1 Derby (9-0) – Derby
Derby is the three-time defending state champion and has scored at least 42 points in every game. The Panthers have won 15 straight contests.
Derby has enjoyed a mammoth season from junior running back Dylan Edwards, who has FBS offers. Edwards had six touchdowns in a 63-26 win versus Wichita East. The Panthers have a well-known experienced offensive line paced by Alex Key and Jonas Vickers. Derby by far leads 6A in scoring offense with 516 points.
Free State has enjoyed a massive improvement after zero wins in a COVID-19 injury-plagued season last year.
Firebird quarterback Jet Dineen and running back Dash Cleveland have paced the offense. Dineen recently earned a Southern Methodist offer. Derby beat Free State, 55-49, in the 2017 playoffs and 49-21 in the ’16 postseason, and 35-14 in ’15.
#6 Lawrence (8-2) at #2 Manhattan (9-1) – Lawrence
Lawrence will go on the road to take on a Centennial League opponent for the second consecutive week. The Chesty Lions will try and take down 2-seed Manhattan after winning at 3-seed Junction City last week.
In that 38-21 win over Junction City, Lions’ quarterback Truman Juelsgaard rushed for 122 yards and passed for 129 more yards. The true dual-threat Juelsgaard has thrown for well over 1,000 yards this season with the emergence of receiver Baylor Bowen as a top target. The Lions can also keep the ball on the ground with Shance Wilkerson who had three rushing touchdowns in last week’s win over Junction City.
Now Lawrence will take on Junction City’s rival, Manhattan. Manhattan is 9-1 on the season with only a 21-14 loss to Washburn Rural separating the Indians from a perfect campaign.
Junior quarterback Keenan Schartz directs the Indian offense and has produced more than 1,500 yards of total offense and 14 touchdowns. Schartz has rushed for 857 yards and seven scores and thrown for 656 yards and 7 touchdowns.
The bulk of the Manhattan offensive touches go to talented senior back Vinny Smith. Smith (6-0, 190) has averaged 111 yards on the ground this season having totaled 1,114 yards and 23 touchdowns. The Indian offensive line has done its job in allowing the team to average nearly nine yards per carry on the ground.
Defensively, the Indians are led by junior Jaxon Vikander’s 69 stops with Colby Klieman second on the team with 51 tackles. Eleazar Whitfield has a team high 5.5 sacks, while Taliquie Houston 4.5 sacks along with 12.5 tackles for loss. Jalen Adeniji leads the team with 13.5 tackles for loss.
Class 5A
VIEW: 5A BRACKET
5A – East
#12 Blue Valley Southwest (4-6) at #1 Mill Valley (9-1) – Mill Valley
Two-time defending 5A champion Mill Valley will be at home again against a somewhat familiar opponent. The Jaguars will host Eastern Kansas League member Blue Valley Southwest in this quarterfinal matchup. Both schools were members of the EKL until Mill Valley left for the Sunflower League prior to last season. Although the were both EKL members, the Jaguars and Timberwolves have only met three times and not since 2017. Mill Valley holds a 3-0 all-time series lead.
The Jaguars used a big second-half performance last week to pull away from Shawnee Heights, 42-7. Mill Valley led only 14-7 at halftime before scoring three touchdowns in the third quarter. Quarterback Hayden Jay passed for more than 230 yards and four touchdowns on the night.
Jay has had a solid season after seeing some time in 2020 when Cooper Marsh went down with an injury. Jay has passed for 1,855 yards and 20 touchdowns, while adding 366 rush yards and eight scores. He has a good group of receivers headlined by Kendrick Jones. Jones has 39 receptions for 606 yards and six scores. Jared Napoli, Sean Allergheilgen, and Aidan Jacobs all have more than 300 receiving yards.
Reice Kennedy is the Jaguars leading rusher with 951 yards and 11 touchdowns, while sophomore Tristan Baker has added 534 yards and nine scores.
Blue Valley Southwest will counter with the passing attack of sophomore Dylan Dunn and senior wideout Zach Atkins. Dunn has passed for 2,366 yards and 18 touchdowns this season. Atkins has continued his brilliant career with 66 receptions for 949 yards and eight scores. Junior Sam Swickard has added 446 yards on 21 receptions.
Southwest averages less than 85 yards per game on the ground, but when they do run it has been Jake Laurie or Parker Smith.
The Timberwolves trailed Topeka Seaman 37-23 in the third quarter before rallying to tie the game at 37 and force overtime. Dunn hit Laurie on a touchdown pass with :14 seconds remaining to tie the game in regulation. Blue Valley Southwest has put together a nice pair of playoff wins, but Mill Valley is the favorite in this one.
#7 St. Thomas Aquinas (6-4) at #6 De Soto (6-3) – Aquinas
The Saint Thomas Aquinas Saints and De Soto Wildcats are both coming off of dominating second-round wins coming into this quarterfinal contest.
Aquinas went on the road and jumped out to an early 21-0 lead in eliminating Spring Hill, 35-7. Sean Carroll rushed for three touchdowns in the game as part of his 139-yard effort. Maxxwell Ford added a pair of scores as well.
It comes as now surprise that Aquinas is getting things done on the ground. The Saints average 325 yards per game on the ground paced by Carroll’s 135 yards per contest. He’s rushed for 1,213 yards and 12 scores this season. Ford has added 526 yards and nine touchdowns and Gianni Rizzi has contributed 445 yards and five scores.
Ford has only attempted 52 passes all season and has completed 22 for 385 yards and three touchdowns.
De Soto went on the road to Pittsburg and shut out the Purple Dragons, 31-0. The Wildcats led 14-0 at halftime on the strength of touchdown runs by brothers Ethan and Tyler Schultze.
Tyler added another scoring run in the third quarter and Ethan intercepted a pass for a touchdown as the Wildcats pulled away.
De Soto has advanced to the quarterfinals in each of the last four seasons since bumping up to Class 5A. The Wildcats are 0-3 thus far in those games and last reached a state semifinal contest as a 4A school back in 2017.
5A – West
#4 Wichita Northwest (8-2) at #1 Kapaun Mt. Carmel (9-1) – Kapaun
Wichita Northwest is the three-time defending 5A state runner-up, the last two to Mill Valley. This season, Northwest lost to Bishop Carroll in Week 1, and then fell, 34-17, to Kapaun Mt. Carmel in Week 3.
Kapaun has scored 42 points a game and allowed just 12 points per contest. Northwest again paces 5A in scoring offense by a large margin and has tallied 54 points a game. The Grizzlies have permitted 22.8 points a game.
KMC has sophomore quarterback Dylan Hamilton and sophomore running back Omari Elias, both whom have been breakout players for longtime City League coach Weston Schartz. Hamilton has completed 64 of 92 passes for 866 yards with 13 touchdowns against three interceptions. Elias has 279 carries for 1,942 yards and 21 TDs. KMC has averaged 7.1 yards per play. Plus, the Crusaders have delivered 9.4 yards per point. Junior Will Anciaux, who has FBS offers, has 16 catches for 216 yards and two scores.
In the Northwest win, KMC took control in the second half. The Crusaders received 29 carries for 243 yards from Elias. The Crusaders delivered 458 yards against Northwest’s 391.
Northwest has its terrific backfield senior quarterback Geremiah Moore, junior L.J. Phillips and sophomore Cencere Thompson. Moore has thrown for 1,122 yards with 15 touchdowns against one interception. Phillips has rushed for 1,960 yards and 26 scores. Moore has 1,342 rushing yards with 20 TDs, and Thompson has 1,077 rushing yards.
Northwest had four turnovers in the Carroll loss and two against KMC. Overall, Northwest has averaged 10.7 yards per play and 10.6 yards per point, a less efficient offense than the Crusaders. Northwest senior Zach Morford has 50 tackles, 12.5 for loss.
This is a true toss-up game, though KMC’s ability to grind down teams and its defense gives the Crusaders a slight edge.
#7 Hays (8-2) at #3 Maize (8-2) – Hays High
These two teams have multiple similarities. First, both squads are enjoying historical seasons for its programs, especially Hays High. The Indians will have play game No. 11 for the third time in school history after 1984 and ’93. Maize has gone quarterfinals, semifinals, semifinals and quarterfinals from ’17-20. Neither squad has made a state title game.
Secondly, each team has an elite quarterback with similar statistics in total offense and TDs accounted for. Hays High senior Jaren Kanak, a Clemson commit, converted to quarterback this season. He has rushed for 1,414 yards and 21 rushing touchdowns. Kanak has 866 passing yards and 12 scores. Kanak is the top Kansas recruit in the Class of 2022.
Maize junior quarterback Avery Johnson and Derby junior running back Dylan Edwards are the state’s top-two recruits in the Class of 2023. Johnson has multiple Power 5 offers. Johnson, in his second year as Maize’s starting quarterback, has 1,820 passing yards and 15 TDs. He has 890 rushing yards and 19 scores.
Both squads have a relatively surprising midseason loss, Hays High to Garden City, and Maize to Arkansas City. Each team has a close win against Andover. Last week, Hays had all its 289 yards come on the ground versus the Trojans. Hays High beat Andover, 18-6, in a game that Trojan running back Max Middleton suffered apparent injury and left the contest. In Week 1, Maize beat Andover, 17-14.
Overall, Hays High has a total margin of 392-194, and Maize has a margin of 373-198. HHS has played a more difficult strength of schedule, per Prep Power Index. Plus, the teams have other strong elite players. Hays High senior linebacker Gavin Meyers, the school’s all-time leading tackler, has more than 100 stops this season. He delivered three sacks versus Andover. Meyers is the front runner for 5A Defensive Player of the Year.
Hays High has Roy Moroni in the backfield and Jordan Dale at receiver, while Maize counters with running back Daeshaun Carter and receiver Bryce Cohoon. Maize has lineman Brandon Kerr, likely a first team all-state player up front. Cohoon finished with seven catches for 96 yards last week.
Maize has a sizable advantage at kicker with Cole Segraves, a top-five specialist in Kansas. However, HHS junior Remy Stull, who has blocked/altered two kicks in the last two weeks.
Where’s the difference? It likely comes on defense and in second-tier players. Hays High has started to become similar with other 5A powers and have quality depth. Defensive end Carson Spray, linebacker Dalton Dale and lineman Gavin Nutting are key experienced players.
This year, Stull (hurt last year) and defensive end Iden Baalman (JV player in ’20, conference leader in tackles for loss this fall) and a revamped offensive line have led the change. Hays High has been statistically better than Maize defensively when strength of schedule is factored.
Hays High has allowed opponents to -10.8 points under its scoring average compared to non-HHS games. Maize’s defense has allowed opponents -7.4. That’s a difference of 34 points for a season. Maize is considered the favorite throughout Kansas, but HHS’ defense and supporting cast has been an underrated part of the Indian season.
Class 4A
VIEW: 4A BRACKET
4A East
#8 St. James Academy (6-4) at #5 KC Piper (7-3) – St. James Academy
Defending-champion St. James Academy will go on the road again this week and take on KC Piper.
In last week’s showdown with then No. 1 Basehor-Linwood, the Thunder took control with three early touchdowns and defeated the Bobcats, 35-7. The St. James defense intercepted five Basehor-Linwood passes in the game.
On offense, St. James used a consistent passing attack with junior quarterback Jackson House and a one of the state’s better receiving duos. House passed for more than 250 yards and three touchdowns in the game and has now thrown for 2,007 yards and 18 scores this season. Receivers John Niesen and Tyler Claiborne continue to put up big seasons. Niesen caught eight balls for 165 yards and two touchdowns in the win over Basehor-Linwood and has team high 1,064 receiving yards. Niesen has 53 receptions and seven touchdowns. Claiborne, an all-state player in 2020, has 60 receptions for 624 yards and nine scores.
When St. James looks to run the ball, Tiave Watts has been the primary ball carrier other than House. Watts has 635 yards on the ground and eight touchdowns, while House has added 606 yards and six scores.
After starting the season 0-4, the Thunder have won six consecutive games thanks to a defense that has buckled down to allow less than 18 points per game after giving up nearly a 39-point average in their four early losses.
Piper advanced to the quarterfinal round with a 27-21 win over Paola.
Senior quarterback Blake Porter’s 21-yard touchdown run with under 5 minutes remaining proved to be the difference. Porter (6-3, 185) rushed for three touchdowns in the victory and also passed for 267 yards on the night. This season, Porter has passed for 1,282 yards and 11 scores in just seven games after junior Logan Ladish was lost for the season with an injury. Ladish had thrown for 625 yards and eight touchdowns in four games.
Like St. James, Piper has a talented group of receivers in Divante Herrig-Brittian, Dominique Herrig-Brittian, Colin Vigil, and Ethan Walker. Divante has a team-high 553 receiving yards and six scores, while Vigil and Walker have added 507 and 462 yards, respectively. Dominique Herrig-Brittian has more than 200 receiving yards and four touchdowns in just the last three games.
#10 Bishop Miege (4-6) at #6 Eudora (6-4) – Bishop Miege
Bishop Miege will travel to Eudora for a quarterfinal matchup in Class 4A. The Stags have grinded through close playoff wins over Tonganoxie (34-20) and Chanute (33-21) to improve to 4-6 on the season. The past two weeks have marked the first time the Stags have posted consecutive wins this season.
Like St. James Academy, Miege has prepared itself with a tough schedule filled with larger Eastern Kansas League and touch out-of-state opponents. The Stags have a pair of three-point losses to Missouri-power Rockhurst (24-21) and Blue Valley (31-28). Miege’s two regular-season wins came against Blue Valley West (28-14) and St. Thomas Aquinas (23-20) – both of which are still alive in Kansas quarterfinal action this week.
Quarterback Mac Armstrong has been the catalyst for the Miege offense. Armstrong has passed for 2,380 yards and 20 touchdowns this season. Christian Bowen-Webb and Rohan Putz lead the Stag receiving group with each having more than 600 yards. Jaylen Burch is closing in on a 1000-yard rushing season with 951 yards and 16 touchdowns.
Miege also features some talented defensive players in defensive end Collin Williams (Southeast Missouri State commit) and linebacker Jake Welsh. Williams has registered 35.5 tackles, including 11 for loss, while Welsh has 66 stops and 12.5 for loss.
Eudora is a talented team that is a few points away from potentially being undefeated. The Cardinals have two 1-point losses and have dropped two other games by 3 and 7 points.
Gage Hayden directs the Eudora offense at quarterback and had rushed for three touchdowns in last week’s 50-7 blowout of Atchison. Octavius Lyles and Brayden Beerbower are two other capable options in the backfield for the Cardinals.
Eudora averages more than 36 points per game and allows only 17. The Cardinals are a physical football team and will need to control the line of scrimmage, the clock, and limit big plays in order to pull off the win against Miege.
4A West
#4 Mulvane (8-2) at #1 Buhler (9-1) – Buhler
This should be an outstanding contest and features two of the classification’s best players with Mulvane all-purpose quarterback Mason Ellis and Buhler running back Sam Elliott. Both squads were expected to be substantially improved from 2020. Mulvane had one victory last year in an injury-plagued season. Buhler has a three-win improvement from a 6-4 season.
This year has been a vintage Crusader season under longtime coach Steve Warner: a bell cow running back, solid quarterback play and a stingy defense. Elliott has helped Buhler average 42.7 points per game. Last week, Buhler defeated Winfield, 59-20, behind 198 passing yards from Bradley Neill and 143 rushing yards by Elliott.
Mulvane has 29.2 points per game and allowed just 15.7 per contest. The Wildcats have allowed 3.3 yards per rush and 5.4 yards per pass. Ellis has 171 carries for 1,103 yards and 21 TDs. He has completed 120 of 204 passes for 1,465 yards with 13 scores versus eight interceptions. Hunter Seier has 57 catches for 862 yards and 10 scores. Trent Moses, in his first year of football after he had standout seasons in other sports, has 51.5 tackles, 12.5 TFLs and eight sacks. Moses signed with Ottawa wrestling earlier this week.
These teams did not play last season, a rare year they did not face. Buhler is 7-1 in the last eight games versus Mulvane with four wins by 11 points or fewer. Mulvane has won eight straight contests after competitive losses to Andale and Wichita Collegiate. Mulvane has two wins against McPherson by a combined score of 40-28. Buhler defeated McPherson, 42-30, in Week 6. Buhler and Mulvane have three common opponents – Buhler won all the games by bigger margins.
#3 Andover Central (9-1) at #2 Wamego (9-1) – Andover Central
Wamego has put together an historic year with nine straight wins, including a 2-1 mark in overtime games. The Red Raiders have its best scoring offense in at least 36 years. Andover Central, which is the lone team to beat Buhler and has a win versus rival Andover, has outscored teams, 331-112. Central has ranked second in 4A scoring defense, best among squads currently in the playoffs.
Wamego has outscored teams, 347-204. Coach Weston Moody has raised numbers and brought a lot of positive energy to the program. Wamego has made the state quarterfinals back-to-back years for the first time in school annals. Hayden Oviatt has 1,450 passing yards and 1,416 rushing yards in his second straight huge year. Chase Cottam has been a nice breakout player with 432 receiving yards, and Colin Donahue has 405 receiving yards.
Wamego is fighting against some North Central Kansas League history. Since 2000, Marysville is the only current NCKL team (seconds in ’09 and ’17) to move past the quarterfinals.
Andover Central was a preseason Kpreps Potential Breakout Team after a 7-2 record last season and two close losses. Kpreps projected the Jaguars to have its best per-play offense in more than a decade, a stretch that has included two state runners-up finishes. That has nearly occurred. Andover Central has averaged 6.73 yards per play, trailing only 2015’s 7.19 for the best in the last 11 years.
First-year quarterback Kai Kunz, a transfer from Kapaun and high-level recruit, has averaged 8.8 yards per pass and thrown INTs on just 2.2 percent of passes. That’s the best YPA since 2015 and by far the lowest INT rate in the last 11 years.
Kunz has also completed 65 percent of his passes with 16 TDs. Standout senior two-way player Ashton Barkdull has 140 carries for 848 yards and 14 rushing scores in limited time. Senior Kamden Wilson has 50 tackles, 18 TFLs. Senior Dillon Savage has 82 stops, 12.5 for loss. Well-known seniors Isaac Sheeran and Drew Daniels have combined for 15 TFLs. Andover Central is highly experienced, has a very efficient offense and a standout defense.
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