Back to Kpreps this fall, our contributors will hand out helmet stickers to a team or individual that delivered the most important performance of the week in their opinion. Check back each Sunday to see that week’s helmet stickers, and follow @Kpreps on Twitter and Facebook to watch as the Kpreps helmet fills up with stickers as the season goes on.
Helmet sticker: Chanute (Matt Gilmore -- Kpreps)
In addition to recognizing the good works of quarterback Eric Erbe with the A Class Athlete (ACA) Sportsmanship Award, we want to recognize the entire Blue Comet football team for their performance on the field.
Chanute was expected to be a contender in Class 4A this season, and after four weeks the Comets look every bit that part. Chanute finished the most difficult stretch of its regular-season schedule with a 670-mile (round) trip to Ulysses to take on the Tigers. Chanute was victorious, 40-8.
The Blue Comets were led by the aforementioned Erbe who passed for 225 yards and a touchdown while adding a rushing score. Senior back Ty Leedy added 82 yards on the ground and a pair of touchdowns, while classmate Dagen Dean hauled in a pair of touchdown passes and 95 receiving yards. The Chanute defense allowed 256 yards on the ground to the Tigers, but held Ulysses to 0 of 7 passing with an interception.
For the season, Erbe has passed for 739 yards and nine touchdowns. He’s connected with Kaiden Seamster 20 times for 380 yards and two touchdowns, while Dean has 15 receptions for 325 yards and a team-high seven touchdowns. Leedy has provided the balance with 431 rushing yards and six scores.
The fourth-ranked Blue Comets will be heavy favorites in their next couple of weeks against Independence (1-3) and Fort Scott (1-3) before a road trip to surprising Coffeyville (4-0).
Helmet sticker: Shawnee Heights (Conor Nicholl -- Kpreps)
Shawnee Heights has won three straight after a season-opening 31-20 loss to K.C. Piper. In Week 4, the T-Birds defeated Basehor-Linwood for the first time in school history in a 27-0 victory. Basehor-Linwood was ranked No. 5 in 4, while Shawnee Heights is unranked in 5A.
The win halted several streaks. First, Basehor-Linwood had opened 3-0, including a 17-16 victory versus K.C. Piper in Week 2. Secondly, the win ended the Bobcats’ 16-game winning streak in regular season/Week 9 bracket games.
Shawnee Heights was 0-4 all-time against Basehor-Linwood, including a 42-7 loss last season, per Kansas Football History. The Bobcats had led 4A in scoring offense in 2021. The Bobcats had not been shutout since a 52-0 loss to Bishop Miege in the 2016 playoffs. Basehor-Linwood had not been shut out in the regular season since a 38-0 defeat to Mill Valley in Week 3 of the ’13 season, the last year before current coach Rod Stallbaumer took over.
Shawnee Heights’ Jason Swift is one of the state’s longest tenured coaches with the same school. He stands at 91-104 in 20 years with the T-Birds, including a 5-5 record last fall. Shawnee Heights finished 5-2 in its last seven games. Shawnee Heights was expected to be strong on defense with experienced players like Alex Dittman and Jaye Jones. The T-Birds have permitted just 20.3 points per game after 18.9 last year, eighth-best in 5A. Senior Nick Freeland has stepped in with 22 of 40 passing for 161 yards. Junior Allen Baughman has emerged with 95 carries for 781 yards and 10 scores.
Dittman paces the defense with 31 tackles. Jones has an interception, pass defended and forced fumble. Against Basehor-Linwood, Heights held the Bobcats to 23 carries for 55 yards and picked off three passes. Baughman rushed for 284 yards. Senior Sean Wunder and Jones tied with eight tackles.
Helmet sticker: Stafford (Conor Nicholl -- Kpreps)
Stafford is off to a 4-0 start under first-year coach Mitchell Engelken, a former first team all-state player at Baileyville B&B and Osborne assistant.
The Trojans opened with a 50-0 win at Fairfield, defeated Pratt-Skyline, 46-24, at home, and won at Hutchinson Central Christian, 28-22. Last week, Stafford defeated South Central, 48-0. This week, the Trojans will be favored at St. John.
Stafford, a 5-4 team last year, is at least 4-0 for the first time since 2014 and second occasion since 1988, per Kansas Football History.
Stafford has scored 43 points a game and allowed 11.5. Last year, the Trojans were at 36.6 points scored a contest and 29.2 allowed. Senior Dylan Gantz has completed 47 of 84 passes for 880 yards with 12 touchdowns against six interceptions. Sophomore Cody Knoche has 47 carries for 279 yards and four scores.
Senior Colson Minks has 23 catches for 506 yards and nine TDs. Senior Joshua Hildebrand has 46 tackles, 12 for loss. Junior Brody Kerschenke has 40 stops, 11 for loss.
Helmet sticker: West Franklin (Matt Gilmore – Kpreps)
West Franklin is among the nine remaining unbeaten teams in Class 2A. The Falcons have started 4-0 for the first time since 2008.
Karl Rogers took over the Falcons this fall and is the program’s third head coach in as many seasons. Rogers has them off to a solid start with Flint Hills League victories over Northern Heights (46-12), Central Heights (24-16) and Mission Valley (31-14). The Falcons outlasted Central Heights in three overtimes in Week 2.
Last week, West Franklin hosted Neodesha in a non-district game and doubled-up the Blue Streaks, 38-19. Senior quarterback Lance McCullough passed for 269 yards and four touchdowns in the win – three of which went to Trey Rogers who caught six for 197 yards. The Falcon defense was also solid in forcing four Neodesha turnovers in the win.
On the season, McCullough has passed for 642 yards and nine touchdowns against six interceptions. The younger Rogers has been the go-to guy with 16 catches for 368 yards and five scores. Junior Travelle Froggatte has a team-high 20 catches totaling 155 yards and four touchdowns. Wyatt Nichols also has a touchdown catch – that coming in last week’s win over Neodesha. Junior Micas Bolley leads the Falcons on the ground with 344 yards and six touchdowns.
West Franklin is part of what figures to be a competitive District 2 that features fellow unbeaten Council Grove (4-0), Osage City (3-1), Humboldt (3-1), and Eureka (2-2). Through four weeks, District 2 members have compiled the best W-L record of the eight districts in Class 2A.
The Falcons will get their biggest test of the season this week when they host unbeaten Council Grove. The Braves are fresh off an emotional 14-7 win over Humboldt last week.
Helmet sticker: Wichita Independent (Matt Gilmore – Kpreps)
For Wichita Independent, the move to eight-man football this fall has resulted in the best start in school history. The Panthers are 4-0 with home victories over Sunrise Christian Academy (52-44), Fairfield (54-6), and road wins at Moundridge (26-18) and Oxford (40-34).
It’s been a much-needed run of success for the Panther program that has struggled in recent years. Independent’s four victories this season are more than the program has combined in the previous five seasons. From 2017-2021, the Panthers have posted a 3-39 record and suffered through low numbers and a 22-game losing streak during that span.
This season, the Panthers have found success in the connection of sophomore quarterback Tatum Stalnaker to senior receiver Joseph Recalde-Phillips. Stalnaker has completed 60 percent of his passes for 445 yards and eight touchdowns through four weeks. Recalde-Phillips has hauled in 11 receptions for 352 yards and seven scores.
In last week’s 40-34 shootout at Oxford, the Panthers did their damage on the ground with senior Christian Dean’s 154 yards and four rushing scores. Dean has rushed for 390 yards and 13 touchdowns on the year and is averaging 7.5 yards per attempt.
That balance offensively will have to be consistent as the Panthers continue play in a challenging Eight-Man, Division I, District 3. Last week’s victory over Oxford may prove key in the Panthers eventually earning a playoff spot out of District 3, but the road ahead is tough. Wichita Independent has a test at traditional contender Argonia-Attica (3-1) this week before hosting fifth-ranked South Sumner County. The Panthers then travel to Central Burden (3-1) before closing the season at home against Udall (1-3).
Helmet Stickers (2022 Season)
Week 1 – Atwood-Rawlins County, Coffeyville, Ellsworth, Ingalls, Topeka Highland Park
Week 2 – Abilene, Baxter Springs, Inman, Oswego, Shawnee Mission North
Week 3 – Deerfield, Great Bend, Meade, Valley Falls
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