Class 3A
3A East: No. 3 Silver Lake (11-1) at No. 2 Rossville (12-0)
Known as the War on 24, it is one of the state’s top rivalries.
The Silver Lake Eagles and Rossville Bulldogs not only battle every year in the Mid-East League, the two teams also will face off in the Class 3A semifinals for the eighth time in 12 years.
Rossville won the regular-season matchup, defeating the Eagles 27-21 on Oct. 11. It was the Bulldogs’ first win against Silver Lake since the 2003 regular season. In that same year, Silver Lake went on to beat Rossville during the rematch in the playoffs.
Silver Lake turned the ball over four times in the first meeting against Rossville. It was Eagles quarterback Dailin Kruger’s first game back since tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee. Kruger passed for 180 yards in the loss.
Kruger has passed for 1,888 yards and 24 touchdowns with only five interceptions. Kruger’s rushed for about 350 yards but most of that came before his knee injury.
Junior Cody Renfro leads the Eagles with 740 yards rushing and 15 touchdowns on 119 carries. Junior Ryan Matzke has rushed for 634 yards and 11 touchdowns on 73 carries.
Silver Lake junior wide receiver Jace Freeman leads the Eagles with 38 catches for 826 yards and 12 touchdowns. Isaac Pridey has 32 receptions for 572 yards and seven touchdowns.
Senior Johnathan Dallman leads the Silver Lake defense with 116 tackles.
The Eagles are vying for their fourth straight trip to the state championship game.
Rossville is led by dual-threat quarterback Tucker Horak. The sophomore has passed for 1,554 yards and 12 TDs, while rushing for 1,752 yards and 33 touchdowns. Horak ran for 119 yards and passed for 56 during the regular-season win against the Eagles.
Bulldogs junior Nick Reesor has rushed for 747 yards and 13 touchdowns. Junior Corbin Horak has 23 catches for 244 yards and two touchdowns. Jack Steckel and Christian Roduner have 19 catches each, while Devin Morris has 18 catches.
Senior Tagen Lambotte leads Rossville with 108 tackles.
This is a game that could go either way, but in a game of two evenly-matched teams it will be difficult to win twice in the same season.
Silver Lake 24, Rossville 21 (Schremmer)
3A West: No. 4 Scott City (11-1) vs. No. 1 Beloit (12-0)
For multiple years, Scott City delivered double-digit win seasons but had multiple close playoff losses. From 2006-11, Scott City lost in the quarterfinals five times and once in the round of 16. Last season, the Beavers broke through, went 14-0 and won the Class 3A state title.
Now, Beloit has taken the place of Scott City. The Trojans have enjoyed Kansas’ best offense for the past seven years and this is their third sub-state title trip in the last four years. However, the Trojans haven’t reached a state game since winning it in 1996.
Beloit again paces Kansas 11-man teams with 657 points, while Scott City stands fifth in Class 3A with 127 points allowed. Scott City is the best defense Beloit has played this season, and the Trojans have played multiple shootouts, including a 66-41 win against Sedgwick last week, a 57-30 victory against Holcomb two weeks ago and a 56-44 win versus Sacred Heart in Week 4.
Senior Bowe Behymer has rushed for 1,887 yards and 28 scores, while Tanner Niemczyk has rushed for 1,026 yards and 11 TDs to pace the Trojans. Senior quarterback Payton Vetter has 1,013 passing yards and 15 TDs and 954 rushing yards with 13 scores.
Scott City has won multiple low-scoring games, including 14-0 against Hoisington in the regular season, 24-21 versus Phillipsburg two weeks ago, and 20-7 against Conway Springs last week.
Junior quarterback Trey O’Neil leads the offense, completing 84 of 146 passes for 1,300 yards with a 13/5 TD/INT ratio. Senior Warren Kropp leads the defense with 19 tackles for loss, while sophomore Cooper Griffith has 11 TFLs.
Fumbles could be a big factor. Beloit has fumbled 11 times and lost 10, while Scott City has 26 fumbles, 19 lost.
Scott City will come prepared behind one of Kansas’ best coaches in Glenn O’Neil, but doesn’t have near enough to slow down a Beloit offense that has tallied at least 36 points in every game.
Beloit 32, Scott City 22 (Nicholl)
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