2016 Prep Football Preview

August 25, 2016 www.wcfcourier.com

PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW INSIDE ...

Follow the leader: QBs shoulder big load ... Page 3

Class 4A, District 5 ............................. Pages 8-9

Class 1A, Districts 2, 3 ..................... Pages 15-17

Safety first: Avoiding injuries a priority ..... Page 5

Class 3A, Districts 2, 3 ..................... Pages 10-11

Class A, Districts 3, 4, 5 ................... Pages 18-21

Old vs. new: More than one way to success .. Page 7

Class 2A, Districts 2, 3, 4 .................. Pages 12-14

8-player, Districts 2, 4 ..................... Pages 22-24

2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

THE COURIER • wcfcourier.com

Thursday, August 25, 2016 | S3

THE MODERN QUARTERBACK

Today’s QBs shoulder a big load Leadership skills, knowledge are more important than ever DOUG NEWHOFF doug.newhoff@wcfcourier.com‌

‌Today’s high school football coaches ask for a lot from their quarterbacks.

Physical assets such as the size to see over the line, the toughness to take a hit and run the ball and the quickness and footwork to elude a pass rush and extend a play are all important, as is the arm strength and accuracy to get the ball downfield on time.

Then there are the intangibles. Today’s most successful signal-callers are not only exceptional athletes, but also exceptional decision-makers and leaders. They know what everyone is supposed to do on every play. They know basic defenses and coverages. They know how to take what they see and use it in what they do. They know when to take a sack or throw the ball away rather than force the action.

Waterloo West has one of the state’s top quarterbacks in Iowa State-bound senior Devon Moore. He is, as they say, the total package.

Devon’s father, Lonnie, is West’s head coach and he trusts his son to read, react and make the right decisions whether it’s a run-pass option or what the Wahawks call a “freedom play.”

In fact, there are times when even Lonnie Moore won’t know for certain what’s coming.

Just as important, Devon Moore’s teammates trust him, too.

“Skill is important, but I think you have to be a natural born leader to be a quarterback,” Lonnie Moore points out. “You’re going to have the ball in your hands every play. You have to make good decisions. You have

to be able to get the ball where it needs to be on time. Your teammates have to respect you.

“Those are things that happen throughout years of playing the game.”

Devon Moore wanted to be a running back and kick returner when he was young. He still has a poster of Chicago Bears return star Devon Hester in his room.

“I think it was sixth-grade pee wee football when his coach wanted to try him out at quarterback,” recalls Lonnie Moore. “A lot of it was because of his leadership skills and the fact he could throw the ball.

“He loved it. Since then, I think it’s the things he has done away from the game that have gotten him over the top ... the camps he’s gone to, the time he gave up with his friends at the pool or hanging out or whatever, the hours he spends working on routes and throwing to his receivers on his own.”

Devon Moore is one of several standout quarterbacks in Northeast Iowa who will lead their teams this fall. Another is Drew Schmit at Jesup.

“First of all, I think it takes a great desire to play that position and take on that responsibility,” says Schmit’s coach, 14-year veteran Jason Sullivan. “A lot of guys are good athletes who can throw the ball and run, but they don’t want the responsibility the quarterback position entails today.”

Like Devon Moore, Schmit has the tangible skills, an innate ability to sense pressure and extend a play after it has broken down and a deep and thorough understanding of the J-Hawks’ offense and today’s defenses. He is also a true student of the game.

“I think the quarterback today probably has to know the most football,” noted Sullivan.

“He’s got to know what the line is doing in front of him, what the backs are doing behind him, what the receivers are doing on

TIFFANY RUSHING / COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Waterloo West quarterback Devon Moore prepares to deliver a pass during a win over Waterloo East last season. the outside, as well as what he’s doing. Their depth of knowledge has to be as good as anybody on the field and almost as good as the coaches on the sideline.”

When Schmit leads Jesup’s offense to the line of scrimmage, he’ll often have two plays to choose from and if it’s a pass play, he’ll decide among several options where to deliver the ball.

Sullivan knew Schmit had the right stuff after his freshman season.

“We sat down in my office after the season and I gave him a question he didn’t know was coming,” Sullivan relates. “I said, ‘If you

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had to put together a drive down the field to score a TD, tell me the plays you’re going to run.’

“He paused for a minute, then gave me a drive that was very similar to something I would have called.”

It’s no accident when good quarterbacks become great quarterbacks.

“Drew puts in a lot of tech-

nique work in the summer,” notes Sullivan. “He’s done several camps. He’ll work with our quarterback coach on footwork and his release and things that once we get into the season you don’t have a lot of time to do.

Film study ... it’s probably several hours a week on top of practice time and the film we watch as a team.

“It’s like a lot of things. You get out of it what you put into it. As a team, everything he does helps us, and as an individual he gets a lot out of it, too.”

Ultimately, football remains a team game and, as former University of Northern Iowa quarterbacks guru Mario Verduzco used to say, the quarterback is just one spoke in the wheel, albeit one with a lot of responsibility.

“In some cases, maybe the spread formations have made things easier for the quarterback as he doesn’t have to drop back from under center as much when throwing the ball and is free to create a bit more,” notes Waverly-Shell Rock head coach Mark Hubbard.

“It’s still about who blocks the best and who tackles the best.”

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2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

S4 | Thursday, August 25, 2016

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BUILDING A BETTER LINEMAN

Offensive line: Men among the boys Quick thinking, quick feet among main attributes JIM SULLIVAN jim.sullivan@wcfcourier.com‌

‌Steve Milder thinks the old stereotype attached to offensive linemen is a crime.

As evidence, Milder can remember a time when his football players up front made a defense pay.

It happened several years ago, when Milder had one of his better teams at West Central High School in Maynard.

“Our offensive line changed the blocking scheme on one play, and we ran the same play about eight times in a row,” said the longtime head coach of the Blue Devils. “We blocked it about three or four different ways, with our kids making the line calls. They made the adjustments. That’s what you can’t coach from the sidelines.”

Milder added, “There’s a big injustice done to offensive linemen.

Some people think they aren’t really smart people. We undersell linemen as big, dumb guys.

They might be big, but you can’t be dumb and play in the offensive line.”

In other words, finding and shaping a good offensive lineman, whether it’s a guard, tackle or center, is not merely a matter of finding the biggest kids in school.

A coach doesn’t just point them toward the defense. In fact, they may not be necessarily big at all.

“Obviously, we’ve been blessed to have kids with tremendous size,” said Aplington-Parkersburg head coach Alex Pollock. “But at the start of this year, we have three offensive linemen under 200 pounds. For us, (size) is not necessarily the end-all, be-all.

“What we need are tough kids, kids who can think on the fly.”

Given that defense may stunt, blitz or change personnel from

play to play, the ability to make quick decisions, to recognize what’s happening on the field in a split second, is crucial.

“The thing we try to develop the most with offensive linemen is thinking skills,” said North Fayette Valley head coach Bob Lape. “They have to know who to block and when to block them. We give kids a little latitude to make line calls and block it the way they see fit. So they need to think a little more.”

While the mind goes to work, the feet have to follow. It’s impossible for any offensive lineman to open a hole for a running back or protect the quarterback from a stationary position.

It’s not just a matter of moving.

It’s moving the right way — efficiently, quickly. That holds true for the big Division I prospects and the kids who tip the scales at 200 pounds. That process does not just happen overnight.

“You’ve got to be able to move your feet,” said Cedar Falls head coach Brad Remmert. “We’ve been fortunate. You look at guys like Ike Boettger. He was a tight end for us and he moved to the offensive line at Iowa. A great example is Ross Pierschbacher. He worked on footwork over and over. Now we have Spencer Williams going to Iowa.

“All those kids on the offensive line have gone out and worked hard on footwork and other things.

Those guys had a knack for finishing blocks. They were exceptional at getting on people and working their feet and driving through to a finished block.”

Remmert said longtime assistant coaches Ken Kolthoff and Don Erusha spend hours drilling offensive linemen on the sled, trying to polish footwork. That’s part of the process everywhere, as is film study, trying to correct fundamental mistakes.

And then there are camps.

Union Community head coach Joe Hadachek takes his Knights to the Midwest Linemen’s Camp at Illinois Wesleyan. Paul Alexander, the line coach for the Cincinnati

MATTHEW PUTNEY / COURIER PHOTO EDITOR‌

Ross Pierschbacher, right, spent hours of practice time polishing his footwork at Cedar Falls before going on to play college football at Alabama.

Bengals, is among the speakers.

Said Hadachek. “It’s really above the bar in terms of teaching the special skills of the offensive line. Guys are going to camps even more because they get exposure and they are trying to get better.

In Iowa, you can’t put on the pads and practice (in the summer). You go to a camp and you can at least put on shoulder pads and a helmet and go practice getting some reps in that gear. It’s vitally important.”

There are things, though, that can’t be taught at a camp or even during practice after practice banging a blocking sled.

It’s personality. And coaches say that having a little nasty streak may not be a must, but it helps.

“Getting after people, having that extra gear, loving collisions — yeah, those kids are easy to coach,” said Milder.

Added Pollock, “We don’t do anything dirty here. We ask them to be technicians. If they do what they’re taught, they’ll be successful. You can’t teach that nasty thing. Either you have it or you don’t. But you just know by watching practice if a player’s got an edge. If you have those guys in a group or you have five of them, you’ll probably be pretty good.”

Coaches also say that offensive

linemen need to understand their role. The skill position players — quarterbacks, running backs, receivers — are going to get most of the glory. That’s just the way it is.

So the motivation must come from somewhere else.

“I think it has to be an individual who has a lot of self pride and a self starter to be an offensive lineman,” said Milder. “You don’t receive a lot of praise and you don’t read your name in the paper very often.”

Lape, an offensive lineman

during his college days, likes to use a quote borrowed from Russ Grimm, the Hall of Fame offensive lineman who played for the Washington Redskins.

“He said in his Hall of Fame (induction) speech, ‘There’s no greater feeling in life than taking a man from point A to point B against his will.’ Kids kind of buy into that. I try to instill in my kids there’s more pride in knocking somebody over than in getting a big hit.”

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2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

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Thursday, August 25, 2016 | S5

TAKING CARE OF THE BODY

Nutrition, hydration are keys to prep Science helping coaches, players take care of bodies JIM SULLIVAN jim.sullivan@wcfcourier.com‌

‌ at, drink and get ready.

E It’s part of preparing for high school football games the right way. Coaches, players and families are devoting more time and

thought to nutrition and hydration.

Rather than simply gulping down a drink that just tastes good or eating a favorite food a few hours before kickoff, there are specific aims in mind — replenishing fluids, giving the body as much fuel for energy as possible.

And the process starts well before Friday nights, sometimes well before the season begins.

MATTHEW PUTNEY / COURIER PHOTO EDITOR‌

Waterloo West’s Osman Huskic takes a water break during an August preseason football practice. Coaches and players are paying more attention to keeping properly hydrated, a process that often starts long before taking the field.

At Cedar Falls, for example, workouts begin. mert. “It was kind of a stop sign head coach Brad Remmert and “Starting over the summer, progression. Green light — these his staff distribute information one thing we did was, we handed about what to eat before fall out to kids a food list,” said RemPlease see Prep, Page s6

AN EYE ON SAFETY

Safety first: New rules on blocking this season Clipping change will be big adjustment for some teams JIM NELSON jim.nelson@wcfcourier.com‌

‌The game of football can sometimes be violent. There are hard hits. There are hits an athlete doesn’t see coming.

Every year in January, the National Federation of State High School Associations football rules committee meets to go over proposed rule changes. The past few years, many of those new rules dealt with heat illness and concussions, and those continue to be points of emphasis.

As the 2016 season approaches, there will be some new rules, but one will be a big adjustment for a lot of high school teams in the

state of Iowa.

For the first time, clipping will not be allowed in the free-blocking zone (defined as a rectangular area extending laterally four yards on either side of the spot of the snap and three yards behind each line of scrimmage).

“From the national level that is the only major rule change,” said Iowa High School Athletic Association assistant director Todd Tharp, who serves on the NFHS national committee on rules. “Preventing knee injuries was the focus we had there.”

Athletes will still be allowed to block below the waist, but only if the blocker is directly in front of the blockee.

Waterloo West head coach Lonnie Moore said the new rule is a little challenging because the Wahawks used to do some cut blocking on the back side of plays,

especially with smaller linemen going against bigger defensive linemen.

However, at the same time, Moore says the new rule is good.

“We understand they are trying to make a safer game,” Moore said. “We are 100 percent for it.

We will just have to coach differently. It’s nothing that should be hard to adjust to if we teach it well and our athletes learn good technique.”

Concussions and preventing them continues to be a widely discussed topic. Tharp said three states — Oregon, Colorado and Hawaii — are experimenting with rules on peel-back blocks on punt returns.

“Basically, what they are looking at is the blocker has to have his hands fully extended on that block and can no longer drop their shoulder to make that hit on what

we call a ‘decleater,’” Tharp said.

“When you look at those blocks, officials do have the opportunity to call that a personal foul. What we try to do is continue to educate our officials and share videos on good calls made in those situations.”

As far as that experimental rule being implemented nationally,

Tharp said that will be something the committee will look at in the future.

“The rules committee meets in January and those organizations will give us some research and data on how the experiment went.

A lot of the things we discuss is about risk minimization, and that is one of those situations.”

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S6 | Thursday, August 25, 2016

2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

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HITTING THE ROAD

Routine a key to road trippin’ Area coaches strive for consistency as travel miles pile up NICK PETAROS nick.petaros@wcfcourier.com‌

‌Gladbrook-Reinbeck coach John Olson’s players can count on an after-school spaghetti dinner every Friday. Justin Brekke is content with his Hudson squad beating the home team to the field. As Janesville’s bus nears its final exit, coach Dale Eastman makes sure his team is locked in on the task at hand.

These coaches view consistency as the key to finding success on the road in high school football.

“We want to make it easy for the kids to understand what’s coming next,” Olson said. “We eat spa-

Prep From S5

are good things. Yellow — those are things in moderation. Red light — those are things you have to look at and limit some of those things.”

A green light food might be a pasta dish. At the other end of the spectrum, a red light could flash next to French fries or particularly greasy foods.

That’s one way to help athletes control diet. Another is to provide the food players eat on the eve of game time.

“We try to build a nutrition platform for them through the summer that we carry into the season,” said Remmert. “One of the things we do is always have a team meal the night before the game. We have a pretty good idea what they’re going to eat there.”

Joe Hadachek, the head football coach at Union Community, said parents are extensively involved in preparing the right pre-game foods for the Knights.

Moreover, said Hadachek, that involvement extends to Fridays and providing players with the

ghetti as a team after school at 3:30 on Fridays (home or away). We do the best we can to keep it 3:30 every day. ... If you eat at 2:45 it just seems a little different and you’re going to be hungry by 7. We try and treat every situation the same.”

District realignment will have loyal fan bases punching new coordinates into their GPS over the next two years with some road trips lasting past the two-hour mark. The season-opening, balmy bus rides with windows down at 55 miles per hour are sure to test any team’s mettle during the opening weeks.

“Bluebirds early in the year when it’s hot and there’s no air conditioning, you worry about hydration, you’re worried about mental focus,” Eastman said. “Depending on the length of a trip, we stop along the way, grab a Gatorade or something to stay hydrated, get

out and move around.”

A move to Class A has Hudson playing a schedule that will include lengthy trips to Des Moines’ Grand View Christian, Colfax-Mingo, B-G-M of Brooklyn and Belle Plaine. Brekke says getting out to stretch halfway is part of the routine on long road trips, in addition to arriving early.

“We’re always super early,” the Hudson coach said. “We don’t cut it short. ... We usually get strange looks when we show up early before the home team is there.”

One tradition Eastman has established at Janesville is making sure his team is locked in by the time the bus rolls into town.

“I’ve always made a habit once we hit the 10 miles out mark everybody gets woke up, earphones come off and we start to focus on the task at hand,” Eastman said.

right things to eat on the road.

“That’s changed a lot over the last 20 years,” the Union coach said. “You have 90-minute bus rides now and with a varsity player waiting for the curtain-raiser (preliminary) game to get done, you want them to get something that’s not greatly unsettling into their stomachs.

“The parents do a good job of sack lunching for us. The players are able to grab a couple of waters on the bus and some sandwiches.

They certainly don’t want them eating certain things and we do want them to always have something good.”

As for what to drink and when to drink it, the process of hydration often starts a couple of days before the game. Sports drinks and water are in; carbonated beverages with sugar are out.

Given that the regular season in football starts in what’s often a very warm late August, avoiding dehydration and issues like heatstroke are crucial.

“That’s a big push, making sure they’re hydrated — especially during the summer and the first part of the season,” said Remmert.

“We’re making sure they are taking in enough fluids. It starts prior to practice — the night before and taking a bunch of fluids during the day so when they come to practice they’re not trying to catch up.

“I don’t know if it’s a totally new principle, but we’re talking two nights before the game because we have so many games early on in the heat. We went to Iowa City (High) a couple of years ago and when we stepped off the bus, it was 101 degrees. So you start that (hydration) process about two nights before and come game night you hope you don’t have any issues with that.”

In this day and age, there is no shortage of information available on nutrition and hydration. The Iowa High School Athletic Association posts several pieces of literature on its website that offer guidance to interested individuals.

One item, entitled “Keep Your Motor Running,” stresses eating pre-game meals that are primarily carbohydrates, moderate in protein and low in fat. Another suggests drinking at least 24 ounces of non-caffeinated fluid for each pound lost in exercise. And another points to using nutrition

The long trips can also provide “I think some people weigh valuable last-minute game prepa- heavy into the, ‘Oh, we had to ride ration opportunities. Eight-player on a bus for two hours,’” Eastman football has no shortage of lengthy noted. “Are you going to let that bus rides on winding county highways.

Please see Road trip, Page S7 information provided only by organizations such as the American College of Sports Medicine.

Education is a key, according to Alan Beste, the Executive Director of the IHSAA and the man responsible for dealing with wellness issues.

“It’s really gotten to be quite a science,” said Beste. “I think that when I was hired in 1989, the primary duty in sports medicine and wellness was to make sure we were taking a look at the information out there on nutrition and hydration and sort of vetting it through, making sure we were providing research-based information.

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“We still do that today. Being able to at least reach out to sources and say this is a good study gives us some information into what’s good and what’s not good for students. I think the big thing is, high school coaches spend more time either visiting with their student-athletes and parents about nutrition or providing them with some good scientific information about what they should be eating.”

Hadachek said the process of understanding proper nutrition and hydration for athletes is ongoing.

“I think it’s just continuing education,” he said. “Like a lot of things, it starts in the home.”

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2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

THE COURIER • wcfcourier.com

Thursday, August 25, 2016 | S7

OLD SCHOOL VS. NEW SCHOOL

More than one way to build a winner Tradition is important, but so is adding to it JIM SULLIVAN jim.sullivan@wcfcourier.com‌

‌Bob Lape wanted harmony on his brand new football team.

So he gave his players a chance to deliver a musical hit.

When North Fayette and Valley Community began whole grade sharing three years ago, Lape became the fresh program’s head coach. A lot changed — the nickname, the uniforms, the school colors, the fight song and so on.

Lape had already spent years coaching North Fayette. Now, he was in charge of the Tigerhawks.

How would he promote unity and merge two programs and a pair of fan bases into one? Among other things, he turned to song.

“I thought it was important to teach the fight song to 75 kids in 2013,” said Lape. “It was a way to start. We sing it every game, win or lose. Now, our kids look forward to it. And, my gosh, the response we got from grandmas, aunts — people like that. They don’t leave now after games. They look forward to it.

“I felt that was a necessity. We had all these kids. We had to bring them together and we needed something to do that. It was one thing we could do.”

Thus, a tradition was born.

Something new was created.

Meanwhile, the coach stuck with the same wing-T offense that had been run at North Fayette for

Road trip

game after game after game under Ron Wymer and then Lape. While Lape had a new school, he had a traditional approach to football itself “Yeah, that’s old school,” said Lape. “That’s the way Coach Wymer did it ... and this is what we’re still doing.”

So there you have it. While dealing with changing times, different circumstances and innovations on the field, football coaches have to find a way to adjust and remain true to their respective programs at the same time. In other words, new school vs. old school remains a balancing act.

No prep football team has more tradition, for example, than Aplington-Parkersburg. From the Sacred Acre to the wing-t, the Falcons have remained very consistent — and successful — under the late Ed Thomas and now Alex Pollock.

A-P embraces an old school approach. Yet Pollock also believes that any football team has to evolve, albeit slightly, over time.

“I think tradition is very important,” said Pollock. “It’s something to look back on. Some of the traditions we’ve had have been going on for the last 40 years. It’s something we can hang our hats on with our kids. We don’t have to spend a lot of time explaining it. It’s getting to the point now where our players’ parents know about the traditions. That’s very special.

“When it’s working, you don’t want to make a ton of changes.

When I took over as the coach, I wanted to make sure we maintained those traditions while also

where you can focus on what you need to work on, talk to the coach From S6 about decisions you need to make?

“Several of our guys look at their two hour bus ride drain you so scouting reports while we’re travthat’s an excuse? Or are you going eling. Everything is fresh in your to use that two hours of a bus ride mind. Then you’re ready to go and

starting to make some of our own.

Hopefully, 30 years down the road, they’ll say that’s a pretty good tradition we started.”

The changes Pollock has brought to A-P football are, he said, “little things.”

He added, “It’s just the way we stretch, the way we come together as a team after we practice or after we stretch. It’s a couple of things we do in warmups before games.

It’s just little things — stuff I took from other places where I played and coached.

“I was encouraged, when I took over the program, to do things my way. I feel like I’ve done that. That said, we want to keep a lot of the good traditions. At the end of the day, I need to do the things I’m

comfortable with and what’s best for our players.”

Pollock believes that the Falcon wing-t offense remains the best option for his team. He’s also willing to tinker on the defensive side of the ball.

“A couple of years ago, we looked at switching more to a spread, no-huddle wing-t,” said Pollock. “It’s always good to be open to change, but at the end of the day, I don’t feel like we need to be doing a bunch of switching.

Defensively, I like to think what we’re doing is a mix between what was done here and things I brought with me. It’s just terminology and technique.”

At Cedar Falls, Brad Remmert has been part of the Tigers for years — first as a player, then as a co-coach with Pat Mitchell and now as a solo head coach.

He firmly believes in the identity Cedar Falls has established over time — a hard-hitting, physical program with players who are willing to buy in.

At the same time, Remmert knows there are places where a new school, fresh approach has to be tried.

“You have to,” said Remmert.

“I mean, you have to go look for new wrinkles, new ways to teach a drill or maybe attack a defense, or get after an offense with a wrinkle here and there. You have to do that. There are different things you can do that maybe people didn’t do 10 years ago.”

When coaches seek a new wrinkle, a different approach, they turn to outside sources.

Some believe in clinics. Others visit with college programs, or

dialed in when it’s time to take the field and can hopefully come away with a road victory.”

Winning on a road certainly makes the trip home easier. Many teams also have a Saturday morning walk-through that helps set

the tone for the following week.

“The road trip is going to be short if you win,” Brekke said.

“Then the next morning you’re excited to come watch film, you’re excited to come talk to the guys again.”

MATTHEW PUTNEY, COURIER PHOTO EDITOR‌

The Sacred Acre rock outside the football field at AplingtonParkersburg is one of many traditions that are part of the Falcon program.

speak with other prep coaches on an informal basis.

“More than anything, these colleges are willing to sit down and talk to you,” said Lape. “When we visit Iowa State they’re glad to see you and they’re willing to share what they have. Luther is close to us and Upper Iowa. I talk to those people. Clinics are good things, but if there’s something specific you’re looking for, colleges open their doors and are willing to help you any way you want.”

Said Pollock, “I love meeting with other coaches. At clinics, they’re very vague. Most of the coaches don’t want to give away any big secrets. I’ve spoken at clinics and I don’t want to give away a lot of information. Once you get to meet with a college staff or another high school staff, they’re probably a whole lot more open.”

In the 21st century, technology and the rise of the Internet have opened up new ways to communicate. It’s been noticed by high school football coaches.

At Cedar Falls, for example, the coaching staff will use email, or put information on a website.

The Tigers also use video systems and even social media to get out the word.

“There are certain things we’ll put on the Twitter account,” said Remmert. “If there’s a late practice change, we want to make sure kids get that right away.”

Good Luck, Dons!

S8 | Thursday, August 25, 2016

2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

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CLASS 4A, DISTRICT 5

New district brings new challenges Metro teams face uphill battle to top of District 5 JIM NELSON jim.nelson@wcfcourier.com‌

‌Cedar Falls has not missed the Class 4A football playoffs since 2003.

Cedar Rapids Washington has been left out just once since 2007.

Cedar Rapids Jefferson has qualified in back-to-back seasons and is one of the rising 4A programs in the state.

Those three teams are all in Class 4A’s new District 5. And with just two playoff berths up for grabs, that means there’s no margin for error for the other three teams in the district — Waterloo East, Waterloo West and Mason City.

Washington was a playoff quarterfinalist last year and while the Warriors must replace a ton of skill players, including their starting quarterback, top four rushers and top receiver, the cupboard is not entirely bare.

Part of the reason for optimism is the return of Iowa State recruit O’Rien Vance. The senior defensive end was one of the top tacklers in the state last year, recording 120 tackles. Additionally, the Warriors return several other defensive starters, which should allow their offense to grow heading into district play.

Cedar Falls is in a similar boat with the Tigers’ defense ahead of

Watch list

TIFFANY RUSHING / COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Cedar Falls’ Hayden Clausen, right, runs the ball during a game against Iowa City High last season. the offense.

“We must replace several offensive linemen and a quarterback that were two-year starters,” Cedar Falls head coach Brad Remmert

said. “Several defensive starters return and our kicker and punter should be a strength.”

The Tigers return seven defensive starters, including top

Harrison Eighmey (Waterloo West):

O’Rien Vance (C.R. Washington): 82-

110-562, 2 TDs PASSING Hayden Clausen (Cedar Falls): 104-521, Devon Moore (Waterloo West): 95-1578 TDs 4, 1,423 yards, 9 TDs RECEIVING Landen Clemmenson (Waterloo East): Tayshaun Cooper (Waterloo West): 66-143-7, 803 yards, 5 TDs 12-137, 1 TD Danny Kamm (Mason City), 43-100-9, Christian Banks (Waterloo East): 10-165, 478 yards, 2 TDs 2 TDs RUSHING Levi Lenius (Waterloo West): 9-169, 1 TD Tavian Rashed (C.R. Jefferson): 108-687, TACKLES 3 TDs Tavian Rashed (C.R. Jefferson): 9446- 140

38-120 Sam Gerst (Waterloo West): 36-53-89 Isaac Bartel (Mason City): 30-51-81 Dalton Godfrey (Cedar Falls): 25-34-59

INTERCEPTIONS Weston Schultz (Mason City): 2 Dalton Godfrey (Cedar Falls): 2 KICKING Adijan Muhamedagic (West): 19-24 PATs PUNTING Luke Loecher (Cedar Falls): 47-36.1 avg.

returning tackler and linebacker rushing for 521 yards and eight Dalton Godfrey (25 solo, 34 as- scores in 2015. sists). Offensively, running back Hayden Clausen returns after Please see District 5, Page S9

V

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2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

From S8

Waterloo East Trojans

HEAD COACH: Xavier Leonard 2015 RECORDS: 0-9 overall, 0-5 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 12 RETURNING STARTERS (12): Carter Thill, ol-dl, Kadar Harrington, ol-lb/de, Eric Gleiter, ol-lb, Tyus Phillips, ol-dt, Omar Begic, ol-dt, Landen Clemmenson, qb, Tyrell Gordon, rb-lb/s, Jaylon Holmes, rb-lb, Tyre Reed, wr-db, Christian Banks, wr-db, Alijah Muhammad, wr-db.

   

Waterloo West Wahawks

HEAD COACH: Lonnie Moore 2015 RECORDS: 3-6 overall, 1-4 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 26 RETURNING STARTERS (12): Nick Joens, ol, Harrison Eighmey, rb, Levi Lenius, wr, Devon Moore, qb, Tayshaun Cooper, wr-db, Adijan Muhamedagic, k, Alex Schneider, ol, Sam Gerst, ss, Dylan Meyer, lb, Brendon Claussen, dl, Colton Hersey, dl, Ryan Duffy, dl.

   

Cedar Falls Tigers

HEAD COACH: Brad Remmert 2015 RECORDS: 6-4 overall, 3-2 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 14 RETURNING STARTERS (9): Luke Loecher, te, Hayden Clausen, rb, Dalton Godfrey, fb-lb, Colin Klatt, dt, Josh Nelson, dl, Keegan Larson, dl, Bryce Pilcher, lb, Seb Gebhart, db, Sam Cirksena, db.

TIFFANY RUSHING, COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Waterloo East quarterback Landen Clemmensen tries to elude Waterloo West’s Colton Hersey, center, and Brendon Claussen during a game last season.

stead at Waterloo West (ND), East at Newton (ND), Mason City at Marshalltown (ND).

Cedar Rapids Jefferson  SEPT. 9 – C.R. Washington at Bettendorf  HEAD COACH: Brian Webb (ND), Cedar Falls at I.C. West (ND), Linn-Mar  2015 RECORDS: 7-4 overall, 3-2 district at C.R Jefferson (ND), Marshalltown at East  RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 11 (ND), Mason City at Fort Dodge (ND), Water RETURNING STARTERS (8): Dylan Hart, 2016 schedule loo West at Western Dubuque (ND). qb-lb, Devonte Taylor, wr-db, Tavian Rashed,  AUG. 26 – C.R. Washington at C.R. Prairie  SEPT. 16 – C.R. Jefferson at C.R. Kennedy rb-lb, Kennan Stewart, rb-de, Colton Kuehl, (ND), Cedar Falls at Fort Dodge (ND), Clear (ND), C.R. Washington at Linn-Mar (ND), ol-dl, Blake Owens, ol-dl, Daniel Everts, ol-dl, Lake at Mason (ND), Dubuque Senior StayCityconnected withat everything Dubuque Hempstead at East (ND), UrbanMatt Culver, ol-dl.

Waterloo West (ND),that’s East at D.M. North (ND),local. dale at Mason City (ND), Waterloo West at uniquely Pleasant Valley at C.R Jefferson (ND).

Marshalltown (ND), Western Dubuque at Mason City Mohawks  SEPT. 2 – Ames at Cedar Falls (ND), C.R. Cedar Falls (ND).

Jefferson at C.R. Prairie (ND), C.R. Kennedy  HEAD COACH: Matt Berkley  SEPT. 22 – C.R Jefferson at C.R. Wash• MOBILE • ONLINE •ington.

PRINT TABLET at C.R. Washington (ND), Dubuque Hemp 2015 RECORDS: 1-8 overall, 0-5 district  RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 14  RETURNING STARTERS (14): Isaac Bartel, lb, Carter Roberts, lb, Weston Schultz, lb, Ryan Wendel, s, Danny Kamm, qb, Trey Wiegmann, rb, Kenyon Draper, cb, Brady Tilkes, ol, Alex White, ol, Logan Davis, ol, Jeff Shurtz, ol, Adrian Debrah, wr, Jared Gilmore, wr, Zach Stephenson, wr.

Vance, lb-te, Ben Nassif, fb-lb, Gerry Alt, ol, Peter Gruebel, ol, Andrew Todd, ol, Drew Dostal, s-wr, Rane Weiland, de, Connor Malcolm, lb, Ian Thomas, lb, Bryan Kunde, qb, Trey Leonard, wr, Billy Faulkner, ol.

FULL ACCESS

C.R. Washington Warriors    

HEAD COACH: Paul James 2015 RECORDS: 10-2 overall, 4-1 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 12 RETURNING STARTERS (12): O’Rien

S9

District 5

Capsules

   

THURSDAY, AUGUST 25, 2016 |

 SEPT.23 – Cedar Falls at Mason City, East

at Waterloo West.  SEPT. 29 – Waterloo West at C.R Jeffer-

son.  SEPT. 30 – Cedar Falls at C.R. Washing-

ton, Mason City at East.  OCT. 7 – Waterloo West at Cedar Falls,

C.R Jefferson at East, C.R. Washington at Mason City.  OCT. 13 – East at C.R. Washington,  OCT. 14 – Cedar Falls at C.R Jefferson, Mason City at Waterloo West.  OCT. 21 – C.R Jefferson at Mason City, C.R. Washington at Waterloo West, East at Cedar Falls

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Cedar Falls opens with a tough, non-district schedule that includes Fort Dodge, Ames and Iowa City West, all of which were playoff qualifiers last season.

Waterloo West lost eight key players off a 3-6 squad, but returns Iowa State recruit Devon Moore at quarterback. Moore is completely recovered from a broken leg he suffered last season in game six that caused him to miss the Wahawks’ final three games.

In his six starts, Moore passed for 1,423 yards and nine scores. He has leading returning rusher Harrison Eighmey (562 yards) and two of his favorite targets back, as well, in Tayshaun Cooper and Levi Lenius.

West returns just two players with offensive line experience — Nick Joens and Alex Schneider.

Defensively, the Wahawks return safety Sam Gerst, who led the team with 89 tackles in 2015.

Low numbers concern firstyear Waterloo East coach Xavier Leonard.

The Trojans, however, return 11 players who had starting experience on both sides of the ball last season, including quarterback Landen Clemmenson, who passed for 803 yards last year. East also returns five offensive linemen with starting experience — Carter Thill, Kadar Harrington, Eric Gleiter, Tyus Phillips and Omar Begic.

Cedar Rapids Jefferson won a playoff game in 2015 and returns eight starters off that squad, including third-team all-state linebacker Tavian Rashed, who also rushed for 687 yards.

Mason City returns 14 total starters from a 1-8 squad.

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S10 | Thursday, August 25, 2016

wcfcourier.com • THE COURIER

CLASS 3A, DISTRICT 3

Realignment creates a District 3 monster Survivors will be battle-tested after regular-season grind DOUG NEWHOFF doug.newhoff@wcfcourier.com‌

‌Survive District 3 and you might just conquer Class 3A football this season.

Realignment has created a monster consisting of six 2015 playoff teams, three of which won at least one postseason game a year ago.

One of the first teams nearly everyone points to as a favorite is Cedar Rapids Xavier. Under the direction of 23rd-year head coach Duane Schulte, the Saints went 9-1 a year ago, return nine starters among 28 letterwinners and welcome a junior class that went undefeated.

Quarterback Bryce Schulte is back after completing 58 percent of his passes for 1,516 yards and 20 TDs and running for 175 yards and five scores on the way to District 4 Player of the Year honors. Maliki Wilson also returns. He ran for 1,273 yards and 12 TDs, racked up 206 receiving yards and averaged 25.5 yards on kickoff returns to earn second-team all-state honors. Those two players will work behind an offensive line anchored by a pair of returning all-district performers.

Waverly-Shell Rock is another of the district’s preseason favorites.

The Go-Hawks will be breaking in a new backfield, but those newcomers will go to work behind a veteran offensive line that returns starters Jacob Eggleston, Riley Lubben and Matt Bibler, as well as tight end Nick Schwemm.

“The offensive line will have an opportunity to be one of the better ones we’ve had here,” says GoHawks head coach Mark Hubbard.

W-SR has a proven playmaker at receiver in Joey McNally (28 catches, 450 yards, 16.1 yards per catch), who is among a big senior class that numbers 21 players.

Perennial 3A power Decorah

returns just six starters and 13 letterwinners, but welcomes a junior class into the mix that went undefeated last season.

“Again fans will see a lot of new names and faces,” says veteran head coach Bill Post. “A new quarterback, as well as new offensive and defensive lines need to be established.”

Independence bid farewell to several of the most prolific playmakers in the program’s history, but has established a winning cul- good in the trenches,” notes head ture with high expectations. coch Justin Putz.

“We have some work to do at the Charles City will try to capitalize skill positions, but we should be on one of the district’s top passing

Watch list

KICKOFF RETURNS

PASSING

Kolbie Clark, South Tama: 7-276, 39.4

Bryce Schulte, C.R. Xavier: 87-151-5,

1,516 yards, 20 TDs Drew Mitchell, Charles City: 62-166-7, 1,027 yards, 10 TDs Clayton Rosenberger, South Tama: 4579-3, 794 yards, 3 TDs Riley Pfiffner, Benton: 54-111-7, 783 yards, 9 TDs RUSHING Maliki Wilson, C.R. Xavier: 183-1,273, 7.0 avg., 12 TDs Riley Pfiffner, Benton: 156-848, 5.4 avg., 7 TDs RECEIVING Jaden Foster, Charles City: 25-461, 18.4 avg., 3 TDs Joey McNally, Waverly-Shell Rock: 28450, 16.1 avg., 2 TDs Tyler Bartz, Vinton-Shellsburg: 11-232, 21.1 avg., 2 TDs TACKLES Will Edwards, Vinton-Shellsburg: 6315—78, 4 TFLs Wes Edwards, Vinton-Shellsburg: 5516—71, 4 TFLs INTERCEPTIONS Jaden Foster, Charles City: 5-41, no TDs KICKING Nathan Weiss, South Tama: 44-51 PATs, 3-3 FGs Jacob Norton, Waverly-Shell Rock: 2225 PATs, 1-4 FGs Vance Bartelt, Benton: 20-22 PATs, 2-3 FGs

avg., 2 TDs

Waverly-Shell Rock returns a large senior class to lead the way as the Go-Hawks head into the 2016 football season.

TIFFANY RUSHING , COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

combinations. Quarterback Drew Mitchell threw for 1,027 yards last season with 25 of his throws landing in the hands of Jaden Foster,

who also made an impact in the secondary with five interceptions.

Tyreque Baker returns in the backfield and is another impact player.

Foster, wr-s; Alex Koehler, rb-lb; A.J. Malory, ol-dt; Drew Mitchell, qb; Tyreque Baker, rb-cb;

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 5 RETURNING STARTERS (5): Clay

trict (2A)

Rosenberger, qb; Kolby Clark, wr-lb-cb; Kyle Kuchera, ol-dl; Nathan Wiess, pk; Isac HEAD COACH: Bill Post avg., no TDs Judge, lb.

2015 RECORDS: 6-5 overall, 3-3 district Vinton-Shellsburg Vikings‌ RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 13 HEAD COACH: Jim Womochil RETURNING STARTERS (6): Adam 2015 RECORDS: 3-6 overall, 2-4 Hovden, ol-lb; Jacob Roher, b-de; Shawn Benton Community Bobcats‌ Shindelar, te-de; Brendan Numedahl, district HEAD COACH: Kal Goodchild

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA rb-db; Dawson Meyer, wb-db; Andy Lille 2015 RECORDS: 5-5 overall, 3-3 district RETURNING STARTERS (7): Will graven, ol-lb.

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA Edwards, rb-lb; Wes Edwards, rb-lb; Nate RETURNING STARTERS (10): Riley Independence Mustangs‌ Struve, wr-lb; Tyler Bartz, wr; J.T. ThompPfiffner, qb-lb; Matt Davis, rb; Sam Maresh, HEAD COACH: Justin Putz son, wr-db; Tanner Davis, rb-db; Drew rb-dt; Alex Juergens, te; Blade Durbala, ol-dt; 2015 RECORDS: 8-2 overall, 5-1 district WIley, ol-dl.

Charlie Parizek, ol; Anthony Draman, dt; Baily RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 10 Waverly-Shell Rock Go-Hawks‌ Sonka, dt; Spencer Touro, lb; Vance Bartelt, RETURNING STARTERS (6): Andrue HEAD COACH: Mark Hubbard pk, Kole Marshall, wr.

Wright, ot; Hunter Crawford, og; Cyrus 2015 RECORDS: 6-4 overall, 3-3 Butters, cb; Mason Wood, lb; Isaiah Miller, district Charles City Comets‌ dl; Austin Larkin, dl.

HEAD COACH: Darren Bohlen RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 19 2015 RECORDS: 3-6 overall, 1-5 district South Tama Trojans‌ RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 7 HEAD COACH: Nate Doran Please see 3A-3 capsules, Page S11 RETURNING STARTERS (6): Jaden 2015 RECORDS: 11-1 overall, 6-0 dis Maliki Wilson, C.R. Xavier: 8-204, 25.5

Decorah Vikings‌

Capsules

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2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

THE COURIER • wcfcourier.com

3A-3 capsules From S10

RETURNING STARTERS (10): Joey

McNally, se-olb; Jacob Kaisand, og; Jacob Eggleston, ot-dt; Nick Schwemm, te-olb; Riley Lubben, c; Matt Bibler, ol; Trevor Byrum, ng; Jackson Little, db; Jacob Norton, pk; Brandon Hinders, pt.

C.R. Xavier Saints‌

HEAD COACH: Duane Schulte 2015 RECORDS: 9-1 overall, 6-0

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 28 RETURNING STARTERS (9): Bryce

Schulte, qb; Maliki Wilson, rb; Max Johnson, ol; Erik Rodriguez, rb; Sam Meyers, ol; Ryan Jasper, ol; Josh Gerke, db; Zach Barish, dl; Lucas Miller, dl.

2016 schedule‌

AUG. 26 — Oelwein at Benton, New

Hampton at Charles City, North Fayette Valley at Decorah, West Delaware at Independence, South Tama at Grinnell, Center Point-Urbana at Vinton-Shellsburg, Crestwood at Waverly-Shell Rock, Iowa City Regina at Cedar Rapids Xavier.

SEPT. 2 — Benton at Marion, Charles City at Osage, Decorah at Crestwood, Independence at Clear Creek-Amana, Williamsburg at South Tama, Vinton-Shellsburg at Union, Waverly-Shell Rock at North Fayette Valley, Cedar Rapids Xavier at Linn-Mar. SEPT. 9 — Cedar Rapids Xavier at Benton, South Tama at Charles City, Decorah at Vinton-Shellsburg, Waverly-Shell Rock at Independence.

SEPT. 16 — Benton at Decorah, Charles City at Cedar Rapids Xavier, Independence at South Tama, Vinton-Shellsburg at Waverly-Shell Rock.

SEPT. 23 — Waverly-Shell Rock at Benton, Charles City at Independence, Cedar Rapids Xavier at Decorah, South Tama at Vinton-Shellsburg.

SEPT. 30 — Benton at South Tama, Vinton-Shellsburg at Charles City, Decorah at Waverly-Shell Rock, Independence at Cedar Rapids Xavier.

OCT. 7 — Charles City at Benton, South Tama at Decorah, Independence at Vinton-Shellsburg, Cedar Rapids Xavier at Waverly-Shell Rock.

OCT. 14 — Benton at Independence, Decorah at Charles City, Waverly-Shell Rock at South Tama, Vinton-Shellsburg at Cedar Rapids Xavier.

OCT. 21 — Benton at Vinton-Shellsburg, Charles City at Waverly-Shell Rock, Independence at Decorah, Cedar Rapids Xavier at South Tama

Thursday, August 25, 2016 | S11

CLASS 3A, DISTRICT 2

Year of discovery for IF-A district filled with new opponents.

The Cadets bowed out in the first round of the 2A playoffs a year ago and their bid to get back to the postseason will be built around 12 returning starters. That group inDOUG NEWHOFF cludes Logan Ward (687 rushing doug.newhoff@wcfcourier.com‌ yards, 9.7 per carry), receivers Ben ‌Iowa Falls-Alden jumps up to Scadden (33 catches, 376 yards) Class 3A this season and into a and Weston Meyer (12-282), and

talented kicker Jonah Zaimes (2828 PATs, 4-8 FGs).

Four more 2015 playoff qualifiers now reside in District 2 — Webster City, Dallas Center-Grimes, Gilbert and Ballard.

Webster City reached the quarterfinals during an 11-1 campaign and has nine returning starters.

Payton Kannuan is back after

Capsules

Perry Bluejays‌

Cadets have new coach, new foes in move up to Class 3A

Iowa Falls-Alden Cadets‌

HEAD COACH: Pat Norem 2015 RECORDS: 4-6 overall, 3-3

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 12 RETURNING STARTERS (12): Jace Ites, ot-de; Ben Steinfeldt, og, Danny Roach, ot-de; Ben Scadden, wr; Weston Meyer, wr; Montana Marchant, rb-s; Logan Ward, rb-cb-pt; Luke Norem, dt; Victor Sanchez, dt; Michael Kent, lb; Logan Steelman, cb; Jonah Zaimes, lb-pk.

Dallas Center-Grimes Mustangs‌ HEAD COACH: Scott Heitland 2015 RECORDS: 9-3 overall, 6-1

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 15 RETURNING STARTERS (9): Damon Clapper, qb; Nathan Brown, rb; Trent Pride, te; Miciah Hidlebaugh, ol; Nick Claman, ol; Coty Lemon, dl; Trey Washington, db; Tyler Cooney, db; Ryan Johnson, dl.

Greene County Rams‌

HEAD COACH: Dean Lansman 2015 RECORDS: 4-5 overall, 2-4

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 11 RETURNING STARTERS (7): Nick Schroeder, wr; Chase Stoline, wr-cb; Trey Tucker, rb-lb; Hunter Ruth, ol; Logan Lansman, s; Jake Berns, lb-rb; Anthony Jacobsen, wr-de.

Ballard Bombers‌

HEAD COACH: Al Christian 2015 RECORDS: 7-4 overall, 5-1

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA RETURNING STARTERS (17): Max Stoltz, qb; Hunter Wright, rb; Austin Edwards, te; Taylor Roberts, wr; Tyler Ihle, wr; Lawton Wright, ol; Austin Gealow, ol; Jack

Baumhover, ol; Tyler Maire, ol; Gavin Hobbs, rb; Bryce Strumpfer, ol; Kenton Brekke, s; Noah Rosing, cb; Seth Moore, lb; Cade Wilson, lb; Sam Upah, lb; Kaleb Odden, lb.

Boone Toreadors‌

HEAD COACH: Mark Camenisch 2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 2-4

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 19 RETURNING STARTERS (14): Sam Miller, ot-dt; Jackson Miller, og; Brody Woodruff, ot; Tyler Hansen, og; Kade Morain, og-lb; Tanner Schminke, qb-db; John Herrick, wr; Kaden Sherrard, rb; Lane Losh, wr; Jackson Smith, pk; Tanner Frost, de; Trey Smith, de; Colbey Wadsworth, lb; Mason Hulse, db.

Gilbert Tigers‌

HEAD COACH: Sott Auderer 2015 RECORDS: 9-2 overall, 6-0

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA RETURNING STARTERS (11): Steven Lawrence qb; Cody Dvorak, wr-s; Phil Roetman, te-lb; Christian Harder, ol; Grant Samson, ol; Jeb Shaw, ol-dl; Austin Brause, ol; Jack Currans, fb-lb; Eli Harris, dl; Schuyler Hop, db; Andrew Thatcher, pk.

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HEAD COACH: Jason Olejniczak 2015 RECORDS: 0-9 overall, 0-6

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 16 RETURNING STARTERS (10): Reece Dunlop, wr; Nick Fellom, wr-lb; Adan Medina, wr-lb; Tyler Soll, ol-dt; Kevin Lopez, ol; Brandon Juarez, db; Donald Chavez, db; Mana Martinez, db; Marc Campos, lb; Grant Ecklund, lb.

Webster City Lynx‌

HEAD COACH: Bob Howard 2015 RECORDS: 11-1 overall, 6-0

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA RETURNING STARTERS (9): Ashton High, ol; Cooper Lawson, ol-dt; Zac Lucero, ol; Payton Kannuan, rb; James Cherry, ng; Cole Briese, de; James Van Diest, lb; Zane Carter, cb; Robert Frederickson, dt.

2016 schedule‌

AUG. 26 — Ballard at Carlisle, Boone

at Creston/Orient-Macksburg, ADM at Dallas Center-Grimes, Gilbert at Roland-Story, Greene County at Carroll Kuemper, Hampton-Dumont at Iowa Falls-Alden, North Polk at Perry, Humboldt at Webster City.

rushing for 1,254 yards (9.2 per carry) and 11 touchdowns. The Lynx also have three starting offensive linemen and four defensive linemen returning.

Dallas Center-Grimes is coming off a 9-3 season that also ended in the postseason quarterfinals. The Mustangs also have nine starters back.

SEPT. 2 — Ballard at ADM, Bon-

durant-Farrar at Boone, Dallas Center-Grimes at Pella, Carlisle at Gilbert, Greene County at Harlan, Iowa Falls-Alden at Aplington-Parkersburg, Nevada at Perry, Webster City at Clear Lake.

SEPT. 9 — Perry at Ballard, Iowa Falls-Alden at Boone, Dallas Center-Grimes at Greene County, Webster City at Gilbert.

SEPT. 16 — Ballard at Dallas Center-Grimes, Boone at Perry, Gilbert at Iowa Falls-Alden, Greene County at Webster City.

SEPT. 23 — Webster City at Ballard, Boone at Gilbert, Perry at Dallas Center-Grimes, Iowa Falls-Alden at Greene County.

SEPT. 30 — Ballard at Iowa Falls-Alden, Greene County at Boone, Dallas Center-Grimes at Webster City, Gilbert at Perry.

OCT. 7 — Boone at Ballard, Iowa Falls-Alden at Dallas Center-Grimes, Gilbert at Greene County, Perry at Webster City.

OCT. 14 — Ballard at Gilbert, Dallas Center-Grimes at Boone, Perry at Greene County, Webster City at Iowa Falls-Alden.

OCT. 21 — Greene County at Ballard, Boone at Webster City, Gilbert at Dallas Center-Grimes, Iowa Falls-Alden at Perry.

2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

S12 | Thursday, August 25, 2016

wcfcourier.com • THE COURIER

CLASS 2A, DISTRICT 3

Wolverines step back up to 2A Johnson has chance to become all-time state rushing leader JIM NELSON jim.nelson@wcfcourier.com‌

‌Dike-New Hartford head coach Don Betts knows he has all the tools he needs for another successful high school football season.

He also knows it’s a tougher task in Class 2A. Following a run to the Class 1A semifinals last fall, the Wolverines are moving up a class this season. .

“The last time we were in 2A, the thing I remember most about 2A is you don’t have a week off, ever,” Betts said. “You always have a very physical team you are playing against. To me, that is the biggest difference between 1A and 2A. “We are going to have some real head bangers, and we have to sur-

Watch list PASSING

Brett Staton (Roland-Story): 60-103-7,

962, 7 TDs Ty Cook (South Hardin): 56-115-11, 793, 5 TDs Cade Alberts (A-P): 42-87-6, 771, 6 TDs Eli Tremain (West Marshall): 48-100-6, 598, 2 TDs Hunter McWhirter (C-M-B): 53-89-1, 519, 2 TDs RUSHING Trent Johnson (D-NH): 323-2,619, 28 TDs Blake Coughenour (C-M-B): 71-711, 12 TDs Caleb Schlatter (Roland-Story): 137-695, 7 TDs RECEIVING Logan Nicholson (East Marshall): 22-158, 1 TD Hnter Nessa (South Hardin): 13-177, 1 TD Blake Coughenour (C-M-B): 8-211, 3 TDs TACKLES Noah Bandstra (East Marshall): 79 Trevor Sprague (Saydel): 66 Caleb Schlatter (Roland-Story): 61 Nick Durnin (D-NH): 56

vive injury wise to have success.”

Dike-New Hartford and Collins-Maxwell-Baxter figure to be the favorites heading into district play. Of the eight teams in District 3, only D-NH, C-M-B and Aplington-Parkersburg posted winning records last season.

When you talk Wolverines football, the conversation starts with running back Trent Johnson. Despite being 5-foot-7, 170 pounds (he wrestles at 145 pounds), Johnson has eclipsed the 2,000-yard rushing mark each of the past two seasons.

A year ago, Johnson rushed 323 times for 2,619 yards and 28 scores. The senior enters the 2016 season 2,410 yards short of breaking the all-time state career rushing record of 7,142 yards set by North Mahaska’s Levi Ferguson’s from 2002-05.

“He is a little guy, but he has a huge, huge heart,” Betts says of Johnson. “He has great speed, the

step up and a group of four promising sophomore linemen.

“I feel good about the kids we have coming back, just some outstanding players. That being said, we have a lot of inexperienced kids we are going to be putting on the field, as well,” said Betts.

Aplington-Parkersburg went 8-3 last year, but has some key players to replace. Linemen Nick Ellis and Davonius Reed are off to Northern Iowa after outstanding prep careers, and leading rushers Issac Ubben and Tyler Duster graduated, too.

Head coach Alex Pollock returns seven starters.

“We did graduate a lot of kids TIFFANY RUSHING, COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌ who played a lot of snaps for us,” Dike-New Hartford returns 11 letterwinners from last season, including Pollock said. “But I feel we have Trent Johnson (front), along with, left to right in back, Chase Arends, a good nucleus of kids returning, Ethan Weichers, Ben Latusek, Ethan Huntington and Nick Durnin. feel good about our offensive and great wrestling balance and that tional player.” defensive line depth and right now tough, gritty heart of a wrestler.

The Wolverines lost three start- we are just trying to create some He doesn’t want to be denied and ers up front, but Betts has a couple depth in our offensive and defenthat is what makes him an excep- of upperclassmen who are ready to sive backfields.”

KICKING

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 10 RETURNING STARTERS (8): TJ Ste-

Jackson Lage (D-NH): 47-55 PATs

Capsules

East Marshall Mustangs‌ HEAD COACH: Matt Bandstra 2015 RECORDS: 1-8 overall, 0-6 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 9 RETURNING STARTERS (5): Noah Band-

stra, rb-lb, Dillon Lee, rb-lb, Zane Johnson, wr-db, Dru Boliver, qb, Logan Nicholson, te-de

Dike-New Hartford Wolverines‌

HEAD COACH: Don Betts 2015 RECORDS: 11-2 overall, 5-1 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 11 RETURNING STARTERS (8): Trent John-

son, rb, Ben Latusek, ol-dl, Chase Arends, ol-dl, Ethan Weichers, te, Jackson Lage, k, Nick Durnin, lb, Clayton Papel, db, Reeve Wheat, dl.

Saydel Eagles‌

HEAD COACH: Jason Alons 2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 0-6 district

phenson, qb-db, Trevor Sprague, rb-lb, Craig Garrison, rb-lb, Devin Porter, ol-dl, Cole Riddlebarger, wr-db, Hunter Jesse, ol-dl, Chevy Kelley, ol-dl, Joe Miklus, ol-dl.

Aplington-Parkersburg Falcons‌

HEAD COACH: Alex Pollock 2015 RECORDS: 8-3 overall, 5-1 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA RETURNING STARTERS (7): Riley Bar-

rett, rb-cb, Grady Brungard, te, Nevada Rosteck, ol-dl, Miles Grandon, ol-dl, Mitchell Van Hausen, ol, Alex Busma, dl, Chase Kling, db.

Roland-Story Norseman‌

HEAD COACH: Aaron Stensland 2015 RECORDS: 3-6 overall, 2-4 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 10 RETURNING STARTERS (6): Brett Sta-

ton, qb-s, Caleb Schlatter, fb-lb, Ethan Beck, ol, Dylan Rivers, ol-dt, Calvin Bright, ol-de, Paul Moats, rb-cb.

West Marshall Trojans‌

HEAD COACH: Cody Hackett

2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 1-5 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA RETURNING STARTERS (19):Eli Tremain,

at East Marshall (ND), Nevada at C-M-B (ND), South Hamilton at South Hardin (ND), Waterloo Columbus at West Marshall (ND). qb, Parker Hulbert, qb, Josh Larsen, rb, Kyle SEPT. 2 – C-M-B at North Polk (ND), East Schaper, ol, Logan Millizer, ol, Isaac Weigelt, ol, Cole Marshall at Waterloo Columbus (ND), GladBaccum, te, Ross Randall, wr, Beau Coberly, p, Josh brook-Reinbeck at Dike-New Hartford (ND), Larsen, p, Kristian Carbajal, de, Jon Kerwood, de, Iowa Falls-Alden at Aplington-Parkersburg (ND), Jarrett Bunting, dt, Tyson Ishenhower, dt, Chase Roland-Story at South Hamilton (ND), Saydel at Burr, lb, Alex Dickey, lb, Stuart Sheer, lb, Cameron West Central Valley (ND), South Hardin at Grundy Bannister, cb, Ryan Sabastiano, cb.

South Hardin Tigers‌

HEAD COACH: Barry Scott 2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 1-5 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA RETURNING STARTERS (10): Dane But-

ler, ol-lb, Alex Gustafson, ol-de, Quinton Lake, ol-dt, Kevin Rewoldt, te-de, Ty Cook, qb-rb, Brandon Meints, wr, Hunter Nessa, rb-wr-cb, Aden Butler, rb-s, Ryland Duchane, rb-lb, Malcolm Wright, lb.

2016 schedule‌

AUG. 26 – Aplington-Parkersburg at

Sumner-Fredericksburg (ND), Clarke at Saydel (ND), Dike-New Hartford at Denver (ND), Gilbert at Roland-Story (ND), Hudson

Please see 2A-3 capsules, Page S14

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THE COURIER • wcfcourier.com

Thursday, August 25, 2016 | S13

CLASS 2A, DISTRICT 4

Bulls-eye on North Fayette Valley ‌Coaches in Class 2A’s District 4 are pointing their fingers — directly at North Fayette Valley.

With an all-state lineman and three rushers who combined for 2,415 yards and 33 touchdowns returning from a state semifinal team, the TigerHawks are the team to beat in this district.

NFV coach Bob Lape, however, is trying to temper the enthusi-

asm.

“We are very excited to get the season started,” Lape said. “We feel we have some unfinished business that we did not take care of last season. The seniors have worked very hard this offseason in preparing themselves for the upcoming season.

“Experience in the line is a real team strength and having all the experience returning in the backfield is a real positive for us.

Ethan Lape anchors both the offensive and defensive lines for the TigerHawks. In the backfield, Trey Kuhens (118 rushes, 953 yards, 10 TDs), Tanner Kuhens (135-798-11) and Jesse Mackey

(90-664-12) all are threats in the run game.

Union of La Porte City brings back one of the top running backs in Class 2A in Isaiah Vaughan, who rushed for 1,373 yards and 17 scores a season ago.

The Knights also return tight end Brock Hadachek, who has verbally committed to Northern Iowa. In all, there are 11 players with starting experience on the offensive side of the ball and eight on defense.

Waukon went 10-2 last season, losing in the quarterfinals of the 2A playoffs. The Indians have to replace a lot of offense, including 2A’s second-leading passer in

Peyton Hesse, who threw for 2,458 yards and 33 touchdowns.

Oelwein will ride the back of Austin Duffy, who led the Huskies with 717 rushing yards and nine touchdowns in 2015.

Oelwein head coach Matt Kuempel said the team’s athleticism is a strength, but the Huskies are thin on experience.

Waterloo Columbus coach Brad Schmit says his team has to find a way to stop the run to take another step forward this season. With five players with defensive line experience back, the Sailors should be stronger in that area heading into the 2016 season.

Schmit is confident in new

Capsules

wr-lb, Quentin Kinsel, te-lb

Duffy, fb-lb, Dominick Knowles, wr-db, Sayer Woodsen, qb-lb

cello at North Fayette Valley, Oelwein at Union.

SEPT. 23 – Cascade at Monticello, North Fayette Valley at Oelwein, Union at Dyersville Beckman, Waukon at Waterloo Columbus.

SEPT. 30 – Dyersville Beckman at North Fayette Valley, Monticello at Waukon, Oelwein at Cascade, Waterloo Columbus at Union.

OCT. 7 – Cascade at Dyersville Beckman, Monticello at Oelwein, North Fayette Valley at Waterloo Columbus, Union at Waukon.

OCT. 14 – Dyersville Beckman at Monticello, Union at North Fayette Valley, Waterloo Columbus at Cascade, Waukon at Oelwein.

OCT. 21 – Cascade at Union, Monticello at Waterloo Columbus, Oelwein at Dyersville Beckman, Waukon at North Fayette Valley.

Expectations high for powerful, veteran TigerHawks JIM NELSON jim.nelson@wcfcourier.com‌

Waukon Indians‌

Columbus Sailors‌

HEAD COACH: Brad Schmit 2015 RECORDS: 1-8 overall, 0-6 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 12 RETURNING STARTERS (8): Lucas

HEAD COACH: Chad Beerman 2015 RECORDS: 10-2 overall, 6-1 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 14 RETURNING STARTERS (3): Tanner

Mathis, wb-ss, Blain Swenson, wb-de, Mitchell Snitker, wb-cb.

Benda, qb, Kaleb Boleyn, lb, Trey Plunkett, ol-dl, Nathan Corrigan, ol-de, Dylan Gantois, Dyersville Beckman Blazers HEAD COACH: Jim Derr wr-db, Colin Schmitz, ol-dl, Ethan Schmitz, 2015 RECORDS: 6-4 overall, 5-1 district ol-dl, Kyle Boe, te-de.

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 9 RETURNING STARTERS (9): Sam Cascade Cougars‌ Stelken, wr-db, Cody Feldman, rb-db, Luke HEAD COACH: Tim Frake Funke, ol-dl, Cole Bollweg, ol-dl. Cody Goed 2015 RECORDS: 4-6 overall, 3-3 district ken, wr-db, Ben Palmer, k, Justin Wolfe, rb-db, RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 18 Noah Sabers, wr-db, Matt Oberbroeckling, RETURNING STARTERS (12): John Larkin, qb, Shaylon Strub, rb-lb, Austin Lieurance, ol-lb.

North Fayette-Valley rb-de, Blake Simon, wr-db, Paine Delarm, ol-dl, Ashtin Van Gorden, ol-dl, Logan Smith, TigerHawks‌ ol-de, Derek Kuntz, ol, Quentin Recker, ol, HEAD COACH: Bob Lape Mitchel Huff, dl, Robby Droeszler, db. Dilan 2015 RECORDS: 10-3 overall, 5-1 district Simon, db.

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 25

Union Knights‌

HEAD COACH: Joe Hadachek 2015 RECORDS: 4-6 overall, 4-2 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 28 RETURNING STARTERS (16): Michael

Ahrendsen, og-dt, John Boisen, qb-cb, Carter Brehm, oc-dt, Daycen Douglass, oc-lb, Brock Hadachek, te-lb, Troy Hanus, qb-fs, Ryan Miller, wr-cb, Keaton Newgren, ot-dt, Britton Rollison, rb-fs, Dylan Stech, wr-fs, Isaiah Vaughn, rb-lb, Jordan Schmitz, te-de, Koby Albers, wr-cb, Jace Glenn, wr-lb, Tate Hookham,

Monticello Panthers‌

HEAD COACH: Jon Kyte 2015 RECORDS: 4-5 overall RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA RETURNING STARTERS (10): Jacob

Manternach, qb, Max Keleher, rb, Clayton Kraus, te-de, Aaron Gearhart, wr-cb, Andrew Mescher, wr-rb-s, Logan Westphal-fs, te-wr, Andrew Tjaden, ol-de, Gavin Timm, ol, Quinton Fellinger, ol, Taylor Manternach, cb.

2016 schedule‌

AUG. 26 – Dyersville Beckman at Clayton

Ridge (ND), Maquoketa at Cascade (ND), Marion at Union (ND), Monticello at Anamosa (ND), North Fayette Valley at Decorah (ND), Oelwein at Benton Community (ND), Waterloo Columbus at West Marshall (ND), Waukon at MFL MarMac (ND).

SEPT. 2 – Camanche at Monticello (ND), RETURNING STARTERS (9): Luke Cascade at DeWitt Central (ND), Dyersville Butikofer, l-lb, Chase Hollinrake, rb-db, Tate Beckman at Western Dubuque (ND), East Hovden, qb-db, Tanner Kuhens, rb-lb, Ethan Marshall at Waterloo Columbus (ND), New Lape, l-dl, Dylan Larson, e-de, Jesse Mackey, Hampton at Waukon (ND), Oelwein at rb-lb, Brandon Wolfe, l-lb Center Point-Urbana (ND), Vinton-Shellsburg at Union (ND), Waverly-Shell Rock at Oelwein Huskies‌ North Fayette Valley (ND).

HEAD COACH: Matt Kuempel

SEPT. 9 – North Fayette Valley at Cascade, 2015 RECORDS: 1-8 overall, 1-6 district Union at Monticello, Waterloo Columbus RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 12 at Oelwein, Waukon at Dyersville Beck RETURNING STARTERS (7): Tucker man.

Tafolla, ol-dl, Hunter Smock, ol-dl, Jakob Swaney, ol-lb, Robby McKeeman, fb-lb, Austin SEPT. 16 – Cascade at Waukon, Dyersville Beckman at Waterloo Columbus, Monti-

TIFFANY RUSHING, COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Union of La Porte City’s Isaiah Vaughn is one of the top returning running backs in Class 2A this season. quarterback Lucas Benda, who played running back last season, and has a game-breaker at receiver in Dylan Gantois.

Watch list PASSING John Larkin (Cascade): 104-256-18, 1,905

yards, 17 TDs Sam Stelken (Beckman): 71-180-11, 1,135

yards, 5 TDs Troy Hanus (Union): 53-112-4, 692 yards,

4 TDs Rushing Isaiah Vaughn (Union): 206-1,373, 17 TDs Trey Kuhens (North Fayette): 118-953, 10 TDs Tanner Kuhens (North Fayette): 135-798, 11 TDs Austin Duffy (Oelwein): 186-717. 9 TDs Jesse Mackey (North Fayette): 90-664, 12 TDs Receiving Tanner Mathis (Waukon): 49-670, 11 TDs Dylan Gantois (Columbus):29-640, 8 TDs Mitchel Snitker (Waukon): 26-320, 4 TDs

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2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

S14 | Thursday, August 25, 2016

wcfcourier.com • THE COURIER

CLASS 2A, DISTRICT 2

Wide-open battle looming for new District 2 group Last year’s top teams have key players to replace JIM NELSON jim.nelson@wcfcourier.com‌

‌Nothing will come easily once district play begins in Class 2A, District 2 this season.

The district features four teams that made the Class 2A playoffs last fall and two of them won at least one playoff game.

With that said, every contender in 2A-2 — New Hampton, Clear Lake, Garner-Hayfield, Hampton-Dumont and Osage — has question marks leading into the season.

In New Hampton, the Chickasaws won a first-round playoff game last year despite owning a losing record. A season later, head coach Scott Frerichs returns several key pieces from that playoff team.

“We have a number of good athletes who are multiple sport guys,” Frerichs said. “We lack depth.”

Ryan Gorman is one offensive threat after catching 24 passes for 330 yards and seven scores in 2015.

A young team a season ago, Clear Lake returns 19 letterwinners, including quarterback Zach Lester (633 passing yards).

Hampton-Dumont went 8-3 last fall as it made its third consecutive playoff appearance. The Bulldogs are under first-year head coach Dan Aalbers, who served as an assistant in the H-D program for 20 years.

The Bulldogs return plenty of offensive weapons, starting with Johnny Guerrero, who rushed

2A-3 capsules From S12

Center (ND), West Marshall at Ogden (ND).

SEPT. 9 – Aplington-Parkersburg at West Marshall, C-M-B at Roland-Story, Dike-New Hartford at Saydel, South Hardin at East

Watch list

2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 1-5 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 7 RETURNING STARTERS (6): Austin McAl-

Osage Green Devils‌ HEAD COACH: Matt Finn 2015 RECORDS: 4-5 overall, 2-5 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA RETURNING STARTERS (11): Kyle

HEAD COACH: Chris Lentz

Hampton-Dumont at Iowa Falls-Alden (ND), New Hampton at Charles City (ND), Osage at Saint Ansgar (ND). lister, qb-db, Casey Ollendieck, rb-lb, Spencer SEPT. 2 – Algona at Garner-Hayfield-VenCuvelier, rb-lb, Isaiah Passmore, ol-lb, Jordan tura (ND), Charles City at Osage (ND), ClariBerge, wr-db, Kraig Heckstein, ol-dl, Brock Girolamo, ol-dl, Alex Kerian, te-de. on-Goldfield-Dow/CAL at Eagle Grove (ND), Jennings, rb-lb, Jacob Wihlm, ol-dl, Dylan Decorah at Crestwood (ND), Forest City at New Hampton Chickasaws‌ Aschenbrenner, wr-lb, Nathan Bushbaum, Spirit Lake (ND), Hampton-Dumont at Hum HEAD COACH: Scott Frerichs wr-db, Cole Mullenbach, ol-dl, Drew Olson, boldt (ND), New Hampton at Waukon (ND), 2015 RECORDS: 5-6 overall, 3-3 district qb-db, Lucas Schwamman, wr-db, Thurston Webster City at Clear Lake (ND).

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 14 Taets, wr-db, Hunter Wagner, rb-lb.

SEPT. 9 – Crestwood at Hampton-Dumont, RETURNING STARTERS (7): Oscar GrayForest City at New Hampton, Garner-Haytan, k, Ryan Gorman, wr-db, Noah Hopp, ot-dt, Clarion-Goldfield-Dows field-Ventura at Clear Lake, Osage at ClariKam Pfaffle, ot-dt, Zach Wemark, te-lb, Josh Cowboys‌ on-Goldfield-Dow/CAL. Fenske, lb, Keagan John, se.

HEAD COACH: Newton Lingenfelter SEPT. 16 – Clear Lake at Osage, Crestwood 2015 RECORDS: 1-8 overall, 0-6 district Hampton-Dumont at Clarion-Goldfield-Dow/CAL, Garner-Hay RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA Bulldogs‌ field-Ventura at Forest City, New Hampton at RETURNING STARTERS (15): Kainan HEAD COACH: Dan Aalbers Hampton-Dumont.

Braun, qb-db, Will Weidemann, te-lb, Chase 2015 RECORDS: 8-3 overall, 5-1 district SEPT. 23 – Clarion-Goldfield-Dow/CAL Harker, te-lb, Reymundo Vasquez, rb-lb, Ben RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 10 Powers, ol-dl, Trent McAtee, ol-dl, Zack Leist, at New Hampton, Forest City at Clear Lake, RETURNING STARTERS (8): Hunter Sut- ol, Max Weidemann, ol-dl, Mason Rector, ol-dl, Hampton-Dumont at Garner-Hayfield-Venter, qb, Caleb Chaney, rb-db, Johnny Guerrero, Tyler Steiner, ol-dl, Salvador Fergoso, ol-dl, tura, Osage at Crestwood. rb-lb, Gus Jacome, wr-db, Fernando Garcia, Tanner Abbas, lb, Jacob O’Connor, db, Alex SEPT. 30 – Clarion-Goldfield-Dow/CAL at ol-lb, Jose Zarate, ol-dl, Blayne Woltjer, ol-dl, Machuca, lb, Garner-Hayfield-Ventura, Clear Lake at HampJuan Ibarra, ol-dl, Brady Ringleb, wr-db. ton-Dumont, Crestwood at New Hampton, Garner-Hayfield Cardinals‌ Forest City at Osage.

HEAD COACH: Scott Van Dusseldorp Clear Lake Lions‌ OCT. 7 – Clear Lake at Clarion-Gold 2015 RECORDS: 7-3 overall, 5-1 district HEAD COACH: Jared DeVries field-Dow/CAL, Garner-Hayfield-Ventura at RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA 2015 RECORDS: 5-5 overall, 5-1 district RETURNING STARTERS (5): Connor Crestwood, Hampton-Dumont at Forest City, RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 19 Shaw, rb-lb, Grady Umbarger, ol-lb, Dane New Hampton at Osage.

RETURNING STARTERS )(19): Dalton Whipple, ol-lb, Jack Van Dusseldorp, rb-dt, OCT. 14 – Clarion-Goldfield-Dow/CAL at Grell, lb, Torian Lee, db, Thomas Storbeck, s, Forest City, Crestwood at Clear Lake, New Zach Lester, qb, Nick Eggers, rb, Ian Gonzalez, Chase Theobald, db.

Hampton at Garner-Hayfield-Ventura, Osage dt, Luke Eggers, rb, Speed Toyne, rb, Jacob 2016 schedule‌ Peterson, te, Ryan Atikinson, de, Dalton Men- AUG. 26 – Algona at Forest City (ND), Clar- at Hampton-Dumont.

OCT. 21 – Clear Lake at New Hampton, nega, ol, Nate DiCamillo, de, Tyler Wolfe, ol, ion-Goldfield-Dow/CAL at Belmond-Klemme Forest City at Crestwood, Garner-HayJoey Monson, de, Will Kirschbaum, db, Sean (ND), Clear Lake at Mason City (ND), field-Ventura at Osage, Hampton-Dumont at Wendall, de, Max McKenna, ol, Kyle Wilms, ol, Crestwood at Waverly-Shell Rock (ND), GarClarion-Goldfield-Dow/CAL. Evan Krause, lb, Cody Matz, wr. ner-Hayfield-Ventura at West Hancock (ND),

for 1,289 yards and 13 scores in 2015. Also back is Caleb Chaney (689 rushing yards). Last year’s fullback, Hunter Sutter, is transitioning to quarterback.

“The backfield is the most experienced phase of the offense,” Aalbers said. “We are returning

only one player with any significant offense or defensive line experience.”

Garner-Hayfield figures to be in the mix with Conner Shaw and his 1,395 rushing yards returning for the Cardinals.

Crestwood returns starting

quarterback Austin McAllister targets is back in Kyle Berge, who and five other two-way starters for caught five touchdowns passes in head coach Chris Lentz, who en- 2015. ters his 20th season at Crestwood.

Osage returns quarterback Drew Olson from a team that went 4-5. Olson threw for 1,498 yards and 17 scores. One of his favorite

PASSING Drew Olson (Osage): 106-218-9, 1,498

yards, 17 TDs Kainan Braun (Clarion): 44-103-9, 916

yards, 8 TDs Zach Lester (Clear Lake): 61-114-3, 633

yards, 2 TDs RUSHING Conner Shaw (Garner-Hayfield): 2191,395, 12 TDs Johnny Guerrero (H-D): 214-1,289, 13 TDs Caleb Chaney (H-D): 100-689, 6 TDs RECEIVING Chase Harker (Clarion): 26-527, 5 TDs Ryan Gorman (New Hampton): 24-330, 7 TDs Kyle Berge (Osage): 12-225, 5 TDs TACKLES Brock Jennings (Osage): 20-66-86 Josh Fenske (New Hampton): 78.5 Nick Joynt (Garner-Hayfield): 34-39-73 INTERCEPTIONS Thomas Storbeck (Clear Lake): 5 Chase Theobald (Garner-Hayfield): 5

Capsules Forest City Indians‌

HEAD COACH: Chad Moore 2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 2-5 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 7 RETURNING STARTERS (7): Jacob Wil-

son, rb, Ben Midtgaard, db, Seth Brown, ol-dl, Colten Shipman, c, Richard Gildemeister, db, Brennan Hertzer, dl, Jericho Baker, ol-dl.

Crestwood Cadets‌

Hartford.

SEPT 30 – Aplington-Parkersburg at ton-Parkersburg, Roland-Story at East Mar- Roland-Story. C-M-B at Saydel, Dike-New shall, Saydel at South Hardin, West Marshall Hartford at South Hardin, East Marshall at at C-M-B. West Marshall.

SEPT. 23 – East Marshall at C-M-B, Saydel OCT. 7 – C-M-B at Aplington-Parkersburg, at Roland-Story, South Hardin at AplingRoland-Story at Dike-New Hartford, Saydel at ton-Parkersburg, West Marshall at Dike-New East Marshall, West Marshall at South Hardin.

Marshall.

SEPT. 16 – Dike-New Hartford at Apling-

OCT. 14 – Aplington-Parkersburg at

East Marshall, Dike-New Hartford at C-M-B, Saydel at West Marshall, South Hardin at Roland-Story.

OCT. 21 – Aplington-Parkersburg at Saydel. C-M-B at South Hardin, East Marshall at Dike-New Hartford, Roland-Story at West Marshall.

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2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

Thursday, August 25, 2016 | S15

CLASS 1A, DISTRICT 2

Denver movin’ up and movin’ on Cyclones return big group from state semifinal team DOUG NEWHOFF doug.newhoff@wcfcourier.com‌

‌The past two seasons, Denver was a force in Class A football with back-to-back state semifinal appearances.

It appears the Cyclones might have the firepower to make another deep postseason run in Class 1A, even without the dynamic backfield duo of Mitch Siech and Izaak Shedenhelm, who combined for 3,348 rushing hards and 53 touchdowns last season.

While it won’t be easy to replace that production, head coach Rhett Barrett has plenty of assets returning, including 11 starters. That group includes five physical offensive linemen, as well as playmakers like Eli Barrett, Bo McMahon and Sam Joerger.

Eli Barrett made an impact at receiver and safety a year ago, but is making the move to quarterback this season.

“We return lots of skill position personnel that have varsity time.

We return five offensive linemen.

We have eight returning starters on defense,” notes Rhett Barrett.

Denver will be tested early with non-district battles against DikeNew Hartford and Wapsie Valley.

“We have a tough non-district schedule and an extremely chal-

Watch list PASSING

Brad Barkema, BCLUW: 68-153-

14, 811 yards, 7 TDs

Tristen Kautman, MFL/MarMac: 43-119-

8, 645 yards, 6 TDs Cael Boehmer, Lake Mills: 53-123-10, 564 yards, 3 TDs. RUSHING Trace Kessler, Central Springs: 123-510, 4.1 avg., 3 TDs Rodney Schwartzhoff, South Winnesh-

TIFFANY RUSHING / COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Denver heads into the 2016 high school football season with a strong nucleus of returning starters. lenging district schedule this year,” says Rhett Barrett.

One of the teams Barrett expects to be battling for a postseason berth is South Winneshiek.

The Warriors return a solid group from last year’s 8-3 team as they take aim at a sixth straight district title. Nathan Ward is back after picking off five passes from his cornerback position and is also a dangerous kick returner who averaged 24.5 yards per return in 2015 and took one back for a TD.

iek: 76-315, 4.1 avg., 2 TDs RECEIVING Clay Silver, BCLUW: 28-343, 12.3 avg., 5 TDs Bodie Garnier, Sumner-Fredericksburg: 17-283, 16.6 avg., 3 TDs Eli Barrett, Denver: 16-137, 8.6 avg., no TDs TACKLES Jacob Shafer, Central Springs: 13-57—70, 5.5 TFLs Zack Santee, Central Springs: 26-

Sumner-Fredericksburg graduated the nucleus of last year’s 5-4 squad. Coach Brad Mohs will build around veterans Bodie Garnier (17 receptions, 283 yards) and linemen Tanner Allison and Kelly Diemer.

“We have a good work ethic and attitude,” notes Mohs. “We are very young. We need to grow up fast.”

Belmond-Klemme is also moving up a class after going 7-3 a year ago. The Broncos lost head coach Xavier Leonard to Waterloo

East and 1,685-yard rusher Korby Sander, but the cupboard is far from bare with 11 returning starters.

BCLUW has 13 starters back, including the quarterback-receiver duo of Brad Barkema (811 passing yards) and Clay Silver (28 catches, 343 yards, 5 TDs).

Lake Mills has 14 returning starters, including first-team all-district performers Zach Throne and Marcus Escherich.

The Bulldogs have size, experience and athleticism, but not great

numbers.

“We will be athletic and experienced in many areas,” says Coach Bill Byrnes. “We cannot afford injuries in key areas.”

MFL/MarMac returns 11 starters, while Central Springs brings back nine regulars, including running back Trace Kessler (510 rushing yards) and Jacob Shafer (70 tackles) and Zack Santee (66 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss) on the defensive side of the ball.

40—66, 12.5 TFLs, 2 sacks Bo McMahon, Denver: 23-40—63, 4

TFLs INTERCEPTIONS

Bryar Ruff, MFL/MarMac: 5-35,

no TDs

Nathan Ward, South Winneshiek: 5-19,

no TDs Sam Joerger, Denver: 4-30, no TDs Eli Barrett, Denver: 4-89, no TDs Please see 1A-2 capsules, Page S17

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S16 | Thursday, August 25, 2016

2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

wcfcourier.com • THE COURIER

CLASS 1A, DISTRICT 3

Jesup sizing up new group of foes J-Hawks have high hopes to build on 2015 success DOUG NEWHOFF doug.newhoff@wcfcourier.com‌

‌Sorting out Class 1A’s new District 3 is a little like solving a Rubik’s cube. Everywhere you turn, there’s something new to deal with.

In fact, District 3 bears absolutely no resemblence to the same district a year ago.

Tipton, for example, is dropping down after going 7-3 in Class 2A last season. Maquoketa Valley is moving up from Class A after also putting together a 7-3 campaign. Jesup and Clayton Ridge have moved from 1A District 4. Bellevue, Durant, North Cedar and West Branch played in 1A-5 in 2015.

Individually, the district is loaded with outstanding players.

Jesup returns one of the top quarterbacks in Class 1A in Drew Schmit (1,654 passing yards, 18 TDs), who also picked off five passes on defense and serves as the J-Hawks’ kicker.

While Schmit won’t have 1,271-yard rusher Brendan Murray to hand off to and lost one of his main weapons in the downfield passing game in Andrew Mattson, he does have Ethan Wyant returning after a 27-catch season good for 439 yards and seven touchdowns.

The J-Hawks also have high expectations for junior running back Cole Van Brocklin, who was the junior varsity MVP last season.

“Our strengths include an excellent offensive/defensive line with lots of experience,” notes head coach Jason Sullivan. “A concern will be filling in a lot of holes on defense.”

Tipton lost its starting quarterback and top rusher,

MATTHEW PUTNEY / COURIER PHOTO EDITOR‌

Jesup is building around returning starters Drew Schmit, Garrett Richter and Tyler Lienau (in back, left to right), and Ethan Wyant, Brian Sadler, Logan Hawkins and Bryce Winters (in front left to right).

“Our strengths include an excellent offensive/defensive line with lots of experience. A concern will be filling in a lot of holes on defense.”

J-Hawks head coach Jason Sullivan. but returns two strong defensive players in Zach Ford and Dalton Clark, both of whom topped 50 tackles last season.

Maquoketa Valley gradu-

ated dual threat quarterback Jeremy Fischer, who threw for 1,144 yards and 13 TDs and ran for 1,026 and 13 more scores.

On the other hand, Alec Mc-

Dowell (1,374 rushing yards, 6.9 per carry, 18 TDs) and Zak Harbach (21 catches, 530 yards, 25.2, 5 TDs) return after big seasons, and Garrett Hogan (14 receptions, 254 yards, 18.1 avg., 4 TDS) and Brock Hillers (8-184, 23.0, 1) made an impact as sophomore receivers a year ago.

Clayton Ridge returns the top quarterback in the district in Jace Moore (133-30411, 1,918 yards, 17 TDs) and two of his favorite targets in Robby Sweers (30-638, 8 TDs) and

Sawyer Schmelzer (30-498, 5 TDs). Schmelzer is also an exceptional placekicker. In all, 11 starters are back for the Eagles.

West Branch is coming off an 11-1 season under 33-year head coach Butch Pedersen.

The Bears return nine starters, including the district’s leading rusher in Luke Lenoch (1,829 yards, 24 TDs) and one of the top defenders in Cale Donovan (76 tackles).

Please see 1A-3, Page S17

2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

THE COURIER • wcfcourier.com

21 TFLs, 5.5 sacks

1A-3

Cale Donovan, West Branch: 31-45—76,

From S16

Ty Oster, Bellevue: 45-22—67, 11 TFLs,

Watch list PASSING Jace Moore, Clayton Ridge: 133-304-11,

1,918 yards, 17 TDs Drew Schmit, Jesup: 111-196-12, 1,654

yards, 18 TDs Cale Daugherty, Bellevue: 103-217-8,

1,293 yards, 7 TDs RUSHING Luke Lenoch, West Branch: 227-1,829,

8.1 avg., 24 TDs Alec McDowell, Maq. Valley: 199-1,374, 6.9 avg., 18 TDs Peter Kilburg, Bellevue: 123-579, 4.7 avg., 4 TDs RECEIVING Robby Sweers, Clayton Ridge: 30-638,

21.3 avg., 8 TDs Zak Harbach, Maq. Valley: 21-530, 25.2

avg., 5 TDs, 12.5 TFLs Sawyer Schmelzer, Clayton Ridge: 30-

498, 16.6 avg., 5 TDs Ethan Wyant, Jesup: 27-439, 16.3 avg.,

7 TDs TACKLES Alec McDowell, Maq. Valley: 60-19—79,

1A-2 capsules

6 TFLs 2 sacks INTERCEPTIONS Drew Schmit, Jesup: 5-14, no TDs Zak Harbach, Maq. Valley: 4-38, no TDs

KICKING Drew Schmit, Jesup: 26-34 PATs, 1-1 FGs

Capsules Jesup J-Hawks‌

HEAD COACH: Jason Sullivan 2015 RECORDS: 6-4 overall, 4-2

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 9 RETURNING STARTERS (7): Drew

Schmit, qb-s; Garrett Richter, ol-dl; Bryce Winters, ol-de; Ethan Wyant, wr-cb; Tyler Lienau, te-lb; Brian Sadler, ol-dl; Logan Hawkins, o.

Tipton Tigers‌

HEAD COACH: Josh Bahr 2015 RECORDS: 7-3 overall, 4-2 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA RETURNING STARTERS (7): Dalton Clark, rb-lb; Daulton Mente, rb-s; Zach Ford, wr-s; Zach Jones, ol-de; Logan Schroeder, ol; Kolton Crock, ol-dt; Brendan Claussen, cb.

West Branch Bears‌

HEAD COACH: Butch Pedersen 2015 RECORDS: 11-1 overall, 6-0

Garnier, lb-te; Tanner Allison, ol-dl; Kelly Diemer, ol-dl.

Clayton Ridge Eagles‌

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 16 RETURNING STARTERS (11): Jacob

Besh, ol-dt; Brock Farley, ol-de; Keenan Bahlmann, ol; Mason Neisen, ol-dt; Spencer South Winneshiek Warriors‌ Smith, ol; Devon Lund, te-lb; Zack Miller, KICKOFF RETURNS te; Eli Barrett, wr-s; Bo McMahon, rb-lb; Sam Joerger, Denver: 8-228, 28.5 avg., 1 TD HEAD COACH: Jason Ohrt 2015 RECORDS: 8-3 overall, 5-1 district Fletcher Anderson, lb; Sam Joerger, cb.

Nathan Ward, South Winneshiek: 8-197, RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 13 24.5 avg., 1 TD RETURNING STARTERS (8): Alex Lake Mills Bulldogs‌ Kuennen, ol; Jackson Lukes, ol-pk; Steven HEAD COACH: Bill Byrnes Moore, te; Nate Ward, wr-cb; Rodney 2015 RECORDS: 1-8 overall, 1-5 district Schwartzhoff, dt; Noah Kuboushek, BCLUW Comets‌ RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 19 lb; Manning Kuboushek, de; Brennan HEAD COACH: Anthony Jahr RETURNING STARTERS (14): Cale Boehmer, qb; Slade Sifuentes, te-lb; Zach 2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 1-5 district Holthaus, s.

Throne, ol-lb-dt; Gabe Irons, ol-de-pk; Alex RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 16 MFL/MarMac Bulldogs‌ Albert, rb-lb; Jacob Leibeg, wr-lb; Nick RETURNING STARTERS (13): Clay HEAD COACH: Tom Oppelt Langenbau, ol-dt; Marcus Escherich, rb-lb; Silver, wr-lb; Brad Barkema, qb-db; Logan 2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 0-6 Cole Bergo, ol; Adam Bergo, ol; Grant FjelsMann, wr; Blake Mann, rb-deb; Austin district tad, lb-db; Parker Eaton, db; Brett Tyler, dt; Strachota, ol-dl; Keegan Rinehart, ol; RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 11 Alex Martinson, db.

Storm Wiseman, ol-dl; Greg Schmitt wr; RETURNING STARTERS (11): Bryar Connor Thompson, wr-db; Mason Dhyne, Ruff, qb; Chase Stubbs, rb-cb; Ty Hefner, dl; Ben Paper, dl; Nathan Hulbert, dl; Neil wr; Riley Doeppke, wr-cb; Korby Keehner, Belmond-Klemme Broncos‌ Cashin, dl. ol; Chris Wright, ol; Nick Larson, ol; Colton HEAD COACH: Darwin Christensen 2015 RECORDS: 7-3 overall, 4-2 district Dettman, de; David Bradford, lb; Mason Sumner-Fredericksburg RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 15 Hertrampf, lb; J.P. Murphy, lb.

Cougars‌ RETURNING STARTERS (11): Cameron HEAD COACH: Brad Mohs Beminio, ol-dl; Drew Christianson, te-lb; Denver Cyclones‌ 2015 RECORDS: 5-4 overall, 2-4 Cael Tenold, wr-cb; Michael Knapp, wr-s; HEAD COACH: Rhett Barrett district Tucker Kroeze, rb-lb; Easton Barrus, qb, 2015 RECORDS: 11-2 overall, 6-0 RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 7 Zeb Whitehurst, ol-dl; Colby Schumann, district From S16

Capsules

HEAD COACH: Chet Knake 2015 RECORDS: 4-6 overall, 2-4

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: NA RETURNING STARTERS (8): Cade

Daugherty, qb, fs; Peter Kilburg, rb-b; Mason Lyons, c-dl; Ty Oster, og-lb; Corbin Stillmunkes, og-lb; Tanner Michels, te; Trey Daugherty, wr-cb; Hunter Clasen, lb.

Durant Wildcats‌

HEAD COACH: Greg White district 2015 RECORDS: 1-8 overall, 1-5 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 14 RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 15 RETURNING STARTERS (9): Luke LeRETURNING STARTERS (6): Leo Calnoch, rb-cb; John Krall, ol; Jacob Barnhart, lison, qb; Jacob Conley, rb; Allan Hammel, ol; Cole Tisinger, ol; Cooper Kabela, te-de; ol-dl; Luke Whitlock, wr; Mason Compton, Jake Evans, de; Colton Dietz, dt; Cale Dono- wr, Denver Feurbach, ol-dl van, lb; Garett Tucker, cb.

HEAD COACH: Chad Harbaugh 2015 RECORDS: 4-5 overall, 1-5 district North Cedar Knights‌ RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 14 HEAD COACH: Adam Hadenfeldt RETURNING STARTERS (11): Jace 2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 2-4 district Moore, qb; Robby Sweers, wr; Sawyer Schmelzer, wr; Hunter Friederick, ol; RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 10 Matthew Anderson, ol; Braydn Harbaugh, RETURNING STARTERS (7): Carter ol; Jake Jensen, db; Breyer Witham, lb; Johnson, qb-lb; Nick Dewell, ol-dl; Bryce Joseph Bebber, lb; Collin Krapfl, dl; Ethan Bemer, wr-cb; Jake Jensen, wr-db; Aaron Woodward, te-de; Colin Sander, de; Byron Moser, dl.

Boleyn, te-lb.

RETURNING STARTERS (3): Bodie

Bellevue Comets‌

Maquoketa Valley Wildcats‌

HEAD COACH: Wes Wilson 2015 RECORDS: 7-3 overall, 7-0 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 14 RETURNING STARTERS (9): Alec McDowell, rb, lb; Garrett Hogan, wr-lb; Zak Harbach, wr-cb; Brock Hillers, wr-cb; Tyson Tucker, wr-lb; Kyle Wilson, te-de; Eric Heims, ol-dt; Andy O’Connell, ol-dt; Clint Krapfl, ol.

2016 schedule‌

AUG. 26 — Bellevue at Camanche, Dy-

Thursday, August 25, 2016 | S17

ersville Beckman at Clayton Ridge, Columbus Junction at Durant, East Buchanan at Jesup, Edgewood-Colesburg at Maquoketa Valley, Alburnett at North Cedar, Wilton at Tipton, West Branch at West Liberty.

SEPT. 2 — Northeast Goose Lake at Bellevue, Clayton Ridge at Edgewood-Colesburg, Durant at Wilton, Jesup at North Linn, Starmont at Maquoketa Valley, North Cedar at Lisbon, Tipton at Louisa-Muscatine, West Burlington Notre Dame at West Branch.

SEPT. 9 — Bellevue at North Cedar, Tipton at Clayton Ridge, Maquoketa Valley at Durant, West Branch at Jesup.

SEPT. 16 — Durant at Bellevue, North Cedar at Clayton Ridge, Jesup at Tipton, Maquoketa Valley at West Branch.

SEPT. 23 — West Branch at Bellevue, Clayton Ridge at Jesup, North Cedar at Durant, Tipton at Maquoketa Valley.

SEPT. 30 — Bellevue at Tipton, Maquoketa Valley at Clayton Ridge, Durant at West Branch, Jesup at North Cedar.

OCT. 7 — Clayton Ridge at Bellevue, Tipton at Durant, Jesup at Maquoketa Valley, North Cedar at West Branch.

OCT. 14 — Bellevue at Jesup, Durant at Clayton Ridge, Maquoketa Valley at North Cedar, West Branch at Tipton.

OCT. 21 — Bellevue at Maquoketa Valley, Clayton Ridge at West Branch, Jesup at Durant, North Cedar at Tipton.

ol-pt, Michael Jenison, wr-cb; Keaton Buse- chanan. man, ol; Marlon Smith, de.

SEPT. 9 — Sumner-Fredericksburg at BCLUW, Lake Mills at Belmond-Klemme, Central Springs Panthers‌ Central Springs at MFL/MarMac, South HEAD COACH: Bill Shafer Winneshiek at Denver.

2015 RECORDS: 3-7 overall, 2-4 district SEPT. 16 — BCLUW at Cen RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 17 tral Springs, Belmond-Klemme at RETURNING STARTERS (9): Dan Sumner-Fredericksburg, Denver at Lake Hennigar, wr-db; Trace Kessler, rb-lb; Jacob Mills, MFL/MarMac at South Winneshiek.

Shafer, ol-lb; Alex Prestholt, ol; Zack San SEPT. 23 — South Winneshiek at tee, te-dl; Georden Perry, ol; Alex Hackett, BCLUW, Belmond-Klemme at Denver, db; Kalen Eastman, db; Austin Dillavou, db.

Sumner-Fredericksburg at Central Springs, Lake Mills at MFL/MarMac. SEPT. 30 — BCLUW at Lake Mills, MFL/MarMac at Belmond-Klemme, AUG. 26 — GMG at BCLUW, Central Springs at South Winneshiek, Belmond-Klemme at Clarion-GoldDenver at Sumner-Fredericksburg. field-Dows/CAL, Central Springs at

OCT. 7 — Belmond-Klemme at Rockford, Dike-New Hartford at Denver, BCLUW, Lake Mills at Central Springs, Lake Mills at West Fork, Waukon at Denver at MFL/MarMac, Sumner-FrederMFL/MarMac, Wapsie Valley at South icksburg at South Winneshiek.

Winneshiek, Aplington-Parkersburg at OCT. 14 — BCLUW at Denver, Central Sumner-Fredericksburg.

Springs at Belmond-Klemme, South SEPT. 2 — BCLUW at North Tama, Winneshiek at Lake Mills, MFL/MarMac West Hancock at Belmond-Klemme, at Sumner-Fredericksburg.

West Fork at Central Springs, Denver at Wapsie Valley, Mason City Newman OCT. 21 — MFL/MarMac at BCLUW, at Lake Mills, MFL/MarMac at PostBelmond-Klemme at South Winneshiek, ville, South Winneshiek at St. Ansgar, Denver at Central Springs, Sumner-FredSumner-Fredericksburg at East Buericksburg at Lake Mills.

2016 schedule‌

2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

S18 | Thursday, August 25, 2016

wcfcourier.com • THE COURIER

CLASS A, DISTRICT 3

St. Ansgar, Grundy set to run wild Flater returns for Spartans; Saints’ offense loaded NICK PETAROS nick.petaros@wcfcourier.com‌

‌Finding ways to slow down a strong stable of returning running backs operating behind veteran offensive lines is the challenge opposing defenses face in Class A, District 3 this season.

That group includes Class A’s top returning back in Grundy Center senior Bryce Flater, who rushed for 2,103 yards and 24 touchdowns at an average of 8.9 yards per carry.

Skylar Alexander of Mason City Newman (1,342 yards), Saint Ansgar’s Parker Hendrickson (1,184 yards) and West Hancock’s Colton Francis (999 yards) are also looking for a strong encore to their impressive 2015 campaigns.

In addition to Hendrickson, Saint Ansgar returns dual-threat quarterback Ben Boerjan, who passed for 941 yards and rushed for 659, and Dayton Smith (772 yards, 5.3 per carry) as threats in a powerful triple-option attack. The Saints also feature third-year offensive line starters Brady Jahr and Mitchell Smith.

That experience should make Saint Ansgar the team to beat after winning back-to-back titles in Class 1A before dropping down to Class A this season. The Saints have one of the largest Class A squads in the state with 30 upperclassmen.

West Hancock coach Bob Sanger is entering his 49th year on the job with nine starters back from a 7-3 team, while Grundy Center could be poised to take a step forward after a promising 6-5 season a year ago.

“I think it’s competitive,”

Watch list PASSING Ben Boerjan, Saint Ansgar: 51-107-6,

941 yards, 11 TDs Austin Eckenrod, Newman: 54-104-7,

670 yards, 5 TDs Jarel Arbegast, West Fork: 41-95-8, 558

yards, 7 TDs RUSHING Bryce Flater, Grundy Center: 237-2,103, 8.9 avg., 24 TDs Skylar Alexander, Newman: 194-1,342, 7.0 avg., 13 TDs Parker Hendrickson, Saint Ansgar: 1681,184, 7.0 avg., 14 TDs Colton Francis, West Hancock: 151-999, 6.6 avg., 9 TDs RECEIVING Cole Willert, Saint Ansgar: 15-353, 23.5 avg., 3 TDs Christian Ames, West Fork: 20-281, 14.1 avg., 3 TDs Dylan Eckels, West Hancock: 20-278, 13.9 avg., 3 TDs Josh Fitzgerald, Newman: 10-267, 26.7 avg., 2 TDs TACKLES Cole Hall, West Fork: 48-35—83, 6 TFL Nathan Dettmer, Nashua-Plainfield: 45-17—62, 1 TFL Bryce Flater, Grundy Center: 37-26.5— 63.5, 4 TFL Tim Knock, Grundy Center: 39-17—56, 1 TFL INTERCEPTIONS Ben Boerjan, Saint Ansgar: 7-65, no TDs Chasae Boren, Grundy Center: 4-65, no TDs KICKOFF RETURNS Josh Fitzgerald, Newman: 13-362, 27.8 avg., no TDs Cole Willert, Saint Ansgar: 6-290, 48.3 avg., 2 TDs PUNT RETURNS Josh Fitzgerald, Newman: 7-187, 26.7 avg., 1 TD

MATTHEW PUTNEY / COURIER PHOTO EDITOR‌

Grundy Center’s Bryce Flater, right, shoves off Starmont’s Jake Falck on his way to a first down during a matchup last season.

Capsules Grundy Center Spartans‌

HEAD COACH: Brent Thoren 2015 RECORDS: 6-5 overall, 4-2

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 11 RETURNING STARTERS (9): Bryce Flater, rb, Nolan Freeman, ol, Cade Rohler, ol, Josh Kuiper, ol, Jordan Hook, ol, Braidan Buhrow, te, Tim Knock, lb, Jared Saint Ansgar Drew Clevenger Krausman, cb, Chase Broen, cb. said of the district. “In a lot Mason City Newman Knights‌ of ways, I think it’s going to be HEAD COACH: Richard McCardle better than our 1A district last 2015 RECORDS: 4-6 overall, 3-3 year. district “West Hancock, in terms of RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 12 Please see Class A-3, Page S21

RETURNING STARTERS (12): Isaac

Fetkether, k, Josh Fitzgerald, rb-db, Austin Eckenrod, qb, Ian Holmgaard, wr, Skylar Alexander, rb-dl, Peyton Scott, rb-s, Mathew Borman, ol, Ryan Fischer, te-lb, Evan Haskins, ol-dl, Jace Leininger, rb, Trevor Penning, dl, Noah Ball, lb.

HEAD COACH: Travis Miller 2015 RECORDS: 4-5 overall, 2-5 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 5 Please see A-3 Capsules, Page S21

Nashua-Plainfield Huskies‌

HEAD COACH: Chase Sudol 2015 RECORDS: 1-8 overall, 1-5 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 9 RETURNING STARTERS (9): Kyle Janssen, ol-dl, Nathan Dettmer, ol-lb, Tanner Haut, ol-lb, Keegan Crawford, ol-dl, Levi Enright, wr-lb, Dayton Hansen, qb, Mason Hyde, fb-dl, Nick Bucknell, fb-lb, Brayden Fisher, rb-cb.

North Butler Bearcats‌

(800) 798-4205 www.munipipe.com

2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

THE COURIER • wcfcourier.com

Thursday, August 25, 2016 | S19

CLASS A, DISTRICT 4

East Buchanan motivated for more Bucs got taste of playoffs, now want to make a deep run NICK PETAROS nick.petaros@wcfcourier.com‌

East Buchanan coach Jerry ‌ Alden saw his 2015 football team overcome a 1-3 start with a run of five consecutive victories to place the Buccaneers in the playoffs for the first time since 2009.

A 35-0 opening-round loss to eventual state champion Gladbrook-Reinbeck showed there’s still room for growth for a rising East Buchanan program that could find itself in the mix for what should be a closely-contested race to the finish line in Class A, District 4.

“After a 2015 playoff appearance, our guys are hungry to get back to work and take it a step further as we feel we didn’t play our best game in the first round,” Alden noted. “We have some guys that really worked their butts off this offseason and I think it will show on the field this fall.”

The Buccaneers figure to be a hard-nosed football team as Jordan Hettinger, Taylor Fox, Dylan Kress and Heath Weber return to a line that helped produce more than 3,000 yards rushing last season. Carter Downer, who ran for 1,061 yards and 14 scores, also returns and figures to move into a role as more of a featured back.

In addition to experience up front, Alden points out his defense has as much speed in the linebacking corps and secondary as he’s coached in a long time.

Wapsie Valley and Alburnett are the newcomers to the district that included North Linn, Edgewood-Colesburg, Starmont, Postville, Lisbon and East

Watch list

PASSING Logan Novak, North Linn: 132-254-9, 1,932 yards, 15 TDs Jake Jennett, Lisbon: 39-94-5, 693 yards, 8 TDs Taylan Sauberbrei, Wapsie Valley: 3994-10, 503 yards, 6 TDs RUSHING Carter Downer, East Buchanan: 1201,061, 8.8 avg., 14 TDs Jack Butteris, Lisbon: 105-841, 8.0 avg., 9 TDs Jake Kuhlman, Wapsie Valley: 167-743, 4.4 avg., 9 TDs RECEIVING Ryan Miller, North Linn: 53-550, 10.4 avg., 3 TDs Ryan Schmitt, East Buchanan: 12-228, 19 avg., 2 TDs Jaden Kuethe, Wapsie Valley: 12-154, 12.8 avg., 2 TDs TACKLES Kyler Schott, North Linn: 55-26.5—81.5, 7.5 TFLs, 4 sacks Brady Helle, Edgewood-Colesburg: 4517—62, 10.5 TFLs, 2 sacks Carter Downer, East Buchanan: 4120—61, 5 TFLs, 1 sack Logan Novak, North Linn: 40-17.5—57.5, 4.5 TFLs, 1 sack INTERCEPTIONS Ryan Miller, North Linn: 5-24, no TDs Jaden Kuethe, Wapsie Valley: 4-10, no TDs KICKOFF RETURNS Blake Langhurst, Lisbon: 18-588, 32.7 avg., 2 TDs Willy Martinez, Postville: 21-480, 22.9 avg., 0 TDs

Buchanan last season.

While Alburnett lost most of its key playmakers from a 7-3 team, Wapsie Valley brings back eight offensive and nine defensive starters from a team that went 2-4 in a brutal district that produced a state champion and state semifinalist.

Senior wingback Jack Butteris

Capsules

North Linn Lynx‌

2016 schedule‌

HEAD COACH: Jared Collum 2015 RECORDS: 4-6, 4-3 HEAD COACH: Charlie Feller RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 12 RETURNING STARTERS (9): Logan 2015 RECORDS: 7-3 overall, 4-2 district Novak qb-db, Kyler Schott, ol-lb-dl, Levi RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 8 Hinton, rb-lb, Luke Ward, ol-dl, Kane RETURNING STARTERS (4): Tanner McEnany, c-dl, Sam Walling, ol-dl, Garrett Hoyer, rb-lb, Walker Kramme, ol-dl, Nick Matthess, rb-lb-dl, Ryan Miller, wr-db, Airy, ol-dl, Tanner Sloan, ol-dl.

Blake McGraw te-lb.

AUG. 26 – Alburnett at North Cedar,

and quarterback Jake Jennett are among the five starters on offense and three on defense who return for a Lisbon team that went 6-1 in the district a year ago and finished 8-3 overall.

Look for North Linn, a 4-6 team last season, to make a move this season. Logan Novak returns after throwing for

1,932 yards and 15 touchdowns, and rushing for another 483 yards and 11 scores. First-team all-district wideout Ryan Miller is also back after recording 550 receiving yards and making five interceptions for a defense led by returning linebacker Kyler Schott and his 81 tackles.

Starmont is also looking to

move up after finishing 1-8 last year. The Stars return seven starters on each side of the ball.

“This will be a stiff challenge as I see no one who will be weak in this district,” Lisbon coach Kent Allison noted. “I would give Wapsie the nod, but I really think North Linn is primed to make a run. They have terrific athletes.”

Alburnett Pirates‌

East Buchanan at Jesup, Edgewood-Colesburg at Maquoketa Valley, North Butler at Starmont, North Tama at North Linn, Postville at Nashua-Plainfield, Wapsie Valley at South Winneshiek, Winfield–Mt. Union at Lisbon.

SEPT. 2 – Belle Plaine at Alburnett, Clayton Ridge at Edgewood-Colesburg, Denver at Wapsie Valley, Jesup at North East Buchanan Buccaneers‌ Postville Pirates‌ Linn, MFL MarMac at Postville, North HEAD COACH: Luke Steege Cedar at Lisbon, Starmont at Maquoketa HEAD COACH: Jerry Alden 2015 RECORDS: 0-9 overall, 0-7 Valley, Sumner-Fredericksburg at East 2015 RECORDS: 6-4 overall, 5-2 district Buchanan. district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 10

SEPT. 9 – Edgewood-Colesburg at Post RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 11 RETURNING STARTERS (7): Mac ville, Lisbon at Starmont, North Linn at RETURNING STARTERS (7): Carter Hughes, rb-lb, Cole Spain, ol-dl, Travis Fish, East Buchanan, Wapsie Valley at Alburnett.

Downer, rb-lb, Jordan Hettinger, ol-dl, ol-dl, Owen Jacobson, te-s, Elfego Marro SEPT. 16 – Alburnett at EdgeTaylor Fox, ol-dl, Ryan Schmitt, qb-lb, quin, rb-lb, Willy Martinez, rb-db, Jacob wood-Colesburg, East Buchanan at Wapsie Dylan Kress, ol-dl, Heath Weber, ol-lb, Tyler Steffans, qb-lb.

Valley, North Linn at Lisbon, Postville at Williams, db-rb.

Starmont.

Starmont Stars‌ Edgewood-Colesburg Vikings‌ HEAD COACH: Matt Lee SEPT. 23 – Edgewood-Colesburg, Lis 2015 RECORDS: 1-8 overall, 1-6 district bon at East Buchanan, Postville at North HEAD COACH: James Rochford Linn, Starmont at Alburnett.

2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 2-5 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 14 SEPT. 30 – Alburnett at North Linn, RETURNING STARTERS (10): Austin RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 10 Stocks, c-de, Chase Peterman, fb-dl, Noah East Buchanan at Postville, Starmont at RETURNING STARTERS (6): Brady Fedeler, fb-lb, Weslee Gould, ol-dl, Hunter Edgewood-Colesburg, Wapsie Valley at Helle, rb-lb, Elliott Meyer, ol-dl, Dakota Fletcher, rb, Logan Recker, dl, Caleb Koch, Lisbon.

Funke, ol-dl, Preston Rochford, db, Trever te, Tony Fleming, ol-dl, Carter Kepplor, lb, OCT. 7 – East Buchanan at AlburHoisington, ol-dl, Tanner Payle, ol-dl.

Quinn O’Brien, cb. nett, Lisbon at Postville, North Linn at Edgewood-Colesburg, Wapsie Valley at Lisbon Lions‌ Wapsie Valley Warriors‌ Starmont.

HEAD COACH: Tony Foster HEAD COACH: Kent Allison

OCT. 14 – Alburnett at Lisbon, Edge 2015 RECORDS: 8-3 overall, 6-1 district 2015 RECORDS: 3-6 overall, 2-4 wood-Colesburg at East Buchanan, North district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 11 Linn at Starmont, Postville at Wapsie RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 10 Valley.

RETURNING STARTERS (8): Jack RETURNING STARTERS (10): Taylan Butteris, wb-fs, Justin Clarke, ol-dl, Ryley OCT. 21 –Lisbon at Edgewood-ColesSauerbrei, qb-s, Jake Kuhlmann, rb-lb, Scott, ol-dl-k, Blake Langhurst, se-db-r, Jake Trotter, ol-dl, Jaden Kuethe, wr-s, Alec burg, Postville at Alburnett, Starmont at Logan O’Connor, ol-dl, Austin Krob, rb-lb-p, Marticoff, te-cb, Ben Weepie, ol-lb, Colin East Buchanan, Wapsie Valley at North Tyson Williams, te-lb, Jake Jennett, qb-db. Schrader, rb, Abe Silva, c-dl.

Linn.

2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

S20 | Thursday, August 25, 2016

wcfcourier.com • THE COURIER

CLASS A, DISTRICT 5

G-R defense expects to be tested Watch list Defending champs PASSING will see tough, Kopriva, North Tama: 43-121-11, powerful offenses this 462 Cael yards, 2 TDs RUSHING season

Joey Schwenn, Belle Plaine: 164-947,

NICK PETAROS nick.petaros@wcfcourier.com‌

‌Gladbrook-Reinbeck coach John Olson enjoys a challenge.

Surveying the variety of offenses in Class A, District 5, the man who coached the Rebels to a state runner-up finish in 2014 and a Class A state title a year ago is eager to get to work.

Olson knows a Hudson program with four returning offensive line starters and a tight end back is going to be tough to stop from running the football. The B-G-M of Brooklyn team Gladbrook-Reinbeck defeated in last year’s quarterfinal playoff round graduates a talented senior class, but has strong tradition and runs out of an I-formation set.

Then there’s Belle Plaine, a team Olson describes as, “Playing smash mouth football, but they do it with 150-pound wrestlers.”

GMG of Garwin has a wideopen attack, and North Tama has first-year head coach Austin Pink looking to restore the school’s once rich tradition of district success.

Colfax-Mingo graduated most its team that threw the ball on a consistent basis a year ago, and Grand View Christian is making the move up from eight-player football.

“I’m a defensive coordinator so I’m really excited about it,” Olson said of the district. “I don’t like playing the same offenses all the time.”

Gladbrook-Reinbeck graduated 1,801-yard passer Jake Schuman along with its four top rushers, including Eric Stoakes, who ran for 1,621 yards. But the Rebels return a talented receiving corps of Matt Roeding, Erik

5.8 avg., 9TDs Cael Kopriva, North Tama: 133-222, 1.7

avg., 4 TDs Cam Fulcher, Hudson: 49-215, 4.4 avg.,

2 TDs RECEIVING Jayce Knight, B-G-M: 32-796, 24.9 avg.,

11 TDs Matt Roeding, Gladbrook-Reinbeck, 16-

264, 16.5 avg., 3 TDs Nick Sierra, North Tama, 17-203, 11.9

avg., 1 TD TACKLES Wes Geisler, Hudson: 55-27—68.5, 5.5

TFLs, 3.5 sacks Nathan Graves, Hudson: 50-35—67.5,

10.5 TFLs, 3.5 sacks Clay Ramseyer, Grand View Christian:

33-28.5—61.5, 3 TFLs, 3.5 sacks Eric Weiss, B-G-M: 32-26.5—58.5, 4 TFLs,

4 sacks Cael Kopriva, North Tama: 28-25—53, 1

TFL, 0 sacks INTERCEPTIONS

MATTHEW PUTNEY / COURIER PHOTO EDITOR‌

Gladbrook-Reinbeck’s Walker Thede, right, fends off a tackle by Akron-Westfield’s Caleb Colt during last season’s Class A state football championship game in the UNI-Dome.

Capsules

Erik Knaack, Gladbrook-Reinbeck:

6-156, 1 TD KICKOFF RETURNS Jayce Knight, B-G-M: 10-310, 31.0 avg.,

2 TDs PUNT RETURNS

B-G-M Bears‌

HEAD COACH: Jerod Burns 2015 RECORDS: 11-1 overall, 7-0

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 8 RETURNING STARTERS (8): Jayce

Knight, wr-cb, Eric Weiss, te-lb, Vaughn Jayce Knight, B-G-M: 14-375, 26.8 avg., Irlbeck, ol, Christian Sousley, ol-dt, Price 3 TDs Hall, de, David McCammant, dt, Kalvon Knaack and Walker Thede and Steffen, s, Kyle Kilmer, ol. have a formidable trio of Thomas Mussig, Jed Peterson and Jacob Belle Plaine Plainsmen‌ Walters on the offensive line.

HEAD COACH: Todd Bohlen Hunter Lott, characterized by 2015 RECORDS: 5-4 overall, 3-4 Olson as a well-liked, easy-go- district ing leader, is making the move RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 13 from receiver to quarterback. RETURNING STARTERS (6): Brodie Parker Bown, who missed most Bohlen, rb-db, Chance Baburek, ol-de, of last season with a broken leg, Joey Schwenn, fb-lb, Jordan Reineke, te-lb, will look to lead the backfield Spencer Willett, ol, Garrett Straight, db. alongside Josh Peterson and

Colfax-Mingo Tigerhawks‌

Please see G-R, Page S21

HEAD COACH: Jeff Lietz

2015 RECORDS: 8-3 overall, 6-1 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 7 RETURNING STARTERS (4): Wyatt

Owens, ol, Jake Dunsbergen, ol, Jimmy Camp, dl, Jarod Nichols, fs.

Gladbrook-Reinbeck Rebels‌

HEAD COACH: John Olson 2015 RECORDS: 12-2 overall, 6-1

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 16 RETURNING STARTERS (7): Hunter Lott, qb-db, Matt Roeding, wr, Erik Knaack, wr-db, Walker Thede, wr-db-k, Thomas Mussing, ol-lb, Jed Peterson, ol, Jacob Walters, ol-dl.

Green Mountain-Garwin Wolverines‌

HEAD COACH: Michael Spurlin 2015 RECORDS: 1-8 overall, 0-7 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 15 RETURNING STARTERS (15): Levi Duden, te, Josh Welton, ol, Matt Lolwing, ol, Nick Stegman, ol, Connor Stonewall, wr-lb, Brock Baldazo, rb, Darrin Anderson,

rb, Blaze Krull, wr, Garrett Groth, lb, Bryce Anderson, dl, Wesley Steiner, dl, Cade Bovenmyer, lb, Brayden Peterson, db, Chance Faircloth, db, Parker Welton, db.

Grand View Christian Lions‌

HEAD COACH: John Safford 2015 RECORDS: 5-4 overall, 4-3

district Please see A-5 Capsules, Page S21

DUNKERTON CO-OP ELEVATOR Tradition of Quality 509 W. Dunkerton St.

822-4291 1-800-627-3528

2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

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G-R From S20

hard-working fullback Gage Murty.

Depth is Olson’s top concern as the Rebels have just nine freshmen and seven sophomores out on a much smaller team than a year ago.

“It’s really important for our seniors and juniors to grasp this is their team and it has nothing to do with last year,” Olson said. “We love what we did last year and it’s part of our history at G-R, but it’s not a part of our history of this team and what we’re trying to build this year.”

At Hudson, coach Justin Brekke is quick to point out a move from Class 1A to Class A is by no means a drop in competition. Senior Taylan Entriken leads a battle-tested offensive line that also brings back Wes Geisler, Matt Seres

and Dawson Ellingson with Zach Buzinski at tight end.

That group, along with Nathan Graves, Cam Fulcher and Al Hageman, were among the tackle leaders for what figures to be stingy Pirate defense.

“Being able to communicate up there and adjust ingame is huge,” Brekke said of his line. “If we can stay healthy, that’s going to be our strength. We can build off that.”

At North Tama, Pink takes over a program that went winless a year ago. He’s already been impressed by the leadership and work ethic demonstrated by his seniors, including returning starters Cael Kopriva (QB/LB), Parker Lunde (OL/DL), Noah Kaufman (OL/DL) and Tanner Calderwood (OL/DL).

“They come to practice every day wanting to learn and better themselves,” Pink noted.

Class A-3

A-3 Capsules

From S18

From S18

tradition, they stand up against anybody in the state.

Newman Catholic continues to get better. They have some young kids coming back. Grundy Center, we haven’t played before, but they didn’t lose much and may have the best individual player in the whole district.”

North Butler will look to improve from its 4-5 record last season after quarterback Dalton Nelson and running back Trae Ulrich gained experience as juniors.

Nashua-Plainfield has nine starters back from its team that endured a tough 1-8 season a year ago.

“It’s the hardest working group of kids I have ever been around,” N-P coach Chase Sudol noted.

“They’re very knowledgeable about football, have a desire to be great.”

RETURNING STARTERS (5): Dalton

Nelson, qb-lb, Trae Ulrich, rb-lb, Sam Dolan, rb-lb, Bryce Bruns, ol, Clay Shultz, db.

Rockford Warriors‌

HEAD COACH: Nick Johnson 2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 1-5 district RETURNING STARTERS (8): Zach

Bushbaum, qb, Heath Farr, ol-lb, Weston Engels, te-lb, Dillon Schriever, fb, Tanner Grady, rb-cb, Brendyn Nash, ol, Kaden Lyman, dl, Clay Kuhlemeier, dl.

St. Ansgar Saints‌

HEAD COACH: Drew Clevenger 2015 RECORDS: 10-2 overall, 7-0

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 18 RETURNING STARTERS (10): Brady

Jahr, ol, Mitchell Smith, ol, Theo Baldus, ol, Ryan Petersen, te-dl, Dayton Smith, fb, Cole Willert, wr-cb, Ben Boerjan, qb-s, Parker Hendrickson, rb-lb, Noah Bishop, dl, Jake Hemann, lb.

West Fork Warhawks‌

HEAD COACH: Eric Gabe

Thursday, August 25, 2016 | S21

A-5 capsules From S20

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 6 RETURNING STARTERS (3): Colin

Szymanski, ol, Clay Ramseyer, rb-lb, Parker Owens, rb-db.

Hudson Pirates‌ HEAD COACH: Justin Brekke 2015 RECORDS: 8-3 overall, 4-2

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 14 RETURNING STARTERS (11): Cam

Fulcher, rb-lb, Wes Geisler, ol-dl, Matt Seres, ol-dl, Dawson Ellingson, ol-dl, Al Hageman, wr-db, Christian Seres, rb-db, Taylan Entriken, ol-lb, Nathan Graves, lb, Chance Schares, dl, Alec Stabell, kr, Zach Buzinski, te-lb.

North Tama Redhawks‌ HEAD COACH: Austin Pink 2015 RECORDS: 0-9 overall, 0-7

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 11

2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 2-4 district RETURNING STARTERS (5): Cole

Hall, rb-db, Christian Ames, rb-wr, Jarel Arbegast, qb-db, Spencer Noah, kr, Rylan Felshner, wr-lb.

West Hancock Eagles‌

HEAD COACH: Bob Sanger 2015 RECORDS: 7-3 overall, 5-1 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: 11 RETURNING STARTERS (9): Dylan Eckels, qb-s, Nick Lemmon, rb-cb, Jordan Weiland, rb-lb, Bryce Buren, ol-dl, Nick Hunt, ol-lb, Trey Hobscheidt, cb, Glen Smith, c, Colton Francis, rb, Hunter Hagen, dl.

2016 schedule‌

AUG. 26 – Central Springs at Rockford,

Fort Dodge St. Edmond at Mason City Newman, Garner-Hayfield-Ventura at West Hancock, Grundy Center at Gladbrook-Reinbeck, Lake Mills at West Fork, North Butler at Starmont, Osage at Saint Ansgar, Postville at Nashua-Plainfield.

SEPT. 2 – Belmond-Klemme at West Hancock, Mason City Newman at Lake Mills, Nashua-Plainfield at Hudson, North

RETURNING STARTERS (7): Cael

SEPT. 16 – Belle Plaine at Col-

Kopriva, qb-lb, Parker Lunde, ol-dl, Noah Kaufmann, ol-dl, Tanner Calderwood, ol-dl, Cory Kennedy, ol-dl, Michael Krienert, rb-lb, Nick Sierra, wr-db.

fax-Mingo, B-G-M at Grand View Christian, GMG at Gladbrook-Reinbeck, North Tama at Hudson.

SEPT. 23 – Belle Plaine at North Tama, Colfax-Mingo at Grand View Christian, Gladbrook-Reinbeck at B-G-M, Hudson at GMG. AUG. 26 – Colfax-Mingo at Lynn SEPT. 30 – B-G-M at Hudson, GMG ville-Sully, GMG at BCLUW, Grand View at Belle Plaine, Grand View Christian Christian at Southeast Warren, Grundy at Gladbrook-Reinbeck, North Tama at Center at Gladbrook-Reinbeck, Hudson Colfax-Mingo. at East Marshall, Montezuma at B-G-M, OCT. 7 – Belle Plaine at B-G-M, ColNorth Mahaska at Belle Plaine, North fax-Mingo at GMG, Gladbrook-Reinbeck Tama at North Linn. at Hudson, North Tama at Grand View SEPT. 2 – BCLUW at North Tama, Belle Christian.

Plaine at Alburnett, Colfax-Mingo at North OCT. 14 – B-G-M at Colfax-Mingo, Mahaska, Gladbrook-Reinbeck at DikeGladbrook-Reinbeck at Belle Plaine, GMG New Hartford, Lynnville-Sully at B-G-M, at North Tama, Hudson at Grand View Martensdale-St. Marys at Grand View Christian.

Christian, Nashua-Plainfield at Hudson, OCT. 21 – Belle Plaine at Hudson, North Butler at GMG. Colfax-Mingo at Gladbrook-Reinbeck, SEPT. 9 – B-G-M at GMG, GladGrand View Christian at GMG, North Tama brook-Reinbeck at North Tama, Grand at B-G-M. View Christian at Belle Plaine, Hudson at Colfax-Mingo.

2016 schedule‌

Butler at GMG, North Union at Rockford, South Hardin at Grundy Center, South Winneshiek at Saint Ansgar, West Fork at Central Springs.

SEPT. 9 – Mason City Newman at West Fork, Rockford at Grundy Center, Saint Ansgar at Nashua-Plainfield, West Hancock at North Butler.

SEPT. 16 – Grundy Center at Mason City Newman, Nashua-Plainfield at Rockford, North Butler at Saint Ansgar, West Fork at West Hancock.

SEPT. 23 – Nashua-Plainfield at North Butler, Rockford at Mason City Newman, Saint Ansgar at West Fork, West Hancock at Grundy Center.

SEPT. 30 – Grundy Center at Saint Ans-

gar, Mason City Newman at West Hancock, Rockford at North Butler, West Fork at Nashua-Plainfield.

OCT. 7 – Nashua-Plainfield at Grundy Center, North Butler at West Fork, Saint Ansgar at Mason City Newman, West Hancock at Rockford.

OCT. 14 – Grundy Center at North Butler, Mason City Newman at Nashua-Plainfield, Rockford at West Fork, West Hancock at Saint Ansgar.

OCT. 21 – Nashua-Plainfield at West Hancock, North Butler at Mason City Newman, Saint Ansgar at Rockford, West Fork at Grundy Center.

Good Luck Cyclones

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2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

S22 | Thursday, August 25, 2016

wcfcourier.com • THE COURIER

8-PLAYER, DISTRICT 2

Turkey Valley loaded for title run DOUG JOHNSON doug.johnson@wcfcourier.com‌

‌ ive of the seven teams in DisF trict 2 qualified for the playoffs last year. Only the top two will advance this year.

Heading that list of postseason contenders is a Turkey Valley team that lost just one regular contributor from an 8-3 playoff squad.

Quarterback Cody Hackman completed 42 passes for 1,086 yards and his 792 yards running was second to Wyatt Blazek’s 1,351. Will Einwalter had 11 receptions for 380 yards, while Blazek caught 17 passes for 353 yards.

One concern for Mark Scott, in his 14th year at the helm of the Trojans, is the make-up of the district.

“We are in a new district with five of the six teams we have not played before,” Scott notes. “If we stay healthy, we should be competitive this year.”

Competitive teams are the norm for a Turkey Valley program with seven straight playoff appearances and a 17-5 record in two seasons of 8-player football.

If Janesville coach Dale Eastman’s Wildcats are going to make the playoffs for the ninth straight season, they are going to rely upon a group with very little playing time. Janesville lost 12 players to graduation, including the team’s leading passer, rusher, receivers and top two tacklers.

The only returning starters are Kevin Hahn, who had 72 carries for 445 yards offensively and 61 tackles on defense, and kicker Dalton Woodyard, who drilled 54 PATs a year ago.

Eastman is confident a new group is ready to step up in other areas.

“We have a hardworking group of kids who have been backups the past couple of years,” he said. “They are eager to get their Please see Turkey Valley, Page S24

Watch list PASSING Cody Hackman, Turkey Valley: 42-78-3,

1,086 yds., 19 TDs Spencer Armstrong, North Iowa: 50-

107-5, 698 yds., 11 TDs RUSHING Spencer Armstrong, North Iowa: 172-

1,481, 27 TDs Wyatt Blazek, Turkey Valley: 171-1,351,

22 TDs Grant Shedenhelm, Riceville: 164-929,

18 TDs Cody Hackman, Turkey Valley: 167-792,

20 TDs RECEIVING Tom Fick, Northwood-Kensett: 18-423,

11 TDs Will Einwalter, Turkey Valley: 11-380,

7 TDs Austin Haisman, North Iowa: 21-365,

7 TDs MATTHEW PUTNEY / COURIER PHOTO EDITOR‌

Turkey Valley’s William Einwalter dives over the goal line to score a touchdown during a playoff game against Don Bosco last season.

Capsules

Wyatt Blazek, Turkey Valley: 17-353,

4 TDs TACKLES Wyatt Blazek, Turkey Valley: 53-46 – 99,

3 TFLs Evan Busta, Turkey Valley: 29-40.5 –

69.5 0 TFLs

AGWSR Raiders‌

Kevin Hahn, Janesville: 32-29.5 – 61.5,

HEAD COACH: James Koop 2015 RECORDS: 4-6 overall, 3-3

9 TFLs INTERCEPTIONS

district

Cody Hackman, Turkey Valley: 5-48 KICKING Tate Hofmeister, wr-db, Nathan Karsjens, qb-dl, Aaron Roelfs, qb-lb, Mason Eilderts, Dalton Woodward, Janesville: 54 PATs rb-db, Tyler Rose, rb-lb, Liam Stubbe, rb-lb, Joe Wiarda, rb-lb, Caleb Meinders, k, Cody Lyons, ol-dl, Ethan Ubben, ol-dl, Cameron Johnson, wr-db, Sawyer Heitland, MATTHEW PUTNEY / COURIER PHOTO EDITOR‌ ol-dl.

Turkey Valley quarterback Cody Hackman eludes the Don Bosco defense during last season’s playoff game in Gilbertville.

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (12):

Clarksville Indians‌

HEAD COACH: Chris Arians 2015 RECORDS: 1-8 overall, 0-6

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (9): Tanner Gilbert, e-s, Dakota Garretson, qb-s, Riley Cramer, rb-lb, Adam Lovrien, ol-dl, Matt Nelson, k-p, Ethan Litterer, e-s, Sterling Kroeze, ol-dl, Koltyn Beckham, rb-lb, Trace Engel, ol-dl.

Janesville Wildcats‌

HEAD COACH: Dale Eastman 2015 RECORDS: 9-1 overall, 6-0

2015 RECORDS: 5-5 overall, 4-2 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (7):

district

Spencer Armstrong, qb-c, Noah Paulson, te-lb, Austin Haisman, wr-p-s, Colin Weaver, ol-de, Drew Jensen, te-lb, Isaiah Walk, rb-c, Jacob Koppen, rb

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (6):

Kevin Hahn, rb-lb, Dalton Woodyard rb-lb, Peyton Meyer, qb-s, Spencer Hoff, wr-lb, Charley Dawson, rb-lb, Keegan Feldman, wr.

North Iowa Bison‌

HEAD COACH: Graig Eichenberger

Northwood-Kensett Vikings‌

HEAD COACH: Dave Capitani

Please see 8-Player District 2, Page S24

715 Main St. Plainfield IA, 50666 www.butler-bremer.com 319-276-4458 Good Luck Go-Hawks!

2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

THE COURIER • wcfcourier.com

Thursday, August 25, 2016 | S23

8-PLAYER, DISTRICT 4

Dons look to build on winning ways Central Elkader joins Don Bosco in District 4 this season

Watch list PASSING Derek Ehrhardt, Central: 111-188-0,

1,663 yards, 6 TDs

DOUG JOHNSON doug.johnson@wcfcourier.com‌

Brandon Bagby, Don Bosco: 65-107-3,

‌ ince switching to 8-player S football in 2012, Don Bosco has won 47 games, lost only three, claimed one state title, finished second twice and was eliminated in the quarterfinals once.

Despite losing Nick Mangrich (1,426 yards rushing) and Joel Sweeney (749 yards), the Dons return 16 letterwinners for the 2016 campaign. Brandon Bagby will direct the offense after completing passes for 1,254 yards and 25 touchdowns and rushing for 451 yards and 10 TDs last season.

“We have a lot of seniors that have put in a lot of hard work,” said Bagby. “I am more confident this year and we will be ready to go.”

A favored receiver will be Caleb Rigdon, who had 18 receptions and nine TDs. Despite only four returning starters, coach Colby Yoder is optimistic.

“We have been up big on a lot of teams during the past few years,” Yoder noted. “The younger kids got a lot of varsity experience with a lot of reps and that is a good thing.’”

Central Elkader is another

Tucker Colsch, Kee: 50-140-14, 749

team in the district with an impressive tradition. The Warriors have lost only two games in the past two seasons and averaged 60 points per game last season, second only to Don Bosco’s 64 per game.

Capsules

Coughlan, ol-dl, Michael Walter, te-de.

Central City Wildcats‌

HEAD COACH: Matt Meirs 2015 RECORDS: 3-7 overall, 2-5 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (12):

1,264 yards, 25 TDs yards, 8 TDs Brady Forsyth, West Central: 36-70-1,

473 yards, 4 TDs RUSHING Wade McKinney, Central City: 163-678,

5 TDs RECEIVING Caleb Rigdon, Don Bosco: 18-421, 9 TDs Zach Johnson, Tripoli: 34-410, 7 TDs Ted Hilgerson, Central: 23-354, 7 TDs

TACKLES Ted Hilgerson, Central: 58-33 – 91, 8

TFLs Dalton Bunn, West Central: 48-37 – 85,

1 TFLs Zach Grant Central: 43-35 –78, 12 TFLs Seth Damm, Tripoli: 46-29.5 – 75.5, 14

TFLs Nick Sylvester, Central: 51-19 – 70, 2

TFLs MATTHEW PUTNEY / COURIER PHOTO EDITOR‌

Among the key players returning this season for Don Bosco are Dylan Thome, Walker Even, Caleb Rigdon and Brandon Bagby.

Central Elkader Warriors‌

HEAD COACH: Tom Wilwert 2015 RECORDS: 11-1 overall, 7-0

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (8): Dalton Norman, ol-lb, Sam Hall, rb-lb, Derek Ehrhardt, qb-db, Ted Hilgerson, Austin Van Alst, rb-lb, Bryce Silver, ol-lb, wr-lb, Drew Reinhart, ol-dl, Lane McGreal, Wade McKinney, rb-lb, Cody Gray, te-de, ol-dl, Nick Sylvester, wr-db, Zach Grant, T,J, Ayers ol-dl, Kyle Marsh, rb-db, Brandon rb-lb, Elijah Hopp, ol-dl, William ChristeRollinger, wr-db, Wyatt Starry, ol-dl, Nile leit, ol-dl.

Derek Ehrhardt will be the starting quarterback for the fourth year. Last year, his 1,663 yards passing ranked fifth in 8-player.

Joining Ehrhardt are five more returning starters, all of whom

Don Bosco Dons‌

HEAD COACH: Colby Yoder 2015 RECORDS: 11-1 overall, 6-0

district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (16):

Brandon Bagby, qb, Walker Even, dl-ol, Caleb Rigdon, wr, Dylan Thome, ol, Brock Thome, Austin Svoboda, Jeremy Schmitz, Jordan VanBrocklin, Max Gardner, Wyatt Sawvel, Austin Hellman, Owen Mangrich, Dylan Rottinghaus, Tanner Even, Garrett

Colin Kime, West Central: 36-29.5 – 65.5,

1 TFL INTERCEPTIONS

Ted Hilgerson, Central: 8-171 earned all-district honors last Nick Sylvester, Central: 6-24 season.

Steve Milder, in his 39th seaMilder is hoping the return of son at West Central, has a wealth Tyson Decker will help team. The of experience back with nine 6-1 senior started as a freshman, starters, many who played both ways.

Please see Dons, Page S24

Beck, Clayton Weber.

Dunkerton Raiders‌

HEAD COACH: Jonathan Steffen 2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 2-4 district RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (14):

Charles Magee, de-c, Nic Fettkether, lb-tb, Jackson Hoeft, fb, Dalton Burch, db, Trace Johnson, db, Drake Tisue, t, Kaleb Cox, e-lb, Caleb Heideman, Sam Schrage, Aaron Garbes, Holden Gillespie, Daniel VanBrocklin, Please see 8-Player District 4 , Page S24

715 Main St. Plainfield IA, 50666 www.butler-bremer.com 319-276-4458 Good Luck Panthers!

S24

2016 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

| THURSDAY, AUGUST 25, 2016

Turkey Valley From S22

names in the paper and make Janesville a team that others want to beat.”

AGWSR will be making its debut as an 8-player team with 12 returning letterwinners and its sights on a fourth straight playoff season. Head coach James Koop is no stranger to the 8-man game after serving as defensive coordinator at Northeast Hamilton.

“We are basically taking the offense used by (former coach) Skip Eckhardt and converting it to 8-man,” said Koop. “We had an excellent camp this summer and worked extensively on making sure the coaching staff and the players are on the same page. And I think we were quite successful. The team is excited about the new season and ready

8-Player District 2

to go.”

Mason Eilderts (66 rusheds, 524 yards) and junior Liam Stubbe (283 yards) will be called upon to replace Levi Stockdale (162 rushes, 840 yards), while the Cougar passing attack will be in the hands of senior quarterback Nathan Karsjens.

Clarksville coach Chris Arian will have nine returning letterwinners. Dakota Garretson (315 yards passing), Riley Cramer (552 yards rushing) and Tanner Gilbert (10 receptions, 212 yards) lead the offense.

“This team has a lot of speed,” noted Arians. “It also has 15 or 16 guys that I feel I can plug in a game at any point.”

Northwood-Kensett must replace its quarterback and the top four running backs.

Riceville fans will welcome the return of 15 letterwinners, including Grant Shedenhelm who had 929 yards rushing.

2016 schedule

 AUG. 26 – Colo-NESCO at AGWSR (ND),

Dunkerton at Clarksville (ND), Kee High at Turkey Valley (ND), Meskwaki Settlement at From S22 Janesville (ND), North Iowa at Harris-Lake  2015 RECORDS: 7-3 overall, 5-1 district Park (ND), Northwood-Kensett at West  RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (7): Bend-Mallard (ND), Tripoli at Riceville (ND).

Tom Fick, te-db, Hayden Halbach, lb-rb,  SEPT. 2 – AGWSR at Dunkerton (ND), Chris Parcher, ol-dl, Caleb Kliment, qb-db, Clarksville at Cedar Valley Christian (ND), A.J. Branstad, ol-dl, Garrett Thompson, ol-dl, Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire at Colton Moretz, lb-ol.

Northwood-Kensett (ND), Janesville at Tripoli (ND), Riceville at Kee High (ND), Turkey Valley Riceville Wildcats at West Central (ND), West Bend-Mallard at  HEAD COACH: Stef Fair North Iowa (ND).  2015 RECORDS: 5-4 overall, 2-4 district  SEPT. 9 – AGWSR at Riceville, North  RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (15): Matthew Green, qb, Tommy Bauer, wr, Joey Iowa at Turkey Valley, Northwood-Kensett at Janesville, West Central at Clarksville (ND).

Gansen, ol, Andrew Morische, lb, Seth Fox,  SEPT. 16 – Don Bosco at AGWSR (ND), ol, Kyler Bauer, lb, Ben Dunn, ol, Cole HolJanesville at Clarksville, Northwood-Kensett men, dl, Ben Swancutt, lb, Jake Jensen, ol, Tyler Christensen, wr, John Miller, wr, Grant at North Iowa, Turkey Valley at Riceville.  SEPT. 23 – AGWSR at Turkey Valley, Shedenhelm, rb, Spencer Kuhn, ol, Kaleb Clarksville at North Iowa, Janesville at Central Twiete, db.

City (ND), Riceville at Northwood-Kensett.  SEPT. 30 – Clarksville at Riceville, North Turkey Valley Trojans Iowa at Janesville, Northwood-Kensett at AG HEAD COACH: Mark Scott WSR, Turkey Valley at Elkader Central (ND).  2015 RECORDS: 8-3 overall, 6-1 district  OCT. 7 – AGWSR at Clarksville, Janesville  RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (16): at Riceville, Northwood-Kensett at Turkey Wyatt Blazek, rb-lb, Cody Hackman, qb-lb, Valley, Tripoli at North Iowa (ND).

Will Einwalter, rb-db, Kelby Reicks, ol-dl,  OCT. 14 – Janesville at AGWSR, Kee High Nathan Mueterthies, ol-dl, Walker Liebold, te-db, Evan Busta, te-db, John Gossling, ol-lb, at Northwood-Kensett (ND), Riceville at North Garrison Kruse, ol-dl, Scott Kime, ol-dl, Riley Iowa, Turkey Valley at Clarksville.

Schmitt, ol-dl, Levi Izer, qb-db, Brady Dreier,  OCT. 21 – Clarksville at Northwood-Kensett, North Iowa at AGWSR, Riceville at ol-dl, Dalton Engelhardt, te-lb, Braedon Dunkerton (ND), Turkey Valley at Janesville.

Baumler, fb-dl, Cale Reicks, rb-db.

Dons From S23

but missed all but 10 minutes of the 2014 season and two games last year due to injuries. Dalton Bunn battled Lymes disease last season but still led the team with 85 tackles is healthy.

Brady Forsyth will start at quarterback after completing 36 of 70 passes and adding 209 yards running.

“We must stay healthy,” noted Milder.

Graduation nearly wiped out the Tripoli offensive attack.

8-Player District 4

Lost are Braydon Biermann and his 1,951 yards passing, along with two backs who combined for 1,257 rushing yards.

“We need to find experience in the backfield to follow a veteran offensive line,” said coach Tom Nuss, who returns three starting offensive linemen and a pair of tight ends.

Defensively, Seth Damm returns after leading the team in tackles with 75.5, including 14 for loss. Also back are Zach Hereid (47 tackles) and Eric Henry (44.5).

Fourteen returning letter-

2016 schedule

 AUG. 26 – Central City at Springville

(ND), Don Bosco at Midland (ND), Dunkerton at Clarksville (ND), Central From S23 Elkader at Easton Valley (ND), Kee High at Turkey Valley (ND), Tripoli at Riceville Brady Shane, Shiloh Witt.

(ND), West Central at Cedar Valley Christian (ND).

Kee High Hawks  SEPT. 2 – AGWSR at Dunkerton (ND),  HEAD COACH: Chad Winters Easton Valley at Central City (ND), Iowa Valley at Don Bosco (ND), Janesville at  2015 RECORDS: 2-7 overall, 2-5 Tripoli (ND), Midland at Central Elkader district (ND), Riceville at Kee High (ND), Turkey  RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (14): Valley (ND).

Clay Olson, rb-lb, Eric Rud, e-de, Jon Mooney, ol-de, Brock Flack, ol-lb, Tucker  SEPT. 9 – Dunkerton at Don Bosco, Kee High at Central City, Tripoli at Central Colsch, qb-db, Brock Colsch, fb, Cody Rosendahl, dl, Tyler Reinhart, Casey Car- Elkader, West Central at Clarksville (ND). roll, A.J. Gagner, Adam Spearbecker, Tris-  SEPT. 16 – Central City at West Centen Rolfs, Aiden Winters, Jacob Walleser. tral, Don Bosco at AGWSR (ND), Central Elkader at Dunkerton, Tripoli at Kee Tripoli Panthers High.  HEAD COACH: Tom Nuss  SEPT. 23 – Central Elkader at Don Bosco, Janesville at Central City (ND),  2015 RECORDS: 5-5 overall, 3-3 Kee High at Dunkerton, West Central at district 3 Tripoli.  RETURNING LETTERWINNERS (9):  SEPT. 30 – Central City at Tripoli, Don Eric Henry, ol-dl, Seth Damm, te-lb, Zach Hereid, ol-lb, Zach Johnson, qb-db, Dalton Bosco at Kee High, Dunkerton at West Central, Turkey Valley at Central Elkader Tonne, wr-db, Tyler Halverson, te-de, (ND).

Drake Brookman ol-dl, Brady Brocka, te-de, Alex Nation, rb-lb.  OCT. 7 – Don Bosco at West Central, Dunkerton at Central City, Central Elkader at Kee High, Tripoli at North West Central Blue Devils Iowa (ND).  HEAD COACH: Steve Milder  OCT. 14 – Central City at Don Bosco,  2015 RECORDS: 3-7 overall, 2-5 Kee High at Northwood-Kensett (ND), district Tripoli at Dunkerton, West Central at  RETURNING LETTERWINNERS Central Elkader.

(9): Tyson Decker, lb-rb, Joe Kane, ol-dl, Brady Forsyth, db-qb, Collin Kane, lb-oe,  OCT. 21 – Don Bosco at Tripoli, Central Elkader at Central City, Riceville Dalton Bunn, rb-lb, Alexander Paul, dl, at Dunkerton (ND), West Central at Kee Noah Green, ol, Collin Kime, rb-db, Jake High.

Kuhens, rb-lb,

wcfcourier.com • THE COURIER

winners should help Dunkerton improve upon last season’s mark.

“We have good depth at our skill positions,” said coach Jonathan Steffen, “and a number of guys with varsity experience who had to play as sophomores.”

The Raiders need a new quarterback, but return three of the top four running backs, led by sophomore Jackson Hoeft (93 carries, 478 yards).

Kee High returns 14 letterwinners, eight of which were starters.

Anytime.

Anywhere.

715 Main St. Plainfield IA, 50666 www.butler-bremer.com 319-276-4458 Good Luck Indians!