SIX-MAN FOOTBALL PREVIEW – WEEK TEN by Kerry Sherman

SIX-MAN FOOTBALL PREVIEW – WEEK TEN

BY: KERRY SHERMAN

The final weekend of regular season play in six-man brings us one last league championship contest, one that will decide the final playoff spot, and several more that will impact seeding, including who ends up hosting in the first round. All rankings are from the Thursday morning CHSAA Selection and Seeding Index, and we collect all stats from MaxPreps.

FRIDAY

#2 STRATTON (8-1, 5-0 EAST CENTRAL) VS WALSH (1-8, 0-6 SOUTHEAST) 7PM

Last week… Stratton got a lot of work for its backups in a 61-14 win over Prairie. Judson Isenbart made the most of the opportunity, rushing for 142 yards and two touchdowns on five carries. Stockton Fye added two more rushing TD, along with a kick return for a score. Von Isenbart picked off two passes and returned both for touchdowns. Walsh was unable to dent the scoreboard in its Southeast league final game against Cheraw. The Wolverines piled up more than 400 yards on the ground in the 52-0 win. Samuel Wright and Beau Foster each had a forced fumble for the Eagles, with Wright coming up with a recovery. Gage Caddick recorded his first career interception.

Series history… While there was a bit of history between the two sets of Eagles in eight-man, they have only played twice as six-man teams. Stratton has won both previous meetings.

#3 IDALIA (7-2, 3-2 EAST CENTRAL) VS #18 PEETZ (3-6, 3-3 NORTH) 5PM

Last week… Gabe Kechter ran for 277 yards and six touchdowns, while Garret Drullinger added 168 and three scores in Idalia’s 77-22 win at Fleming. The Wolves ran for 553 yards as a team. Tate Towns led the defensive effort with 17 tackles, including a sack. Peetz saw its losing streak reach three with a 58-12 defeat by Otis. The Bulldogs were down 44-6 after one quarter. Bryson Leach and Logan Vallier had a TD pass apiece, each going to Sam Naegele. Naegele and Collin Fehringer both had an interception.

Series history… Peetz holds a 3-2 lead in the last five meetings, including all three in a current streak. However, the last game between the two programs came back in 2017.

#6 GRANADA (6-2, 4-1 SOUTHEAST) VS #15 KIT CARSON (4-4, 2-3 SOUTHEAST) 7PM

Last week… Granada had a well-timed bye following its 75-39 loss to Cheyenne Wells the week prior. Maddox Coleman threw for 233 yards and four touchdowns, with three going to Terence Hainer (8/100/3). Coleman also ran for 130 yards and a TD. Adam Hainer recorded the first interception of his career. Just a few days after playing a rescheduled game with Eads, Kit Carson was scheduled to host Wiley last Saturday, but the Wildcats were the recipient of a forfeit victory. Earlier in the week, Mason Marriott threw four touchdown passes in a 49-32 loss to Eads. Brennan Framel and Josiah Irwin had two touchdown receptions apiece.

Series history… The teams have split their four meetings, with Kit Carson winning the first two, and the Bobcats taking the last two. The winning team has scored at least 56 points in each game. Kit Carson could need a victory to make the postseason field, as its lead over Prairie and Kiowa is pretty slim.

#8 CALICHE (8-1, 5-0 NORTH) VS #11 FLEMING (7-2, 5-0 NORTH) 7PM

Last week… The Buffs kept their league title hopes in their first season of six-man alive by escaping the upset bid of Briggsdale, 35-34. The victory set up this title match-up with Fleming, who fell 77-22 to Idalia. Treyson Kirkwood connected twice with Grant Kuntz on scoring passes, and Kuntz added another score on the ground. The Wildcats forced three fumbles, but only recovered one. That was credited to Izaiah Nielsen.

Series history… This will be the first meeting between the two sides in six-man.

#9 HANOVER (7-2, 5-0 CENTRAL) AT GENOA-HUGO (2-6, 1-4 EAST CENTRAL) 7PM

Last week… Hanover was outscored 38-0 in the second quarter of a 62-18 loss to Cheyenne Wells. Tyler Decker had a TD pass to Tanner Lindsey, and LeeXander Thibou added one on the ground. Nolan Sweazy had one of the few defensive highlights, returning his first career interception 55 yards for a touchdown. Genoa-Hugo rode a two-game losing streak into its bye, with the Pirates having fallen to Arickaree/Woodlin 70-14 the week before. Ryker Lockhart raised his freshman season touchdown total to 16 with a pair of scoring tosses in the loss. Teghan Seymour and Levi Yoder caught one apiece.

Series history… These two used to be league rivals, with Genoa-Hugo winning 10 of the past 12 meetings. The Pirates have won the last eight in a row.

#16 PRAIRIE (4-5, 4-2 NORTH) VS #17 KIOWA (5-4, 4-1 CENTRAL) 7PM

Last week… Prairie had its hands full in the 61-14 loss at Stratton, as the Mustangs saw their hosts score in both the aerial and ground attacks, as well as on defense and special teams. The loss put the Mustangs in this do-or-die contest against Kiowa. A three-game winning streak, including a 28-19 victory over Deer Trail last week, has lifted Kiowa into this contest that is essentially a one-game playoff to make the postseason. The Indians overcame four turnovers, thanks in large part to two rushing touchdowns from Ryker Robinett. John White (15) and Austin Brogger (10) combined for 25 tackles.

Series history… This is the first meeting between the two programs in six-man.

SATURDAY

#1 CHEYENNE WELLS (8-0, 6-0 SOUTHEAST) VS #10 BRANSON/KIM (6-2, 4-1 SOUTHWEST) 1PM

Last week… Trey Scheler ran for three scores and caught another one from Zack Dickey in the 62-18 win by Cheyenne Wells over Hanover. Dickey threw another TD to Chason Turner, and also returned a punt for a touchdown of his own. Kelby Leonard got the defense on the board with a short scoop-and-score. Branson/Kim had to survive a furious fourth quarter rally by Primero to pull out a 36-32 victory on Saturday night. After Kolter Cranson had scored his fourth rushing touchdown of the night, the Bearcats saw Primero score twice, including once with under 20 seconds to play. The Bulldogs recovered their own onside kick and had three final pass attempts to steal the win, but could not get into the end zone. Cranson finished with 243 yards on the ground to go with his four touchdowns, and he also returned a kick 70 yards for another score. Will Doherty converted three PAT kicks to supply the difference in the contest.

Series history… Cheyenne Wells has won all three previous meetings with the Bearcats.

#4 OTIS (8-1, 4-1 EAST CENTRAL) VS #12 EADS (5-3, 4-2 SOUTHEAST) 1PM

Last week… Mitchell Stivers ran for three touchdowns and Tayte Smith added a pair on the ground as Otis handled Peetz 58-12. Charlie Kendrick tacked on a receiving TD and another on a long pick-six. Milo Kendrick snagged his first career interception. Eads had a bye following its 49-32 win over Kit Carson last Monday. Adyn Hough threw for three touchdowns, two to Kadan Dunlap, and the Eagles got two rushing touchdowns apiece from Karsten Buller and Stockton Mitchek.

Series history… Otis has won three of the previous five meetings, but the teams have not played since 2017.

#7 ARICKAREE/WOODLIN (5-3, 2-3 EAST CENTRAL) VS #13 CHERAW (5-4, 3-3 SOUTHEAST) 1PM

Last week… Due to the National FFA Convention, Arickaree/ Woodlin joined a number of teams in scheduling their bye for the week. The Bison picked up their second straight win a week earlier, racing past Genoa-Hugo 70-12. Austin Wright powered the attack with 337 yards and five touchdowns on the ground. Jorge Ramos added three rushing scores to go with the one he caught from Wright. Dillon Noletubby sparked the defense with 10 tackles and an interception. Cheraw pushed its winning streak to three with the 52-0 win over Walsh. Tim Provost (199 yards, 3TD) and William Ledbetter (178 yards, 3TD) ran wild in the victory. Braden Stoker and Jacob Herman contributed a fumble recovery apiece to help preserve the shutout.

Series history… These teams have only met once before during the MaxPreps era (2004-current), with the Wolverines taking a victory in the 2021 playoffs.