Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

City High (0-0) at Liberty High (0-0)

Where: Liberty High, 7:15 p.m.

Last season: City High 38, Liberty High 21

Player to watch: City High senior running back Tonka Hickman (5-11, 186) ran for 181 yards and two touchdowns against Liberty High last season and finished the year with 832 rushing yards and seven touchdowns.

Key stat: City High rushed for a season-high 403 yards and averaged 8.6 yards per carry win a win over Liberty High last season.

About the Lightning: Expectations are elevated for the Lightning this fall as the roster from last year’s team that went 3-6 in its debut season returns nearly intact.

Liberty High went 2-2 in non-district play with wins over Waterloo East and Mid-Prairie but lost four straight district games by at least 27 points before a 42-21 win over Clinton in the season finale.

The Lightning formed an identity as a power running team in its first varsity season, averaging 198 yards per game on the ground. A big key this season will be the development of senior quarterback Drake Woody who passed for 611 yards and four touchdowns a year ago.

About the Little Hawks: City High went just 1-8 following its season-opening win over the Lightning last season, dropping five straight to end the year.

However, there is plenty of optimism at City High to start this season beginning with a talented duo in the offensive backfield. Junior quarterback Raph Hamilton returns after throwing for 870 yards and four touchdowns a year ago and has Hickman to lean on after he rushed for better than 800 yards in his first varsity season.

The receiving corps is inexperienced but talented and City High coach Dan Sabers likes the way the City High offensive line is coming together. If those two areas take a step forward the Little Hawks should be dangerous on offense.

West High (0-0) at North Scott (0-0)

Where: Lancer Field in Eldridge, 7:15 p.m.

Last season: West High 28, North Scott 7

Player to watch: West High junior quarterback Marcus Morgan was 8-1 as a starter last season throwing for 1,875 yards and 15 touchdowns while rushing for 376 yards and two scores.

Key stat: West High is 4-1 in season-openers under Garrett Hartwig, winning by an average of better than 14 points per game.

About the Trojans: West High returns just a handful of starters from last year’s team that went 9-2 and advanced to the 4A quarterfinals but few teams in the state have reloaded better than the Trojans under Hartwig.

Morgan returns to lead the offense and has a strong group of skill position players at his disposal led by senior receiver Tate Crane who caught 27 passes and 326 yards and Marchaun Hoover who rushed for 138 yards a year ago.

The biggest questions for the Trojans are on defense where they must replace their top three tacklers and on the offensive line.

About the Lancers: North Scott rattled off nine consecutive wins following a season-opening loss to West High a year ago before falling to Western Dubuque in the Class 3A quarterfinals. The Lancers must replace its starting quarterback, top rusher and receiver but bring back a pair of strong building blocks in seniors Ben Belken and Jackson Stoefen.

Belken is a North Iowa recruit that ranked third on the team with 44.5 tackles a year ago while Stoefen is a 6-foot-6, 280-pound tackle committed to Kansas.

Senior Quentin Allison is the top returning rusher for North Scott after running for 334 yards and six touchdowns last season and will likely be leaned on heavily as the Lancers break in a new quarterback.

Mount Pleasant (0-0) at Clear Creek Amana (0-0)

Where: Clipper Field, 7:30 p.m.

Last season: Clear Creek Amana 26, Mount Pleasant 7

Player to watch: Clear Creek Amana junior TJ Bollers is capable of dominating a game from his defensive end position as was evident by his 13 tackles for loss and four sacks last season.

Key stat: Clear Creek Amana held opponents to 112.5 rushing yards per game during its eight wins last season and allowed 264 yards per game on the ground in two losses.

About the Clippers: Clear Creek Amana started 7-0 last season en route to a school-record eight wins and its first playoff appearance since 2016.

The Clippers must replace starting quarterback Andrew Rohret but bring back their top pass catcher in seniors Sam Stevens, starting running back Alex Figueroa and four starters on the offensive line.

The real strength for the Clippers should be on defense as three of the top five tacklers return from a unit that posted three shutouts and allowed just 8.6 points and 269 total yards per game.

About the Panthers: Mount Pleasant won five of its final seven games a year ago after an 0-2 start in which it was outscored 61-13.

The Panthers will be replacing their starting quarterback but return four starters along the offensive line and a productive receiver in Rylan Seberg (39 catches for 657 yards).

Mount Pleasant is 1-2 against Clear Creek Amana the past three seasons and is averaging just 9.7 points in those games. 

Solon (0-0) at Mount Vernon (0-0)

Where: Cornell College in Mount Vernon, 7:30 p.m.

Last season: Solon 34, Mount Vernon 14

Player to watch: Solon senior receiver AJ Coons was nearly unstoppable in the season opener against Mount Vernon last season grabbing 10 catches for 152 yards and three touchdowns in his way to a big season that included 48 receptions for 815 yards and 12 scores.

Key stat: Solon stretched its winning streak over Mount Vernon to 16 with a 34-14 win in Solon last season.

About the Spartans: Solon has won 25 consecutive regular season games after posting its second consecutive unbeaten regular season a year ago. The Spartans outscored opponents 369-99 during the regular season before a 48-13 loss to Western Dubuque in the opening round of the Class 3A playoffs.

Led by three-year starters Cam Miller at quarterback and AJ Coons at receiver Solon should once again be explosive on offense.

The addition of Jace Andregg who will line up all over the field adds another level of intrigue to a Solon offense that scored 34 or more points eight times last season. 

About the Mustangs: Mount Vernon closed last season on a four-game winning streak after opening the season 1-4. The Mustangs will hope to carry over the momentum from the late season winning streak in which it averaged 50.5 points per game.

Junior Brady Ketchum returns at quarterback after throwing for 1,375 yards and 13 touchdowns last season and returns his favorite target in senior Zach Baker who caught 42 passes for 351 yards and three touchdowns.

The challenge for the Mustangs will be on defense where they must replace their top five tacklers from a unit that allowed 14.2 points per game.

Regina (0-0) at Cedar Rapids Xavier (0-0)

Where: Saints Field in Cedar Rapids, 7 p.m.

Last season: Cedar Rapids Xavier 44, Regina 7

Player to watch: Regina junior QB Ashton Cook is healthy and poised for a breakthrough season after throwing for 1,270 yards and nine touchdowns while battling an injury last season.

Key stat: Xavier has allowed more than seven points just nine times during its current 26-game winning streak that spans the past two seasons.

About the Regals: Regina is seeking to return to bounce back from a 5-4 season in which it missed the playoffs for the first time since 2003.

The Regals return plenty of offensive firepower starting with Cook and junior receiver Alec Wick who led Regina with 59 receptions for 746 yards and two touchdowns last season.  

After allowing 30 points per game during a 1-3 start last season Regina held four of its final five opponents to 22 points or less while going 4-1 down the stretch.

About the Saints: Cedar Rapids Xavier enters the season riding a 26-game winning streak after completing a second consecutive unbeaten season with a 34-20 win over Western Dubuque in the Class 3A title game.

The Saints have holes to fill on both sides of the ball, most notably is the graduation of all-state quarterback Quinn Schulte, but Xavier has a long history of reloading under head coach Duane Schulte.

Xavier should be strong up front again on both sides of the ball behind Iowa recruits Josh Volk (6-4, 310) and Ethan Hurkett (6-3, 230).

Hurkett had a team-high 64 tackles including 10.5 for loss while Volk anchors the Saint offensive line.

West Branch (0-0) at West Liberty (0-0)

Where: Memorial Field in West Liberty, 7 p.m.

Last season: West Branch 32, West Liberty 6

Player to watch: West Branch senior running back Tanner Lukavsky averaged 10.2 yards per carry last season while rushing for 1,309 yards and 18 touchdowns.

Key stat: West Branch held West Liberty to 13 rushing yards on 30 carries in a 32-6 win last season at the Little Rose Bowl.

About the Bears: West Branch went 9-2 last season and advanced to the 1A quarterfinals. The Bears returning nine starters from that team that fell to Van Meter in the state quarterfinals including eight starters on a defense that held opponents to 238 yards and 14.3 points per game last season.

Junior Gavin Hierseman is set to make his first career start at quarterback and has a solid group of skill positions players to rely on.  

Lukavsky headlines the list of returning offensive starters along with senior receiver Trey Eagle who led the Bears with 487 receiving yards on 28 receptions last season.

About the Comets: One of the biggest surprises in the state last season West Branch won seven consecutive games to reach the Class 2A quarterfinals after opening the season 1-3.

West Liberty scored six total points in back-to-back losses to West Branch and Solon to open the season but scored 27 or more points in its next nine games before a 27-0 semifinal loss to PCM.

The Comets will be breaking in a new quarterback with the graduation of Seth Feldman but returns four starters on the offensive line and its top three pass catchers from last season.

Senior linebacker Will Esmoil is back to lead the Comet defense after making a team-high 88.5 tackles including 17.5 for loss last season.