Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

West High (0-0) at Liberty High (0-0)

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

Last Season: Did not play.

Player to Watch: West High senior quarterback Marcus Morgan (6-3, 185) is a player to watch any time he steps on the field. Morgan passed for 1,723 yards and 11 touchdowns and rushed for 143 yards and two scores.

Key Stat: Liberty High averaged 261 rushing yards per game and 6.2 yards per carry last season while West High allowed 191 yards per game on the ground and 5.1 yards per carry. The rushing numbers for Liberty High could go a long way in determining a winner in this one.

About the Trojans: An 0-4 start last season led to a 4-5 record and kept West High out of the Class 4A playoffs for the first time in a decade. With 17 players that started at least two games a year ago returning the Trojans are expecting a turnaround this season.

The list of returning starters begins with Morgan, an elite talent at quarterback, but there is experienced talent all over the field for the Trojans. Top receiver Grahm Goering (6-1, 190) is back after catching 42 passes for 599 yards and six scores and talented running backs Tyuss Bell (5-10, 165) and Fabian Brown (5-10, 175) both return.

West High brings back two of its top three tacklers led by senior linebacker Ian McAreavy (5-11, 190) who made a team-high 49 stops last season while junior defensive lineman Mason Applegate (5-11, 180) returns after making 8.5 tackles for loss among his 40.5 stops.

About the Lightning: Liberty High has gotten a taste of Class 4A action the past two seasons with openers against City High but takes the plunge into 4A action full-time this fall. The Lightning are coming off the most successful season in the short history of the program going 7-3 and earning a spot in the Class 3A playoff last season.

Seven starters return from last year’s team led by senior tailback Max Tafolla (6-0, 215) who rushed for 1,136 yards and eight touchdowns last season.

Liberty High will be breaking in a new quarterback but brings back three solid receiving targets in seniors Kelby Telander (6-4, 200) and Brody Fishman (5-7, 150) and junior Luke Meyers (5-10, 170).

The Lightning return two of their top five tacklers from last season led by junior linebacker Darius Newell (5-10, 180) who made 48.5 tackles last season.

Davenport Central (0-0) at City High (0-0)

Where: Bates Field, 7:15 p.m.

Last Season: Did not play.

Player to Watch: City High junior Gable Mitchell (5-9, 170) does a little bit of everything for the Little Hawks. The teams top receiver and tackler a year ago Mitchell also handles the punting duties for the Little Hawks.

Key Stat: City High is 3-1 in its last four season openers and 2-0 in seasons openers at Bates Field during that stretch. The lone loss in the last four seasons openers for the Little Hawks was a 23-20 loss at Liberty High last season.

About the Little Hawks: City High lost four straight to end last season on its way to a third consecutive 2-7 finish. With 10 returning starters leading a larger group of varsity players than in previous seasons there is plenty of optimism for a major revival this season.

Senior quarterback Raph Hamilton enters his third season leading the Little Hawk offense and returns his top two targets from last season in junior Gable Mitchell (20 catches, 249 yards) and senior Jacob Means (8-176).

Darren Richardson is poised to take over at tailback after running for 218 yards on better than 10 yards per carry last season.

City High returns four starters up front in junior twins Ethan (6-5, 255) and Avery Goodrich (6-6, 266), Ostyn Friday (6-2, 258) and Nolan Waters (6-3, 320) and has its top two tacklers back in Mitchell and senior linebacker Kolby Kucera who had 31.5 tackles including a team-high five for loss last year.

About the Blue Devils: Davenport Central is coming off a 3-6 season in which it lost each of its final three games including two to playoff qualifiers Bettendorf and Cedar Rapids Kennedy.

While replacing its starting quarter, top two rushers and top three pass catchers from a year ago expect Davenport Central to rely heavily on senior running back Brian Mitchell early on. Mitchell was productive in limited action last season rushing for 265 yards and three touchdowns while averaging 6.2 yards per carry.

The strength for the Blue Devils will be on defense where three of their top six tacklers return in junior linebacker Nate Hummel, senior defensive end Travis Thomas and senior corner back Sam Flemming. Thomas had 25 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss while Flemming had 27 tackles and an interception.

Tipton (0-0) at West Branch (0-0)

Where: The Little Rose Bowl, 7 p.m.

Last Season: West Branch 24, Tipton 14

Player to Watch: Tipton junior linebacker Kaleb Nerem (5-10, 160) ranked second on the team with 41.5 tackles last season including 10.5 for loss, and also recovered two fumbles and picked off a pass.

Key Stat: Tipton forced 23 turnovers in 10 games last season, returning two for touchdowns. Senior cornerback Payten Elijah was responsible for almost a third of those take aways, picking off a Class 2A best seven passes.

About the Tigers: Following a 24-14 loss to West Branch in its final non-district game the Tigers rattled off four consecutive win on its way to a 6-4 record and a spot in the Class 2A playoffs where it fell to eventual runner-up Waukon 52-16 in opening round.

Tipton has some holes to fill but has some strong building blocks in Elijah and Nerem as it attempts to post a sixth consecutive winning season.

About the Bears: West Branch rattled off 10 consecutive wins before falling to Regina 30-20 in the Class 1A quarterfinals last season. It was the third consecutive season with at least nine wins for West Branch which has reached the playoffs every year since 2008.

The Bears bring back just four full-time starters from last year’s 10-1 squad but they are four very good ones led by Iowa recruit Jeff Bowie and senior quarterback Gavin Hierseman.

The 6-foot-5, 245-pound Bowie is a returning all-state pick that is a force on both the offensive and defensive lines while Hierseman accounted for nearly 2,000 yards of total offense and 27 touchdowns last season.

Senior offensive lineman Morgan Hartz (5-11, 210) returns as does the Bears’ top tackler from last season senior linebacker Cael Fiderlein (5-11, 200) who had 55.5 tackles a year ago.

Williamsburg (0-0) at Solon (0-0)

Where: Spartan Stadium, 7:30 p.m.

Last Season: Did not play.  

Player to Watch: Williamsburg senior Levi Weldon (6-0, 170) is a critical piece for the Raiders on both sides of the ball. Weldon passed for 632 yards and 11 touchdowns and rushed for 71 yards and two scores after taking over at quarterback and also led Williamsburg with 65 tackles including a team-high 15 for loss with 4.5 sacks.

Key Stat: In six home games last season Solon allowed an average of 5.7 points per game and didn’t allow more than 13 points in a single game.

About the Raiders: Williamsburg weathered a tough early season schedule that led to a 1-3 start last season to post an 8-4 record and return to the Class 2A state semifinals for the second time in three seasons.

The Raiders lost three consecutive games to state quarterfinalists during its 1-3 start falling to 3A champion Western Dubuque (48-20), 1A quarterfinalist West Branch (39-33) and 1A semifinalist Regina (42-35) before rattling off seven straight wins to reach the UNI-Dome where it fell to Waukon 32-14.

Williamsburg returns seniors Weldon and Brody Wardenburg (6-0, 185) who both started games at quarterback last season but must replace its top two rushers and receivers.

The emphasis early will be on defense where Williamsburg brings back half of its top eight tackles including Weldon who had a team-high 65 tackles and defensive end Riley Holt (6-0, 175) who led the team with eight sacks.

About the Spartans: There will be a new look this season at Solon as Lucas Stanton takes over for Kevin Miller who stepped down after 18 years leading the program

That won’t be the only change for the Spartans who must replace a three-year starting quarterback and its top four rushers and receivers from last year’s Class 3A state runner-up team.

Seven starters return for Solon led by a trio of seniors that are back on the offensive line in Nash Altman (6-0, 265), Zach Harp (6-1, 285) and Erich Karstens (5-11, 240).

The strength of the team will be at linebacker where Lucas Tepoel (5-10, 200), Colton Hoffman (6-1, 215) and Carson Shive (6-0, 205) all return with experience.
Shive ranked second on the team with 77.5 tackles last season while Tepoel was third on the team with 40 stops.

Pleasant Valley (0-0) at Regina (0-0)

Where: Regal Field, 7 p.m.

Last Season: Did not play.

Player to Watch: Senior quarterback Ryan Mumey (6-2, 185) returns to lead the Pleasant Valley triple option attack after rushing for 437 yards and a team-high eight touchdowns and passing for 709 yards and six scores last season.

Key Stat: Regina has played six games over the past two seasons against teams from larger classes, going 3-3 in those games.

About the Regals: Regina was left scrambling for a week one opponent after Dyersville Beckman had to back out following positive COVID-19 tests. The result of its search was another season opener against a larger school opponent. Regina opened last season with a 35-0 road loss to 3A playoff qualifier Cedar Rapids Xavier.

A Class 1A state semifinalist last season, Regina has the talent returning to make another state title run in its first season in Class A. The Regals return nine starters including senior quarterback Ashton Cook, its top rusher in Theo Kolie and top receiver in all-stater Alec Wick.

Regina also brings back a pair of stalwarts upfront in Jack Keller and Josh Gaffey along with junior Andy Wiese and will get a boost with the return of senior tight end/defensive end Nick Wagner from injury.

About the Spartans: Pleasant Valley was 4-5 a year ago, rebounding from an 0-3 start by winning three of its final four games including a 29-28 road win over Class 4A playoff qualifier Linn-Mar in the season finale.

The Spartans opened the season with three consecutive losses to playoff teams Bettendorf, Cedar Rapids Prairie and North Scott before winning four of its final six games.

Pleasant Valley returns its top two rushers from its triple option offense in Mumey and senior running back Caden Kipper (6-0, 195) who averaged 5.8 yards per carry while rushing for a team-high 600 yards last season.

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

Where: Evans Field in Mount Pleasant, 7:30 p.m.

Last Season: Mount Pleasant 42, Clear Creek Amana 20

Player to Watch: Mount Pleasant senior offensive lineman Henry Lutovsky is a 6-foot-6, 320-pound Nebraska commit and a big reason the Panthers rushed for 147 yards and four touchdowns in last season season-opening win over the Clippers.

Key Stat: Clear Creek Amana allowed 215 rushing yards per game in its four losses last season and held opponents to an average of 70 yards per game in its four wins. Mount Pleasant loves to run the ball behind a big offensive line so stopping the run will be a key for the Clippers again in its season opener in 2020.

About the Clippers: A year after going 8-2 and reaching the 3A playoffs in 2018 Clear Creek Amana went 5-4 last season with all four losses coming to teams with winning records including two to 3A playoff qualifiers. With 10 starters returning including its starting quarterback, top two rushers, top four receivers and Wisconsin defensive end commit TJ Bollers the expectations and talent are in place for a deep playoff run.

Ryan Navara returns after passing for 1,249 yards and 12 touchdowns and has his top four targets back in Harrison Rosenberg (20-249 yards), Tom Johnson (19-287), Bollers (14-237) and Brock Reade (12-209).

Running backs Alex Figueroa (121-681) and Gage Freeman (60-275) are back to run behind a line led by seniors Arron Feinberg (6-1, 295) and Joey Lepire (6-4, 295).

About the Panthers: Mount Pleasant snapped a string of six consecutive losing seasons with a 6-3 mark in 2017 and hasn’t slowed down since. The Panthers posted their third consecutive winning season a year ago, going 6-3 and just missing a spot in the 3A playoffs.

The three losses for Mount Pleasant last season all came to 3A playoff qualifiers including a home loss to runner-up Solon and a 64-61 loss to Washington in the season finale.  

There are holes to fill as the Panthers must replace their starting quarterback, top rusher and receiver and top two tacklers from last season.

Senior running back/safety Jack Johnson (5-11, 180) is back after rushing for 690 yards and seven touchdowns and ranking third on the team with 41.5 tackles.

Did you enjoy this subscription free article? Help keep Your Prep Sports free by donating.