Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

Liberty High (2-1) at Clear Creek Amana (2-1)

When: Friday, 7 p.m.

Where: Clipper Field

Friday marks the fourth all-time meeting between Clear Creek Amana and Liberty in a matchup that is quickly becoming a top-notch rivalry.

Clear Creek Amana won the first meeting between the two teams 37-7 in 2018 and since then the two teams have split a pair of one-score games.

Liberty High won 28-21 in 2019 and Clear Creek Amana rallied for a 31-30 win in a thriller last season in North Liberty.

This year has all the makings of another barnburner between the two Class 4A non-district foes.

Players to Watch

Liberty High – Trey Gregoire  

Junior quarterback Graham Beckman has been excellent early this season in his first year leading the Liberty High offense.

On Friday the key for the Lightning may be steady senior running back Trey Gregoire.

Gregoire has had his own solid start in his first season as the Liberty High feature back rushing for 169 yards and a touchdown while averaging 4.7 yards per carry.

Liberty High has been at its best offensively this season when it has balance and Gregoire will be a big part of keeping a stout Clear Creek Amana defense honest.

Clear Creek Amana is allowing just 97 rushing yards per game this season but if Liberty High can get Gregoire going as it did against City High when he had 13 carries for 72 yards it opens up Beckman in both the quarterback run game and the passing game.

Clear Creek Amana – Jackson Schmidt

Schmidt had big shoes to fill this season sliding from safety and slot receiver to quarterback to replace graduated senior Ben Swails who accounted for more than 2,000 yards of total offense and 23 touchdowns last season.

Three games in Schmidt has already made a name for himself as the leader of the Clipper offense.

Schmidt is a different style of quarterback than Swails but fits the current Clear Creek Amana squad perfectly.

He is an excellent athlete, tough, smart, reliable and has been efficient and productive in his first three starts.

Schmidt has passed for 232 yards and three touchdowns with just one interception and has rushed for a team-leading 413 yards and two scores.

Keys to the Game

Liberty High – Start Strong

Liberty High has been an exceptional first-quarter team this season outscoring opponents 29-7 in the opening quarter and leading all three of its first games after 12 minutes.

Coming off a hard-to-swallow last second loss at Western Dubuque last week the key for the Lightning in a rivalry game on Friday is to not let that loss from a week ago linger.

Jumping to an early lead against Clear Creek Amana on Friday would come with bigger benefits than just putting last week’s loss to the Bobcats in the rear view mirror.

Clear Creek Amana is good on defense, wants to run the ball and the clock while grinding the game down.

Playing from behind against that type of team is not a recipe for success nor is getting off to a slow start on the road in front of what will like be a large crowd.

Clear Creek Amana – Run the Ball Effectively

How important has running the ball been for Clear Creek Amana over the past two seasons?

Under head coach Matt Haddy Clear Creek Amana is 5-0 in games in which it rushes for 200 yards and is 4-4 when it fails to reach 200 yards rushing.

The Clippers are averaging 230 yards on the ground this season behind Schmidt and junior Sam Pettinger who has rushed for 179 yards and four touchdowns.

Running for 200 yards is going to be a challenge against a Liberty High defense that is giving up just 136 rushing yards per game.

Clear Creek Amana doesn’t have to roll up tons rushing yards on Friday but they must move the ball efficiently enough on the ground against a Liberty High defense that allows 5.1 yards per carry to stay on schedule, create manageable third downs and keep the chains and the clock moving.

Both Teams – Special Teams  

There are few teams around the state that put more of an emphasis on special teams that Clear Creek Amana.

The Clippers have been solid in every phase of special teams under Haddy and have come up with numerous game-changing special teams plays.

Liberty High has had its own special teams success this season.

Cody Nichols and Wyatt Williams have each returned kick offs for touchdowns this season and senior kicker Hayden Saul is 3-of-4 on field goal attempts and 8-of-9 on PATs.

This game should be close and special teams will likely play a role in switching momentum at some point.

Covering kicks and punts is an often overlooked element of special teams but will be important in the field position battle on Friday between a pair of teams with strong defenses.

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