Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

Class 5A

No. 10 City High (6-3) at No. 7 Johnston (6-3)

Where: Johnston, 7 p.m.

Last season: Did not play

Player to watch: Johnston sophomore quarterback Will Nuss (6-0, 170) has completed 52 percent of his passes while throwing for 1,573 yards and 16 touchdowns with three interceptions.

Key stat: Johnston has been among the best teams in Class 5A at forcing turnovers this season collecting 23 takeaways in nine games. The Dragons have recovered 10 fumbles, intercepted 13 passes and scored three defensive touchdowns.

About the Dragons: Johnston returns to the 5A playoffs following a 4-6 campaign last fall that ended with an opening-round loss to eventual 5A champion Southeast Polk.

The Dragos started the season 3-3 with losess to playoff qualifiers Cedar Falls, Waukee Northwest and West Des Moines Dowling before outscoring Sioux City North, Cedar Rapids Kennedy and Ames by a combined total of 86-22 in three consecutive wins to close the regular season.

Johnston has relied on a stingy defense down the stretch and has held five of nine opponents to single digit scoring outputs.

The Dragons are allowing 14.7 points and 302 total yards per game and are led by defensively by senior Jared Klahn (6-1, 190) with 58.5 tackles.

Seniors Aidan George (6-3, 230) and JT Freeman (6-0, 210) have combined for 15 sacks and 28.5 tackles for loss for the Dragons while senior Matthew Trullinger has a team-leading four interceptions.

Nuss leads a Johnston offense that is averaging 21.1 points and 252 total yards per game.

Senior Blake Tubbs (5-10, 175) has rushed for 338 yards and three touchdowns and the Dragons have three players with at least 20 receptions and 425 receiving yards.

Rex Woodley (6-0, 170) has 20 receptions for 488 yards and six touchdowns, junior Jacob Simpson (6-5, 220) has a team-high 30 catches for 454 yards and four touchdowns and Tatum Fox (5-8, 145) has caught 20 passes for 425 yards and five touchdowns.

About the Little Hawks: City High returns to the playoffs for the second consecutive season under head coach Mitch Moore seeking a return to the 5A state semifinals.

The Little Hawks won back-to-back games over playoff qualifier Davenport West and Davenport Central to close the regular season and secure a playoff spot.

A City High offense that is averaging 45.6 points and 440 total yards per game this season got a boost last week with the return of junior quarterback Drew Larson.

Larson missed consecutive games with an injury but threw four touchdown passes in his return last week against Davenport Central and has passed for 1,600 yards with 18 touchdowns and three interceptions in seven games this season.

Six Little Hawks have at least 100 receiving yards and 10 receptions this season led by senior Akili Mattox with 29 catches for 624 yards and six touchdowns.

Junior Carsen Newton has 28 receptions for 424 yards and six touchdowns.

A City High defense led by senior linebackers Ben Kueter and Evan Lampe is holding opponents to 16.2 points and 207 total yards per game.

Kueter has a team-high 87 tackles with 23 for loss and seven sacks while Lampe has 54.5 tackles including nine for loss.

Class 4A

Webster City (6-3) at No. 4 Liberty High (8-1)

Where: Liberty Stadium, 7 p.m.

Last season: Did not play

Player to watch: Webster City junior running back Jaxon Cherry (6-2, 210) has rushed for 1,664 yards and 29 touchdowns, has caught two passes for 88 yards and a touchdown, is averaging 40.4 yards on five kick off returns and leads the team with 54.5 tackles including seven for loss and four sacks.

Key stat: Webster City leads Class 4A in rushing averaging 367.3 yards per game on the ground, nearly 50 more yards than any other team in 4A.

About the Lynx: Webster City is making a third consecutive postseason appearance and is chasing a third straight trip to the quarterfinals.

The Lynx reached the 3A quarterfinals in a 9-1 season in 2020 and went 8-3 a year ago falling to Cedar Rapids Xavier 24-13 in the 4A quarters.

The three losses for the Lynx have come to playoff qualifiers Humboldt, Spencer and Waverly-Shell Rock own a combined 24-3 record.

The key to beating Webster City has been straightforward, find a way to slow Cherry and the Lynx single win offense.

That has been easier said than done with Cherry leading Class 4A in all-purpose yardage (1,954), rushing yards (1,664) and rushing touchdowns (29).

In its three losses this season Webster City has been limited to 167 rushing yards per game on 4.1 yards per carry.

Conversely in six wins the Lynx are putting up 468 yards per game on the ground at a 9 yard per carry clip.

Senior CJ Hisler (5-11, 195) has added 699 rushing yards and two touchdowns and senior quarterback Ty McKinney (6-0, 180) has rushed for 452 yards and eight touchdowns.

McKinney has been efficient throwing the ball when called upon, completing 48 percent of his passes for 568 yards and six touchdowns.

Three different players have eight receptions for the Lynx led by junior Keegan Hisler (6-0, 185) with eight grabs going for 215 yards and two touchdowns.

Defensively Webster City is holding opponents to 222 total yards and 16.1 points per game and is allowing 118 rushing yards per game.

Cherry is the top tackler with senior Connor Hanson (5-11, 200) making 31.5 tackles with six for loss.

About the Lightning: The most successful regular season in program history has set Liberty High up to host its first ever postseason game.

Liberty High is seeking its first ever postseason win after falling into the opening round of the playoffs in both 2019 (at Solon) and 2020 (at Dubuque Hempstead).

The Lightning bring a six-game winning streak into the postseason and own a resume as impressive as any team in Class 4A.

Liberty High has victories over four playoff opponents, including 5A qualifiers City High and Linn-Mar and its lone loss is to 4A qualifier Western Dubuque in week three.

A Lightning offense putting up 39.3 points and 384 total yards per game is led by junior quarterback Graham Beckman who has been among the most productive signal callers in the state this fall.

Beckman has thrown a Class 4A-leading 27 touchdown passes and ranks second in 4A with 2,127 passing yards and 31 total touchdowns.

Senior Trey Gregoire has rushed for a team-high 512 yards and eight touchdowns while sophomore Owen Drapeaux has added 261 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

Beckman has spread the ball around in the passing game with four Liberty High players collecting 25 catches for at least 300 yards.

Garrett Gregoire has a team-high 31 receptions for 666 yards and eight touchdowns and Wyatt Williams has caught 25 passes for 445 yards and seven touchdowns.

A Liberty High defense that is holding opponents to 14.8 points and 253 total yards per game is led by junior linebacker Devin Anderson who has a team-high 44.5 tackles.

Christian Barney has made 43.5 tackles with eight for loss and Trey Gregoire has a tema-high 4.5 sacks among his 37 tackles.

Class 3A

West Delaware (5-4) at No. 7 Solon (7-2)

Where: Spartan Stadium, 7 p.m.

Last season: Solon 23, West Delaware 19

Player to watch: West Delaware senior Will Ward (5-11, 206) has rushed for 1,194 yards and 17 touchdowns and caught 16 passes for 181 yards and two touchdowns.

Key stat: West Delaware has allowed an average of 189 rushing yards and 5.3 yards per carry in four losses this season and held opponents to 70 rushing yards per game and 1.9 yards per carry in five wins.

About the Hawks: Following a 1-3 start to the season West Delaware has won four of its last five-games with the lone loss a one-point setback to fifth-ranked Independence.

All four losses for West Delaware have come to round of 16 playoff teams with a combined record of 34-3 including a pair of losses to unbeaten 4A opponents in Cedar Rapids Xavier and Waverly-Shell Rock.

Even with a challenging schedule the Hawks have put up impressive numbers defensively holding opponents to 19.6 points and 234 total yards per game.

West Delaware has been solid against the run, allowing just 123 yards per game on the ground.

Senior Logan Peyton (5-10, 181) has a team-high 48.5 tackles including eight for loss while junior John Beswick (6-4, 191) has 39 stops with seven for loss.

A West Delaware offense led by sophomore quarterback Brent Yonkovic (5-10, 167) is averaging better than 378 total yards and 28 points per game.

The Hawks rely heavily on the running game led by Ward and are averaging 294 rushing yards per game.

Yonkovic has rushed for 704 yards and five touchdowns and Peyton has added 654 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Yonkovic is completing 50 percent of his passes for 713 yards and four touchdowns with nine interceptions.

The top target for Yonkovic has been Peyton with 17 catches for 158 yards while sophomore Seth Jackson (6-2, 166) joins Ward with double digit receptions with 15 catches for 169 yards and two touchdowns.

About the Spartans: After an appearance in the 3A semifinals last season Solon returns to the postseason one of the hottest teams in 3A averaging 42 points per game during a six-game winning streak.

Since back-to-back losses top unbeaten top-two ranked opponents Williamsburg and Mount Vernon in week two and three the Spartans have won six consecutive games by an average of nearly 34 points per game.

The Spartans are averaging 37 points and 344 total yards per game on the season and have relied on its rushing game of late putting up more than 250 yards on the ground four times during its current winning streak.

On the season Solon is averaging 230 rushing yards per game and 6.3 yards per carry.

Junior Brett White leads Solon with 806 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns while senior Blake Timmons has rushed for 580 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Timmons has completed 52 percent of his passes for 850 yards and seven touchdowns with six interceptions.

Senior Oaken Foster is the top receiving target with 27 receptions for 275 yards and three touchdowns while Ryan Rasmussen has caught 11 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns.

Solon has been even more impressive on defense holding teams to 11.6 points and 194 total yards per game.

The Spartans are giving up just 76 rushing yards per game on the season, haven’t given up more than 150 yards on the ground in a game and have heled five consecutive opponents under 100 yards rushing.

White leads Solon with 63 tackles including 10 for loss while Ben Kampman has a team-high 12 tackles for loss and six sacks.

Class 1A

Waterloo Columbus (6-3) at No. 1 West Branch (9-0)

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

Last season: Waterloo Columbus 17, West Branch 6. West Branch 34, Waterloo Columbus 13 (Week 2)

Player to watch: Waterloo Columbus senior Carson Hartz (6-0, 215) has rushed for 556 yards and a team-high eight touchdowns on offense and ranks second on the team with 77.5 tackles including 5.5 for loss on defense.

Key stat: West Branch is allowing 66 rushing yards per game and 2.5 yards per carry this season and has not allowed an opponent to rush for more than 95 yards in a game.

About the Sailors: Following a 1-3 start to the season that included a 34-13 loss to West Branch in week two Waterloo Columbus has won five consecutive games by a combined total of 187-41 to return to the second round of the playoffs for the second straight season.

The three losses for the Sailors all came at the hands of ranks Class 1A Round of 16 opponents in No. 9 Dike-New Hartford and eighth-ranked MFL-Mar Mac in addition to top-ranked West Branch.

In its current five-game winning streak Waterloo Columbus has relied on its defense, holding opponents to 218 total yards per game during that stretch.

On the season the Sailors are allowing 16.8 points and 253 total yards per game including 146 rushing yards per game.

The Waterloo Columbus offense is led by junior quarterback Carter Lockert (6-2, 190) who has completed 59 percent of his passes while throwing for 834 yards and eight touchdowns with five interceptions.

Parker Kjeldsen (5-10, 170) has rushed for a team-high 574 yards and five touchdowns and Caleb Holthaus (6-0, 170) has run for 556 yards and six touchdowns joining Hartz as Sailors with at least 500 yards.

Sophomore Myles Gardner (6-3, 180) has been the top receiving target for Waterloo Columbus with 14 receptions for 215 yards and four touchdowns while Nick Merrifield (6-2, 175) has caught 13 passes for 222 yards and a touchdown.

Junior Mason Knipp (6-3, 245) is the anchor of the Sailor defense with 80.5 tackles including a team-high 25.5 for loss and three sacks.

About the Bears: West Branch continued its impressive season last Friday with a 42-0 win over South Hardin in the opening round of the Class 1A playoffs.

The shutout of the Tigers in the opening round was the fourth in the past seven games for a West Branch defense that hasn’t allowed more than 13 points in a game since giving up 20 to Lisbon in the season opener.

West Branch has been dominant defensively for the duration of the season holding opponents to 7.3 points and 143 total yards per game while allowing just 66 rushing yards per contest.

Senior linebacker Andy Henson leads West Branch with 51 tackles including nine for loss while senior defensive back Kinnick Boelk has 30 tackles and is tied for the team lead with twin brother Carver Boelk with three interceptions.

West Branch enters the postseason averaging 49 points and 351 total yards per game and has scored at least 23 points in every game this season.

Senior quarterback Tye Hughes is completing 70 percent of his passes while throwing for 1,167 yards and 11 touchdowns with two interceptions and has rushed for 316 yards and eight touchdowns.

Kinnick Boelk leads West Branch with 25 receptions for 186 yards and two touchdowns while Carver Boelk has caught 18 passes for 377 yards and a team-high five touchdowns.

Henson has rushed for 1,223 yards and 27 touchdowns and has 14 receptions for 155 yards and a touchdown.

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