Liberty High (2-0) at Pleasant Valley (1-1)

When: Friday, 7 p.m.

Where: Spartan Stadium at Pleasant Valley High School

Liberty High has gotten off to as good of a start as any team in the state.

A four-win squad a year ago, the Lightning have posted back-to-back wins over cross-town rivals West High and City High to open the season, the first time in program history Liberty High has defeated both those rivals in the same season.

Liberty High gets its toughest test yet on Friday with a road trip to perennial power Pleasant Valley.

The Spartans opened the season with a one-point loss to rival Bettendorf and got back on track with a 35-20 win at Cedar Rapids Kennedy last week.

Pleasant Valley won this matchup 56-39 last season in a game that featured more than 1,000 yards of total offense.

Players to Watch

Pleasant Valley

Harrison Fierce

Last season Fierce led the Spartans with 41.5 tackles including 3.5 behind the line of scrimmage.

This fall Fierce has made the switch to offense where he is leading the Spartans’ triple option attack.

Fierce has been efficient both running and passing the ball in his first two starts at quarterback.

The 6-foot, 179-pound Fierce has completed 10-of-14 passes for 159 yards and two touchdowns without an interception.

Fierce also leads the Spartans in rushing with 245 yards and four touchdowns and is averaging 7 yards per carry.

Slowing the potent Spartan option attack starts with slowing the quarterback which is a tough task against Fierce.

Liberty High

Reece Rettig

Entering the season Liberty High had a wealth of talent returning at the offensive skill positions but the question was who would be responsible for getting the ball to those talented playmakers.

Rettig has resoundingly answered that question.

The junior quarterback has been nearly flawless in the first two starts of his career completing 23-of-30 passes for 442 yards and six touchdowns without an interception.

Rettig (5-10, 165) has also rushed for 126 yards while helping Liberty High post point totals of 56 and 49 in consecutive wins.

Rettig doesn’t have to be perfect or flashy for that matter for Liberty High to be successful.

He simply needs to do what he has done, get the ball to Owen Drapeaux, Sutton Koller, Dallas Miller and the rest of the Lightning playmakers.

If Rettig can do that again on Friday as well as he has in the first two weeks the Liberty High offense will continue to click.

Keys to the Game

Pleasant Valley

Grind it out.

Pleasant Valley is known for grinding out rushing yards.

The key for the Spartans on Friday will be grinding away on the ground and on the clock to keep the Liberty High offense off the field.

Liberty High has been among the best offensive teams in the state this fall averaging 52.5 points and 518.5 total yards per game while averaging 8.5 yards per play.

The best defense for the Spartans on Friday will be a good offense.

Look for Pleasant Valley to use its power running game as a way to play keep away from the high-powered Liberty High offense.

Liberty High   

Limit the run game.

It doesn’t get much more straightforward than this.

In order to have a shot at knocking off Pleasant Valley the Lightning will need to slow the Spartan run game.

Notice this doesn’t say ‘stop the run’.

Teams aren’t going to ‘stop’ a team that averages 266 rushing yards per game which is what Pleasant Valley has averaged on the ground through two games.

The key is to defend the run well enough to make the Spartans do something other than run the ball.

Last year Pleasant Valley rushed for 503 yards and seven touchdowns while averaging 9.7 yards per carry in the win at Liberty High.

The Lightning must be better at the point of attack and be disciplined in the front seven against the Spartan run game to get a win.

Both Teams

Don’t allow the big play.

It’s easier said than done against both of these offenses but a key for both teams on Friday will be avoiding the big play on defense.

Liberty High has been explosive on offense scoring five touchdowns of 34 yards or longer in wins over West High and City High.

Pleasant Valley is a run-first offense but has averaged 6.9 yards per play this season and is opportunistic in the passing game averaging 15.9 yards per completion.

Both defenses will attempt to make the opponent drive the field in multiple plays and finish drives with touchdowns.

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