Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

IOWA CITY – Regina juniors Tate Wallace and Will Litton have been playing sports together for as long as either can remember.

For as long as Wallace can remember the duo has been the biggest players on just about any of those teams they grew up playing on.

“We’ve grown up playing together and we’ve pretty much always been the two biggest guys on the team,” Wallace said. “That’s how it’s always been.”

On the basketball court Wallace and Litton combine to form one of the top post combos in Class 2A combining for 33 points and better than 14 rebounds per game last season.

Over the summer they are two of the best battery mates in 2A.

Litton was one of the best pitchers in 2A last season going 5-1 with a 1.37 ERA with 54 strikeouts in 41 innings.

Wallace was the guy behind the plate catching for Litton.

“We’ve been playing together for a long time in a bunch of sports,” Litton said. “It’s fun.”

After a bit of wait the duo has continued that combined sports success to the football field this fall.

Litton and Wallace have turned into one of the top defensive end tandems in Class 1A this fall and are two of the biggest reasons Regina is back in the state title game for the first time in five seasons.

Second-ranked Regina (12-0) will face top-ranked West Lyon (12-0) in the state title game on Thursday at 4 p.m. at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls.

“I’m having fun,” Litton said. “I’m happy to be out here. It’s really fun playing with all the guys and just having fun out there and being able to do all this with them.”

Litton played football as a freshman, making 3.5 tackles in a reserve role, but didn’t play last season.

Meanwhile, Wallace emerged as a four-star recruit and one of the top players in the state a year ago.

Wallace racked up 752 receiving yards and eight touchdowns as a tight end and 27.5 tackles as a linebacker and defensive end while raking in college offers in the process.

A priority for Wallace during basketball and baseball season was to get Litton back on the football field this fall.

“He wasn’t out last year and everybody was trying to get him out here,” Wallace said of Litton. “He’s been amazing. I feel like teams can’t run to either side with us on the ends.”

Together Wallace and Litton have combined for 78.5 tackles with 29 of those coming behind the line of scrimmage.

They anchor a Regina defensive line that has become the strength for a Regal defense holding opponents to 10.2 points and 181 total yards per game.

“Will has been a huge addition to the team this year,” Regina coach Dustin Elsbury said. “Having him at opposite defensive ends it just makes you think about what side you want to pick because those guys are both monsters.”

The 6-foot-3, 235-pound Wallace has demonstrated why college programs like Tennessee and Minnesota have offered scholarships.

Wallace ranks second on team with 45.5 tackles and leads Regina with 17.5 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks.

“Coach (Michael) Pannone, I have to give him all the credit, he’s transformed us from a pretty decent defensive line to a really good defensive line,” Wallace said. “He’s done a great job with all of the guys on the defensive line.”

Pannone, who came to Regina after spending four seasons at Quincy University where he served as the associate head coach and defensive coordinator for his final three seasons, has been instrumental in the development of Litton.

In his first extended varsity season the 6-foot-5, 215-pound Litton has 33 tackles with 11.5 for loss and four sacks.

“Some of the plays he’s made he looks like a defensive end at the division I level,” Wallace said of Litton. “It’s great to have him on the other side.”

While Wallace has benefitted from having Litton lining up opposite him on the Regal line he has played an important role in the success Litton is having this season.

As Litton worked to get up to speed after a year away from the sport it was often Wallace he turned to for help.

“He’s helped me a ton just with the little stuff,” Litton said. “I ask him a lot of questions and if I need help with something he’s always there.”

The more Litton plays the better he gets.

Litton followed up a six-tackle, 1.5-tackle for loss effort in a 49-7 quarterfinal win over Pleasantville by making 4.5 tackles with 2.5 for loss and half a sack in a 31-12 semifinal win over defending state champion Grundy Center.

“Will’s length and athletic ability is super impressive,” Elsbury said. “The past three games he’s been playing on another level and the energy level he’s bringing, I haven’t seen that all year. He’s in the zone and he’s really locked in.”

The biggest challenge of the season for Wallace, Litton and the rest of the Regina defense may come on Friday against West Lyon.

The Wildcats average 47.9 points and 389 total yards per game with 272 of those yards coming on the ground.

West Lyon averages 251 pounds per player across an athletic offensive line that has helped the Wildcats average 8.2 yards per carry this season.

“West Lyon is a great team, they’ve had a ton of success, they won state last year, they haven’t lost in 25 games and it’s definitely going to come down to the trenches,” Wallace said. “Who is going to hold up the longest. Who is going to survive in the deep water the longest?

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