Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

The prep football season in the state of Iowa will officially come to a close on Friday when the final state championship trophies are handed out at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls.

The season closed in the Your Prep Sports area last week with West Branch ending its season in the Class 1A semifinals.

Before the dust settles on the season we take a look back at some of the best plays, performances, games and moments from the 2022 season as well as handing out some individual and team awards.

Best individual offensive performance: City High junior Drew Larson against West High. Larson had games with better statistics but was rarely better than he was in the Battle for the Boot when he accounted for six touchdowns in a 49-0 win. The City High junior quarterback completed 16-of-23 passes for 216 yards and four touchdowns, rushed for a touchdown and caught a touchdown pass.

Best individual defensive performance: West Branch junior Reese Trepanier against MFL Mar Mac. In a game made for a middle linebacker the West Branch junior came up with the performance of a lifetime. Trepanier had a team-high 10.5 tackles with eight solo stops, 3.5 tackles for loss and a sack and also recovered two fumbles including the game-clincher in the final minutes.

Best individual defensive performance part 2: Regina senior linebacker Ronan Poynton against Williamsburg. The Raiders ran 66 offensive plays in a season-opening win over Regina. Nearly a third of those plays ended with a Poynton tackle. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound Poynton was all over the field racking up a career-high 18 tackles including 16 solo stops and a tackle for loss.

Best overall individual performance: Solon senior Blake Timmons against West Delaware. Two weeks earlier Timmons had 218 total yards of offense, four total touchdowns and three interceptions in a senior night win. In an opening-round playoff win over West Delaware Timmons was even better in what would be his final game at Spartan Stadium. Timmons passed for 55 yards and rushed for 160 yards and a touchdown on offense. On defense Timmons had two interceptions and a team-high 11 tackles. He also returned a kickoff 48 yards to set up a touchdown and punted three times for a 42.3 yard average.

Best play call: Liberty High goes for two and the win against Burlington. Trailing by one on the road in the final minute with its starting quarterback on the sideline and with a chance to clinch a district title on the line Liberty High coach James Harris went for the two-point conversion and the win. Backup quarterback Cody Nichols rolled out to his right and found a wide Christian Barney for a touchdown as Liberty High won 29-28.

Best individual offensive play: Brett White against West Delaware. The leading rusher for the Spartans this season White had 50 yards in the playoff win over the Hawks 30 of which came on a touchdown run in which White broke several tackles in what was his most impressive run of the season.

Best individual defensive play: Santana Miller against Davenport North. Miller started to rush off the edge but as Davenport North quarterback Nolan Mosier wound up to throw Miller stopped, leapt up and intercepted the pass and returned it 16 yards for the first touchdown of the game to spark what turned into a 42-7 West High win.

Best individual special teams play: Wyatt Williams against City High. Liberty High had the best season in program history this fall and the 92 yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Williams in a season-opening win over City High may have been a play that sparked that success. After City High cut the Liberty High lead to 9-6 with a long touchdown pass Williams took the ensuing kickoff inside the 10, broke a tackle near midfield and raced down the sideline to give the Lightning a 16-6 lead and all the momentum.

Best team offensive performance: City High against West High. Led by the performance by Larson the City High offense was nearly flawless as the Trojans won the Battle for the Boot. Wests High scored on its first four drives, led 35-0 and punted just once while racking up 476 yards, 233 rushing and 243 passing, and averaged 8.7 yards per play.

Best team defensive performance: West Branch against Regina. The Bear defense was excellent all season but was absolutely smothering in a 23-0 win over rival Regina. West Branch limited the Regals to 32 rushing yards and 108 total yards on just 2.5 yards per play.

Best comeback: West Branch against MFL Mar Mac. The Bears trailed MFL Mar Mac 24-13 with under 10 minutes remaining on a muddy field in a driving rain and with its leading rusher and top tackler out with an injury and the Bulldogs had the ball near midfield. West Branch responded with 14 unanswered points in the final six minutes to return to the state semifinals for the first time since 2011.

Best clutch performance: Cody Nichols against Burlington. With starting quarterback Graham Beckman sidelined with an injury Nichols came off the bench to lead a game-winning 65-yard touchdown drive in the final minute, throwing a 52-yard game-winning touchdown pass to Wyatt Williams. Nichols converted a fourth-and-10 and third-and-10 on the game-winning drive and finished with 71 passing yards and a touchdown and 80 yards rushing in a 29-28 win.

Game of the year: Liberty High against City High. The 36-19 Liberty High win wasn’t the closest game of the season and didn’t come with a dramatic finish. It was however, memorable in every way. From playing at Kinnick Stadium in front of an incredible crowd in an amazing atmosphere to the play on the field there is little doubt the season opener goes down as the game of the year.

Best game: Liberty High against North Scott. This is one of the toughest calls on this list. There are plenty of games worth of this spot including West Branch’s quarterfinal win over MFL Mar Mac, City High’s opening round overtime loss at Johnston and several over Liberty High contests. The nod goes to the Lightning’s 20-16 come-from-behind win over North Scott largely because of what it did to propel the Lightning for the rest of the season.

Best moment: West Branch coach Butch Pedersen addressing his team following a quarterfinal win over MFL Mar Mac. The image of the long-time West Branch coach who is battling a form of blood cancer known as myelodysplastic syndrome standing on the back of the West Branch press box with his victorious team gathered 10 feet below him staring up into a driving rain is an image that will stick with anyone that was there forever.

Best celebration: West Branch against MFL Mar Mac. The Bears diving headfirst into the mud pit that was the home sideline following a come-from-behind 27-24 win over MFL Mar Mac was the perfect encapsulation to a wild game played under a constant driving rain.

Best quote: Liberty High senior Garrett Gregoire. Gregoire came up huge in a 20-16 come-from-behind win over North Scott making five receptions for 139 yards including an 80-yard second-half touchdown that got the Lightning back in the game. After the game the senior receiver delivered the quote of the year. “Coach told me I had to make a play,” Gregoire said. “I make plays when they count.”

Best drive: Liberty High against Webster City. Clinging to a 17-14 lead in the first home playoff game in program history and backed up at its own 3-yard line Liberty High game up with the biggest drive in program history. Liberty High went 97 yards for a clinching touchdown as Graham Beckman twice converted third-downs on quarterback runs and Owen Drapeaux ran for 58 yards on seven carries.

Breakthrough offensive performer: Regina junior receiver Jackson Naeve. After making nine catches last season Naeve emerged as a go-to player in the Regina offense as a junior. The 6-foot, 170-pound Naeve led the Regals with 31 catches for 550 yards and eight touchdowns, rushed for 181 yards and returned a kick off for a touchdown.

Breakthrough defensive performer: West High junior linebacker Ashton Honore. Following a solid sophomore season Honore emerged as one of the top linebackers in the state this fall with an impressive season in which he led 5A with 27 tackles for loss and ranked fourth with 7.5 sacks. The 6-foot, 210-pound Honore had a team-high 66.5 tackles including 46 solo stops.

Most improved offensive player: West High sophomore quarterback Jack Wallace. The expectation was for Wallace to take strides in his second season under center. Wallace did just that making a huge jump in a breakthrough sophomore season in which he improved in all major statistical categories while passing for 1,754 yards. The biggest improvement for Wallace came in his touchdown-interception ratio that went from five touchdowns and seven picks as a freshman to 17 touchdowns and just two interceptions this season.

Most improved defensive player: City High senior linebacker Evan Lampe. Last season Lampe made a modest nine tackles in a backup role. This fall Lampe didn’t just take advantage of his opportunity as a starter, he flourished ranking second on the team with 58.5 tackles including 10 for loss and three sacks.

Most versatile: City High junior Drew Larson. Passing for 1,841 yards and 19 touchdowns and rushing for 303 yards and five scores Larson is the definition of a dual-threat quarterback. But he is much more than that. The 6-foot-1, 175-pound Larson ranked sixth on the team in tackles and had two interceptions from his safety spot and also returned punts for the Little Hawks.

Most consistent: Clear Creek Amana senior linebacker Brock Sherman. Regardless of the opponent, the weather conditions or the outcome of the game it was safe to pencil in Sherman for eight tackles. The Clippers’ leading tackler had at least seven stops in eight of nine games this season and had double figures tackles five times while racking up a team-high 79.5 stops with 59 solos and 12.5 tackles for loss.

Coach of the year: James Harris. A year after Liberty High started 0-5 and finish 3-6 in Harris’ first year as head coach the Lightning set a single season record for wins with nine and won the first district title and playoff game in program history.

Offensive newcomer of the year: West Branch senior quarterback Tye Hughes. Hughes wasn’t new to varsity football or to the area but he was a huge boost to the Bears in his first season in a West Branch uniform. Hughes was excellent all season completing 64 percent of his passes while throwing for 1,530 yards and 13 touchdowns and ran for 491 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Defensive newcomer of the year: West High sophomore Mason Woods. Woods flashed his impressive potential on both sides of the ball during his varsity debut season showing a knack for making big plays across the field. Woods had 21 tackles from his safety spot and tied for the team lead with three interceptions returning one 98 yards for a touchdown. Woods also caught 19 passes for 392 yards and two touchdowns.

Freshman of the year: West Branch’s Michael Montgomery. A freshman lineman cracking the lineup is rare but Montgomery doesn’t look, or play, like your typical freshman. The 6-4, 235-pound Montgomery helped solidify a West Branch offense line that helped the Bears average 220 rushing yards per game.

Biggest under the radar impact: Clear Creek Amana senior linebacker Nick Johnson. Playing alongside a pair of standout linebackers in sophomore Brody Clubb and senior Brock Sherman it was easy to overlook the steady play of Johnson who ranked second on the team with 47.5 tackles including three for loss.

Comeback player of the year: West High senior receiver Christian Janis. One of the easiest picks on this list, Janis quickly made up for a junior season lost to a broken collarbone by emerging as one of the best pass catchers in the state. The 6-foot-4, 180-pound Janis caught 36 passes for 739 yards and 12 touchdowns and returned an interception and punt for a touchdown.

Unsung hero: West Branch junior lineman Logan Wright. Linemen are by nature often overlooked but that likely won’t be the case for Wright any longer following a stellar junior season. A big reason for the West Branch success this season that included an 11-1 record and trip to the 1A semifinals was the play of Wright who was a force on both lines. The 6-foot-2, 230-pound Wright had 36 tackles and led the Bears with 18 tackles for loss and six sacks.

Offensive MVP: Liberty High junior quarterback Graham Beckman. Truthfully, Beckman could be named to a number of these spots including breakthrough performer and newcomer of the year. The fact Beckman was playing his first varsity season makes what he did this season even more impressive. Beckman has as good as season as any quarterback in the state ranking in the top-10 in Iowa in both passing yards (2,580) and touchdown (31) and also rushed for 320 yards and four touchdowns.

Defensive MVP: City High senior linebacker Ben Kueter. One of the best players and all-around athletes in the state Kueter was dominant on both sides of the ball but was at his best roaming the field and wreaking havoc from his linebacker spot. The 6-foot-2, 225-pound Kueter ranked second in 5A with 93.5 tackles and third with 25.5 tackles for loss including seven sacks.

Most Valuable Player: West Branch senior running back/linebacker Andy Henson. No area team had more success this season than West Branch and no player had more to do with their team’s success than Henson. A two-way standout, Henson rushed for a team-high 1,484 yards and 30 touchdowns, caught 15 passes for 159 yards and a touchdown and threw for 28 yards and a touchdown. On defense he had led West Branch with 62.5 tackles including nine for loss and two sacks and recovered a fumble. Henson also averaged 37.2 yards per punt.

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