The Lowdown – Week 4
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(Cover Photo: Chuck Miller/Winona Daily News) X Factors WR/DB Terrell Hall – Winona (at Mankato West) Hall will be one of the few Winhawks with speed to matchup with the Scarlets’ talented skill players. He’ll likely be matched up against…
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Continue Reading(Cover Photo: Chuck Miller/Winona Daily News)
X Factors
WR/DB Terrell Hall – Winona (at Mankato West)
Hall will be one of the few Winhawks with speed to matchup with the Scarlets’ talented skill players. He’ll likely be matched up against either receiver Spencer Spaude or running back Melik Davis – two West players that have terrorized opposing defenses with multiple big plays already this season. Hall recorded two interceptions, including one for a touchdown, in Winona’s win last season over West.
On the other side of the ball, the 185-pound senior is averaging more than 22 yards per catch this season, with two touchdowns in three games. He’s also been returning punts and kicks for John Casselius’ squad, which might need a big play on special teams to upset the No. 2 (AAAAA) Scarlets.
QB/DL David Roddy – Breck (vs Minneapolis North)
After fighting injuries during most of last season, Roddy is finally healthy and off to a great start for the Mustangs. The senior is averaging 285 total yards per game with 10 touchdowns (eight passing, two rushing) on Breck’s three-game winning streak. He’s also bumped his completion percentage to over 62 percent from just under 56 last season.
Roddy and the rest of the Mustangs will get their toughest test of the season against the Polars. North has surrendered only six points through the first three contests, including none in the opening half. They boast a talented secondary led by Omar Brown, which will give Roddy’s top targets like Kerrion Marshall and Ethan Guell all they can handle on Friday.
QB Jack Haring – Blaine (vs Cretin-Derham Hall)
Haring is a major reason why the Bengals are one of the two unbeaten teams in Class AAAAAA. The senior has made a seamless transition to quarterback from defensive back, taking over for the graduated Connor Melton.
Haring is averaging nearly 200 passing yards per game with five touchdowns to just one interception. He threw for 292 yards and four scores in Blaine’s 45-10 rout of Osseo last week. Haring gets a different challenge this week against a Raiders secondary that already has three interceptions on the season. One of those was a 99-yard return for touchdown by Tre Holloman. Will Haring keep the Bengals perfect with another victory in Week 4?
WR/DB Carter Hansen – Russell-Tyler-Ruthton (vs Mountain Lake Area)
Hansen leads the Knights into a southwest-Minnesota showdown against the Wolverines, in a contest featuring two top-10 teams in 9-Man. The 6-foot, 170-pounder has picked up where he left off in his junior season, already racking up 17 receptions for 350 yards and six touchdowns. Defensively, he’s RTR’s leading tackler with 33 stops and is also tied with his brother, Cooper, for the team lead with two interceptions.
In two games against MLA last season, Hansen recorded 15 tackles and an interception defensively. On offense, he was limited to only four receptions for 70 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-tying score in the state quarterfinals. He also caught the 2-pt conversion, which proved to be the difference in the Knights’ 8-6 win.
RB Corbin LeFlay – Hastings (at Simley)
LeFlay has been a workhorse for Dana Strain and the Raiders in 2018. He’s already received 68 carries for 567 yards out of the backfield and single-handedly propelled Hastings to its 24-21 win over Park (Cottage Grove) last week. LeFlay totaled 235 yards and three touchdowns, while also recording four kick returns for 107 yards in the win. It was the third-consecutive game he’d eclipsed the century mark for rushing yards.
He will look to keep the Raiders’ winning ways, and his streak of 100-yard games going against Simley. Last season, the Spartans limited the 175-pounder to only 28 yards while upsetting the Raiders in Hastings.
Jason Samec leads the No. 4 Cadets into Friday’s showdown with No. 5 Mahtomedi. (Photo from Hudl.com)O/D Matchups
Mahtomedi O vs St. Thomas Academy D
Points will be at a premium when the Zephyrs and Cadets battle in Mendota Heights on Friday. The Cadets are the top scoring defense in Class AAAAA, surrendering only seven points through three games. The Zephyrs aren’t far behind at No. 5, allowing a little more than 10 per game.
Neither team has scored more than 21 points against the other in the last four meetings, which have been split with each program winning twice. The Cadets are slight favorites because of their stout defensive unit. Linebackers Ben Reppenhagen and Will Herzog have paced the resistance through the first three weeks, along with linemen Jason Samec and Matthew Boland. Neutralizing the impact of the Cadets’ front-seven will definitely be a priority for Dave Muenzel’s Zephyrs.
Mahtomedi’s offense is led by running back Erik Bjork. He’s rushed for 308 yards on just 42 carries, with one touchdown this season. Receivers Tyler Tangwall and J’Vonne Hadley have developed a nice repertoire with quarterback Jake Arlandson early this year too, which could be important on Friday.
Eden Prairie Rush O vs Wayzata Rush D
Eden Prairie is going to run the ball until its stopped – a formula that’s built the best big-school program in Minnesota over the past 20 years. Friday night in Wayzata won’t be any different as the Eagles will try and assert Daejon Wolfe and their ground game against the Trojans.
Wayzata’s impressive start to the season has come with a menacing run defense. The Trojans have allowed a rate of 3.8 yards per carry against Rosemount, Minnetonka and Edina – three of the traditionally best rushing attacks in Class AAAAAA. Junior Joe Demro and senior Andrew Yogei are two pillars in the middle of the defensive line. Their presence has allowed linebackers like Trevor Palesch (20 tackles, two TFL) to free-flow to the ball this season. How will the unit perform against the No. 2 Eagles, Wayzata’s third-straight, top-five opponent?
United South Central OL vs St. Clair/Loyola DL
Four veteran offensive linemen and one of the top running backs in the Mid Southeast district have United South Central perfect through three games. Senior Jake Stevermer, a returning All-District player, anchors the Rebels in the trenches. He’s led a group opening holes for junior Zach Niebuhr, who already has 484 yards and seven touchdowns this season.
The Spartans are also perfect in their first year as a co-operative program. Seniors Dawson DaVito and Jarrid Buhs provide the leadership up front for a defensive line that will have to perform on the better than it did in last week’s 31-30 victory over Minnesota Valley Lutheran.
The team with the group that wins at the line of scrimmage is the team that wins this contest.
Orono WRs vs Chaska DBs
The Spartans finally recorded their first win of the season last week by blowing out Richfield 51-14, but Jimmy Buck and the Orono pass catchers have been prolific all season.
Buck’s 473 yards are third best in Minnesota according to MNFootballHub.com. He’s also found the end zone on six occasions with a pair of 2-pt. conversions. Sam Perry has also been effective, teaming with quarterback Nick Prentice seven times for 147 yards.
Chaska’s rebounded with two victories following its season-opening loss to Coon Rapids. The Hawks first-team defense has been a strong suit with only 37 points allowed. The secondary has recorded three interceptions as Griffin Wurtz, Ben Courneya and Daniel Buttram all have takeaways on the season. Can the Hawks shutdown the high-flying Spartans and grab their third-straight win?
East Ridge Pass O vs Roseville Pass D
We’ll find out if the Raptors or Raiders are the top challengers to Cretin-Derham Hall in the East Metro by the end of Friday evening. Roseville is looking to bounce back after losing to Stillwater in a game the Raiders led by 10 in the fourth quarter. East Ridge has an opportunity for its third-straight win after handing White Bear Lake its first loss of the season last Friday.
The Raptors new-look passing game will be a key to success against Roseville. Zach Zebrowski is averaging almost 40 attempts per game, completing 69 percent of his passes in the process. His favorite receiver has been 5-foot-9 Simon Stark, who’s already hauled in 32 receptions for 345 yards.
The defensive strength for Roseville is up front. Seniors Will Peterson and Christien Hurt as good a duo as any in Class AAAAAA, but the Raiders did show some vulnerability to the pass in the loss to Stillwater. They’ll need big games from guys like Anthony Weldon and Carson Dittel in the secondary to try and limit Zebrowski and company through the air.