Week 2 of the high school football season this week – teams are beginning to get into some rhythm as the season is now in full swing - From the Twin Valley League, Big 7, and Northeast Kansas League... we have it all covered on Friday Night Fever and on the always FREE MSCSPORTS.NET! Also on Twitter at Kanzaland Sports!

2021 Pick Records

Jonny

Last week: 12-6
Overall: 12-6 (67%)

Justin

Last week: 14-4
Overall: 14-4 (78%)

Brandon

Last week: 13-5
Overall:  13-5 (72%)

Games to be Broadcast

Jackson Heights at Horton - 103.9 KNZA
Chapman at Holton - Holton Channel
Sabetha at Riverside -  Sabetha Channel
Royal Valley at Nemaha Central  – 92.1 KMZA
Pleasant Ridge at ACCHS  – KAIR 93.7 FM

Week 2 Games

Big 7

(1-0) Perry-Lecompton at (0-1) Hiawatha

The Perry Lecompton Kaws picked up right where they left off a year ago and looked dominant in a 40-6 week one win over Jeff West. Gunnar Ball showed out in his first varsity start at quarterback throwing two touchdowns, running for another, and returning a kick 85 yards for a score. Reichen Rush added over 200 yards on the ground with a touchdown while the defense recorded three takeaways.

Hiawatha meanwhile lost a tight low-scoring game at Troy 12-10. The Redhawks were marred by four turnovers and 13 penalties in week one. Xavier Oldham was a bright spot with more than 100 yards rushing and a touchdown while he also kicked a field goal.

Perry dominated the matchup a year ago winning 47-7 and have won the last three meetings dating back to 2016.

Jonny’s Pick: Perry Lecompton
Justin’s Pick: Perry Lecompton
Brandon’s Pick: Perry Lecompton

(1-0) Chapman at (1-0) Holton on Holton Channel

For the second straight season, it was a come from behind walk-off winning field goal for Holton to start the year against Nemaha Central. Last week the Wildcats went on a drive over the final four minutes and at quarterback Matt Lierz converted a couple tough fourth downs to set up his 32-yard successful boot. The balanced wishbone had three Holton rushers with more than 55 yards led by Jace Boswell. The Cats will look to clean thing up following 10 penalties in that game as well as a couple fumbles and a punt blocked as they host Chapman.

The Fighting Irish also put together a fourth quarter comeback drive to start the season 1-0. Chapman had an 18-7 halftime lead and was ahead for the first three quarters but needed a late touchdown drive to rally for a 24-22 win at home against fellow Big 7 member, Sabetha. The Irish had 333 yards rushing with runningback Eli Riegel accounting for most of those 26 carries and 213 yards and all four scores.

Holton won 55-13 last year at Chapman in the school’s first meeting. The Wildcats will play their next three games on the road.  

Jonny’s Pick: Holton
Justin’s Pick: Holton
Brandon’s Pick: Holton

(0-1) Jeff West at (1-0) Clay Center

The Jeff West Tigers are looking to rebound after a tough start to the 2021 season last week in a 40-6 loss to state runner-up Perry Lecompton. The Tigers did some good things and had multiple drives into Perry territory, but two interceptions a couple of penalties halted too many chances to put points on the board. Jeff West allowed over 300 yards on the ground as well to the Kaws and got their only score on a touchdown run from senior Kaden Stones who rushed for over 90 yards. The Tigers now will look to rebound against Clay Center who racked up a solid victory last week over Abilene 40-12 where the Tigers ran for over 380 yards. Sophomore Carter Long ran for over 150 yards and one touchdown in the win averaging over 11 yards per carry.

Clay Center was dominant a year ago over Jeff West winning 41-13 in Meriden.

Jonny’s Pick: Clay Center
Justin’s Pick: Clay Center
Brandon’s Pick: Clay Center

(1-0) Royal Valley at (0-1) Nemaha Central on 92.1 KMZA

After a win-less campaign last year, Royal Valley started 2021 with a victory against Big 7 foe Riverside 16-13. It was the first game in the Head Coach role for David Boucher who saw the game turn in his Panthers favor with a pick-six by Colby Carreno in the third quarter. Treyson Murata had 85 yards on 14 carries and a touchdown, but even more importantly, RV made both of their two-point conversions and had four interceptions on defense.

Nemaha Central remains #3 in Class 2A according to KPreps despite the loss last week to Holton, 25-24 on a last second walk off field goal. The Thunder had three costly fumbles in that game. Zac Kramer rushed for 151 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Thunder have now lost their season opener in four straight seasons, but always peak to make a playoff run in November. This is the first time that Royal Valley and Nemaha Central have played since 2017, NC won that game 55-14.

Jonny’s Pick: Nemaha Central
Justin’s Pick: Nemaha Central
Brandon’s Pick: Nemaha Central

(0-1) Sabetha at (0-1) Riverside on Sabetha Channel

The Bluejays and Cyclones are each coming off tough week one losses setting up for what should be a battle tonight. The Bluejays went on the road to Chapman and fell 24-22 last week falling in the final minute. Sabetha got down 12-0 early but bounced back and took a brief lead in the fourth quarter before the game-winning Chapman drive. The Bluejays struggled defensively allowing over 330 yards rushing with most of those yards coming on big plays, but Sabetha battled and feels much better heading into tonight.

Riverside meanwhile is coming off an extremely disappointing loss where the Cyclones fell 16-13 to Royal Valley who was winless a season ago. The Cyclones struggled to throw the football completing just 6-of-24 passes for only 63 yards with three interceptions, including one that was taken back for a touchdown. The defense did play extremely well allowing just 190 yards of offense and forcing a few takeaways, but the offense just wasn’t enough.

Sabetha beat Riverside last season 39-6 and has won the last five meetings by at least 30 points.

Jonny’s Pick: Sabetha
Justin’s Pick: Sabetha
Brandon’s Pick: Sabetha

Twin Valley League

(0-1) Washington County at (1-0) Bennington

Unlike last season where Washington County got Frankfort in week the script was flipped this season as the Wildcats got revenge in a 60-34 victory last week. The Tigers did compile 337 yards of total offense but turned the ball over twice and were just 5-for-15 on third downs. Trenton Zenger and Payton LeDuc each ran for over 100 yards in the loss while LeDuc had two touchdowns and Zenger one. Bennington meanwhile is coming off a 56-8 win over Wakefield, but fell to the Tigers a season ago 36-18.

Jonny’s Pick: Washington County
Justin’s Pick: Bennington
Brandon’s Pick: Bennington

(0-1) Onaga at (1-0) Hanover

Hanover continued to roll in typical Wildcat fashion last week in a 44-0 shutout of Pike Valley. The Cats have now won 12 in a row following a perfect 11-0 mark last season that ended with an 8-man DII State Championship.

Onaga opened their season with a 46-0 loss against Clifton Clyde. The Buffaloes will play their next two on the road with top ranked Hanover and then Frankfort in week 3 who is ranked according to some publications. Onaga has had no luck with Hanover in the last three meetings as Hanover has outscored Onaga 180-6.

Jonny’s Pick: Hanover
Justin’s Pick: Hanover
Brandon’s Pick: Hanover

(0-1) Centralia at (1-0) Troy

Centralia had one of the toughest games of any team in week one as they lost to Rossville 38-0. Rossville led 28-0 at half and coasted the rest of the way. Rossville QB Torrey Horak accounted for 288 total yards and three touchdowns. Centralia extends their streak of season opening losses as they have not won a week one game since 2015.

Troy meanwhile is riding high after a big week one win over Hiawatha 12-10 in a game where the Trojans had four interceptions. Boden Benitz collected three picks while Cam Anderson threw two touchdowns to Austin Grable. Anderson threw for 158 yards in the contest but did have two picks while the ground game was non-existent compiling just 22 total yards.

Centralia has won six straight against Troy dating back to 2016 – they each played twice in both 2018 and 2019.

Jonny’s Pick: Centralia
Justin’s Pick: Centralia
Brandon’s Pick: Centralia

(1-0) Frankfort at (0-1) Wetmore

Frankfort got their season rolling with a 52-26 double up win over Washington County. The Wildcats led 30-6 at the half to put it out of reach despite giving up a few scores in the second half. Caden Dalinghaus, Ethan Armstrong and Lane Loiseau each ran for two touchdowns against Washington County. Frankfort jumps into KPreps rankings this week at #5 in 8M-II. Wetmore lost to Valley Falls at home in week one, 34-20. Wetmore trailed 14-6 at the half but Valley Falls’ rushing attack took over in the second half. Frankfort has won the last 6 matchups since 2015 and have outscored Wetmore 339-54 in that stretch. Wetmore has been shut out in four of those six games only getting points on the board in the games in 2016 and 2017.

Jonny’s Pick: Frankfort
Justin’s Pick: Frankfort
Brandon’s Pick: Frankfort

(1-0) Doniphan West at (2-0) Bishop Leblond

The Doniphan West Mustangs could not have had a better start to the 2021 season last week as the Mustangs scored 24 points in the first quarter in route to a 54-8 victory over Blue Valley. D-West led 48-8 at halftime and ended the game in the third quarter. Trent Spiker led the Mustangs with three total touchdowns while Hudson Penny caught one and ran one. Michael Lackey led the defense with seven tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss while Penny and Spiker each recorded interceptions. The task this week though is much tougher as Bishop Leblond is 2-0 coming off a huge 34-14 win over North Andrew who was state ranked in Missouri at the time. The Eagles do most of their damage on the ground averaging nearly 300 rushing yards through their first two games.

The Mustangs got the best of the Eagles a year ago winning going away 68-32.

Jonny’s Pick: Doniphan West
Justin’s Pick: Doniphan West
Brandon’s Pick: Bishop Leblond

(0-1)Blue Valley at (1-0) Axtell

Blue Valley is looking to rebound following a tough week one loss to Doniphan West 54-8. The Rams compiled just 102 yards of total offense and turned the ball over twice with the lone score coming on a 5-yard run by Brock Burgman.

Axtell is ranked #4 in Kpreps 8M-II ranks this week after they blasted then ranked #5 Wheatland/Grinnell last week 62-16. Axtell’s Isaac Detweiler earned athlete of the week honors after rushing for over 150 yards and 7 total touchdowns. The Eagles have now won four straight season openers. Blue Valley lost their season opener 54-8 to Doniphan West. The last time these two teams played was 2019 where Axtell won 58-6. The last time Blue Valley beat Axtell was in 2011.

Jonny’s Pick: Axtell
Justin’s Pick: Axtell
Brandon’s Pick: Axtell

(1-0) Clifton Clyde at (1-0) Little River

In one of the marquee matchups across the state, Clifton-Clyde and Little River are set to meet for the third time since the start of the 2020 season. Both teams enter 1-0 with Clifton-Clyde flying high following a 46-0 win at Onaga last week where the Eagles had over 420 yards of total offense. Little River meanwhile blew out Peabody-Burns 62-6 last week which is their ninth straight winning after winning the 8-man DI State Championship last season.

In the two meetings a season ago Clyde won in the regular season 42-36 in overtime, but Little River won in the playoffs 46-26.

Jonny’s Pick: Little River
Justin’s Pick: Little River
Brandon’s Pick: Little River

(0-1) Linn at (1-0) Southern Cloud

Linn is searching for answers following their first game in nearly two years last week in a 46-0 loss to Solomon. The Bulldogs compiled just 55 yards of offense with negative 10 rushing yards. The Bulldogs now get Southern Cloud who rolled to a 52-8 win over Wilson last week where they ran for 242 yards and five touchdowns.

Jonny’s Pick: Southern Cloud
Justin’s Pick: Southern Cloud
Brandon’s Pick: Southern Cloud

Northeast Kansas League

(0-1) Oskaloosa at (1-0) Maur-Hill

Oskaloosa started their season with a 45-6 loss at Jackson Heights. Oskaloosa’s defense allowed almost 300 yards rushing to Jackson Heights. The Bears have now lost 10 straight games dating back to the 2019 season. Maur Hill got their season started with a 22-14 win over Council Grove. Maur Hill trailed 2-0 at halftime but outscored Council Grove 15-6 in the fourth quarter. Drew Caudle and Mark Harris took snaps at QB and both threw touchdown passes to the other. The Ravens were supposed to play McLouth in week one but they had to back out due to Covid-19. Maur Hill defeated Oskaloosa last season 61-6 and have won the last three meetings outscoring Oskaloosa 163-6.

Jonny’s Pick: MH-MA
Justin’s Pick: MH-MA
Brandon’s Pick: MH-MA

(0-0) McLouth at (1-0) Bishop Ward - Cancelled

McLouth has had their first two games called off this season due to Covid-19. Head coach Gary Freeman is hopeful and as of right now is expecting them to be on the field for their first game in week three.

Jonny’s Pick: No Pick
Justin’s Pick: No Pick
Brandon’s Pick: No Pick

(1-0) Jackson Heights at (0-1) Horton on 103.9 KNZA

Jackson Heights heads into week two feeling good after a dominant performance last week in a 45-6 win over Oskaloosa. The Cobras ran for 285 yards and had three backs go over 80 yards led by Wyatt Bacon who compiled 101 yards and a touchdown while Alex Browning added 87 yards and two scores along with Jason Bosley’s 84 yards a score. Jackson Heights did struggle passing the ball completing just 2-of-11 attempts but five of those Coach Wick called flat out drops.

Horton meanwhile is still reeling after seeing their losing streak reach 30 games following a 45-7 loss to ACCHS last week. The Chargers gave up four touchdowns through the air and got their only score on run by Trey Lockwood.

Jackson Heights won the meeting a season ago 41-6 and have won the last four meetings dating back to 2016 by at least 20 points.

Jonny’s Pick: Jackson Heights
Justin’s Pick: Jackson Heights
Brandon’s Pick: Jackson Heights

(1-0) Pleasant Ridge at (1-0) ACCHS on KAIR 93.7 FM 

Pleasant Ridge pulled off one of the more surprising victories in week one taking down defending NEKL Champ Jeff County North 24-22. Sophomore quarterback Cooper Beying compiled four total touchdowns in his first varsity start at quarterback as he ran two and threw two in the air-raid attack of the Rams.

ACCHS started their season strong with a 45-7 win at Horton. QB Bricen Lee completed 7 of 8 passes for 151 yards and four touchdowns. Coltin Myers added 11 carries for 103 yards and two touchdowns while Kieran Courter added 28 rushing yards and another score. These two teams last played in 2019 and Pleasant Ridge got the win 31-21. Pleasant Ridge has won every match up since 2012.

Pleasant Ridge has won the last eight meetings dating back to 2012.

Jonny’s Pick: ACCHS
Justin’s Pick: Pleasant Ridge
Brandon’s Pick: ACCHS

Valley Heights at (0-1) Jeff Co North (SAT @ 2 PM)

This game has been moved to Saturday at 2 PM after Valley Heights had to cancel their first game in week one against Marysville – VH has cleared Covid protocols and is set for their first game of the season. Jeff Co North lost to Pleasant Ridge in week one 24-22 – down 10 in the 4Q, JCN scored a late TD and added a two point conversion to get it to within two – recovered the onside kick and had a couple of opportunities to win the game but couldn’t convert – Valley Heights won last year’s match up 44-18 and have won the last two meetings by a combined score of 104-52.

Jonny’s Pick: Valley Heights
Justin’s Pick: Jeff County North
Brandon’s Pick: Jeff County North

OTHER

(0-1) Atchison at (0-1) Highland Park 

Atchison started their season with a 50-21 loss to St. Joseph Lafayette. Atchison head coach Jim Smith said St. Joseph Lafayette had one of the best quarterbacks he has ever coached against. Game was close in the first half as Atchison trailed 30-21 at the break but couldn’t crack the scoreboard in the second half. Jesse Greenly, Dameon Owens and Isaac Howard each recorded touchdowns for Atchison. The Scots of Highland Park got blasted by Topeka Seaman in week one, 71-6. The Scots have lost 57 straight games and have not won a game since 2014.

Jonny’s Pick: Atchison
Justin’s Pick: Atchison
Brandon’s Pick: Atchison

(0-1) Marysville at (0-1) Wamego

Marysville is looking to bounce back after a 24-12 loss to Beloit where the Bulldogs had less than 150 yards of offense. Rook Williams and Patrick Smith both rushed for over 50 yards and a touchdown, but Marysville finished with just 16 passing yards. The Bulldogs now get Wamego who is hungry following a 41-40 loss in a shootout against Concordia last week in four overtimes. Keyan Miller led the Red Raiders with 154 rushing yards and five touchdowns while the team compiled 318 yards on the ground.

Jonny’s Pick: Wamego
Justin’s Pick: Wamego
Brandon’s Pick: Wamego