Prep Football- Iowa Valley and WACO were eliminated from the playoffs last Friday bringing around the 8-Player District 6 All-District Team and despite finishing second in the district, WACO nabbed the most First Team All-District spots at eight.
Iowa Valley
The Tigers unleashed an explosive offense that scored 70 or more points in six of their ten games this past season. Sophomore quarterback Nolan Kriegel was a big reason why as he took home Offensive MVP.
Kriegel led the district in total touchdowns with 55, rushing touchdowns with 36, and total offensive yards with 2,885 yards. The sophomore also had the best quarterback rating and the highest yard per carry average with 8.9—minimum of 58 carries.
Also making the First Team on offense was offensive lineman Mason Hoyt, a sophomore, and senior Owen Brat as his 331 receiving yards and six touchdowns earned him a First Team Utility spot.
Defense was where the Tigers made their mark with Caleb Haack and Ian Smith gaining spots on First Team defensive line, Chance Hoyt earned First Team linebacker, and the ball hawking sophomore Layne Peska was named First Team defensive back.
Haack lived in the backfield of opposing offenses as he tallied 24.5 tackles for a loss (TFL) and Smith added 12.5 TFLs to the team total. Haack also led the district with 13 receiving touchdowns. Hoyt led the team in tackles with 43 total tackles and nabbed an interception.
Layne Peska flew all over the field with 39.5 tackles to complement his six interceptions, including a pick-six. He also added two kick return touchdowns.
Dallas Sherman was named a Second Team offensive lineman, while Josh Reed was given the Golden Spikes, which is given to players who were injured for all or part of the season and did not play enough games to earn All-District honors.
The Tiger finished the season with an 8-2 record, their most wins in a season since 2018. Their perfect record in district play also gave the Tigers aa district championship as they climbed the rankings all the way up to #7. For all of the accolades, Casey Krull took home Coach of the Year honors.
WACO
Week three marked a clear transition for WACO as the Warriors found their footing on the offensive line and started to run the ball. Their defense also stepped up down the final stretch of the season, allowing only 18 points per game.
“We’ve come so far since Week 3 when we lost to Iowa Valley and we were sort of scratching our head, what we’re going to do and these kids really responded” said head coach Chad Edeker. “You know, we found a running game, you know, we did a really nice job of running the ball the last two weeks. You know, we did a lot of stuff. Our D line came together and started playing great, you know. It stings right now, but I tell the boys, you know, as we get through the end of the season here, we get to our banquet stuff. This was a really good year. I mean we you know second round of playoffs are nothing to scoff at him and the eight [teams] that are left are guaranteed #1 are playing right now and you know and we were #2 and we fought hard to get where we were.”
For his effort on defense, senior Louden Huisenga claimed his second Defensive MVP honor. He tied for the team lead and second in the district in total tackles with 73, while adding 5.5 TFLs and an interception. Huisenga also rushed for 1,072 yards and 23 touchdowns.
Gage Samo was named First Team wide receiver as the senior collected 30 receptions for 479 yards and seven touchdowns. Owen Wolf, a senior, helped pave the way for the offense to gather 1,642 passing yards and 1,668 rushing yards for a balanced attack.
On defense, the 6’7” Adam Stafford led a tough Warrior defense with 16 TFLs, while adding four sacks and 32.5 total tackles. The secondary provided a blanket with Clayton Miller and Isaac Rich each garnering First Team defensive back honors.
Miller provided the defense with 73 tackles, 12.5 tackles, and three interceptions. He also led the offense at the quarterback position with 23 touchdowns and 41 passing touchdowns over the past two seasons.
Rich also dominated both ways with a team leading four interceptions, 572 receiving yards, and 11 touchdowns.
Joel Meyer was named First Team Defensive Utility as the senior ranked third on the team in tackles with 57 and recovered two fumbles.
WACO held the edge in special teams with Niles Reichenbach nailing 45 of his 52 extra points and 3 of his 7 field goals with a long of 34, earning him First Team Kicker status. Hayden Shelman’s five return touchdowns grabbed him First Team Special Team/Returner.
WACO finished the season with an 8-2 record, going 4-1 in district play.
Winfield-Mt. Union
The Wolves potent offense propelled them to a 5-4 record on the season and third place in the district with their third consecutive trip to the postseason. Leading the way for that offense was Cooper Buffington, the Lineman MVP for the second consecutive season.
The senior paved the way for the Wolves to gain 1,358 rushing yards and 1,851 passing yards. Additionally, Buffington led the team in tackles with 57 total tackles, 12 of which happened in the backfield.
This freed up the duo of quarterback Jake Edwards and running back Lane Genkinger. Edwards was second in the district with 22 passing touchdowns, while leading the pack of five with 1,663 passing yards. Edwards added three interceptions on defense, including two pick-sixes.
Genkinger, who did not expect to have to catch the ball much this season, led the team with 821 receiving yards on 41 receptions. He added 796 rushing yards to finish the season with 26 total touchdowns.
Max Edwards was another main target for Edwards as he hauled in 31 receptions for 552 yards and seven touchdowns as the junior earned First Team wide receiver. Lastly, Grant Anderson teamed up with Buffington to earn First Team offensive lineman.
Nicholas Sparrow claimed Second Team utility as he finished with 28.5 tackles, two interceptions, and four receiving touchdowns.
New London
The Tigers ended the season with a 2-6 record, defeating English Valleys and HLV. London Franklin took home First Team running back honors for his 471 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns. The junior added 514 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns.
Nicholas Loyd, a junior, was named First Team offensive utility as the Tiger helped direct the offense to four games of scoring 30 points or more.
On defense, Gavin Menke-Bailey grabbed First Team linebacker for his team leading 62.5 total tackles. The senior was also a dual threat on offense with 1,330 total yards and 18 total touchdowns.
Corbin Jacobs-Jewell nabbed Second Team All-District linebacker for his team leading three sacks and six TFLs.
English Valleys
Cael Grove was First Team defensive utility, while Ben Coffman and Kane Axmear made the Second Team All-District team. Lastly, Deshon Anderson was named to the Golden Spikes team.
HLV-TC
Cael Weisskopf claimed First Team All-District running back as the marquee player for HLV. Keegan Gorsh was named Second Team quarterback and Levi Molyuneux made the Golden Spikes team.
