KILJ — Two homecoming tilts headline this week’s Friday Football feast, with Mount Pleasant playing host to No. 8 (4A) Fort Madison while New London hosts No. 8 (8P) WACO.
KILJ will have coverage of Mount Pleasant – Fort Madison, a matchup that will begin at 7:30 p.m.
Air-time is set for 7:00 p.m.
The Panthers are coming off win win number one on the year, a 24-20 thriller over West Burlington Notre Dame, a team that Fort Madison beat 23-0 earlier this season.
The Bloodhounds knocked off Mount Pleasant for the first time in six seasons last year when they earned a 44-7 win on their home turf.
Bloodhound quarterback Landes Williams has been red hot to start the season. Completing 71% of his passes, he already has amassed 14 total touchdowns.
His top target is Tate Johnson who has three touchdown receptions and is a yard short of 300 on the year.
For Mount Pleasant, it all starts and ends with the running of sophomore tailback Payton Hagans.
Hagans handled a season high 25 combined touches last week versus the Falcons in a bellcow role, turning that into 131 total yards and one score.
Over his last two games he’s averaged 155 scrimmage yards and has scored four times.
His classmate Jurha Turner hauled in three catches for 56 yards against West Burlington in his best showing under the varsity lights.
Meanwhile in New London, the Tigers are hoping to bounce-back from a tough loss to English Valley last week when they host WACO.
The Warriors are 5-0 and are absolutely steamrolling teams, including English Valley who New London lost to last week.
WACO is third in the state in eight-player in rushing and are headlined by junior Simeon Reichenbach, who has amassed 635 yards on just 61 totes.
He’s scored 12 times.
WACO head coach Chad Edeker said a bigger workload for Reichenbach could be on the forefront, but balance is also imperative.
“He can handle it, I would love to stay balanced. And we don’t have a set thing, if he needs a break we take him out. If we can stay balanced and keep kids fresh [that would be great]” Edeker said.
Tonight’s game will kick at 7:00 p.m.
Other area games tonight:
- Winfield-Mount Union at Lone Tree
- Van Buren County at Cardinal
- Durant at Louisa-Muscatine
- West Branch at Mediapolis
- West Burlington Notre Dame at Solon
- Lisbon at Wapello
- Mid Prairie at Central Lee
- Burlington at Clinton
- Keokuk at Fairfield
- Washington at Grinnell