Halloween will be full of tricks or treats for the four teams from Wright County still playing football, as tonight in Section final Friday around the state. Buffalo, Monticello, and Annandale are all playing for a shot at state, while STMA has advanced to the second round of the Class AAAAAA tournament. Last week, I had a scary 4-3 record, but overall, I am 56-22 on the season. Good luck to all the teams and have a great and safe Halloween weekend!
All games scheduled for Friday, October 31st at 7 PM. All games subject to change.
Class AAAAAA Second Round.
#5 STMA (4-5) @ #1 Rosemount (8-1). You can hear this game on AM1360 KRWC, krwc1360.com and on our app. Pregame starting at 6:30 PM.
Rosemount as former Vikings coach Mike Tice woud say is a tough guy town. For years they have relied on running the ball and a bruising defense. This year is on different. In seven of nine games the Irish have given up one TD or less! The Irish also rely on a deep running back room, led by Jeru Bean. For STMA, after a 1-5 start they have caught fire, winning four straight. In last week’s road win at Osseo, the Knights got a pick six from Zach Marble, and another interception returned to the one by Wyatt Mosher. Mosher also rushed for 120 yards and 3 TD’s, the fifth time in six games Mosher went over 100 yards.
The Pick: STMA is doing everything right, right now. Running the football with a purpose, QB Ty Haring is hitting clutch passes, and the defense is forcing turnovers. For Rosemount, they have shown all year, and they can be dominant on defense against anybody. Defense always wins this time of year, 20-7 Irish.
The Rosemount Irish, above, are the #1 seed in their side of the bracket, and will take on STMA on Friday night at home.
Section 7AAAAA Final.
#2 Elk River (7-2) @ #1 Monticello (8-1).
Oh boy, what a rivalry! These teams have had some classic games over the years, and I expect another one tonight. The Elks have scored 50 points or more six times this year, including scoring 61 in the last two, but Monti is not intimidated as they held the Elks to 14 earlier this season. Still the Elks have six running backs with over 200 yards this year, led by Braedon Becker with 944 and 20 TDs. For the Magic, there offense has been just as potent as the Elks. Last week the Magic rushed for 349 yards in their win over St. Francis, 42-11. Cale Holthaus led the way with 157 yards and a touchdown.
The Pick: Last week in semifinal section wins, the Elks and Magic combined for 103 points and over 800 yards rushing, so the running game is the key, of course, but not so fast! In their first meeting Levi Harris from Elk River was 6-8 with two TDs through the air, and last week Carson Deibele tossed two TDs for the Magic. This time the Magic will be ready for the pass, and Deibele will hit at least one clutch one, as the Magic win a thriller, 36-28.
Levi Harris, above #2 in white, is known for his running more than his arm, but against Monticello earlier this season, Harris threw two TD passes.
Section 6AAAAA Final.
#2 Buffalo (6-3) @ #1 Spring Lake Park (9-0).
The Bison defense was dominant last week, limiting the Armstrong offense to just 161 total yards. QB Grant Benson was at it again, passing for 175 yards, while rushing for 93 with two TDs. For Spring Lake Park, they sleepwalked to a 28-12 win over Cooper. The Panthers jumped out to a 21-0 lead and held off a late Hawks rally. Running back Lamari Brown is the lead rusher for the Panthers avg. 6.3 yards per carry. SLP won the regular season matchup at Buffalo, 21-7. The Panthers dominated the first half, but Buffalo rallied and had plenty of chances to get back in the game, so this game should come down to the wire.
Lamari Brown #47, above right, is having another great season at RB for the Panthers.
The Pick: In their regular season matchup, the Panthers limited QB Grant Benson both on the ground and through the air and shut down the rest of the Bison running game completely. Good news for Buffalo is that last week they found their running game with Thomas Jordan rushing for 76 yards on 10 carries. Injuries could be a big part of this game. The Bison will play without West Point commit Hans Pederson who is out because of injury, while SLP played without second leading rusher Marquel Mitchell last week. This one should be a defensive struggle, but Pederson played his best game of the season against SLP last time, and without him, I give SLP the slight edge, 20-14.
Section 5AAA Final.
#3 Foley (6-4) vs. #1 Annandale (9-0) @ St. Cloud Tech.
The Falcons are starting to find their offense. In the last two games Foley has avg. 34 ppg, including a 35-0 shuotout of #2 seed Spectrum last week. The Falcons have a nice big three of QB Carson Brenny, RB Brody Lipka, and WR Von Murphy. Defense has always been a calling card for the Falcons, and they have played well the last few weeks, in fact the Falcons have won 5 of their last seven. For Annandale, what else can you say? Last week vs. Pine City, the Cards took their starters out halfway throug the first half up 50-0. In fact, the Dragons didn’t get a first down the whole game, in the Cards 66-0 win. The Cards have it all at every position, and now are featuring 6’3 215 So. RB Rylen Horsch, along with Sr’s Cam Ergen and Isiah Turner in the backfield, so the Cards seem to find a new weapon every week.
The Pick: Foley has some really nice options on offense, and are a stingy team on defense at times, but Annandale is at another level. The defense doesn’t get enough credit for the Cards as they haven’t given up more than one TD in a game all season, and most of those TD’s came against the backups. Cards will be challenged at some point, and tonight there could be some nervous moments early, since Foley is so familiar with the Cards, but in the end, Cards roll on to state for the third straight year, 34-6.
Brody Lipka, above with the ball, will need a big game along with the offensive line to give Foley a chance against Annandale tonight.
