Panthers looking to slow down top Iowa rusher

The biggest obstacle standing between Pekin and a district title may just be a 5-foot-11, 185-pound running back named Mitchell Harger.

The Alburnett back leads all of Iowa prep football with 1,726 yards and 26 touchdowns on 130 carries, and Friday it will be Pekin?s turn to try to slow him down.

?He?s just a really strong runner and he gets a ton of carries for them,? Pekin head coach Joe Donovan said. ?We?ll need to make sure we get a good first hit on him and take him down from there.?

If anyone can stop Harger, chances are its Pekin. In last week?s game vs. North Cedar, the Panthers contained a Knights? running attack that averaged 235 yards per game to 96 yards. In the two weeks prior, Pekin held Van Buren and Cardinal to a combined 84 rushing yards.

While Pekin doesn?t have a bruiser on offense quite like Harger, Alburnett doesn?t have a special teams threat quite like Bryce Sines, who has returned three kickoffs and one punt for touchdowns in 2011.

Donovan thinks Sines gives his team a unique advantage.

?We have the ability to score fast. Bryce gets the ball in his hands and he can score at any time,? said Donovan.

Now that Pekin is on a three-game win streak, which includes outscoring opponents 147-12, Donovan isn?t willing to mess with success anytime soon.

?I think we just stick to the course, execute and take care of the ball,? he said. ?To be honest, we haven?t changed a whole lot this year. We?ll continue to do what we?ve been doing.?

Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. in Alburnett.