The playoffs have arrived

The 2023 high school football playoffs are finally here. Friday night will see six Union area squads battle to keep their seasons alive.

Friday night will feature five area teams hosting Round 1 playoff games, and one team on the road. Three teams come into the weekend ranked.

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Baxter (5-3) at No. 10 (8-Player) WACO (6-1)

One year after making the Class 8-Player championship, WACO starts its 2023 postseason campaign at home against the Baxter Bolts.

The Warriors and Bolts haven’t played a football game since Baxter knocked off the Warriors 50-20 in the 2017 regular season.

WACO comes in with just one loss, a 34-8 defeat at top-ranked Winfield-Mount Union. The Warriors started the year with wins over a pair of teams that have been ranked in The Gazette’s Top-10 pollt, a 26-20 win over Fremont-Mlls and a 46-22 beating of Iowa Valley.

Since the loss to WMU in their third game, the Warriors have been absolutely dominant, winning their last four games by blowout margins. WACO has scored at least 50 points in every one of those four games, and the Warriors have given up less than 15 points in each of them.

Baxter has had to work a little harder for its wins. The Bolts have gotten three of their five wins in one-possession games.

WACO has been fantastic on the ground this year. The Warriors have rushed for 1,252 yards and 28 touchdowns this year, including 599 yards and 10 touchdowns by workhorse running back Louden Huisenga.

Junior Clayton Miller has had a huge year in his first season as staring quarterback. Miller has thrown for 616 yards, 14 touchdowns and just one interception.

Four different Warriors have over 100-yards receiving. Colton Leichty leads the team with 170 yards and three touchdowns.

WACO’s defense will face off with Baxter’s potent passing attack. Junior quarterback Perrin Sulzle has thrown for 2,154 yards and 31 touchdowns, while throwing just five interceptions. Senior receiver Treyton Travis has 1,255 yards receiving and 22 scores.

Belle Plaine (4-4) at No. 1 (8-Player) Winfield-Mount Union (8-0)

After an opening day win at now sixth-ranked Central City, Winfield-Mount Union has blown through the competition in 2023. Now, the Wolves open the postseason at home against .500 team Belle Plaine.

The Plainsmen have had an up-and-down season, but one thing has been consistent. Belle Plaine has had a fantastic rushing game, going for over 2,000 yards and 40 touchdowns. Juniors Ty Alcott and Lane Vokoun have combined for over 1,300 yards and 22 scores.

If the Plainsmen can score on a stout WMU defense, they’ll still have to worry about the Wolves’ thunderous offense, led by all-around star Cam Buffington, who has 938 yards rushing and 14 touchdowns, along with 516 rushing yards and 10 scores.

Quarterback Jake Edwards has had a heck of a debut behind center. Edwards has 1,027 yards passing, 18 touchdowns and just two interceptions.

West Central Valley (3-5) at No. 6 (1A) Sigourney-Keota (7-1)

West Central Valley will get its own taste of the pit, as the Wildcats take on a Cobra team that is one of the hottest squads in the entire state, let alone Class 1A.

After a tough road loss to PCM early in the season, SK has been back to its dominant ways. The Cobras have won seven-straight contests.

As usual, SK is getting most of its work done on the ground, rushing for 2,461 yards and 39 touchdowns. Kale Clarahan leads the way with 859 yards and 13 scores, and Sawyer Stout has rushed for 421 yards and five touchdowns.

West Central Valley quarterback Nate Gerling has thrown for 640 yards and six touchdowns, although he has been picked off seven times. His favorite receiver by a long shot is senior Landon Osberg, who has caught 28 passes for 524 yards and five scores.

Northeast (4-4) at Mid-Prairie (4-4)

After beating Northeast in 2021 and 2022, the Golden Hawks weren’t originally set up to play their fellow River Valley squad, but as fate would have it, they meet up in the first round.

Mid-Prairie comes in having won four of its last five games. Much of that has been credit to a balanced offensive attack.

Quarterback Brady Weber has thrown for 1,300 yards even and 15 touchdowns, while only getting picked off five times. Running back Hudson Ehrenfelt has rushed for 999 yards and 11 scores, and he and Cobi Hershberger each have over 300 yards receiving.

The Golden Hawks’ defense will look to tame Northeast quarterback Gavin Kramer, who has thrown for 1,344 yards and 16 touchdowns, while tossing just six interceptions. Kramer is also a menace on the ground, running for 937 yards and 11 scores.

Maquoketa Valley (6-2) at Columbus (6-2)

It’s a battle of Wildcats in a matchup of six-win teams, as Columbus hosts Maquoketa Valley in a Class A battle.

The Wildcats are known for their run game, and they should be. Columbus has rushed for 2,846 yards and 46 touchdowns. Kaden Amigon has rushed for 1,598 of those yards and 25 scores, and Riley Kaalberg has went 906 yards and scored 14 times.

Maquoketa Valley has quite the running back of its own. Senior Lance McShane has dashed for 1,779 yards and 28 touchdowns this season.

Pekin (6-2) at No. 7 (A) Lynnville-Sully (7-1)

The Panthers return to the postseason with a three-game winning streak in hand, and they’ve been dominant in all three of those games, outscoring their last three opponents 161-6.

Pekin has quite the test, though, in seventh-ranked Lynnville-Sully. The Hawks come in with seven wns and a well-balanced offensive attack.

Lynnville-Sully running backs CJ Nikkel and Lannon Montgomery have each run for over 500 yards, and they have 12 touchdowns between them. As a team, the Hawks have rushed for 1,481 yards and 24 scores.

The Pekin defense has been phenomenal, but so has quarterback Wll Adam. The junior leads the team with 1,100 passing yards and 11 touchdowns, and he has rushed for 652 yards and 10 scores. Running back Sven Dahlstrom has 793 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground.