Week 4 gridiron preview

Week 4 brings a number of challenges to the Washington County area schools, with big names on the docket.

Three area schools will be taking on ranked opponents this week, with all three match-ups coming on the road, while one team will be hosting homecoming, looking for their second win of the season.

Sigourney-Keota (3-0) at No. 1 Regina (2-1)

Regina comes in as the highly touted top-ranked team in the state, but the 3-0 Cobras won?t be fazed when they travel to Iowa City on Friday night.

The Cobras are undefeated after routing Highland last week 38-8, with a balanced scoring effort from their three-headed rushing attack, with Luke Greiner and Avery Moore each scoring two touchdowns and Carson Crawford accounting for a touchdown and three two-point conversions.

All three of the rushers for Sig-K are averaging at least 5.5 yards per carry, with Moore averaging 13.3 yards per touch on the season on 25 rushing attempts.

The Cobras have been effective at forcing turnovers early in the year, with 11 forced on the year, and that?s a battle they will have to win if they want to pull the upset.

Regina?s lone loss of the year was in the season opener to Class 3A, No. 1 Cedar Rapids Xavier, and the Regals also have a shutout victory over Solon on their resume this season.

The Regals feature balance offensively with seniors leading the passing game and junior Jacob Phillips averaging 8.7 yards per carry on the ground to go with his five touchdowns.

Mid-Prairie (1-2) at No. 8 Mount Vernon (1-2)

The Golden Hawks are coming off a tough district-opening loss against West Liberty, and the path doesn?t get easier this week, as they take on one of the preseason favorites in Mount Vernon.

Despite the two-game losing streak, the Hawks know they can turn to some of their seniors for leadership on the field, with Ricky Vargas having a strong year offensively (241 rush yards, 5.9 yards per carry) and Levi Duwa being a force defensively for the Hawks (19.5 tackles, 4 TFL, 2 sacks).

Mount Vernon had a challenging start to the year, falling at Solon and at West Delaware in the first two games, but rebounded with an exclamation point, posting a 78-0 victory over Camanche last week.

Junior Drew Adams will be a threat from the quarterback position for the Mustangs, as he has 535 yards through the air and five touchdowns, while senior Sam Moore will look to build on his 5.7 yards per carry and pair of rushing scores.

Highland (2-1) at No. 9 Wilton (3-0)

The Huskies will be looking to rebound in a big way against a tough opponent on Friday night.

Highland suffered a 38-8 loss to Sigourney-Keota at home last week, and with a tough road opponent, the Huskies could look to make a statement in the distict.

They will look to their sophomore running back Trey Lasek, who has 284 rushing yards at a clip of 11.8 yards per carry, while their senior quarterback Jake Wood will look to improve from a two-interception game from last week.

Wilton?s strength comes in the rushing game, with senior Bryce Oveson, who has 413 yards on 7.6 yards per carry, to go with six rushing scores.

The Beavers are also a threat through the air with sophomore quarterback Jerome Mays posting 432 passing yards and three scores through the first three weeks of the season.

Springville (3-1) at WACO (1-3)

The Warriors will be celebrating homecoming on Friday night, as they look to add to their win total, after falling to Midland last week, 58-27.

The transition to 8-man football has been a good one for WACO sophomore Colton Horak, who has 427 yards and six rushing scores through the first four games of the season, while also picking up 170 yards receiving and two touchdown receptions.

Defensively, Horak leads the team with 31 tackles, and sophomore Wyatt Harbison has 25 tackles on the year.

Springville will come into town after giving Lone Tree its biggest test of the season, falling 30-12.

Springville has a balanced rushing attack with three athletes averaging at least 5.4 yards per carry, and a senior quarterback who has 356 passing yards through four games.

Columbus (1-2) at Louisa-Muscatine (1-2)

The Columbus football team stumbled at home to Wilton last week, falling 42-0, but they will look to rebound against Louisa-Muscatine who is coming off their first win of the season.

Senior quarterback Carter Colby has been leading the Wildcats offensively this season, rushing for 211 yards and a pair of scores, while defensively, Abel Mena has solidified his spot as a top defender with 20 tackles through three games.

L-M puts the ball in the air effectively, with 311 yards of total offense through the air this season, while a pair of Falcons have at least 120 rushing yards.