A pair of rated teams collide in eight-man action this evening as sixth ranked North Sentral Kossuth visits second rated Armstrong-Ringsted. N.S.K. coach Troy Adams says they need to slow down an Armstrong-Ringsted ground attack that is averaging nearly 300 yards per game.
Adams says they are kids with “pretty good wheels” and he hopes they can force them into a passing situation and take them out of what they want to do.
Armstrong-Ringsted coach Robert Zotz says the Eagles have a solid ground game of their own with a good inside out game that includes the option outside.
In class 2A, third rated North Fayette puts an unbeaten record on the line when the Hawks visit ninth rated Sumner-Fredericksburg in district four. North Fayette’s running game has led the way to a 4-0 start and coach Bob Lape says it begins up front. lape says they’ve put a lot of emphasis on the lines as they carry the team. He says you can have a great back, but without blocking, not much is going to happen.
The Hawks don’t throw it much but when they do it has been effective. North Fayette only has 12 completions so far this season but five have gone for touchdowns. He says they lull teams to sleep running the Wing-T and when people start to overload, they can hit the quick passes.
North Fayete is playing a Sumner-Fredericksburg team that is coming off a loss to number five Cascade. He says their backs are against the wall as they have to win to stay in contention for the district title.
In class 2A, seventh rated Collins-Maxwell-Baxter is at home in district seven against a West Marshall team that is 2-0 in district play after dropping its first two games of the season.
C.M.B. coach Rob Luther says they are well coached and won’t make many mistakes. Luther and his staff attended coaching clinics at Notre Dame and Iowa State this past spring. The result is a no-huddle, spread offense that is averaging 420 yards per game. Luther says it allows them to control the game and get the players in the best position to run a play that will succeed.
West Marshall coach Ken Winkler says this would be a very big win for his team. Winkler says Bondurant and C.M.B. are the two most talented teams in the district. Winkler says he is not as concerned about C.M.B.’s style of offense as he is the players running it.
He says the no huddle is designed to keep you from substituting, and in high school you don’t make as many substitutions. So he says the personnel are more of a problem.
Chris McArdle KILR Estherville and Elwin Huffman KOEL Oelwein contributed to this story.