Key Player In Each Eight-Player Quarterfinal Playoff Game

One more step. One more win and it is UNI-Dome bound for your teammates, coaches and fans. The quarterfinals in eight-player football take place this Friday night with Audubon traveling to Remsen St. Mary’s, Anita-CAM taking on Fremont-Mills, Don Bosco heading to Janesville and Easton Valley battling Montezuma. Each contest will be an exciting one, and here is a look at one player from each team that could be a factor in the final outcome. <strong>Audubon at Remsen St. Mary’s</strong> <em>Gavin Smith, Audubon (2022)</em> The wheel that makes the Audubon offense go is quarterback Gavin Smith. The junior has thrown for 812 yards and rushed for 1,277 with 45 combined touchdowns. Smith brings big-play abilities to the Wheeler attack and is very accurate with the ball. He has completed 69 percent of his passes and averages over 20 yards per completion. <em>Jeremy Koenck, Remsen St. Mary’s (2021)</em> Remsen St. Mary’s does an excellent job of balancing things out, but Jeremy Koenck is the person they look to the most for success. The senior has 846 yards rushing with 14 touchdowns, adding 13 receptions for 203 yards and six more scores. Koenck fits that dual-threat role, as the 5-foot-9, 170-pounder has game-changing speed in his back pocket. <strong>Anita-CAM at Fremont-Mills</strong> <em>[player_tooltip player_id="23971" first="Lane" last="Spieker"], Anita-CAM (2022)</em> Whether it be running the ball, catching it or throwing it, Anita-CAM junior [player_tooltip player_id="23971" first="Lane" last="Spieker"] can change the outcome of the game in a second. Spieker has 1,507 yards rushing with 31 touchdowns, has eight receptions for 180 yards and three scores, and has thrown for 359 yards and six TDs. Oh, and don’t forget about his three kickoff and three punt returns for scores. That’s 46 total touchdowns for those counting at home. What Spieker brings is why college coaches need to be checking up on him. His ability to find the end zone is incredible with excellent field vision and quickness. <em>Jake Malcom, Fremont-Mills (2022)</em> By now, everyone knows about [player_tooltip player_id="23833" first="Seth" last="Malcom"], the Nebraska recruit who has dominated both sides of the ball. The difference for Fremont-Mills this week and moving forward, though, is the play of junior Jake Malcom. Malcom has thrown for 763 yards with 13 touchdowns, adding 368 and eight scores on the ground. How he handles the pressure will be key for Fremont-Mills. <strong>Don Bosco at Janesville</strong> <em>Cael Frost, Don Bosco (2021)</em> For Don Bosco, it begins and ends with senior Cael Frost. The quarterback has 49 total touchdowns on the year, throwing for 816 yards and rushing for another 1,939. Frost, who is committed to Kirkwood to play baseball, could catch the eye of some college recruits over these next few weeks to try and sway him to a football career. At 6-foot-0 and 180 pounds, he has all the tools needed to be a standout on the gridiron. <em>[player_tooltip player_id="23934" first="Carson" last="Pariseau"], Janesville (2021)</em> All year long, opposing defenses have tried to take [player_tooltip player_id="23934" first="Carson" last="Pariseau"] away from the Janesville offense. And all year long, they have failed. Pariseau has racked up 1,674 yards and 34 touchdowns on the ground, averaging an eye-popping 10.7 yards per carry. What makes him so dangerous is his ability to catch passes too, adding 11 receptions for 234 yards and three scores. Watch how Pariseau uses his speed and patience to dominate on the field. He is as sound of running back as you will see. <strong>Easton Valley at Montezuma</strong> <em>Conor Gruver, Easton Valley (2022)</em> Easton Valley is going to need to score points to keep up with Montezuma. While Kolton Murphy can do that with his legs, they will have to get a big game from Conor Gruver. The junior has stepped up this year, throwing for almost 2,000 yards with 33 touchdowns. He is more of a pocket QB, using his ability to read defenses and pick them apart. <em>[player_tooltip player_id="23965" first="Eddie" last="Burgess"], Montezuma (2022)</em> It has become almost a weekly occurrence that [player_tooltip player_id="23965" first="Eddie" last="Burgess"] will be among the top players in the state. Burgess has thrown for 2,590 yards, rushed for 1,041 and scored an incredible 66 touchdowns on the year. He is as accurate of quarterback as there is in the state, completing 66 percent of his throws with just five interceptions among 217 attempts. Burgess also averages nearly nine yards per carry and has 12 tackles for loss on defense. A standout on the basketball court, there has to be talk around the Burgess house of a career on the football field after these past two seasons for the Braves.