PRZ Iowa | Playoff Juggernauts | 2021 Round of 16

The IHSAA round of 16 was full of mighty performances, jaw-dropping stat lines, and clutch moments. The playoff juggernauts featured below stepped up in big ways to propel their team forward into the quarterfinals and one step closer to the ultimate goal. Find out what these athletes did to send their opponents packing and help their teams earn another week of football. [player_tooltip player_id="148361" first="Caden" last="Matson"], QB, Humboldt, <a href="https://twitter.com/CadenMatson">Twitter</a> 26/32, 382 YDS, 15 ATT, 61 YDS, 5 Total TD, 5.5 TKL, 4 Solo Matson put on a show against Hampton-Dumont-CAL; over 400 yards of total offense in one game is an exclusive club, especially against playoff caliber competition. On one play he was flying down from Safety, laying a big hit to bottle up the Bulldogs offense. Then he was throwing dimes on hitch-n-go and corner routes for big gains. Matson’s best play came on a QB read; he stayed in the mesh behind G Sweep blocking, pulled it, and weaved through the defense carrying a few defenders with him into the endzone. [player_tooltip player_id="148360" first="Mason" last="Morrow"], QB, Valley, <a href="https://twitter.com/masonmorroww">Twitter</a> 17/20, 206 YDS, 5 Total TD Morrow was meticulous in the execution of his throws on Friday night; there was just nothing Centennial could do about the command and timing of his passes. The Jaguars brought a ton of pressure, but Morrow stood in there and delivered. His mobility, escaping from and stepping up in the pocket, with eyes down field made his performance possible. He extended several plays and bought time to be able to pick apart coverage. One of his touchdown passes, a Tight End wheel, was a rope that nailed his target in stride. Beckett DeJean, QB, OABCIG, <a href="https://twitter.com/bdejean2313">Twitter</a> 21/39, 239 YDS, 19 ATT, 102 YDS, 5 Total TD, 9 TKL, 2 INT, 1 FR It is nearly inconceivable to believe the stat line and performance DeJean achieved in the Falcons’ win over Greene County. He was all over the field on both sides of the ball making one big play after the next. His arm strength was on full display, bouncing and maneuvering around the backfield, making accurate throws from difficult off-balanced and cross-bodied positions. The elusiveness shown there, and on designed runs, put his opponents in a serious bind. The turnovers he manufactured led to plenty of offense. [player_tooltip player_id="104079" first="Tyler" last="Smith"], QB, Sergeant Bluff-Luton, <a href="https://twitter.com/TylerSm1010">Twitter</a> 18/22, 268 YDS, 10 ATT, 94 YDS, 5 Total TD Smith, one of Iowa’s best pure Quarterbacks, was at it again in round 1 against Algona; he lit it up through the air. One of his touchdown passes was a throw of the year candidate; a perfectly placed ball to his outside receiver on a fade, nearly 40 yards in the air against cover 2, where only his target could make a play. Another came when Smith was flushed out of the pocket, ran towards the sideline, and fired a dart into the endzone allowing his receiver to get his feet down for the score before going out of bounds. [player_tooltip player_id="98692" first="Marcus" last="Beatty"], RB, Independence, <a href="https://twitter.com/MarcusLBeatty1">Twitter</a> 45 ATT, 319 YDS, 3 TD The playoffs may have started and the competition may have stiffened, but Beatty didn’t skip a beat. He posted ridiculous stats all regular season and week 10 was no different . Beatty rammed into and through the Benton front over and over; he wore them down and got stronger as the game went on. He took a direct snap behind Split Zone Lead blocking for a huge 40 yard gain. He later took that same play 25 yards to pay dirt against a 9 man box. As has been the case all year, Beatty couldn’t be stopped. [player_tooltip player_id="152703" first="Jazan" last="Williams"], RB, Kennedy, <a href="https://twitter.com/_jazanwilliams_">Twitter</a> 34 ATT, 257 YDS, 2 TD Williams, one of the most complete and next level ready backs in Iowa, was in beast mode against Dubuque Senior. Tackling him on Friday night was exceedingly difficult. One of his touchdowns went for 43 yards on Zone Lead. He smashed into the line of scrimmage, kept his knees driving, and emerged from the pile to cut outside and race to the endzone. That was money for the Cougars all night; he scored his second on the same call. Williams’ physical, punishing runs can leave defenders helpless. [player_tooltip player_id="99142" first="Connor" last="Frame"], WR, Harlan, <a href="https://twitter.com/connorframe11">Twitter</a> 5 REC, 118 YDS, 3 TD Another week has passed and, to nobody’s surprise, another Harlan air raid took place. Frame had himself a night in just two and a half quarters of action. His first score came on a slant caught in the red zone; he hauled it in and broke two tackles to fight his way into the end zone. His second and third scores came on corner routes from 35 and 47 yards out. His most impressive play of the night was a simple hitch. It took five Bombers to stop his momentum and he still didn’t go down. Frame is a big time weapon. [player_tooltip player_id="100843" first="Tamden" last="Webb-Tate"], LB, Ankeny, <a href="https://twitter.com/TamdenWebbTate">Twitter</a> 6 TKL, 4 Solo, 2 Sacks, 3.5 TFL, 1 FR In one play Webb-Tate beat a Tackle out of his stance off the edge, blew up a Back in protection, crushed the Quarterback for a strip sack, and recovered the fumble he caused. That level of intensity and productivity speaks for his whole night; he didn’t give the Wolves a chance to breathe. He was versatile in multiple fronts and different alignments, performing each job at the highest level. On another play he lined up 3 yards outside the Tight End, read the play, got under a puller, and made the tackle in the A gap. [player_tooltip player_id="152884" first="Ben" last="Kueter"], LB, Iowa City High, <a href="https://twitter.com/Benkueter1">Twitter</a> 10 TKL, 5 Solo, 1.5 Sacks, 4 TFL, 4 REC, 65 YDS, 2 TD Two-way star [player_tooltip player_id="152884" first="Ben" last="Kueter"] took it to Urbandale and set the tone for the game on both sides of the ball. He dished out a massive, crushing hit on a B gap blitz. Kueter crept up, flew through the line untouched, and decleated the Quarterback with a full head of steam just as he was throwing. Kueter scored one of his touchdowns on a crazy 4th and 8 pass that was deflected to him in the end zone. Everything seemed to be going the Little Hawks’ way in their first round matchup and Kueter certainly seized that momentum. [player_tooltip player_id="23968" first="Noah" last="Storts"], DE, Decorah, <a href="https://twitter.com/StortsNoah">Twitter</a> 5.5 TKL, 5 Solo, 3 TFL, 4 REC, 30 yds, TD Not only did Storts make big contributions on defense that helped stifle the top-rated, high-powered North Scott offense, but he also caught the game winning touchdown. Storts held down the edge, stalemating top Offensive Linemen, and jamming up rushing lanes all night. He flawlessly squeezed, feathered, and exchanged blocks to get in the backfield and lay waste to his opponent’s game plan. Storts’ heroics came on an arrow route lined up at H. He caught the ball, ducked under a tackle, and dove in for the win.