Week 7 "Top Games" - Wichita & Surrounding Area

There were numerous intriguing matchup's across the state last night as we rolled into week 7. So many, in fact, that I had a hard time fine-tuning my own list of games to report on. There was one, however, that I was particularly interested in. So interested in fact, that I drove over to the east side of Wichita to check these guys out for myself.   But, before getting into those details, I'll mention a handful of games that caught my attention. It was not a good night for second-ranked teams, as 3A #2 Cheney lost for the first time in 19 games, when #5 Collegiate thumped them 31-7. 1A #2 Sedgwick lost for the first time in 2024 in a 41-40 thriller in overtime to #4 Moundridge, who remains unbeaten with a tie.   6A #1 Derby continued to annihilate the competition, jumping out on top 51-0 prior to halftime, before cruising to a 51-7 beat-down of #9 Maize South. Also winning big was 5A #4 Great Bend who blanked 5A #10 Hays for the first time in 17 years, 21-0 and finally toppling the four-time defending WAC champs for the first time since 2018.   In 1A, #1 Conway Springs picked up a big win, edging visiting Ellinwood 34-21 to win district in a slugfest. Salina South fans were popping champagne in Wichita last night as they knocked off Campus 42-23 on the road to snap a 30-game losing streak. 2A #8 Garden Plain claimed the district championship with a 44-0 thrashing of Douglass.   Also a few games that I had been anticipating in the Wichita and surrounding area were: 4A #7 Buhler dispatched one-loss Winfield 21-7; Dodge City 40 Garden City 14; Andover 21 Salina Central 14; and then a couple of blow outs, as Andale hit Trinity Academy in the mouth 67-0; while Hutch hammered Newton 56-0.   But I digress. The game I was really anticipating was the one I attended last night on a blustery evening at 4A #3 Andover Central high school, where the resident Jaguars rallied to edge 5A #5 Eisenhower 27-26 in a district thriller.   In front of a capacity crowd, under a blood-orange moon with the wind gusting to 30+ miles per hour, Andover Central won the toss and mounted a drive that would give them an early 7-0 lead.   QB [player_tooltip player_id='1333007' first='Jace' last='Jefferson'], 6'0, 180, '25 hit [player_tooltip player_id='442661' first='Jace' last='Adler'], 6'3, 190 '25, on a crossing route on the first play and then mixed the run in with senior RB Maddox Archibald, 5'11, 175 '25 to pick up consecutive first downs. Jefferson then found WR Brody DeGarmo, 5'11, 170 '25, who made a spectacular diving catch on a long post to move the Jags deep into the red zone. From there Archibald took the handoff moving left and scored on a 20-yard, twisting cut back run to give his team the initial lead.   Eisenhower responded but their usually dynamic offense sputtered at times in the first half. They worked to establish the run game early, and after getting swarmed initially, all-purpose back [player_tooltip player_id='426515' first='Brayden' last='Pappas'], 5'8, 185 '26 started gouging the AC defense off tackle and on effective cutbacks against the grain. He and Archibald are two of the best in the state and they were both effective delivering in the run game after some early struggles.   The all-world connection of QB [player_tooltip player_id='676467' first='Derek' last='Morgan'], 6'3, 195 '25 to WR [player_tooltip player_id='442660' first='Carter' last='Pabst'], 6'1, 185 '25, was on display all night as the two connected on three touchdowns, including a couple of beautiful long balls later in the game, but before they got in the groove, Morgan threw an uncharacteristic interception that ballooned the AC lead to 14-0 in the second quarter.   On a third and long, the all-state two-way warrior, senior lineman, [player_tooltip player_id='571097' first='Dawson' last='Rodd'], 6'3, 305 '25 read the screen, nimbly stepped in front of the back, snagged the ball out of the air and proceeded to motor his way to the goal line for a 45-yard score. The big man showed impressive speed as the Eisenhower pursuit didn't catch up to him until inside the 10-yard line where he shook off a couple of tacklers, cut back off the sideline and dove into the endzone for the dramatic score and a 14-0 lead.   Eisenhower responded and got on the board when Morgan wedged in on a QB-sneak on fourth and one to cut the lead to seven, 14-7 early in the second quarter.   In the trenches [player_tooltip player_id='1466196' first='Makai' last='Tagatac'], NG/DT, 6'1, 235 '25 for Eisenhower was active early while on the other side of the ball linebacker/hybrid d-back [player_tooltip player_id='285721' first='Landon' last='Preston'], 6'0, 185 '25, and [player_tooltip player_id='1306212' first='Gaige' last='Hurley'], DL 6'4, 255 '25 helped throttle the Tigers when their team needed it.   The passing games for both teams were hit and miss at times as the swirling, gusty wind was difficult and unpredictable. But there were glimpses of the raw fire power on both teams periodically and in the second quarter Pabst hauled in the first of three scores on the night on a beautiful 79-yard strike that knotted up the game at 14-all with 7:42 left in the half.   Jefferson would take it in himself on a 1-yard quarterback sneak soon after to retake the lead 21-14 with less than five minutes left in the half.   Eisenhower wasted little time responding as Morgan hit Pabst for his second score. Ominously, they would miss the first of two extra points that would come back to haunt them. AC went into the half leading 21-20.   The two teams traded body blows for much of the the third quarter before the Tigers drove down and took their first lead, scoring on a short pass from Morgan to Pabst to close out Q3. With the failed point after, the lead stood at 26-21 to start the fourth quarter.   Andover Central would respond later on a two-yard score by Archibald to give the home team a 27-26 lead after failing on the two-point conversion attempt, with less than eight minutes to go.   Eisenhower rallied, moving the ball to mid-field before stalling when a fourth-down pass fell incomplete. AC took over on their own 46-yard line with less than two minutes to go and held on for a hard-earned victory.   With the results of last night's game, the lines are really blurred in the AVCTL II championship race, as Andover Central, Eisenhower and Goddard all have one loss in league play.   The plot thickens as we go cartwheeling into the end of the regular season, so hang on to your helmets, it's getting interesting.   In conclusion, if you were not able to get out and see any of these teams or players, time is running out. These guys are too good not to get out and see live. Additionally, as always, if you know of any teams or players flying under the radar, feel free to give me a shout via DM on X.

There were numerous intriguing matchup's across the state last night as we rolled into week 7. So many, in fact, that I had a hard time fine-tuning my own list of games to report on. There was one, however, that I was particularly interested in. So interested in fact, that I drove over to the east side of Wichita to check these guys out for myself.