Week 3 Whip-Around: Cedar Rapids Jefferson Rising Up

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cedar Rapids Jefferson is the feel-good story around the state through three weeks. The J-Hawks are 3-0 after ending a 26-game losing streak in the season-opener against Muscatine, their first win since 2019. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jefferson has had one winning season (8-3 in '15) since '08. It won two or fewer contests in 10 of those years. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The J-Hawks took down Des Moines North, 41-8, Friday at Kingston Stadium in Cedar Rapids. They have not yet put their statistics from the contest into Bound. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Coming into Friday, junior running back [player_tooltip player_id='1279921' first='Ishara' last='Kalolero'] was standing out with 30 carries for 371 yards (12.4 YPC) and three touchdowns in two games. LJ Nyenow Jr. caught 12 balls for 210 yards and a score, while senior Zack Robinson had two receptions for 45 yards and a TD. Senior Sherman Hopkins III (15 solo tackles, 3.0 for loss), junior [player_tooltip player_id='1466778' first='LJ' last='Elophe'] (9, 2.5) and sophomore Kayden James (15, 2.0) have been leading the defense. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jefferson, coached by former Iowa Hawkeye linebacker Ed Miles, travels to winless Des Moines East this week before playing rival Cedar Rapids Washington (0-3) on Sept. 22 at Kingston. The J-Hawks are positioned for a 5-0 start before a tough home-stretch that includes Cedar Rapids Prairie, Iowa City West and Iowa City Liberty. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Titans and Tigers</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A showdown with Council Bluffs Lewis Central visiting ADM in Class 4A lived up to the pregame hype Friday night. The visitors left town with a 38-31 victory in a game that was tied at 31 heading into the final quarter. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The junior running back trio of [player_tooltip player_id='1360057' first='Brody' last='Patlan'], [player_tooltip player_id='1279100' first='Brady' last='Hetzel'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1360075' first='Chance' last='Chappell'] powered the Titans to the win, combining for 41 carries for 317 yards and two touchdowns. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='248038' first='Curtis' last='Witte'] caught four passes for 138 yards and a pair of scores. Owen Thomas, Bryce Juon, Cameron Moore and Garret Rutledge were among a group that stood out on defense for the victors. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It should be noted that ADM lost star running back and Iowa Hawkeye commitment [player_tooltip player_id='156484' first='Brevin' last='Doll'] to injury in this game, where he was limited to 52 yards on eight carries. Fellow senior [player_tooltip player_id='320738' first='Aiden' last='Flora'] kept the Tigers in the contest with 334 yards and three touchdowns on 28 carries. [player_tooltip player_id='1402881' first='Brayden' last='Rynearson'] recorded 11 solo stops among his 12.5 total tackles. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Mustangs Making Noise</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Dubuque Hempstead won one game last season. The Mustangs sit at 3-0 in '23 after a 28-7 win against Dubuque Senior on Friday at Dalzell Field. They lost to the Rams, 42-13, a year ago. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Like Jefferson, Hempstead had not uploaded its stats into Bound as of the early afternoon on Monday. Coming into Friday, the Mustangs were leaning on junior running back Quinn Breitbach, who had 281 yards and three touchdowns rushing through two weeks. He's been complemented by sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1241414' first='Jaden' last='Montgomery'] (12 carries, 112 yards, 1 TD) and senior quarterback Carter Krug (3 TDs passing, 1 rushing). Montgomery, Tate Woodruff, Trenton Ettema and Isaac Smith have played well on defense. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Quick-Hitters</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>-Jefferson and Hempstead join Southeast Polk and Dowling Catholic as the only unbeaten schools left in 5A. West Des Moines Valley, which made the state championship game in '22, is 0-3 with losses to Southeast Polk, Dowling and Johnston, which is 2-1. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>-3A Webster City moved to 3-0 with a thrilling 21-20 victory against a top 4A program in North Polk on Friday. The state's leading rusher for all classes, [player_tooltip player_id='156632' first='Jaxon' last='Cherry'], ran for 161 yards and two touchdowns pushing his season total to 748 yards and 10 scores. He added 10.5 tackles (9 solo, 3.0 for loss) in the latest game. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>-Mount Vernon reached the state championship game last season and has started 3-0 in '23 with its latest win a 19-7 decision against previously unbeaten Benton. Senior Joey Rhomberg threw for two touchdowns, while classmate Jackson Hird rushed for 145 yards in the game. Miles Francois and Kael Riniker combined for 4.5 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks with Riniker returning a fumble recovery for a TD. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>-Defending 2A state champion Central Lyon/George-Little Rock has dominated the competition this season. The Lions have outscored their opponents, 160-22, in a 3-0 start. They ran their winning streak to 16 by overwhelming West Sioux, 70-7, on Friday. Iowa Hawkeye receiver commitment [player_tooltip player_id='573617' first='Reece' last='Vander Zee'] had almost 200 combined yards rushing and receiving with four touchdowns. [player_tooltip player_id='320758' first='Graham' last='Eben'], a Hawkeye defensive back pledge, threw for two scores and ran for four more. Junior [player_tooltip player_id='1280523' first='Jack' last='Krull'] led the defense with a pair of sacks among his 3.0 tackles for loss. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>-Cherokee Washington has started 3-0 after Friday's 42-21 win at Ridge View, a school to which it lost, 27-7, in their only other meeting ('20). Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1221948' first='Jaxon' last='Paulsrud'] continued gashing opponents with a pair of passing scores to go with 239 rushing yards and three TDs. Logan Allender added 63 yards and a score on five carries, while Alec Schossow caught five passes for 56 yards and a touchdown, and Jacob Hurd had two receptions for 37 yards and a TD. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>-Wilton has started the season with three wins for a second year in a row. In '22, the Beavers won just one more game after that beginning but they've shown signs that the outcome might be different this fall, outscoring their opponents, 85-6. They beat Camanche, 26-6, on Friday with junior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='609822' first='Drew' last='Keith'] throwing for a touchdown and running for another. His classmates, [player_tooltip player_id='1418742' first='Cade' last='Souhrada'] and Owen Milder, also stood out in the contest. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>-Saint Ansgar is 3-0 with all of its victories coming against teams that are over .500 this season. The latest triumph came Friday against visiting West Hancock. The Saints prevailed, 24-15, avenging a 32-0 setback at West Hancock in '22. Jayce Schwiesow, Regan Witt, Christian Michels, [player_tooltip player_id='1359938' first='Dylan' last='Brumm'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1406631' first='Connor' last='King'] led the way to victory. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->