2016 Class C 8-Man Playoffs (Semifinals)

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Playoff Bracket: http://assets.ngin.com/attachments/docu ... ket-C8.pdf

Top-side of Bracket

Charlo at Belt - 1:00 PM, Saturday, 11/12

Belt Key Players: QB/S Harry Green, TE/DE Jarin Maki, WR/DB Keagan Stroop, RB/LB Jess Bodner

Charlo Key Players: QB/LB Landers Smith, RB/LB Jared Doty, RB/DB Trent Dennison, WR/LB Zane Hafliger

Belt QB Harry Green totaled four touchdowns (3 passing/1 rushing) and 310 yards of offense while RB Jaren Maki added the game-clinching score as the Huskies took down Circle, 33-28. I predicted Circle would be competitive in this game but the Wildcats played like they were the favorite as they knew they were bigger than Belt up front on both sides of the ball. Green hit WR Keagan Stroop for a 29-yard touchdown pass on their first drive of the game to take an 8-0 1st quarter lead. Belt took a 21-6 lead into halftime after Green hit RB Jess Bodner and Stroop for two more touchdown passes. Circle got on the board in the 2nd as QB Brett Delp hit RB Calder Fleming for a 12-yard score. Circle knew they built some momentum in the 2nd quarter and 6'3", 205 lb. QB Brett Delp ran in two touchdowns to give the Wildcats a 22-21 lead going into the 4th quarter. The final stanza would be a seesaw affair as Green struck first with his lone rushing touchdown of the day as Belt retook the lead, 27-22. No more than two minutes later, Circle got the lead back as RB Trey Taylor ran in a 5-yard score to make it 28-27 in favor of the Wildcats. But Belt went to their big fullback Jaren Maki (finished with 46 rushing yards) on their final drive and Maki plunged in from 1 yard out to give Belt a 33-28 advantage. The Belt defense forced a turnover on downs as they sacked Delp with under a minute left. Circle had the ball at the 50. Belt won the total yards game, 404-388, with Circle winning the rushing battle (267-182) and Belt winning the passing battle (222-121). Circle QB Brett Delp finished with a team-best 268 total yards (147 rushing/121 passing) while RB's Trey Taylor and Calder Fleming combined for 120 more rushing yards and 80 more receiving. Belt moves on to face the Charlo Vikings, as they finally got revenge on the Fairview Warriors, 64-52. I said in the pregame preview that neither team knows how to stop each other based off of last year's 66-52 Fairview quarterfinal win and the Warriors 54-52 victory this year. But Charlo finally broke through thanks in part to their stud sophomore QB Landers Smith. Smith threw for six touchdowns and 194 yards to go with 84 rushing yards to lead the Vikings. Charlo WR Brady Fryberger caught the first two touchdowns in the 1st quarter before Fairview's Tanner Reynolds tied the score at 14 (with runs of 46 and 3) going into halftime. The Vikings exploded for 38 3rd-quarter points as Smith and RB/KR Jared Doty combiened for five touchdowns. Doty did it in three ways (receiving/rushing/kick return) while Smith threw his 3rd, 4th, and 5th touchdowns of the day. Fairview did get 16 points from a Tanner Reynolds touchdown pass to TE Pat Hardy and Reynolds 12-yard run to make it 52-30 Charlo heading into the 4th. After Reynolds and Smith traded touchdowns twice in the 4th, Fairview got an opportunity down 58-44 to make it a one-score game but WR/DB Trent Dennison picked off Reynolds (his 4th interception of the day) and returned it for a touchdown to seal the game for Charlo. Reynolds would add one more touchdown pass to make the final score 64-52. Reynolds had a huge day for the Warriors as he threw for 258, ran for 161, and accounted for seven total touchdowns (4 rushing/3 passing). TE/WR Pat Hardy hauled in 7 catches for 126 yards with two touchdowns to lead the Warriors in receiving. WR Zane Hafliger paced Charlo with 78 yards receiving with a score. Fairview won the total yards battle, 483-328, but Reynolds four interceptions ended up being too costly. Charlo will travel to Belt for the semifinal matchup. I believe Charlo will win this game a few reasons: they can keep up with Harry Green and the Husky offense AND they are deeper at several positions than Belt. There will be a lot of scoring in this one and Belt's running game will play a huge part in keeping Charlo's offense off the field. Prediction: Charlo wins 52-42.

Bottom-side of Bracket

Wibaux at Ennis - 1:00 PM, Saturday, 11/12

Ennis Key Players: OL/DE Ty Morgan, RB/DE Jake Knack, WR/MLB Gavin McKitrick, QB/OLB Tanner Wood

Wibaux Key Players: RB/LB Shawn Schaefferkoetter, QB/LB Noah Schnieder, OL/DL Robb Braden, OL/DL Trey Dschaak

Ennis QB Tanner Wood accounted for six total touchdowns (3 rushing/3 passing) to lead the Mustangs to a 60-6 route of Cascade. However, the Badgers gave Ennis their best quarter of football this season in the first. Ennis only scored eight points in the first quarter (on a Wood QB keeper) which was about 40 points under their average. Ennis knew Cascade would come out playing a physical brand of football and eventually the Mustangs settled in, taking a 28-0 lead into halftime. The first half was filled with a handful of fumbles for both Ennis and Cascade but Ennis' offense kept grinding as Jake Knack and Tanner Wood rushed in two scores while DB Tracer Croy recovered a fumble and took it all the way to the endzone for another score. Croy also picked off a Badger pass near the end of the first half. Cascade would finally break through in the 3rd quarter with a Josh Pepos pass to WR Ryder Jackson but the Mustang offense had already found it's groove, scoring 24 points in the 3rd quarter en route to the win. Cascade has nothing to be ashamed off as they went toe-to-toe physically with the Mustangs but just lost a better overall team in all three phases of the game. They also have a good group of juniors returning next year and are coached by one of the best in the state in Jay Fredrickson. Ennis will take on the East's #1 seed, Wibaux, in a semifinal re-match of two years ago where Wibaux eliminated Ennis, 22-20, en route to winning the 2014 title. Wibaux QB Noah Schneider (a sophomore on that team) passed for 209 yards and accounted for all five Longhorn touchdowns (2 passing/3 rushing) to beat Victor 36-22. Wibaux (9-0) will face top-ranked Ennis in the semifinals Saturday. WR's Bridger Smith and Cade Dschaak hauled in both of Schneider's touchdown throws, both coming in the first half as Wibaux took a 30-14 lead into intermission. Victor got a 79-yard kickoff return from RB/KR Jake Powell and 50-yard run by RB Eli Rosen before the half. After a scoreless 3rd quarter, Victor FB Colt Neville cut the Wibaux lead to 30-22 on a 3-yard plunge. But Schneider iced the game with his final touchdown of the day on a 20-yard run to launch Wibaux into the semifinals in their last Class C 8-man playoff. In playing-style and physicality, Wibaux matches up with Ennis better than any team in the state in my opinion. Wibaux RB Shawn Schaefferkoetter and Schneider make up a tough running duo to stop, especially since they run behind an offensive line that average's 215 lbs. But I believe Ennis is a step quicker than Wibaux at many positions and just as physical up front. Some are calling this one a toss-up but if you compare scores for both of these undefeated teams, Ennis just looks like the clear winner. Right now, I think the two best teams in the state are as follows: 1) Ennis 2) Charlo 3) Wibaux 4) Belt. It also should be said that the Ennis defense has allowed exactly six points all season in the first half of their football games. If Wibaux can find a way to keep this one close at halftime, they have a shot to win this one. But good luck stopping the track team of Tanner Wood, Corbin Wood, Gavin McKitrick, Jake Knack, and Austin Baum. No team has yet and I don't see Wibaux doing it either. Prediction: Ennis wins 48-16.