KANSAS CITY, Missouri - Two big rivalry games are going down early in the season this Friday night. Olathe North takes on Olathe South in Kansas. Then, Park Hill meets Park Hill South in Missouri. Can Blue Springs South upset Rockhurst? Will Liberty take down a Kansas City area powerhouse and who will win a match-up of the top two teams in Kansas City, Kansas? Those are just some of the questions that will soon be answered this Friday night.
Here are five exciting games to watch this week. See a video preview by clicking on the media player attached to this story.
1. OLATHE NORTH AT OLATHE SOUTH
Braggin' rights in Olathe will be on the line when Olathe North meets Olathe South. This is a can’t-miss game every year. You throw out the records in a game like this. It’s each team’s chief rival going at it.
We get to see it in just the second week of the season.
“I was in school when the schools originally split up,” Olathe North head coach Pete Flood said. “The rivalry dates back to 1981. We look for a difficult contest Friday night.”
Olathe South will definitely have its hands full. The Falcons will be looking to bounce back after they opened the season with a loss last week against always-tough Lawrence Free State. The Falcons feature a new-look wing-T offense. It didn’t work out so well in week one when they suffered a 42-23 loss at the Firebirds. It didn’t help that Olathe South had three turnovers in the game. Olathe South’s defense also struggled, giving up 219 yards in the first half. But Olathe North’s head coach isn’t putting too much stock into what happened to Olathe South.
“That was the first week out,” Flood said. “There were lot of things we didn’t do well last week. You just chalk it up to their first game. We expect a much-improved Olathe South team Friday night. They gave up big plays but there were times when they were solid.”
The Falcons will have to get over their week one loss quickly. They’ll be facing a talented Olathe North squad this Friday that didn’t seem to miss a beat last week after losing some stars to graduation. Going into last week’s game against Shawnee Mission West, Olathe North head coach Pete Flood was worried about his team’s offensive and defensive lines. But they fared pretty well in a 29-22 victory against the always-dangerous Vikings.
Olathe North did just fine thank you without Simone Award and Eagles all-time leading rusher James Franklin. The Eagles ran for 353 yards.
Adonis Saunders is Franklin’s replacement at running back this year. All he did was run for 160 yards on six carries. That’s an average of 22 yards per attempt. He also had two rushing touchdowns. Saunders is this week’s winner of the NBC Action News HyVee Athlete of the Week award .
“He’s done great things for us,” Flood said. “He’s been a leader for us up to this point. He has a great game on the defensive side of ball. He led us in defensive points. He’s an explosive fast kid that is very coachable. He’s a solid student and a good young man.”
Saunders is speedy fast. He’s the 2008 Kansas 6A 100- and 200-meter dash state champion. Saunders had a 77-yard touchdown run on Olathe North’s first offensive play in the first half. He ran for a 72-yard score 21 seconds into the third quarter. Olathe North actually had a 29-0 lead against Shawnee Mission West before the Vikings started rallying its way back in the game.
Olathe North has beaten Olathe South the last two years. The Falcons last won the rivalry game in 2007.
“I think Olathe North leads 28-7 in the series,” Flood said. “It’s an in-city game but we take them all seriously. We hope emotion doesn’t get too involved. Then, you’re likely to make mistakes. We know its in-city. Our kids and theirs will be excited.”
2. PARK HILL SOUTH AT PARK HILL
There’s a big rivalry game in the Northland going down Friday night. Park Hill against Park Hill South is always a big game for fans. It’s the biggest rival for each school.
But don’t tell that to Park Hill head coach Greg Reynolds. That’s because for the first time in a long time, the teams are in different districts.
“This year is not as big as it normally is,” he said. “It’s a non-conference, non-district game. We’re playing for pride and trying
to get better this week to get ready for district time. Getting to the playoffs is most important even though fans, parents and kids make a big deal of it. But there’s a lot more at stake than what happens Friday night.”
The match-up features two 1-1 teams. Park Hill South is coming off a 34-7 loss against Blue Springs South. Park Hill won 35-13 last week against Ruskin.
“I’m pleased with the fact we got a victory,” Reynolds said. “I’m not really pleased with how we played. We made some big plays. We changed what we did defensively and got better throughout game. We’re struggling with our blocking. We have a long way to go to get where we need to be.”
In week one, Park Hill fell 35-14 against Liberty while Park Hill South won 21-7 against Belton.
“It will
be a big challenge this week stopping running back Caleb Sims,” Reynolds said. “He’s their best player. He had three
touchdowns in week one. He had at least 175 yards in that game.”
Park Hill has a new quarterback this season. He’s senior Nate Wilson.
“We’re not known as a passing team, but he’s allowing us to do things we haven’t done in the past,” Reynolds said. “I’m pleased with our receiving corps. We’re a young team. We lost a bunch of seniors that were the core of our team."
The coaching staffs on both teams should be familiar with each other.
The new head coach at Park Hill South is Mark Simcox, who was the defensive coordinator at Park Hill from 2000-2006. Simcox helped Park Hill win the state title in 2003. Reynolds, who’s in his 11th year as Park Hill head coach, has nothing but kind words for Simcox.
“I have a lot of respect for what he was able to do,” Reynolds said. “He was a huge part of our success. A big reason our program is where it is now is because of some of the things he was able to start. I wish him the best of luck. But this is one of those game I hope he loses.”
Park Hill and Park Hill South will each be looking for victory this week to avoid suffering a losing record three weeks into the season.
“They’re little bit like us,” Reynolds said. “They like to run the football and stop the run on defense. Up front, they’re not real big which is kind of like us. There are not a bunch of returning starters on both teams. It will come down to turnovers and penalties and not letting the atmosphere get to you.”
Park Hill has owned the rivalry. The Trojans have beaten Park Hill South nine out of ten times in the series. Park Hill South’s only
victory against Park Hill came in 2004.
3. RAY-PEC AT LIBERTY
This is an exciting match-up of two of the best teams in the city. Liberty is off to a 2-0 start. But Ray-Pec will look to give the Blue
Jays their first loss of the season. The Panthers are 1-1 to start the year.
“It’s definitely a big game,” Liberty head coach Joel Wells said. “They’re a good football team with a Division I quarterback. It’s our
first conference game. It’s big.”
Liberty has had two easy wins. The Blue Jays beat Park Hill 35-14 and North Kansas City 40-20. Ray-Pec could easily be 2-0, as well. The Panthers suffered a close 21-13 loss against rival Lee’s Summit West in week one. They beat an impressive Lee’s Summit squad last week 53-49.
This should be an entertaining game because both teams can put up points. Quarterback Cameron Coffman, the younger brother of K-State quarterback Carson Coffman and Bengals tight end Chase Coffman, leads Ray-Pec’s offense. Coffman went 32-48 for 536 yards and six touchdowns. With his team down 49-46 last week, Coffman led Ray-Pec on an 80-yard drive and threw the game-winning touchdown with 31 seconds left.
“He had his best game against us when he had 600 passing yards as a sophomore,” Wells said. “Then, he had his worst game against us last year. We held them down pretty good to seven points. He’s a great athlete and great football player. I’m more concerned about his feet than his arm. He can scramble and get first downs or scramble out and make throws. His ability to escape is his biggest asset.”
Liberty features running back Matt Santiago. He ran for 102 yards on 12 carries in a week one victory against Park Hill. As a team, Liberty ran for 227 yards on 35 carries.
“(Matt) has rushed for over 100 yards in each of the last two games,” Well said. “We rushed for more than 300 yards in our second game. Our offensive line is playing really well. Matt has done a great job stepping in there.
Blue Jays Quarterback senior Austin Weese seems to be connecting well with junior wide receiver Max Baumburg. They hooked up on a 57-yard touchdown play against Park Hill. Then last week against North Kansas City, Weese threw another 57-yard score to Baumburg.
“Max is a speedy receiver,” Wells said. “He ran a 49 in the 400-meter dash. Austin Weese has a big arm and is an accurate thrower.
Liberty doesn’t seem to be missing a beat even though Marcus Lucas graduated. Lucas is now catching footballs for the Missouri Tigers.
“We graduated really good receivers, but we have three or four really good receivers this year,” Well said.
Watch out for Liberty’s special teams. Shane Kilson had an 80-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the Park Hill win. Blue Jays kicker Tyler Pate nailed two field goals, three extra points and averaged 45 yards per punt in the season opener.
“We feel good,” Wells said. “I think we have a good football team. We understand that Ray-Pec is a very good football team also. We’ll have to play well to win.”
Liberty beat Ray-Pec 42-7 last year. But the Panthers won 60-40 against the Blue Jays the year before. With two great offenses going at it, does Wells expect a high-scoring game?
“We hope not,” he said. We’re hoping to keep Coffman off the field with ball control. If you give him too many snaps he’ll make plays. We have to do a good job offensively
hanging on to the football.”
4. ROCKHURST AT BLUE SPRINGS SOUTH
This is an intriguing match-up. We know Rockhurst is the best team in Kansas City to start the year. But Blue Springs South may give the Hawkletts a pretty good challenge. The Jaguars have been down in recent years, but they look like they’re back after a hot start this season.
So does Blue Springs South head coach Greg Oder think Friday night is a chance for his team to make a statement in its home opener?
“I don’t know,” Oder said. “We’re just happy to be 2-0. We were sitting here 1-1 at this time last year. It feels like we’re playing
better. We had a disappointing season last year. It’s nice to see our kids have success. Playing Rockhurst is a huge challenge for us. We’ll see how it goes.”
Blue Springs South, who last won the state title in 2006, is 2-0 after a 34-7 victory against Park Hill South last week. The Jaguars beat Raytown South in week one 49-7. Calvin Jacobson is helping Blue Springs South start the seasons strong. The senior quarterback went 16-19 for 194 yards and three touchdowns against Park Hill South. Not bad, considering he hurt his knee the week before against Raytown South.
“It was kind of a roller coaster week for Calvin,” Oder said. “At one point, we thought he might be done for the season. Then, we thought six weeks. Then, it looked like three weeks. After a discussion with doctors, we said let’s go ahead and play him. He didn’t practice Monday or Tuesday, only Wednesday and Thursday. But his swelling had gone out. He had a really good night Friday night. He completed some big passes. Our receivers did a good job catching the ball too.”
Jacobson hurt his knee last year and had ACL surgery last spring. But after working out in the winter and spring, he’s back. Jacobson didn’t get cleared to play football until the first day of contact drills.
“We’re thrilled for him,” Oder said. “He puts so much time and effort in. He worked his tail off.
Blue Springs South’ defense is also playing well. The unit held Park Hill South to 145 yards of offense. Senior defensive end Logan Adkison had two sacks and junior free safety Connor Harris had two interceptions against the Panthers.
“It feels like we’re tackling better,” Oder said. It’s early in the season. Everybody we play will play better, but we’re pretty pleased
with how things have gone so far. We replaced seven or eight starters on defense. We’re starting a lot of new guys.”
After going 4-6 last year, the Jaguars will look to prove they’re for real when they take on a talented Rockhurst team. The Hawkletts are 2-0, which is quite impressive considering who they played the first two weeks of the season. Rockhurst knocked off powerhouse Blue Springs in week one with a 7-6 victory. The Hawkletts followed that victory with a 29-28 overtime win at Hutchinson, who has won six state titles in a row.
“Rockhurst is the same ever year,” Oder said. “The names of the kids are different but they always have top payers. Both lines are always big and physical. They are very well coached. They run the football and play action it. They’re always strong. They’re no different than when we played them five years ago.”
Running back Noah Pearl leads Rockhurst. He had 24 carries for 191 yards and three touchdowns against Hutchinson.
“We can’t let him get going,” Oder said. “He’s a very fast kid. He was their running back last year. He’s bigger and stronger. He has a lot of speed. You hope a kid like that never gets going. “
Blue Springs South’s running back is also playing well. Senior Chris Gilyard ran for 98 yards on 11 carries last week against Park Hill South. He also had three catches for 72 yards.
“He was our tailback last year,” Oder said. “He’s matured, bigger and stronger. We expect big things out of him. We’ve been pleased with how he’s been playing. Anytime you have a back putting up numbers, you also have to say something good about your offensive line.
Blue Springs South has beaten Rockhurst three times in school history. Those victories came in 1995, 2006 and 2008. The Jaguars will hope to earn victory No. 4 against the Hawkletts on Friday night.
“Hopefully, we’ll go out and play the best we can,” Oder said. “We try to do every week. Hopefully, we got better the last couple of weeks. Last year, we were pretty young. Hopefully, the experience our younger kids got last year will pay off.”
5. SUMNER AT HARMON
This is a game that might not be decided until the very end. Sumner and Harmon are the top two football teams in Kansas City, Kansas.
Their match-up on Friday night could determine who wins the Kansas-Atchison League title.
“This game plays a huge part in our season,” Harmon head coach Calvin Davenport said. “Sumner is 3-time league champ. If we can knock them off Friday, we can own our own destiny. I hope we come out focused and ready to play and do what we need to do to take this victory.”
Harmon features the Ming Brothers, who have become quite the playmakers early in the season.
It’s their first year playing for Harmon after transferring from Schlagle. Herman and Isiah Ming scored a combined six touchdowns last week in Harmon’s 47-13 victory against Washington.
So why haven’t we hard of the Mings? It sounds like Davenport is just letting them run the show at Harmon and putting them in a position to succeed.
“The Ming brothers are a blessing,” Davenport said. “They play hard. They have a nose for the ball. They do whatever it takes to win. They go hard every play and don’t give up."
Davenport, who’s in his second season at Harmon head coach, calls Herman an athlete with the ability to play multiple positions. Herman caught a touchdown, had several 30-yard kickoff returns and even pulled off an interception against Washington. Herman is 6-foot-2, 190 pounds. Davenport expects him to play safety in college.
“When he gets the ball, he’s hard to take down,” Davenport said. “He runs hard. He just has another great when ge gets the ball in his hand.”
Davenport said multiple Division I and Division II schools are recruiting Herman. They include Kansas, Missouri and Washburn.
His younger brother Isiah is a junior running back. Isiah scored two touchdowns in the first half after Harmon outgained Washington 147 to –11 yards. Isiah finished with five scores in the first half and for the game. Isiah is 5-foot-10, 185 pounds.
“He runs hard, very hard,” Davenport said. “You really don’t know until you see him in person. If he keeps up the good work, we can put him up with the best running backs in the area.”
Harmon pulled off that performance against a Washington team that went 1-8 last year. Can the Hawks repeat that effort against Sumner this Friday night?
“We have a lot to prove,” Davenport said. “We had a lot of games last year that we could have won but didn’t have the bodies.”
“We have a lot to prove,” Davenport said. “We had a lot of games last year that we could have won but didn’t have the bodies.”
The Sumner Sabres are 1-0 after knocking off Jefferson City West 40-37. That’s pretty impressive considering Jefferson City West made a deep run last season in the Kansas 4A state playoffs.
Sumner has a player maker in Benny Parker. The running back/wide receiver ran for a touchdown and caught two scores in the win against Jefferson City West.
“We have to keep him contained,” Davenport said. “We can’t let him get to the outside.”
Quarterback Armond Brisbane last week also fared well. He threw for 262 yards and two touchdowns. He tossed scores of 62 yards 49 yards to Parker. The Sabres also feature running back DeAndre Arnold. He had a 54-yard touchdown run in the first game.
Sumner beat Harmon last year 30-14 last year. So when was the last time Harmon beat Sumner?
“It’s been a while,” Davenport said. “When I first came in as defensive coordinator, Harmon wasn’t doing too good. We’re opening up a lot of eyes.”
Davenport is confident this year’s result against Sumner will be different.
“I like our chances a lot,” he said. “We just have to keep focused. This is a huge task. We have the Mings that are hungry for Sumner, as well as juniors and seniors who have been here since 2008. They all want this as much as I do.”
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