Analysis: One reason each finalist can win a South Dakota state football championship

Nov. 8—VERMILLION — One game separates the 14 state football finalists from a state championship.

Within those 48 minutes, anything can happen, as every team that steps foot on the DakotaDome turf has reason to believe they can capture state championship hardware.

Here's one reason why every team that advanced to Vermillion can finish the season with a championship victory:

Dynamic offense. Far and away the most high-powered offense in 11-man football this season, the Patriots are averaging a blistering 50.7 points per game this season. Lincoln has scored at least 28 points in every game, putting up 43 or more points in nine of 11 games and breaking 55 points seven times. Quarterback Tate Schafer leads the attack with 2,560 yards passing and 40 touchdowns, as leading receiver and SDSU football recruit Jack Smith accounts for 1,118 yards and 21 scores and Isaac Jarovski has added 653 yards and 11 scoring grabs. Three backs, headlined by University of South Dakota football recruit Dreavin Hodge, have at least 400 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground, making Lincoln nearing impossible to stop repeatedly.

Big play potential. Many of the Knights' top talents are two-way players — led by the likes of Maverick Jones, Ryland Satter and Henry Theobald, among others — allowing O'Gorman's playmakers to provide a splash on both sides of the football. O'G has one of the few offenses that can hope to keep pace with Lincoln, having averaged 40 points per game, including 95 total points in two playoff games. Additionally, the Knights have created four touchdowns on defense or special teams. Of note, O'Gorman has plenty of history in the DakotaDome dating back all the way to the first state championships in 1981. Saturday will mark the Knights' 17th title game appearance (tied with West Central for the second-most behind Winner), with a 9-7 record.

Been there, done that. What more can be said about the Governors' sustained success in Class 11AA? Going for a seventh-state championship, the current class of seniors hadn't entered middle school yet the last time Pierre was denied a state title. Steve Steele and company have built a gold standard program that seemingly doesn't know how to lose, let alone in the DakotaDome. Yankton will become the fifth different challenger to the Governors' throne on Friday night and will have to contend with the top-ranked scoring offense (40.2 points per game) and defense (12.8 points allowed per game) in the class.

Breakneck pace. When on offense, the Bucks operate a hurry-up style that can present problems for even the most sound defenses. If Yankton can get the offense rolling, first downs and chunk plays come in bunches as the Bucks move up and down the field. Though in his first years as the starting quarterback, senior Lucas Kampshoff has stepped in and run the system seamlessly to guide Yankton back to Vermillion for the first time since 2015. Tucker Gilmore was an all-Eastern South Dakota Conference selection on offense and defense and is one of many weapons Kampshoff has to spread the ball to in an attempt to keep the Governors off balance.

Relentless rushing attack. After winning the state championship a season ago, the Quarriers bring back many of the same characters in an attempt to repeat. Quarterback Jack Henry, an SDSU football recruit, is a dual threat and has a pair of highly productive backs to give the ball to in 1,500-yard rusher Mason Stubbe and Cole Ruesink, who has over 1,100 yards of total offense. As a team, Dell Rapids has rushed for 3,305 yards this season at a clip of 300 yards per game and 8.6 yards per carry.

Peaking in the playoffs. The Trojans enter the Class 11A title game having won both playoff games by at least 32 points, the only 11-man team and one of only two finalists (Faulkton Area) that can boast that level of playoff dominance this season. Like Dell Rapids, West Central wants to control the contest on the ground. Boasting five players with at least 250 rushing yards, the Trojans look to keep their opposition guessing in the run game. West Central also has the added motivation of facing a rematch from last season's championship, a game in which Dell Rapids pulled away for a 24-7 win.

Championship identity. Under coach Jake Terry, the Huskies know exactly who they are and lean into that identity. EPJ is exceptionally physical, which helped them knock off No. 1 Winner in the semifinals (and last year's championship game). The Huskies want to run the football — four backs have at least 325 yards rushing — but aren't afraid to go to the air, either, as their physicality can take on several different forms. From last year's championship team, EPJ graduated 16 seniors but is back to defend their title with a new crew on the strength of the program Terry and company have built.

Answering the call. Over the past few seasons, the Bison have built toward this moment — their first trip back to the DakotaDome since 2003 — with steady improvement. Time and again this season, they faced a test and proved they were up to the task, and they'll face one more in an EPJ team that was in a similar situation a season ago to the one Hot Springs is in now. With the likes of Camron Maciejewski and Braden Peterson, both of whom have eclipsed 1,800 all-purpose yards, carrying the football and the likes of Caleb Rickenbach along the line of scrimmage, the Bison also have the playmakers to make school history with a first state title.

Dominant defense. Quite simply, no one has scored on the Trojans in 2023. With shutouts in eight of 11 games and 23 total points allowed, Parkston comes into championship weekend with the uncontested No. 1 scoring defense in nine-man football at 2.1 points allowed per game. Further, the Trojans' haven't even allowed 1,000 yards of total offense to opponents, standing tall at 960 yards given up (87.3 per game). Will Jodozi and Maddux Brissette have combined for 105 total tackles, 28 tackles for loss and 10 sacks, while Brayden Jervik has 51 tackles and two interceptions as one of three Trojans — Kaden Holzbauer (two) and Elliott Leischner — to score defensive touchdowns this season.

Leadership and experience. Though the Tigers have six new starters on both sides of the football, they have championship experience where it counts with quarterback Taiden Hoyer and coach Pat Ruml. Hoyer, the starting quarterback for Howard's 2021 Class 9AA championship squad, is dual threat with more than 850 yards passing and rushing this season and also plays a vital role at the back end of the defense. Ruml, in his 16th season as head coach, is taking his sixth different Tigers team to Vermillion. Look for the veteran coach to trust his seasoned signal-caller to get the ball where it needs to go.

Hunter Cramer. Thursday will be the Monarchs' third state championship game appearance in four years, and their do-it-all senior is a big reason why. One of the most dynamic nine-man football athletes since breaking onto the scene as a freshman in 2020, Cramer has accounted for 65% of Warner's total offensive yardage this season, passing for 1,407 yards and rushing for 1,134 more. He heads the team with 27 touchdowns scored and paces the defense with 67 tackles, as well. Last November, Cramer passed for 175 yards and one touchdown in the Monarchs' loss in the DakotaDome. He'll look to improve upon that performance as Warner pursues the first football championship in program history.

Keeping it close. The Dolphins may be a No. 7 seed and have three losses on their record, but they didn't make their run by accident. Rarely has Deubrook Area been outmatched this season, evidenced by their three losses coming by a combined 19 points. Deubrook Area already owns back-to-back playoff victories over previously unbeaten teams — No. 2 Alcester-Hudson and No. 3 Philip — due in large part to limiting those two teams to a combined 24 points. If the Dolphins' defense comes to play once again, they'll be in the game throughout.

Aziah Meyer. A breakout star of the 2023 football season, there aren't many backs in South Dakota — much less in the nine-man ranks — that are 6-foot-4 and 190 pounds. Meyer brings a potentially game-breaking combination of speed and power that, if left unchecked, could run wild on the 53-yard wide field inside the DakotaDome. For the season, the junior has over 2,000 all-purpose yards (1,669 rushing) and 36 total touchdowns for the Pirates, who can also offer a secondary punch with senior running back Tyler Tjeerdsma, who has nearly 1,000 all-purpose yards and eight touchdowns to his credit this season.

Consistency. Few nine-man teams have been as regularly dominant as the Trojans this season. Apart from a lone trip-up against Warner that was decided by a last-second touchdown, Faulkton Area has cruised, scoring 40 points or more in eight of their 10 wins, including all three in the playoffs, where they're yet to allow a single point (134-0). Featuring a 1,000-yard passer in Layne Cotton and a near-1,000-yard rusher in Garrett Cramer, there's balance on the Faulkton Area offense, as well. On defense, the Trojans have allowed just 67 total points, shutting out six opponents and allowing more than one score just twice.