Pigskin preview: Cobras look to contend for fourth straight district title
Aug. 24—OTTUMWA — Every two years, the refresh button is hit on Iowa High School football.
New districts. New opponents. New opportunities.
There is some familiarity, however, when it comes to Class 1A's sixth district this season. Four of the six teams (Cardinal, Sigourney-Keota, Pella Christian, Pleasantville) were district rivals last year with Cardinal scheduled to face seven of nine opponents they faced last season.
"We see in our schedule where we can this season that we've got a few chances to get some get-back," Comet head football coach Rich Mayson said. "The good thing about seeing some of the same teams is, they may know us, but we know them too. It won't take a lot to get our guys ready to go."
For Sigourney-Keota and Pella Christian, the expectations of success have become something both programs have been used to over the years. Expect nothing different this year with the Cobras and Eagles expected to battle it out for the district championship in hopes of setting the table for a deep postseason run this fall.
"With the experience we have coming back, we have a lot of depth," S-K head football coach Jared Jensen said. "We've got four of our five lineman returning. Half of our defense are returning starters. The experience is there for us to have a lot of potential this year. We just need to stay injury-free to reach our potential."
Jensen and the Cobras have reason to feel confidence. Over the past four seasons, S-K has won 36 out of 42 games making it to the state quarterfinals each of the past three postseasons highlighted by a run to the UNI Dome for the 1A state semifinals in 2021.
That run of consistent success is a tribute to a program that seems poised to make a run at lofty goals again in 2023 despite graduating all-state 1,000-yard running back Cole Clarahan and all-state linebacker Jack Clarahan. S-K will return three all-state talents, including first-team selection Jake Moore who earned the honor at defensive back after collecting a team-leading three interceptions with a 52-yard return for a touchdown during a 56-3 win over Cardinal.
"We did our job well," Moore said. "I was just trying to make a play for us on my interception. I just happened to be fortunate enough to take it home."
The Cobras also return all-state senior offensive lineman Evan Vittetoe and second-team all-state utility selection Cole Kindred who scored 10 combined rushing and receiving touchdowns last year as a junior. Returning seniors Sawyer Stout and Jake Moore completed all 34 passes for 674 passing yards last season with Stout throwing nine touchdown passes while rushing for 393 yards on 88 carries and one additional score at quarterback.
"In all reality, a lot of the guys getting this opportunity with the varsity have already put in three years of play," Jensen said. "They've shown themselves on the junior varsity. They just haven't had a chance yet to show themselves on varsity because they were behind a really talented player. It's exciting for those kids when some room clears with some talented guys in front of them. It's time for these guys to show everyone what they can do."
While Sigourney-Keota is looking to build off the success of recent seasons, the Cardinal Comets will be continuing to rebuild after a winless 2022. Cardinal was forced to replace nearly 90 percent of their starters including all-state and all-district skill positions standouts Griffin Greiner (receiver, safety), Landon Becker (receiver, cornerback), Maddux Jones (quarterback, linebacker), Landon Becker (receiver, cornerback) and Ian Liles (running back, linebacker) from a 5-4 team in 2022.
Offensively, Cardinal went from racking up over 3,000 yards of offense in 2021 to just 1,301 yards in 2022. The Comets will have several returning players up front including seniors Issac Cox, Jesse Hughes, Brock Lewman and Owyn Johnson who will be looking to open holes on the offensive side of the ball for returning senior Craig Miller, who led the Comets with 377 rushing yards on 69 carries and Isaac Lett who will taking over at quarterback this season.
"Isaac's knew to quarterback, but he's definitely not new to football. We may be losing a traditional quarterback, but it's a chance to put the ball in the hands of our best athlete," Mayson said. "Now, we have the option of getting the ball in Isaac's hands on every play. Our guys up front are looking slim and trim, but they're really strong.
"I don't know if we have a lot of size, but we have experience. The guys know what they're supposed to be doing out there. That feels good to me."
Like Cardinal, Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont is looking to bounce back from a winless season. Like the Comets, the Rockets have several talented returning athletes returning to the gridiron hoping to lead that turnaround including Jesse Cornelison, who accounted for 1,136 total all-purpose yards and nine total touchdowns along with senior fullback Blake Jager and brothers Russell and Thomas McCrea.
"We had our share of bad breaks," Rocket head coach Jeff Whitehall said. "We played very well, then we ran out of gas. Just too many mistakes led to a total breakdown. All we can do is to go back to the practice field and work hard."
