Conference showdowns across the state headlined by Bay Port at West De Pere and Slinger at Homestead.
Week 8 of the Wisconsin high school football season is here and we are putting the spotlight on the biggest games.
Week 8 games to watch
Fox Valley Lutheran (Appleton) (5-2) at Winneconne (7-0)Thursday, 7 p.m. - Watch Live NFHS Network | Tickets via GoFanWinneconne, tied atop the Bay Conference with Seymour, has won its last six games in blowout fashion. The last three have come via shutout, including a 56-0 win over Waupaca last week. Senior quarterback
Brody Schaffer, a University of Iowa wide receiver commit, has 1,085 yards passing with 10 touchdowns and 451 yards rushing with 13 touchdowns. Fox Valley Lutheran is coming off a 21-0 victory over New London. Senior quarterback
Gabriel Heiges has thrown for 909 yards and 18 touchdowns, adding 328 rushing yards with five scores for the Foxes. Last season, Winneconne earned a 35-19 victory over Fox Valley Lutheran.
No. 10 Hamilton (Sussex) (6-1) at No. 4 Arrowhead (Hartland) (6-1)Friday, 7 p.m.
A non-conference showdown between two of the best in the state. Arrowhead topped Classic Eight foe Mukwonago 26-23 in overtime last week behind a strong performance from senior running back
Jacob Siner, who finished with 33 carries for 251 yards and two touchdowns. For the season, Siner has 974 yards and 11 touchdowns. Senior linebacker
Brendan Foley, an Army commit, leads the defense with 55 tackles (41 solo), including nine for a loss with five sacks. Hamilton has won its last four contests, including dominating Menomonee Falls 73-0 last week. Junior running back
Brayden Schroeder leads the Chargers with 663 yards rushing and eight touchdowns. Last season, Arrowhead defeated Hamilton 29-14 in a playoff game.
No. 11 Bay Port (Green Bay) (6-1) at No. 3 West De Pere (De Pere) (7-0)Friday, 7 p.m. - Tickets via GoFanFirst place in the FRCC North is on the line as both squads enter the week 5-0 in league play. Bay Port, last year's Division 1 state champion, has won its last five games, including a 56-7 rout of De Pere in Week 7. Seniors
Matt Stevens (1,007 yards passing, 12 touchdowns) and
Brady Moon (1,138 yards rushing, 16 touchdowns) headline the offense for the Pirates. West De Pere has scored at least 33 points in each game this season, including last week's 35-9 win over Ashwaubenon. Senior quarterback
Patrick Greisen, a University of South Dakota commit, leads Wisconsin with 1,890 passing yards and 23 touchdowns for the Phantoms. Senior running back
Ryan Lutz has 974 yards rushing and has 18 total touchdowns (16 rushing), while fellow senior
Judeah Kniskern is second in the state with 674 receiving yards and has eight scores. Last season, West De Pere topped Bay Port 45-43 in a thriller.
Slinger (6-1) at No. 2 Homestead (Mequon) (7-0)Friday, 7 p.m. - Watch Live NFHS Network | Tickets via GoFanA battle for the top spot in the North Shore standings, with both teams entering the contest 5-0 in conference play. Homestead has been rolling this season, scoring at least 43 points in each game, including a 44-6 triumph against Cedarburg last week. The Highlanders do the majority of their damage on the ground led by seniors
Connor Pangallo (727 yards, 11 touchdowns) and
Brady Hunt (633 yards, 11 touchdowns). Defensively, senior linebacker
Brady Stammer has a team-high 41 tackles (35 solo), including nine for a loss with one sack. Slinger, last year's Division 2 state champion, has won its last five games, including a 49-0 rout of West Bend East last week. Senior running back
Kobe Hendricks headlines the Owls' roster with 19 total touchdowns. He has 1,303 yards rushing with 17 touchdowns and two receiving scores. Slinger's defense is paced by junior linebacker
Mason McGuire, who has 48.5 tackles (24 solo), including six for a loss with three sacks. Last season, Slinger defeated Homestead twice: 22-21 in the regular season and 17-14 in the postseason.
No. 15 Brookfield East (5-2) at No. 21 Marquette University (Milwaukee) (4-3)Friday, 7 p.m.
Two of the top teams in the Greater Metro meet in the top 25 contest. Marquette, which beat West Allis Hale 48-7 last week, is tied atop the league standings with Hamilton. Brookfield East, coming off a 27-3 win over Brookfield Central, is one game back of the leaders. The Hilltoppers' top offensive performers are juniors
Ben Schroeder and
Tommy Novotny. Schroeder has thrown for 1,389 yards and 16 touchdowns while Novotny has 742 yards on 114 carries with eight scores. Brookfield East has a balanced offense with senior running back
Max Matter leading the backfield with 376 yards rushing and five touchdowns. Senior linebacker
Jack Murray, a Northern Illinois University commit, headlines the Spartans' defense with 41.5 tackles (24 solo), including 10.5 for a loss with 3.5 sacks. Last season, Marquette cruised to a 42-14 win over Brookfield East.
Edgewood (Madison) (7-0) at Mount Horeb/Barneveld (Mount Horeb) (6-1)Friday, 7 p.m. The winner of the Badger Small contest takes over sole possession of first place. Mount Horeb/Barneveld has won its last six games, including cruising to a 52-19 victory over Lakeside Lutheran in Week 7. Senior quarterback
Brooks Hendrickson has thrown for 1,443 yards and 20 touchdowns and has three rushing scores. His top target is senior wide receiver
Hayden Anderson, who has 477 yards and seven touchdowns. Edgewood, coming off a 42-7 win over Stoughton, is led by senior quarterback
Gannon Bagstad and junior wide receiver
Ben Morey. Bagstad has 1076 yards passing with 16 touchdowns, with 11 of those going to Morey, who has 23 catches for 672 yards. Last season, Mount Horeb/Barneveld shut out Edgewood 16-0.
West Salem (6-1) at No. 25 Aquinas (La Crosse) (7-0)Friday, 7 p.m. - Tickets via GoFanThe list of conference showdowns continues in this Coulee Conference game. West Salem has won its last six games, and the only team to reach double digits was Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau, which the Panthers defeated 45-14. Junior quarterback
Drew McConkey has 757 yards passing with 10 touchdowns and is second on the team in rushing with 296 yards and seven scores. Aquinas has scored at least 45 points in its last four games, excluding last week's forfeit win over Westby. Senior quarterback
Ryan Johnson has thrown for 1,035 yards and 13 touchdowns, with senior
Logan Becker leading the receiving core with 18 catches for 294 yards and four touchdowns. Last season, Aquinas topped West Salem 20-18.
Stratford (5-2) at Amherst (7-0)Friday, 7 p.m.
The winner takes sole possession of first place in the CWC Large Conference. Stratford, last year's Division 5 state champion, has won five straight games, with the most recent a 35-6 triumph over Marathon. Senior quarterback
Brady Berg has 755 yards passing with 14 touchdowns for the Tigers. Berg's top target is senior
Coltan Breit, who has 343 yards and five touchdowns. Their running game is led by junior Aaron Knetter, who has 405 yards and three scores. Amherst is coming off a 27-21 win over Weyauwega-Fremont. The Falcons' squad is headlined by junior running back
Ayden Nerdahl, who has 960 yards and 19 touchdowns. On the defensive side of the ball, Nerdahl leads the team with 31 tackles (28 solo), including six for a loss. Last season, Stratford beat Amherst twice: 48-20 in the regular season and 28-7 in the playoffs.
Osceola (6-1) at No. 19 Baldwin-Woodville (Baldwin) (7-0)Friday, 7 p.m. - Tickets via GoFan
A battle for first place in the Middle Border Conference. Baldwin-Woodville, last season's Division 4 state runner-up, is coming off a 40-38 victory over Altoona. Junior quarterback
Joe Jensen has 857 yards passing with 10 touchdowns and has 368 yards rushing with nine scores for the Blackhawks. Senior running back
Dane Veenendall has a team-best 717 yards on the ground and has found the endzone eight times. Osceola, which topped Amery 36-35 in Week 7, is led by senior quarterback
Conner Luehmann, who has 505 yards passing (4 touchdowns) and 221 yards rushing (5 touchdowns). Sophomore running back
Elliot Havlish has a team-high 457 yards rushing with seven touchdowns. Last season, Baldwin-Woodville cruised to a 40-7 victory over Osceola.
Hilbert (6-1) at Manitowoc Lutheran (7-0)Friday, 7 p.m. - Watch Live NFHS Network Two of the top teams in the Big East Conference meet. Manitowoc Lutheran is the last unbeaten team left in the league and has posted three shutouts, including back-to-back 56-0 wins. Senior quarterback
Jaymen Ott has 1,141 yards passing with 14 touchdowns and is third on the team with 236 yards on the ground with three scores. The Lancers' leading rusher is senior
Isaac Wagner, who has 567 yards and 10 touchdowns. Hilbert, which has one league loss this season, is coming off a 26-7 win over Reedsville. The Wolves are led by junior running back
Jack Pakala, who has compiled 863 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also has 23 tackles, including nine for a loss with two sacks. Last season, Manitowoc Lutheran defeated Hilbert 27-7.
