Football Preview: Hartington-Newcastle Wildcats vs. Niobrara/Verdigre Cougars
The Hartington-Newcastle Wildcats will venture away from home to square off against the Niobrara/Verdigre Cougars at 3:30 p.m. on Friday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: both posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Hartington-Newcastle's defense heads into the game hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Friday. They blew past Lutheran-Northeast, posting an 82-0 victory at home. Given the Wildcats' advantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska football rankings (they are ranked 16th, while the Eagles are ranked 83rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Cole Heimes went supernova for Hartington-Newcastle, rushing for 148 yards and five touchdowns while picking up 9.3 yards per carry. Heimes also deserves a shoutout for his performance on D, making three total tackles and defending four passes in addition to snagging an interception. Cole Rosener was in the mix too, providing Hartington-Newcastle with two touchdowns.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Hartington-Newcastle was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 461 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 152 rushing yards in nine consecutive matches dating back to last season.
Hartington-Newcastle's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged three passes before it was all said and done. The picks came courtesy of Brayden Lammers and Heimes. Heimes is also on a roll when it comes to rushing touchdowns, as he's now punched in two or more in the last three games he's played dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, Niobrara/Verdigre had to endure a seven-game losing streak dating back to last season, but that streak is no more. They simply couldn't be stopped on Friday as they easily beat Walthill 80-20 on the road.
Connor Thomson was nothing short of spectacular: he rushed for 110 yards and three touchdowns on only 11 carries. Arlan Lammers was another major influence, as he rushed for 60 yards and ran in a TD.
Niobrara/Verdigre's defense stepped up as well, laying out the QB six times. In that department, Jacob Motacek was the leader with 2.5 sacks.
Hartington-Newcastle pushed their record up to 3-0 with that win, which was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season. As for Niobrara/Verdigre, their victory (their first of the season) made their record 1-2.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Friday's matchup: Hartington-Newcastle has been on an offensive roll this season, having averaged 531.3 total yards per game. It's a different story for Niobrara/Verdigre, though, as they've been averaging only 247.3. Will Hartington-Newcastle be able to march up the field at their leisure again, or will Niobrara/Verdigre flip the script?
Everything came up roses for Hartington-Newcastle against Niobrara/Verdigre in their previous matchup back in September of 2019 as the squad secured a 52-7 win. In that contest, Hartington-Newcastle amassed a halftime lead of 40-0, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Friday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
