By Scott Hansen
MaxPreps.com
Prime Time Performers
Rustin Dring - Kearney
Dring ran into the Kearney record books with 189 yards and two touchdowns. Dring is now the leading rusher in school history. Dring has totaled 1,049 rushing yards and 20 rushing touchdowns this season for the top-ranked Bearcats.
Kevin Lenneman - Hastings Adams Central
Lenneman rushed for 204 yards and six touchdowns in a 55-0 victory over Southern Valley. For the season, Lenneman has rushed for 1,101 and 29 touchdowns. It marked the third occasion this season that Lenneman had at least six scores. Earlier this season he set the school-record with seven. Despite the scoring outburst, Lenneman is 20 touchdowns short of the 11-man record set by Battle Creek's Todd Uhlir in 1992 when he had 49 rushing touchdowns.
Jesse VerVelde - Millard West
VerVelde threw for 213 yards and a touchdown and also added another touchdown on the ground in a 30-3 victory over Papillion-LaVista South. VerVelde eclipsed 1,000 passing yards on the season with his latest output.
Justin Coleman - Beatrice
Coleman scored three touchdowns three different ways in a 45-14 victory over Norris on Saturday. Coleman scored on a 32-yard interception return, a 69-yard run, and a 20-yard touchdown reception from Zach Ruiz for Beatrice.
The Top Ten
1. Kearney. 8-0 (1)
Defeated North Platte, 24-0. Running back Rustin Dring set the Kearney career rushing record with 189 yards and two touchdowns as the Bearcats claimed their 18th consecutive victory. Kearney led 3-0 at halftime over the pesky Bulldogs before Dring broke free on a 79-yard scamper in the third quarter. Dring later added a 1-yard plunge.
2. Millard South. 6-2 (2)
Defeated Omaha South, 45-6. Sophomore Bronson Marsh completed 9-of-16 passes for 147 yards and three scores to lead the Patriots. Junior Ty Kildow hauled in two touchdown passes for Millard South.
3. Omaha Central. 7-1 (3)
Defeated Bellevue West, 28-20. The resurgent Eagles completed their quest for the playoffs by clinching a spot with a victory over the Thunderbirds. Ronnell Grixby, for the most part, has been handed the task of leading the pack for the Eagles. Grixby rushed for 123 yards and three touchdowns. His 1-yard plunge in the second quarter erased a 10-0 deficit. Trailing 17-7, Chris Griffin hooked up with Shane Prater on a 32-yard scoring strike. Grixby added two more touchdown runs as part of 21 unanswered points.
4. Millard West. 7-1 (4)
Defeated Papillion-LaVista South, 30-3. Quarterback Jesse VerVelde passed for 213 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown to Jake Drwal, and the Wildcat defense took it from there. Millard West held one of the most potent rushing attacks in the state to zero rushing yards. Tyler Davis rushed for two touchdowns to lead the Millard West ground game.
5. Millard North. 6-2 (7)
Defeated Omaha Westside, 31-17. The Mustangs avenged a one-point heartbreaker from last season with the road victory against a former No. 1. Quarterback Nick Failla rushed for 171 yards and two touchdowns for Millard North. Sean Fisher and Rob Pirnie added to the misery for Westside, adding touchdown runs. Millard North's defense held Nebraska commit Collins Okafor to 36 yards on 13 carries.
6. Lincoln East. 7-1 (8)
Defeated Lincoln Southwest, 15-12. Matt Palm hit Zach Smith on a 9-yard touchdown pass to give the Spartans a huge victory over Lincoln Southwest. Palm also added a two-point conversion pass to give East the final margin of victory. Micah Fisher had two touchdowns for the Silver Hawks. In the first quarter, Sam Meginnis hauled back a fumble 20 yards to get the Spartans on the scoreboard.
7. Omaha North. 6-2 (10)
Defeated Omaha Benson, 39-7. Omaha North held the Bunnies to just 95 total yards as it ran to its fifth straight victory. Bryant Giles and Brenton Bradford combined for 184 yards and two touchdowns for the Vikings. Quarterback Tyler Beene tossed two touchdown passes to pace North.
8. Grand Island. 7-1 (9)
Defeated Lincoln Southeast, 21-14. Curtis Hudiburgh rushed for 87 yards and two touchdowns as the Islanders survived a major scare against the winless Knights. Southeast outgained Grand Island 343-235. For Grand Island, Slade Bolles uncorked a 73-yard punt late in the game to force Southeast to go 87 yards for the game-tying touchdown. The Islander defense answered the call, halting Southeast to preserve the hard-fought victory.
9. Omaha Creighton Prep. 5-3 (NR)
Defeated Bellevue East, 35-7. Brad Heldt rushed for 150 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Junior Jays back into the rankings. Ryan Spellman added two rushing touchdowns for Prep, who clinched a spot in the playoffs with the victory.
10. Bellevue West. 6-2 (6)
Lost to Omaha Central, 28-20. Junior quarterback Tyler Seals threw for 253 yards, but he failed to find the end zone for the first time this season. The all-state candidate also threw three interceptions for the Thunderbirds against Central's talented defensive backfield. Seals is just 72 yards short of eclipsing the 2,000-yard plateau through the air this season.
Dropped Out
Omaha Westside. 7-2 (5)
Class B
1. McCook. 7-0 (1)
Defeated Cozad, 41-7. Junior Tyrone Sellers continued to pad his already impressive resume' with three touchdown receptions for the Bison. Sellers is regarded as one of the top juniors in the state and has already been offered by Kansas State. Matt Berry answered the bell when Cozad shocked the Bison with a 61-yard touchdown run by Jason Luong to take a 7-0 lead. Berry returned the ensuing kickoff 83 yards for six. Berry later added a 1-yard touchdown run and three touchdown passes, all to Sellers.
2. Crete. 7-0 (2)
Defeated Lincoln Pius X, 28-16. Poor weather forced this one to start 2 1/2 hours late. When the skies finally cleared, the Cardinals remained unbeaten and turned away the best one-win team in the state in the process. Nebraska recruit John Leverson rushed for 107 yards and hit paydirt on runs of 52 and 49 yards despite a sore ankle. Leverson did not play in the second half as the Cardinals were clinging to a 21-3 lead.
3. Elkhorn. 7-0 (4)
Defeated Elkhorn Mount Michael, 54-14. Jared Brill continued his aerial assault for the Antlers, throwing for 201 yards and two touchdowns on 6-of-8 passing. Elkhorn sprinted out to a 40-0 halftime lead against the Knights. Trevor Roach added two touchdown runs of 63 and 36 yards in the first quarter for the Antlers.
4. Omaha Gross. 7-0 (5)
Defeated Omaha Skutt, 23-17. John Dostal needed to dig deep to bring his Cougars from behind in a battle between the two Omaha private school powers. Trailing 17-3 in the third quarter, Dostal stepped up. Dostal hooked up with C.J. Zimmerer on a 67-yard touchdown pass. Later, Dostal continued his explosion with a 12-yard run to help tie the score at 17. In the fourth quarter, Dostal delivered the knockout blow with a 73-yard touchdown run to give the Cougars the victory. Dostal rushed for 108 yards on 10 carries for Gross.
5. Omaha Skutt. 6-1 (3)
Lost to Omaha Gross, 23-17. Skutt was unable to remain unbeaten despite a 17-3 halftime lead. Bo Bohan and Austin Cole scored first half touchdowns to the SkyHawks.
6. Beatrice. 5-2 (6)
Defeated Norris, 45-14. Zach Ruiz tossed three touchdown passes for the Orangemen in a game delayed one day due to inclement weather. Justin Coleman returned an interception for a touchdown and later added a 69-yard touchdown run and a 20-yard reception for Beatrice.
7. Hastings. 6-1 (7)
Defeated Fairbury, 29-21.
8. Waverly. 6-1 (8)
Defeated Nebraska City, 31-6.
9. Seward. 5-2 (10)
Idle
10. Scottsbluff. 5-2 (NR)
Defeated Lexington, 35-6. Daron Pattinson rushed for two touchdowns to lead the Bearcats. Colton Ehler threw for 200 yards in the first half to lead Scottsbluff into the rankings.
Dropped Out
Norris. 5-2 (9)
Class C-1
1. Hastings St. Cecilia. 7-0 (1)
Defeated Wood River, 56-0. St. Cecilia posted its sixth shutout of the season in the victory and led 49-0 at halftime. Justin Small rushed for three touchdowns to lead the Bluehawks, while Jono Schwenka threw for a pair of touchdown passes for St. Cecilia.
2. Pierce. 7-0 (2)
Defeated Battle Creek, 49-7.
3. Chadron. 7-0 (3)
Defeated Gordon/Rushville, 35-0. Cody Roes rushed for 167 yards and two fourth-quarter touchdowns to lead Chardon to the comfortable victory. John McLain threw for two first half touchdowns as Chadron led 14-0 at intermission.
4. Wahoo Bishop Neumann. 7-0 (4)
Defeated Douglas County West, 35-0. Tyler Benal rushed for 149 yards and a touchdown to lead the Cavaliers. Benal also returned a fumble 20 yards for a touchdown for the first points of the game for Neumann. Dylan McGill threw for two touchdown passes in the victory.
5. Hastings Adams Central. 7-0 (5)
Defeated Southern Valley, 55-0. Kevin Lenneman rushed for 204 yards and six touchdowns to lead the Patriots. It marked the third time this season Lenneman has registered at least six touchdown runs. Lenneman set a school-record with seven touchdowns earlier this season.
6. Norfolk Catholic. 6-1 (7)
Defeated Wayne, 42-21. The Knights rolled out to a 35-0 halftime lead and held on. Kelby Seyl, Devin Neal, and Brad Pieper all rushed for first half touchdowns. Mike Bellar recovered a fumble in the end zone for six and Pieper hit Tyler Daake on a 29-yard touchdown strike as part of the 35-0 lead at intermission.
7. Boone Central. 5-1 (8)
Defeated Ord, 35-7. After a hard-fought first half, Boone Central pulled away in the second. In the second quarter, Jason Bader crossed the goal-line on a 10-yard score as the first of 28 unanswered points for the Cardinals. Tyson Martin, who rushed for 94 yards to lead Boone Central, had his part in the scoring surge with a 5-yard run.
8. Crofton. 6-1 (9)
Defeated O'Neill, 47-0.
9. Bennington. 6-1 (10)
Defeated Logan View, 40-10.
10. Grand Island Central Catholic. 6-1 (NR)
Defeated Central City, 28-13. Tim Dvorak threw for two touchdown passes to lead the Crusaders. Brett Moravec added 120 rushing yards and a touchdown, while Aaron Soto rushed for 104 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown run.
Dropped Out
Boys Town. 5-2 (6)
Class C-1 Quick Hits
Yutan ousted Boys Town from the rankings with a 30-22 victory. Quarterback Logan Woster threw for 233 yards and four touchdowns for the Chieftains. Joey DiGiacomo hauled in three touchdowns from 37, 26, and 36 yards to pace Yutan. Yutan's only losses this season were to Wahoo and Bishop Neumann.
Class C-2
1. Howells. 7-0 (1)
Defeated Stanton, 16-6. Sophomore Clint Belina rushed for 169 yards and a touchdown to lead the Bobcats. Belina had a 60-yard gain on a crucial third down play to set up a fourth quarter field goal by Ryan Dirkschneider. Dirkschneider booted three field goals in the contest for Howells.
2. Wakefield. 6-0 (2)
Defeated Pender, 34-8.
3. Archbishop Bergan. 7-0 (3)
Defeated Cross County, 27-0. Joey Spellerburg threw for three touchdowns in a game stopped in the third quarter due to lightning. Travis Brown added to his gaudy touchdown reception total with two on the night in Fremont.
4. Laurel-Concord. 7-0 (4)
Defeated Homer, 52-0.
5. Elmwood-Murdock. 6-1 (5)
Defeated Weeping Water, 20-7. David Todd rushed for two touchdowns to lead Elmwood-Murdock to its sixth straight victory. Todd rushed for a game-high 95 yards.
6. Cambridge. 7-0 (6)
Defeated Elm Creek, 34-14. Lance Shifflet rushed for 143 yards and added a 60-yard touchdown reception to lead Cambridge to its seventh-straight victory. Shifflet rushed for three touchdowns in the victory.
7. East Butler. 6-1 (7)
Defeated Scribner-Snyder, 21-0.
8. David City Aquinas. 5-2 (8)
Defeated Osceola, 50-7. The Monarchs rolled to 438 total yards in the victory. Justin Fiala rushed for 128 yards and four touchdowns on just eight carries for Aquinas. David Doro threw for a touchdown strike and kicked off the scoring onslaught with a 5-yard run in the first quarter.
9. Garden County. 6-1 (10)
Defeated Hemingford, 60-8.
10. Stanton. 5-2 (9)
Lost to Howells, 16-6. Pat Campbell hit paydirt on a 13-yard run in the second quarter to bring the score to 10-6 at halftime, but the Howells defense proved to be too much for the Mustangs. Stanton mustered just 158 total yards on the night in a losing effort.
Dropped Out
None
Class C-2 Quick Hits
West Point Central Catholic defeated Oakland-Craig 25-14 to move to 4-3 on the campaign. Blair Koehn hauled the opening kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown for the Bluejays. In the second half, Blake Koehn hit Austin Neesen on an 86-yard touchdown pass to give the Bluejays the lead. Central Catholic's defense held Oakland-Craig to 139 total yards.
