By Matt Krumrie
MaxPreps.com
The Fab Five
- Floyd Decides on Notre Dame: The suspense is over. Minnesota's most highly-touted and highly-recruited senior has made his collegiate choice. Michael Floyd of Cretin-Derham Hall announced plans earlier this week that he will attend Notre Dame next year and play for Charlie Weiss and the Irish. Floyd, who led the Suburban East Conference in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns (35-717-11), sat out the Raiders' opening round 58-0 playoff win over Henry Sibley in the Class 4AAAAA playoffs with a sore ankle. He'll be back on the field Saturday when the Raiders host SEC foe Park in a section semi-final tilt.
- Wescott Sets Record: Minneapolis Southwest quarterback Colin Wescott has been an aerial dynamo this season. His season came to an end Tuesday in a 56-44 loss to Minnetonka in the 6AAAAA opening round playoffs, but Wescott didn't go out without a fight. He completed 46 of 75 passes for 478 yards and six touchdowns in the loss. He set a state record for completions in the game, eclipsing the previous record of 42 completions held by Brad Paulson of LeCrescent and set in 1996. Wescott tossed four touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, leading Southwest to 30 points in that quarter alone. Wescott finished the season passing for 2,774 yards.
- So Far So Good: All of the top-ranked teams in the final Associated Press state rankings advanced to the second round of the playoffs and will host semifinal games Saturday. Eden Prairie (5A), Spring Lake Park (4A), Glencoe-Silver Lake (3A), Eden Valley-Watkins (2A), Wabasso (1A) and Stephen-Argyle Central (nine-man) all advanced. Spring Lake Park had an opening round bye. Stephen-Argyle Central won its state record 62nd straight game.
- Lights Out: White Bear Lake was lights out Tuesday in its 35-14 2AAAA win over North St. Paul - literally. Four minutes into the game four sets of lights at the White Bear Lake field went out and were not able to be turned back on. This was an advantage for coach Bob Jackson's run-heavy offense. The Bears ran for 343 yards in the win and now travel to play No. 1 seed Irondale Saturday. Josh Hauswirth led the way for WBL, rushing ten times for 145 yards and three touchdowns in the first half.
- Eden Prairie Looks Strong: Eden Prairie has been dominant all season, going 8-0 and winning another Lake Conference title. The Eagles, the top-ranked team in the state, opened with an easy 55-0 win over St. Louis Park in the 6AAAA playoffs. Six different players scored for the Eagles in the blowout win.
Three to Watch
- Osseo vs. Champlin Park: This will be one of the better semi-final games in the state - at least on paper. Osseo, the Northwest Suburban Conference champion and No.7 team in the Star Tribune Metro Poll, hosts No. 8 Champlin Park. The two teams, while in the same conference, didn't face each other in the regular season.
- Rematch: Edina defeated Minnetonka 7-5 during the regular season in one of the more odd scoring games of the season. The rematch will be Saturday at Edina. Edina defeated Shakopee 38-7 in the first round while the Skippers defeated Minneapolis Southwest 56-44. The Skippers have improved a lot since an 0-3 start, and Edina has been solid all season.
- Hutchinson takes on Mankato West in a 2AAAA semifinal game. These two teams aren't used to meeting in the section playoffs, but they are familiar names when it comes to the state tournament. One of these tradition-laden programs will end its season early.
Two Hot too Handle
- Taz Seibert, Norwood-Young America: Seibert, only a freshman, ran 23 times for 293 yards and five touchdowns (36, 40, 12, 2, 1) to lead NYA to a 49-22 win over Concordia Academy of Bloomington.
- Shady Solomon, Cretin Derham-Hall: No Floyd? No problem. Solomon ran for 115 yards and four touchdowns in a 58-0 playoff win over Henry Sibley.
Inside the Numbers
1,141 - The number of yards Mahtomedi's Stephen Johnson ran for this season, leading the Classic Suburban Conference. Johnson scored nine touchdowns. Mahtomedi won its opening round playoff game Tuesday, defeating Hill-Murray 41-14 in a 4AAAA playoff game.
917 - The number of yards rushed for by Arlington's Eric Brown, which led the St. Paul City Conference. Brown also scored ten touchdowns.
408 - The total number of yards Buffalo's Dee Broadnax, Dan Maghrak and Jake Duske combined to run for in a 31-18 win over Moorhead in an 8AAAAA opening round playoff game.
147 - The number of yards Broadnax gained. He also added a 31-yard touchdown run.
135 - The number of yards Maghrak scored on nine carries. He added an 83-yard touchdown scamper.
126 - The number of yards Duske ran for on 19 carries. He also had a 13-yard touchdown run
38.6 - The number of points Osseo is averaging per game this year.
7.6 - The number of points Champlin Park is giving up this year. Osseo and Champlin Park play each other Saturday. Something has to give - or does it?