Atchison County is 0-8 against Nemaha Central since September of 2015 but things could change on Friday. The Tigers are taking a road trip to challenge the Thunder at 7:00 p.m. Atchison County has given up an average of 27.3 points per game this season, but Friday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.
Atchison County is headed into the contest out to prove that what happened against Jefferson West on Friday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Atchison County took a blow against Jefferson West, falling 50-12. Atchison County was in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 43-0.
Max Bottorff
| 10/17/25 @ Jefferson West | 2 |
| 09/26/25 vs Oskaloosa | 2 |
| 09/19/25 vs Valley Falls | 2 |
| 10/10/25 vs Royal Valley | 1 |
| 10/03/25 @ Sabetha | 1 |
| + 2 more games |
Max Bottorff put forth a good effort for the losing side as he rushed for 66 yards and two touchdowns. He is becoming a predictor of Atchison County's success: when he posts at least two rushing touchdowns the team is 2-1 (and 1-3 when he doesn't).
Meanwhile, Nemaha Central strolled into their game on Friday with a perfect record and they left with the same. Everything went their way against Royal Valley as they made off with a 48-27 win. Considering the Thunder have won five matchups by more than 20 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Atchison County better keep an eye on Carter Hajek. He was instrumental in Nemaha Central's win, rushing for 277 yards and five scores while picking up 10.3 yards per carry, and also throwing for 69 yards and one TD while completing 85.7% of his passes.
Nemaha Central didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Jayden Seitz and Caleb Strathman.
Atchison County now has a losing record of 3-4. As for Nemaha Central, their victory bumped their record up to 7-0.
Friday's game will pit two of the most dominant backs against one another: Bottorff and Hajek. Bottorff just won't slow down this season and has run in 10 touchdowns while averaging 75.7 rushing yards per game. Hajek has been a dominant force too and has thrown 7 touchdowns while averaging 81.1 passing yards per game.
Atchison County was taken down by Nemaha Central 46-0 in their previous meeting back in October of 2024. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Hajek, who rushed for 97 yards and three touchdowns on only 13 carries, and also threw for 210 yards and four TDs. Now that the Tigers know the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
