By Matt Krumrie
MaxPreps.com
The Fab Five
(1) As is tradition in Minnesota high school football, the regular season concludes Wednesday evening with games across the state. Many conference titles will be decided, so be ready for some great action at a field near you.
In one key game top-ranked and four-time defending nine-man state champion Stephen-Argyle Central will attempt to break the state record for consecutive wins. The Storm have 60 straight wins and will go for their 61st consecutive win this week.
(2) Elliott Herdina, a 5-10, 170-pound senior, became the state's career receiving yards leader Friday. Heading into the final week of the regular season and playoffs Herdina now has 3,175 career yards, breaking the previous record of 3,068 set by Breck's Dominique Byrd. Byrd went on to play at USC and is now with the St. Louis Rams in the NFL.
Herdina set the record in the second quarter of the Awesome Blossoms 60-6 win over St. Clair when he caught a 6-yard pass from quarterback Austin Moe. Herdina received a game ball from the head coach and was recognized in a brief ceremony after the game. Herdina went on to finish the game with 168 receiving yards.
Herdina had 353 yards receiving as a freshman, 794 as a sophomore, 1,057 as a junior, and heading into the regular season finale and postseason, 803 yards this year.
(3) No it's not a misprint, St. Croix Lutheran of West Saint Paul did defeat St. Paul Academy (SPA) 70-55 Friday. The 125 points in that game were five short of the state record of 130 total points set when DeLaSalle defeated Breck 76-54 in 2005.
St. Croix Lutheran (SCL) provided its offense on the ground, while SPA provided it through the air. Three SCL running backs combined for 633 yards rushing. Jeff Dubose gained 308 yards and scored four touchdowns; Matt Dvorak added 214 yards and three touchdowns and Dave Greseth added 11 yards and two touchdowns in the win.
Evan McMillan passed for 408 yards and six touchdowns for SPA. He completed 20-of-39 passes, with Peter and Terry Schwartz combining to catch 13 of those passes for 313 yards and four touchdowns. Peter Schwartz caught six passes (four for touchdowns) and Terry Schwartz caught six passes for 157 yards.
McMillan also returned an interception for a touchdown to open the scoring for SPA, and has completed 132-of-253 passes for 1,899 yards and 16 touchdowns on the season - all which lead the Tri-Metro Conference. Terry Schwartz leads the Tri-Metro in receiving yards with 589 (24 catches, six touchdowns), and Peter Schwartz leads the conference in receptions with 35 (499 yards, six touchdowns).
(4) Como Park won the first St. Paul City Conference (SPCC) title in its 29 years of existence. The Cougars defeated two-time defending conference Johnson 46-23 to improve to 7-0 and clinch the title. Greg Morse, a 6-5 senior, tossed five touchdown passes in the win. Como Park plays Minneapolis Washburn Wednesday in the annual Twin Cities Championship game between the winner of the SPCC and Minneapolis City Conference champions.
(5) Speaking of Minneapolis Washburn, quarterback Brandon King threw six touchdown passes in a 40-8 win over Minneapolis North to secure the conference title for the Millers. King threw all six scoring passes in the first half.
Three to Watch
Down to the Wire: The Northwest Suburban Conference has been a fight all season long. Heading into the last week of the season Osseo is in first place at 6-1, followed by Anoka, Champlin Park, Maple Grove, and Andover at 5-2. Osseo hosts Andover in what could will a game that goes a long way towards deciding the outcome of this logjam.
Speaking of Osseo, Orioles receiver Dan Brown will attempt to go over 1,000 yards receiving on the year in that game against Osseo. Brown leads the Twin Cities with 901 receiving yards, and has 12 touchdowns on the season.
Classic Lake Showdown: Edina and Wayzata meet in a game that will decide the Classic Lake Conference title. Both teams are 3-0 in conference action (the CSL only has five teams so teams must play four non-conference games each year). Wayzata gives up only 5.3 points per game and has four shutouts on the season. Edina has a high-powered offense led by quarterback Anders Lee (1,452 yards passing) and receiver Mike Rallis (30 receptions, 614 yards, seven receiving touchdowns). Something has to give.
Two Hot to Handle
Avery Duncan, St. Bernard's: Duncan ran 22 times for 267 yards and three touchdowns in a 42-16 win over Humboldt Friday. Duncan had a 90-yard touchdown run in the win, and leads the Tri-Metro Conference with 1,057 yards rushing.
Levi Schultz, New London Spicer: Schultz ran for touchdowns of 15, 2 and 10 yards on his way to 224 yards rushing in a 33-20 win over Staples-Motley Friday. Schultz wasn't done there though, he also ran a kick return back for an 82-yard touchdown.
Inside the Numbers
936 - The number of yards passing by Princeton quarterback Phillip Klaphake. He has completed 64 passes this year.
914 - The number of yards passing Eagan quarterback Kevin Abbas has on the year. He will attempt to go over 1,000 yards on the season Wednesday.
643 - The number of yards rushing by Litchfield's Kyle Kusler. He has 12 touchdowns on the year.
633 - The number of yards receiving by Mahtomedi receiver Justin Gorminsky, which leads Class 4A.
37 - The total number of points Wayzata has given up this season.
14.6 - The number of yards per completion Princeton's Klaphake is averaging.
