2014 Nebraska Sertoma 8-Man All-Star Football Classic Preview

After taking it on the chin, 63-14, to Falls City Sacred Heart in the 8Man-2 state football championship last November, Trevor Ramm of Stuart High is hoping to right the ship during Saturday's 37th Annual Sertoma 8-Man All Star football game in Hastings.

Having fun is assured, but maybe more important for his football psyche, Ramm wants to win.

"It's just awesome knowing I get to go out and play one more time," Ramm said by phone last weekend. "I want to go out there and get a win. We lost to Falls City Sacred Heart in the championship, so I want to get a little revenge. I want to get the last one."

Having had a couple of brothers play for the West in past all star contests, Ramm said there is added pressure to play well. Matt Ramm helped guide the 2006 West team to a 14-13 win over the East, while Justin Ramm was on the losing end of a 35-8 East win in 2002.

"They both played offense," Ramm said. "But I hope I get to play defense."

As they take the field at the Hastings College Football Complex at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Ramm and his West teammates may well be listed as favorites by many Nebraska high school football prognosticators thanks to a six-game West winning streak that has narrowed the East's lead in the series to 19-17.

But Sacred Heart (Falls City) two-way lineman Jarod Fiegener, who competed against Ramm on both sides of the ball in that championship win, is willing to lay it all on the line to stop the streak for the East.

"I know now," Fiegener said in response to hearing news of the six-game East skid. "I guess that'll give us a little more push to win. We have some studs on our roster, so I think we have a good chance.

"There will be a lot of good athletes out there. It's a fun game. Eight-Man (football) is fast-paced. I'm looking forward to meeting new people and making friends for a lifetime."

While most avid football fans can't get enough of the 11-Man style of football, Fiegener is sold on the style and the pace the 8-Man game presents.

"I would tell them that it's fast-paced and high-scoring," Fiegener said of selling the small school type of football to the general public. "It's just a ton of fun to watch. The game gives players the opportunity to be more athletic. There are only three linemen. The game allows for more opportunities, is really fast-paced and is a lot of fun."

While both rosters are filled with 24 of the top senior small-school athletes on their respective sides of the state, Fiegener's assessment of the East's talent may be accurate.

Of the 48 athletes ready to do battle this weekend, 19 of them were named first-team all state by either the Omaha World Herald, the Lincoln Journal Star or both. Twelve of those players are on the East roster, nine of which were named to both newspapers' squads.

On paper, the East can definitely lay claim to the favorite role. But the West has been doing something right in winning six in a row.

Jackson Sudbeck of Wynot High may be the most dynamic player on either roster. The 5-foot-9, 160-pound slinger threw the ball for 3,562 yards, 58 touchdowns and only seven interceptions.

In each of Wynot's (11-1) 12 contests, Nebraska's leading 8-Man passer, Sudbeck connected with one of his receivers for a long score.

"It definitely never gets old," Sudbeck said of throwing touchdown passes. "Every single one of them was fun, especially the long touchdown passes. We had one go for about 60 yards in every game, one that we broke a long way. They were all different in their own way."

While Sudbeck has proven he can carry a team a long way by chucking the ball, he's still not sure if the East will throw the ball a bunch Saturday. Should East head coach Dean Filipi of Exeter-Milligan decide to throw the ball a bunch, Sudbeck will probably hook up with McCool Junction receiver Alex Preslicka on several occasions.

The 6-2, 190-pound receiver guided the Mustangs to a 6-3 record by grabbing 42 passes for 923 yards and 16 touchdowns.

"I have no clue as to what we're going to do," Sudbeck said. "I know our coach (Filipi) is from our area and I am one of the only throwing quarterbacks that will be in camp. I am one of the few that flings it."

Should the East attack from the ground on offense, Filipi has plenty of talent there as well. Sudbeck proved his worth in the ground game as well, churning out 680 yards on 118 carries and he scored an additional nine touchdowns there.

But most of the carries will belong to Jacob Morrill of Creighton High and Scott Borcher of Pawnee City. Morrill, a 6-1, 190-pounder, ran the ball for 1,939 yards on 180 carries and scored 34 touchdowns in 12 games. Borcher gained 1,336 yards on 183 carries and scored 10 times in the six games recorded on MaxPreps' stat leaders page.

Clearing the way for the East backfield will be Travis Emmons (6-3, 190) of Emerson-Hubbard, Fiegener, Trent Pekny (6-3, 230) of Clarkson/Leigh and Austin Gubbels (6-0, 260) of Randolph.

Defensively, you guessed it: Sudbeck is one of the leaders there too. The first team all-stater, in both publications, was credited with 97 tackles and three interceptions on the season. Borcher was in on 105 tackles, including 7.5 stops for losses, three interceptions and two fumble recoveries.

The West, coached by Glen Lipska of Leyton (Dalton), will counter with Leyton's Alex Frerichs, Kordell Glause of Palmer and Tyler Fear of Sutherland behind center. Frerichs threw for 1,359 yards and 19 touchdowns to just five interceptions. Glause and Fear each threw for over 1,000 yards last fall, and tossed a collective 29 touchdowns.

Fear was also dangerous on the ground after chalking up 1,112 yards on 145 carries and scoring an additional 19 touchdowns.

Heading up the West ground game are Hayden Cahoy of Overton and William McClintic of Burwell, both of whom ran for over 1,000 yards last fall. Austin Blume of Hitchcock County (Trenton) is set to catch whatever his quarterbacks throw his way after reeling in 40 balls in nine games a year ago for 727 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Ramm, Palmer's Brett Santin, Matt Eberle of Ansley/Litchfield and Dakota Divine of Twin Loup (Sargent) will run interference for the West backfield in trying to win a seventh-straight contest. Santin will be a leader on defense after chalking up 163 tackles, a sack and a pair of fumble recoveries in 10 games in 2013. Blake Hansen of Hemingford was credited with 137 tackles, 6.5 sacks and five fumble recoveries in 13 games last fall.

Jake Bartling of Elm Creek was in on 136 stops defensively, with an interception and a couple of fumble recoveries. Divine produced 133 tackles, including 17 tackles for losses and four sacks, and a fumble recovery. Ramm was in on 128 tackles, including 14 tackles for losses, 12 sacks and four fumble recoveries.

North upends South in Nebraska Shrine Bowl

Fiegener is hoping he and his East teammates can follow through and snap the West's win streak Saturday, so he can get back into the win column. The Doane recruit was one of just two 8-Man athletes appearing on the 2014 Nebraska Shrine Bowl rosters.

While Luke Hegemann of Howells-Dodge (Howells, Neb.) was a member of the winning North squad, Fiegener played for the South.

"It was an amazing honor to get to play in the Shrine Bowl," Fiegener said of competing in his first 11-Man game. "Eleven-Man is a lot different from 8-Man, but after a few practices I got used to it and the coaches helped me a lot. It was an awesome time, and I made a lot of good memories that week."

After getting a jump on making the switch from 8-Man to 11-Man when he took the field at Carol Cope Stadium in Kearney June 7, Irish coach Doug Goltz's prized athlete is returning to the 8-Man ranks for the final time Saturday.

Fiegener will be able to recall plenty of memories from his football experiences this spring, including the 30-7 triumph the North posted over the South.

"It's so hard to decide which is a bigger honor," Fiegener said. "I love playing with these 8-Man guys because I already know them and have friendships with some of them. But the Shrine Bowl is the biggest all star game in Nebraska, and it was awesome getting to play with the best 11-Man players in the state."

Easton Stick of Creighton Prep (Omaha, Neb.) led all rushers for the North with 95 yards rushing on 10 carries and scored on a 1-yard run. He, along with Jalen Allison of Papillion-LaVista (Papillion, Neb.) (North) were named the game's Most Valuable Players.

Creighton Prep receiver RJ Urzendowski, who will join Stick and Allison at North Dakota State next fall, led all receivers for the North with a Shrine Bowl record eight receptions for 112 yards and scored after hauling in a 34-yard strike from Bellevue West signal caller Brad Brazeal.

Lincoln Christian quarterback Logan Power threw for 154 yards on 12 of 24 passing to lead all passers for the South.

Stanford recruit Harrison Phillips led all tacklers with 11, while Fiegener and Hegemann chipped in with four stops each for the South and the North respectively. Fiegener was also credited with 2 ½ tackles for losses and a half of a sack.

The North scored the game's first nine points on a Trenton Long (Gothenburg) 27-yard field goal and Shaka Taylor's (Lutheran-Northeast) 6-yard scoring run before taking a 9-7 lead into the locker room at intermission following Isaac Wallace's (Ralston) 1-yard plunge and Zach Zeplin's (Skutt Catholic (Omaha)) PAT kick.

The North scored 21 points in the fourth quarter on Stick's 1-yard run, Urzendowski's 34-yard reception and Makiah Slade's (Lincoln Northeast) 51-yard interception return to pull away.

Arnie Johnson of Boone Central/Newman Grove (Albion) coached the North squad, while Jason Hale of Holdrege guided the South into battle.

Click here for a link to the rosters of the Nebraska 8-Man All Star Classic.

Click here for a link for the game's past scores and MVPs.