(Greenfield) Nodaway Valley goes into the playoffs knowing that they can compete with anyone.
The Wolverines have had a unique ride this season. In their two wins they’ve outscored opponents 95-0. Four of their five losses have been by one score or less. “We know that we have a team that is capable of going anywhere and winning. I’ve been very pleased with the way our team has played the last two weeks even though the Earlham game we lost and the Greene County game we lost, but we competed.”
Coach Duane Matthess gives a quick assessment of (3-4) North Mahaska. “There’s similarities between both teams. On defense they like to bring a lot of pressure just like we do. We have to make sure we are pretty sound offensively if we want to have any chance of moving the ball. As far as they go on offense a lot of stuff runs through their tailback.” Dylan Klinker leads the Warhawks rushing game with 406 yards on the season and also tops the squad receptions.
He calls the teams evenly matched on paper. The Wolverines were open last Friday night, but stuck to their typical practice schedule. “The only difference was we didn’t have a game on Friday. We tried to keep the team in the same routine they’ve had. Maybe a little bit less contact, but other than that it was a pretty normal week. More than anything it gave our team a chance to rest and heal some wounds to get ready for the playoffs.”
Matthess says the offensive line will be challenged by the pressure North Mahaska applies. “With great risk there is great reward. If you guess wrong you can be in trouble. That’s where we have to be really selective in our play calls. Hopefully there will be more guessing wrong than guessing right.”
Regardless of what happens tonight, Nodaway Valley appears to be a team trending in the right direction and if they can get some stability in the coaching staff after four straight years of turnover the future looks good. “It’s been great. The kids are really buying in to what we are doing. I don’t want to look ahead to next year’s team by any means, but we have a great nucleus of kids coming back.”
Despite having to make a two hour trip, coach Matthess say they really like their draw. Nathan Russell is closing in on a 2nd straight 1,000 yard passing season. He’s hit on 45% of his throws for 918 yards and 10 touchdowns. Caelen DeVault leads the team with 36 catches for 426 yards and two scores.
