(Guthrie Center, IA) — Its a battle of Class A power running games in the Quarterfinals tonight as Tri Center visits AC/GC with a trip to the Dome on the line, coverage on KSOM.
The Chargers have had winning teams the last three seasons and in two of them have lost in the quarterfinals. AC/GC has beaten Wayne and Mount Ayr in the first two rounds — against the Raiders Jathan South and Mike Fuller both ran for over 100 yards while Junior Brexton Schneider had one of his bigger games with 9 carries for 90 yards and 2 TD. Head Coach Cody Matthewson says circumstances dictated it was his turn to get the pigskin and he took advantage of it
Tri Center is led by Senior Carter Kunze with 1,834 yards rushing and 31 TD — he is ranked 7th in the entire state. But he is not the entire offense — Sophomore QB AJ Harder has thrown for 2,233 yards and 24 TD. Matthewson says they have to stop Kunze first
AC/GC is at their best when they keep running up the middle with small chunk after small chunk — it takes a lot of time off the clock and Matthewson hopes those long drives can end in touchdowns
The Chargers have the home field and have more experience but Matthewson knows that Tri Center will be ready to play this game with a lot on the line
Tri Center beat South Central Calhoun and then surprised Riverside with a 58-13 thrashing last week. It wasn’t a surprise that the Trojans won the game but the score made a statement that Tri Center is not to be taken lightly. Head Coach Ryan Schroder
Now Tri Center will have to deal with the triple option — Mike Fuller has 1200 yards and 13 TD, Jathan South has 1,088 yards and 21 TD and Joe Crawford has 891 yards and 7 TD. Schroder it will be a challenge
When it comes to the Trojans defense, there is no one player who stands out — its a completely balanced unit from top to bottom. Senior Brenton Kramer does lead with 57 tackles and Kunze has 43.5 tackles but every player is capable of making a play at any given time. Schroder says there may not be a lot of flash but there is some sizzle
This is all new ground for Tri Center — the Trojans gave up a kick return for a TD to Jake Stenberg of AHSTW in week one and that is the only loss for Tri Center. Since then, it has been 9 wins in a row, a district title, the first ever playoff win in school history and everything is gravy from here. But Schroder says team has got their eyes on the prize
#5 Tri Center 9-1, #1 AC/GC 10-0. Game time tonight is 7 pm, Scouting Report 5; In the Huddle 5:15, Pre Game 6:30 on KSOM
Complete Interview with AC/GC Head Coach Cody Matthewson
Complete Interview with Tri Center Head Coach Ryan Schroder
