Every Wednesday during the regular season we will highlight the 8-Player Football game with a spotlight article on boundwisconsin.com. We'll look back at the action and big stories from the previous week, look ahead at the coming week's big match-ups, and select a Star of the Week.
8-Player coaches, please enter player stats on Bound Wisconsin so that we can continue having the necessary information to produce this weekly spotlight of your game, and feel free to send any news or information to us as well.
Looking Back
In a premier matchup last Thursday, tenth-ranked Lena/St. Thomas Aquinas shutout seventh-ranked Algoma 24-0. Senior Max Peterson ran for 153 yards and two scores.
New Auburn moved to 2-0 with a 58-6 win over Lake Holcombe on Thursday night. The Trojans hit on numerous big plays in the passing game, as senior quarterback Sawyer Jones threw for 364 yards and six touchdowns while completing 12 of 15 passes. He’d score a rushing touchdown as well.
Wabeno/Laona took it to Menominee Nation 74-0, putting up the points on just 272 yards of offense, as the Rebels intercepted four passes, two of which were returned for touchdowns.
Hurley defeated Ironwood (MI) 28-14 in the 86th meeting between the neighboring communities in different states. Ironwood still leads the all-time series 48-35-3.
Abundant Life/St. Ambrose beat Wisconsin Heights 36-14 on Friday night behind a huge performance from senior Anthony Ellingson, who completed 12-of-20 passes for 234 yards and three touchdowns, ran for 84 yards and two scores, and accounted for two, two-point conversions.
In the premier showdown on Friday night, second-ranked McDonell Central hammered eighth-ranked Clayton 66-0. The Macks ran for 313 yards on just 13 carries, averaging 24 yards per attempt. In addition to seven rushing touchdowns, the Macks scored via a 26-yard rumble return from senior Jonathon Brady.
Overall, Friday’s schedule was full of blowouts, with the the most points scored by a losing team being 16, while just one game was game was decided by two scores.
Looking Ahead
There are a couple of top ten matchups that highlight the Friday schedule in 8-Player Football.
Fifth-ranked Newman Catholic will take on sixth-ranked Almond-Bancroft, after the teams played a controversial game last season. Almond-Bancroft led 18-6 at halftime, but a rash of injuries left Newman Catholic short-handed, and after discussions, the teams did not resume the game, with Almond-Bancroft receiving a forfeit victory. Ultimately, the teams would tie along with Port Edwards for the Central Wisconsin-8 title.
Clayton was beaten soundly by McDonell Central in Week 2, but the Bears have to rebound quickly as they have another top ten matchup, with eighth-ranked Clayton welcoming in seventh-ranked Siren.
Athens has been very impressive so far this year and entered the rankings at number eight in the Bound Wisconsin Coaches Poll. The Bluejays host fellow unbeaten Flambeau this week, with the Falcons looking very good in back-to-back running clock wins over Bruce and Northwood/Solon Springs.
Star of the Week: Kroix Kempka, Suring
Suring defeated the Green Bay NEW Lutheran co-op 44-24 on Thursday behind a big offensive performance. Junior running back Kroix Kempka ran for 336 yards and three touchdowns on 16 carries, adding eight catches for 163 yards and two touchdowns. He added five solo tackles and a sack on defense.
Travis Wilson serves as the Bound Wisconsin Manager. Wilson was selected as part of the Sports 40 Under 40 list by Coach & AD Magazine and the National High School Athletic Coaches Association for 2019. The Wisconsin Football Coaches Association (WFCA) named Travis the 2015 recipient of the Dave McClain Distinguished Service Award. He currently serves on the WFCA Executive Board and is a member of the Executive Board of the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association. A graduate of Richland Center High School and Mount Mercy College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Travis was a three-sport athlete in high school (football, baseball, basketball), inducted to the Richland Center High School Hall of Fame in 2023, and currently resides in Reedsburg. You can follow him on Twitter at @travisBound or reach him at [email protected].