Johnson Named 1st Team All-State

DES MOINES — North Cedar quarterback Jayden Johnson was named to the 1st Team All-State list published by the Iowa Sports Spotlight last weekend.  Johnson was one of three North Cedar players honored with All-State honors by the statewide publication.

Johnson led all of class 1A in passing yards with 2,734 and touchdown passes with 35.  His passing yard total was the fourth highest in all classes statewide. His 35 touchdown passes tied Otis Robey of Twin Cedars (8-man football) for the highest TD pass total statewide in all classes.  He had a completion percentage of 58.8% and a quarterback rating of 159.1.  He also rushed for 653 yards and 6 touchdowns with a 6.4-yard average per carry.  Johnson was third in the state in all classes in total offense (rushing and passing) with 3,387 yards and 41 total touchdowns.

Two Knight linemen were named 1st Team selections.  Seniors Noah Sander and Adam Poduska were on the 1A top team of offense and defense respectively.  Sander helped block for the Knights offense that was 8th in class 1A in scoring offense with 414 points.  North Cedar finished with a record of 9-2 and advanced to the second round of the class 1A playoffs.  The North Cedar offense racked up nearly 5,000 yards of total offense this season.

Adam Poduska led North Cedar in tackles with 138 and had 7 quarterback sacks.  He also had three fumble recoveries.

Poduska also rushed for a team high 695 yards and 13 touchdowns, caught 16 passes for 188 yards and 2 touchdowns and kicked 41 PAT’s and one field goal.

Malaby was a 2nd team All-State selection despite leading class 1A in receptions with 101.  That total was 31 more than the second leading receiver, Luke West of Ogden who had 70 catches.  Malaby’s yardage total of 1,488 and touchdown total of 22 led class 1A.

Malaby’s totals for receptions, yards and touchdown catches were tops in all classes statewide for each category.

The West Branch Bears had three All-State players on the list.  Sophomore running back Luke Lenoch was a 1st team All-State selection while seniors Lucas Lamont (quarterback) and Jacob Giese (defensive line) were 2nd team All-State selections.

Other class 1A District 5 All-State selections were a pair of second team All-State selections.  Durant punter Will Bentley was named to the second team as was Alburnett placekicker Joey Phillip.

Class 1A Iowa Sports Spotlight All-State Team

Class 1A

1st Team All-State Offense

QB-Drew Cook, Senior, Iowa City Regina

QB-Jayden Johnson, Senior, North Cedar (Stanwood)

RB-Trent Johnson, Sophomore, Dike-New Hartford

RB-Luke Lenoch, Sophomore, West Branch

RB-Vaughn Moser, Senior, West Lyon (Inwood)

RB-Sam Wegner, Senior, IKM-Manning

WR-Nathan Stenger, Junior, Iowa City Regina

WR-Jordan Rommes, Senior, South Winneshiek (Calmar)

OL-Phil Arendt, Senior, Iowa City Regina

OL-Nick Chapman, Senior, Emmetsburg

OL-Tommy Irvin, Senior, Dike-New Hartford

OL-Neil Metzger, Senior, West Lyon (Inwood)

OL-Cal Twait, Senior, Manson-NW Webster

Utility-T.J. O’Tool, Junior, St. Edmond (Fort Dodge)

Kicker-Jacob Adam, Senior, Iowa City Regina

2nd Team All-State Offense

QB-Cayce Good, Senior, Ogden

QB-Lucas Lamont, Senior, West Branch

RB-Peyton Crawford, Junior, Sigourney-Keota

RB-Jake Krahenbuhl, Senior, Saint Ansgar

RB-Austin Lentz, Junior, Ogden

RB-Michael Santi, Sophomore, Madrid

WR-Ian Malaby, Junior, North Cedar (Stanwood)

WR-Peyton Pedersen, Junior, Central Decatur (Leon)

OL-Luke Gallagher, Senior, Iowa City Regina

OL-Ethan Kipp, Senior, South Winneshiek (Calmar)

OL-Chad Remsberg, Senior, St. Edmond (Fort Dodge)

OL-Noah Sander, Senior, North Cedar (Stanwood)

OL-Brett Waechter, Senior, Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn

Utility-Derrick Henkenius, Junior, South Central Calhoun

Kicker- Joey Phillip, Senior, Alburnett

Class 1A

1st Team All-State Defense

DL-Luis Uribe, Senior, South Winneshiek (Calmar)

DL-Jake Newborg, Senior, West Lyon (Inwood)

DL-Adam Poduska, Senior, North Cedar (Stanwood)

DL-Rylan Richardson, Junior, South Central Calhoun

LB-Jake Brinkman, Senior, Iowa City Regina

LB-Ryan Hageman, Senior, South Winneshiek (Calmar)

LB-Gavin Richey, Senior, Panorama (Panora)

LB-Trenton Wells, Senior, Central Decatur (Leon)

DB-Colton Hacker, Senior, IKM-Manning

DB-Taylor Miedema, Junior, Western Christian (Hull)

DB-Landon  Peed, Senior, St. Edmond (Fort Dodge)

Punter-Chase Rath, Sophomore, Highland (Riverside)

2nd Team All-State Defense

DL-Kyser Allen, Senior, Sumner-Fredericksburg

DL-Kullen Brossard, Junior, Saint Ansgar

DL-Jacob Giese, West Branch

DL-Nick Hindt, Senior, St. Edmond (Fort Dodge)

LB-Cody Eischeid, Senior, IKM-Manning

LB-Shane Karkosh, Senior, Hudson

LB-Justin Hunter, Junior, Iowa City Regina

LB-Scott Sievert, Senior, Saint Ansgar

DB-Connor Neuroth, Junior, Dike-New Hartford

DB-Josh Peters, Senior, Lake Mills

DB-Paul Ter Wee, Senior, West Lyon (Inwood)

Punter-Will Bentley, Junior, Durant

Scarbrough's Take - What Happens If All Goes Well

Dalvin Cook breaks loose for a second half touchdown in FSU's 30-26 win over Miami. (Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports)

My friend Lyn Scarbrough from Lindy's Sports presents an interesting question in his online column this week.  What happens if all goes as planned in college football?

Scarbrough: Weekly Lindy's Column

Beavers Persevere Through Tough 2014

Wilton quarterback Javin Drake (10) passes downfield during the Beavers 2014 season opening game with Williamsburg.  The Beavers finished the season 3-6, but, were in the playoff chase until week 7.  Photo by Ryan Stonebraker.

Wilton Football Wrap-Up Podcast 

WILTON — After losing 90-percent of their offense, two, All-District players and their head coach for over 10 years, preseason media didn’t leave much hope for the Wilton Beavers.  They proved a lot of people wrong though.  Despite finishing 2014 3-6, The Beavers were right in the playoff mix and after a tough loss to Alburnett in week 7 ending their playoff chances, the Beavers had an incredible opportunity to finish the season against two, top-10 class 1A teams - West Branch (Top-5), and North Cedar (Top-10).

“It was fun down the stretch.  We had our chance for the playoffs, but when that was gone, we have an opportunity to play two of the best teams in the state and we learned a lot from those chances,” said Wilton coach Ryan Hetzler.

Wilton won three of their four September games to take a 3-2 record into October.  Wilton was outmatched in their season opener with Williamsburg in a 56-6 loss, but, in their next four games, the Beavers scored 25 or more points in their three wins and over 30 points in two of those football games.

Injuries also were a big factor this year as the Beavers lost key guys for long stretches making an already thin roster, thinner.

What To Look Forward To In 2015:

1. Wilton will have top skill guys back.  The Beavers return their leading passer, rusher and receiver.  Back will be quarterback Javin Drake, running back Bryce Oveson and receiver Evan Reifert.

2. The long road trips to Bellevue and Mediapolis flip and the trip to Williamsburg in week one next year will be the longest trip of the season for the Beavers.

3. Special Teams could be special.  The Beavers return placekicker Caleb Timmsen who has a strong leg as does punter Javin Drake.  The Beavers also will have several returners back giving the Beavers the chance to flip field position more consistently next season which will give the Beavers, hopefully, better field position.

Questions Marks in 2015:

1. Low numbers in the junior class could have a mark on depth on the varsity level when they become seniors next season.  Hetzler was quick to shoot down the impact however, as Wilton’s potential leaders for the team next season will come from this class.

2. Who puts the time in in the spring and summer next year to get better.  The real ‘getting better’ happens in the weight room in these seasons as well as making sure players do not take too much time off.  It begins this winter season as many of the players on the team are wrestlers or basketball players.

3. Work along the defensive line will have to take place.  The Beavers graduate all-district lineman Logan Reddick.  The Beavers will have to get more tackles from their front seven, after two of their 2014 tackle leaders were defensive backs.

2014 Results:

August 2014

8/29            Williamsburg        L    56-6

September 2014

9/5          @ Louisa-Muscatine    W    25-14

9/12            @ Bellevue        L    33-6

9/19            Durant            W    14-13

9/26            Wapello        W    34-12

October 2014

10/3            @ Mediapolis        L    41-7

10/10            @ Alburnett        L    50-14

10/17            West Branch        L    56-0

10/24            @ North Cedar    L    52-14

2014 Roster:

Seniors — 2-Issac Vasquez; 7-Hilbert Stoelk; 9-Zach Keppy; 19-Alex Gradert; 30-Adam DeLong; 40-Jeremi Williamson; 53-Ricky Creamer; 61-Logan Reddick; 72-Dakota Dussenberry; 88-Aaron Cameron; 99-Braden Mohrfeld.

Juniors — 10-Javin Drake; 11-Cody Navarro; 23-Chaz Hartman; 54-Austin Keppy; 57-Gage Maynard.

Sophomores — 13-Evan Reifert; 22-Derek McQuillen; 25-Damien Maynard; 34-Bryce Oveson; 41-Colten Heuer; 50-Ethan Fagner; 56-Brady Barrett; 69-Damon Hughes; 71-Nathaniel DeVore; 83-Caleb Timmsen.

Freshmen — 12-Jacob Sheperd; 15-Drake Hayes; 18-Hunter Stoll; 24-Kolton Armey; 32-Trey Brisker; 44-Tyler Hartman; 51-Tommy Hayes; 52-Dylan Welsch; 55-Dylan Leinen; 73-Austin Pleggenkuhle.

Individual Statistics:

Passing: Javin Drake 72-for-146 845 yards 7 TD’s, 4 INT’s.; Even Reifert 8-for-35 48 yards 0 TD’s, 2 INT’s; Bryce Oveson 1-for-2 5 yards 0 TD’s, 0 INT’s.; Hilbert Stoelk 0-for-1 0 yards, 0 TD’s, 0 INT’s.

Rushing: Javin Drake 63 carries 304 yards 1 TD’s, 4.8-yard ave.; Zach Keppy 71 carries 290 yards 3 TD’s, 4.1-yard ave.; Bryce Oveson 75 carries 223 yards 3 TD’s, 3.0-yard ave.; Cody Navarro 4 carries 33 yards 1 TD, 8.3-yard ave.; Trey Brisker 20 carries 19 yards 0 TD’s, 1.0-yard ave.; Evan Reifert 12 carries 7 yards 0 TD’s, 0.6-yard ave.; Isaac Vasquez 3 carries 1 yard 0 TD’s, 0.3-yard ave.; Damien Maynard 3 carries (-1) yard 0 TD’s; Tyler Hartman 4 carries (-4) yards, 0 TD’s.

Receiving: Cody Navarro 33 catches 265 yards 0 TD’s, 8.5-yard ave.; Evan Reifert 6 catches 175 yards 3 TD’s, 29.2-yard ave.; Isaac Vasquez 10 catches 121 yards 2 TD’s 12.1-yard ave.; Aaron Cameron 6 catches 109 yards 18.2-yard ave.; Zach Keppy 10 catches 101 yards 0 TD’s, 10.1-yard ave.; Bryce Oveson 9 catches 87 yards 0 TD’s, 9.7-yard ave.; Hilbert Stoelk 3 catches 26 yards 0 TD’s, 8.7-yard ave.; Trey Brisker 4 catches 14 yards 1 TD, 3.5-yard ave.

Kicking Statistics:

Kick-Offs: Caleb Timmsen 25-1,009 yards; Javin Drake 2-80 yards.

Kick-Off Returns: Cody Navarro 19-422 yards 1 TD; Isaac Vasquez 16-322 yards; Bryce Oveson 5-71 yards; Jeremi Williamson 3-32 yards; Aaron Cameron 3-31 yards; Zach Keppy 2-31 yards; Trey Brisker 2-17; Javin Drake 1-26 yards; Hilbert Stoelk 1-9; Chaz Hartman 1-8; Caleb Timmsen 1-3.

PAT’s: Caleb Timmsen 13-for-16.

Field Goals: Caleb Timmsen 3-for-5.  Longest 35.

Punting: Javin Drake 31-1,159 yards 37.4-yard ave; Evan Reifert 11-353 yards 32.1-yard ave.; Chaz Hartman 5-134 yards, 26.8-yard ave.

Punt Returns: Isaac Vaasquez 6-36 yards; Cody Navarro 5-52.

Defensive Statistics:

Tackles (S-A-T): Bryce Oveson 66-19 85; Cody Navarro 56-25 81; Javin Drake 29-18 47; Trey Brisker 31-11 43; Caleb Timmsen 27-10 37; Zach Keppy 23-13 36; Logan Reddick 21-12 33; Aaron Cameron 20-9 29; Ricky Creamer 17-10 27; Hilbert Stoelk 19-5 24; Chaz Hartman 17-1 19; Gage Maynard 10-7 17; Evan Reifert 9-3 12; Isaac Vasquez 7-5 12; Austin Keppy 7-2 9; Braden Mohrfeld 7-2 9; Damien Maynard 4-4 8; Jeremi Williamson 7-0 7; Nathaniel DeVore 5-2 7; Kolton Armey 5-0 5; Brady Barrett 3-1 4; Devyn Davis 2-2 4; Colton Heuer 3-0 3; Tyler Hartman 1-2 3; Dylan Leinen 2-0 2; Jacob Sheperd 1-0 1; Austin Pleggenkuhle 1-0 1.

Interceptions: Bryce Oveson 2-34 yards, Issac Vasquez 1-1 yard, Javin Drake 1-11 yards, Cody Navarro 1-16 yards, Chaz Hartman 1-20 yards, Aaron Cameron 1-1 yard.

Fumble Recoveries: Isaac Vasquez 1, Bryce Oveson 1, Caleb Timmsen 1.

Sacks: Bryce Oveson 4, Caleb Timmsen 1, Logan Reddick 1, Aaron Cameron 1, Ricky Creamer 1.

Hockey 101 Extra: Hockey Cards

I have long been a collector of sports cards.  At times I have had as many as 50,000 cards of various sports.  Now as I am closer to 40 than 14, I have less than that.  One thing that I never had was hockey cards.  That changed this week as one of the newer businesses in Tipton, two doors down from the paper, sells sports cards and things.  There, I was able to get some hockey cards.  A box of them in fact.  I am going to share photos below.  

In 1879 and 1880 various card sized drawings depicting ice hockey in Canada.

An example of Pro Set hockey cards in the early 1990's.  I have lined up the cards in a 'line' left wing Stewart Gavin; two centers, and right wing Ilkka Sinisalo.

Here are examples of hockey cards that I got.  Score at the bottom, Pinnacle on the middle right, Pro Set in the orange in the top-right and Topps the last card on the top left.

Rough Hockey Card Timeline:

1910 - The first hockey cards in North America were issued for the first NHL season by Imperial Tobacco of Canada.  There were 36 cards in the set.

**In the 20’s and 30’s sports cards evolved from being put in tobacco products to being bundled in with candy and gum.

1933 - The World Wide Gum set was released with two different backs one with both French and English and the other only with English.  Also in 1933, the O-Pee-Chee had black and white pictures on the front, but the photos were against a color background that was Red, Blue, Orange and Green.  Backs were in both English and French.

1954 - The Topps Company releases a hockey set.  First hockey set after two years of issuing baseball cards.  Topps took a year off in the 1955-56 season and restarted the following season.  The prize card from that set was a Gordie Howe, a rookie card is worth $15,000.

1990 - Score acquires a NHL license.  Having produced football cards they went with hockey cards.  The Score cards had a better paper for the cards, action photos and improved writing on the back of the cards.  That same year, Upper Deck begins making hockey cards after their success with baseball cards - their first year was 1989.  They were the first company in 10 years to be licensed by all four leagues.

Wildcats Win Early, Late in 2014

Durant's Brandon Dykes will return next season as will two others - Gavin Blake and Conrad Hoover to give the Wildcats a strong group of running backs next season.

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2014 Durant FB Wrap-Up Podcast - Click on 14.1 in center of page

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Wildcats Win Early, Late in 2014

DURANT — The Durant Wildcats won their first game and last game of the 2014 season and finished the year 3-6.  The Wildcats were in the class 1A district 5 playoff chase for over two-thirds of the season.  The Wildcats losses to Wilton and Alburnett took away any chance of the postseason.  Despite that, Durant had plenty to be excited about.

Quarterback Will Bentley set a new school record in passing yards and on special teams, Bentley backed up a 1st team All-State 2013 season punting by averaging 48.2-yards a punt this season.

Defensively, Gavin Blake led the state (1A) in tackles at the end of the regular season.

What to look forward to in 2015:

1. Durant will have a leg up on many of the district teams with starting quarterback Will Bentley back along with starting running backs Gavin Blake, Brandon Dykes and Jacob Conley.

2. One more home game.  2015 will flip the home schedule to five games after the Wildcats played four home games in 2014.  With one of the road games 5-miles down the road at Wilton, on the 'off' five years, the Wildcats nearly can say that they have five home games.

3. Opportunity knocks.  Many key guys graduate on defense and on special teams.  There will be opportunity to earn playing time.  It will be fun to see who steps up next season and where.

4. 10 seniors to be and 9 juniors to be could give the Wildcats some much needed depth and subs.  Add nine more sophomores to be and Durant could have some solid varsity numbers next season.

Question marks in 2015:

1. Who will step up and be the #1 wide receiver?  Leading receiver Alik Lorenz graduates after having over 60 receptions and 1,000 yards combined in his junior and senior seasons combined.

2. Who will handle the placekicking duty?  2014 placekicker Nathan Paulsen graduates.  Paulsen handled kick-offs, kicked PAT's and field goals for the Wildcats.

3. Can the Wildcats win the close games in 2015?  Durant's playoff chances were hurt in 2014 by close losses to district foes Wilton (14-13), Alburnett (20-17) and Bellevue (27-19).  Two of those teams made the playoffs.

4. How will the Wildcats take advantage of five home games instead of four games.  Rival Wilton will play in Durant as will district foes North Cedar, Alburnett and non-district teams Mid-Prairie and Camanche.

2014 Results:

August 2014

8/29        @ Mid-Prairie         W    7-6

September 2014

9/5        Tipton                       L    27-17

9/12        Wapello                 W    34-14

9/19        @ Wilton                L    14-13

9/26        @ Alburnett           L    20-17

October 2014

10/3        West Branch          L    53-13

10/10        @ North Cedar    L    47-8

10/17        Bellevue               L    27-19

10/24        @ Camanche      W    43-0

2014 Roster:

Seniors — 6-Nathan Paulsen; 23-Conrad Hoover; 25-Austin Bartenhagen; 51-Kyle Lafrenz; 78-Levi Novinski; 79-Brad Burton; 83-Colton Sloan; 88-Alik Lorenz.

Juniors — 7-Will Bentley; 17-Chris Saley; 21-Lake Koenig; 22-Shane Harris; 28-Gavin Blake; 31-Noah Cawiezell; 36-Brandon Dykes; 44-Tanner Kleppe; 50-Jacob Mangels; 69-Drew Larion.

Sophomores — 10-Reece Bird; 11-Leo Callison; 20-Jacob Conley; 52-Jacob Prunchak; 60-Drake Miller; 63-Nathan Heick; 66-Denver Feuerbach; 75-Chase Beverlin; 75-Alan Hammel.

Freshmen — 12-Curtis Lilienthal; 18-Ty Chenault; 22-Cole Stineman; 45-Cale Frett; 55-Dawson Frett; 68-Dakota Tegtmeier; 76-Mason Bird; 82-Cole Miedema; 84-Jarad Custer.

Individual Statistics:

Passing: Will Bentley 111-for-201 1,208 yards 7 TD’s, 13 INT’s; Gavin Blake 1-for-1 48 yards, 0 TD’s, 0 INT’s; Brandon Dykes 0-for-1 0 yards, 0 TD’s, 1 INT.

Rushing: Brandon Dykes 127 carries 594 yards 4.7-yard ave. 6 TD’s; Gavin Blake 89 carries 464 yards 5.2-yard ave; 5 TD’s, Will Bentley 42 carries 183 yards 4.4-yard ave. 2 TD’s; Conrad Hoover 33 carries 152 yards 4.6-yard ave. 2 TD’s; Jacob Conley 6 carries 10 yards 1.7-yard ave.

Receiving: Alik Lorenz 36 catches 521 yards 14.5-yard ave. 6 TD’s; Brandon Dykes 29 catches 289 yards 10.0-yard ave.; Conrad Hoover 14 catches 127 yards 9.1-yard ave.; Gavin Blake 16 catches 110 yards 6.9-yard ave. 1 TD; Jacob Conley 8 catches 106 yards 13.3-yard ave.; Colton Sloan 7 catches 83 yards 11.9-yard ave.; Cale Frett 1 catch 12 yards; Chris Saley 1 catch 8 yards.

Kicking Statistics:

Kick-Offs: Nathan Paulsen 28-712 yards.

Kick-Off Returns: Jacob Conley 10-134 yards, Noah Cawiezell 4-128 yards 1 TD, Conrad Hoover 1-20, Gavin Blake 1-1, Drake Miller 1-0.

PAT’s: Nathan Paulsen 12-for-19.

Field Goals: Nathan Paulsen 2-for-2.  Longest 25 yards.

Punting: Will Bentley 18-868 yards, 48.2-yard ave.  Longest 58 yards.

Punt Returns: none.

Defensive Statistics:

Tackles (S-A-T): Gavin Blake 71-71 142,  Kyle Lafrenz 22-70 92, Brandon Dykes 31-43 74, Alik Lorenz 13-31 44, Tanner Kleppe 13-27 40, Lake Koenig 17-20 37, Conrad Hoover 10-24 34, Chris Saley 7-16 23, Noah Cawiezell 7-12 19, Austin Bartenhagen 5-14 19, Levi Novinski 5-13 18, Jacob Conley 4-7 11, Drew Larion 3-6 9, Will Bentley 3-5 8, Cale Frett 0-4 4, Drake Miller 0-3 3, Dawson Frett 2-0 2, Nathan Paulsen 0-1 1, Jacob Prunchak 0-1 1, Denver Feuerbach 0-1 1.

Interceptions: Gavin Blake 4-50 yards; Brandon Dykes 4-12 yards; Noah Cawiezell 2-5 yards; Chris Saley 1-0 yards; Lake Koenig 1-0 yards; Austin Bartenhagen 1-1 yard.

Fumble Recoveries: Conrad Hoover 1, Noah Cawiezell 1, Alik Lorenz 1.

Sacks: Gavin Blake 12, Brandon Dykes 6, Alik Lorenz 6, Tanner Kleppe 2.