LAST YEAR — The Cardinals defeated the hosts Hawks behind senior tailback Trenton Wells’ 329 rushing yards and four touchdowns while the guests added 198 yards and a score through the air. Peyton Pedersen had four grabs for 79 yards for Central Decatur and is the top offensive returner from the game.
W-G threw for 111 yards and ran 59 times for 291 yards but struggled to find the end zone. Tanner Vermaas had 33 yards on 10 carries and is the top offensive returner for the Hawks.
ABOUT THE CARDINALS — Central Decatur opened with a 46-8 win over Nodaway Valley before falling, 48-12, to visiting PCM. The redbirds slipped by DMC, 22-19, but dropped a 49-30 contest at I-35 and a 48-14 tilt against Panorama. They topped Southwest Valley, 28-12, last Friday.
Carter Boothe is 77-of-160 for 838 yards and 10 TDs passing but has thrown eight interceptions.
Three tall receivers lead provide big targets for Boothe, with 6-4, 190-pound senior Pedersen having 45 receptions for 546 yards and eight TDs. Mickey Morgan (6-2, 165) has 12 snares for 158 yards and a TD while Tyler Davis (6-2, 175) has 11 snags for 110 yards and a TD.
Boswell Reyden (70-328, 4 TDs) is the leading rusher but is out, leaving Kade Kelso (36-242) the top choice in the ground game.
Kelso’s 42 tackles lead the defense, with Morgan making 35 stops. Kelso has eight tackles for a loss, as does Kyle Potter, so also has three sacks to his credit. The team has eight interceptions (Pederson has three) and five fumble recoveries. They have returned one pick for a TD and one kick for a score.
ABOUT THE HAWKS — W-G has turned around a 1-3 start with two consecutive wins, including a 26-12 Homecoming win over Southwest Valley and a non-district 20-13 overtime victory at South Hamilton last Friday.
While Central Decatur has outscored W-G, 152-75, the Hawk defense has been stouter, yielding 122 points to the 184 allowed by the Cardinals. The teams have faced two common opponents, with results that are nearly identical. Both lost to Panorama, Central Decatur by a 48-14 margin and W-G by a 47-13 gap, with the Cardinals topping SW Valley 28-12 while W-G topped the Timberwolves 26-12.
Brendan Bird is 20-50-2 for 257 yards and two scores through the air, with Johnnie Morgan (7-120, 2 TDs) and Race Brant (7-85) his main options.
Tanner Vermaas has accounted for 80 percent of W-G’s rushing yards, having carried 159 times for 575 yards and five TDs. Josh Saak (23-94, 2 TDs) and Brant (29-90) have also seen a share of the run game duties.
Austin Scharlau’s 39.5 tackles leads the defense, with Saak making 33.5 stops, Morgan 30.5 and Vermaas 28.5 so far. The team has two interceptions but has excelled at stripping opponents of the football, as their 14 fumble recoveries is tops in Class 1A and is seventh among all classes statewide.
Probable Starters
WOODWARD-GRANGER Offense CENTRAL DECATUR Defense
No. Pos. Name Yr. Ht. Wt. No. Pos. Name Yr. Ht. Wt.
58 LT Drew Jacobson 11 6-2 230 72 DT Justin Shields 11 6-0 220
62 LG James Barger 12 6-0 210 56 DT Trey Reed 10 6-0 215
74 C Josh Groves 12 5-10 245 54 NG Keeton Gilbert 9 5-5 185
52 RG Hunter Vermaas 12 5-10 220 2 DE Kyle Potter 11 5-8 150
71 RT Brody Easter 10 6-2 225 44 LB Tyke Walker 9 5-10 180
33 TE Logan Canova 10 6-2 222 32 LB Kade Kelso 11 5-7 165
14 QB Brendan Bird 10 6-0 195 55 LB Rylon Odell 10 5-10 185
27 FB Josh Saak 10 5-9 160 33 CB Tyler Davis 10 6-2 175
28 TB Tanner Vermaas 11 5-10 188 7 CB Mickey Morgan 11 6-2 165
20 SB Race Brant 12 5-8 168 12 S Peyton Pedersen 12 6-4 190
13 SE Johnnie Morgan 12 6-0 165 17 S Carter Boothe 10 5-10 150
WOODWARD-GRANGER Defense CENTRAL DECATUR Offense
No. Pos. Name Yr. Ht. Wt. No. Pos. Name Yr. Ht. Wt.
33 DE Logan Canova 10 6-2 222 71 OL Trace Carson 11 6-2 220
58 DT Drew Jacobson 11 6-2 230 44 OL Tyke Walker 9 5-10 180
52 DT Hunter Vermaas 12 5-10 220 55 C Rylon Odell 10 5-10 185
61 DE Joe Sturgeon 10 6-0 225 66 OL Hunter Smith 12 6-2 175
55 LB Nick Musich 12 5-10 170 72 OL Justin Shields 11 6-0 220
27 LB Josh Saak 10 5-9 160 17 QB Carter Boothe 10 5-10 150
28 LB Tanner Vermaas 11 5-10 188 2 TB Kyle Potter 11 5-8 150
24 LB Austin Scharlau 10 5-9 155 32 FB Kade Kelso 11 5-7 165
13 FS Johnnie Morgan 12 6-0 165 7 WR Mickey Morgan 11 6-2 165
20 CB Race Brant 12 5-8 168 33 WR Tyler Davis 10 6-2 175
5 CB J. P. Nixon 10 5-9 160 12 WR Peyton Pedersen 12 6-4 190
DISTRICT 8
| District | Overall | Point Diff Avg |
|||||
| Win | Loss | Tie | Win | Loss | Tie | ||
| Van Meter | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 13.00 |
| Panorama | 3 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 6.50 |
| Interstate-35 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Woodward-Granger | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | -2.00 |
| Central Decatur | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | -2.50 |
| Des Moines Christian | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | -3.33 |
| Southwest Valley | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | -13.00 |
Friday’s Games
Woodward-Granger at Central Decatur
Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont at Interstate-35 (ND)
Panorama at Des Moines Christian
Southwest Valley at Van Meter
