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Starting with senior night introductions at 6:30 p.m., Friday is a big night for the 2022 Creston football team.
An extension of the 2022 season hinges on the outcome of the final district matchup of the year between the host Panthers (6-2 overall, 2-2 District 6) and longtime rival Atlantic (4-4, 2-2).
ADM, 3-1 in district play with a final game at winless Saydel this week, appears to be headed to the second automatic playoff berth behind district champion and No. 1-ranked Harlan. However, by finishing third at 3-2 and going 7-2 overall, Creston is in a good position to be one of the four at-large qualifiers in Class 3A with a victory Friday.
Currently, Creston rests ninth on the Iowa High School Athletic Association’s Ratings Percentage Index (RPI). Atlantic also still harbors hopes, sitting at 16th place and needing a victory to move up. (Sixteen teams qualify for the playoffs, but each district has two automatic qualifiers and District 5′s second qualifier, Grinnell, would currently “bump” a higher team as the Tigers are 17th on the RPI rankings.)
A year ago, Creston won its season finale at Atlantic, 49-19, but finished one position out of playoff qualification at 6-3 overall. It’s possible for four teams from one district to qualify — it happened last year. But, Morrison doesn’t want to take any chances.
“It’s a must win for us and the kids know that,” Creston coach Brian Morrison said. “There are a lot of big games this week and we don’t know how they’ll all unfold, but with a win we feel good about our chances.”
Morrison said it’s an important game as well for his team’s 16 seniors, who could be playing their final game at Panther Field.
Atlantic and Creston have had similar paths through the district schedule, both suffering sizable defeats against ADM and Harlan, while cruising to victories over Saydel and Knoxville. The difference is that Atlantic went 2-2 in non-district games, while the Panthers were 4-0. Atlantic opened the season with losses to Glenwood and Kuemper Catholic before beating Shenandoah and Ballard.
The Trojans have presented a dangerous passing offense, even after the injury to senior quarterback Caden Andersen in week six against Harlan. Andersen had completed 94 passes for 1,102 yards and 10 TDs before being sidelined.
Since then, sophomore Tristen Hayes has completed 23 of 36 passes for 460 yards and seven touchdowns with three interceptions. In total, Atlantic has passed for 1,562 yards this season compared to Creston’s 1,370, but Panther senior Kyle Strider is the highest-ranked passer in 3A between the teams in fifth place with 1,363 yards on 90 completions in 178 attempts. Strider has 11 touchdown passes and five interceptions.
Like Creston, Atlantic has a trio of primary receivers headed by Colton Rasmussen’s 32 receptions for 649 yards and 12 TDs.
“They have really good receivers. They want to throw the ball first,” Morrison said. “He (Rasmussen) is a really good athlete, one of the better basketball players in the conference. He’s one of the better receivers we’ll see, and that’s saying something when you consider some of the receivers in our district.”
Three ball carriers have exceeded 350 yards for the Trojans, headed by Dante Hedrington’s 561 yards and four touchdowns. But, none come close to the Class 3A-leading 1,209 yards by Creston’s Brennan Hayes. As a team, Creston has rushed for 1,802 yards compared to Atlantic’s 1,470 yards.
“Last year it was a competitive game for a half and then we kind of wore them down,” Morrison said. “We have to play a complete game. We can’t have a situation like the Knoxville game where we got into the red zone multiple times without scoring any points. You can’t do that against Atlantic.”
Creston’s defense, led by Gannon Greenwalt’s 43.5 tackles and Max Chapman’s 8.5 tackles for losses, has yielded 165 points compared to Atlantic’s 221 points allowed. Morrison hopes to contain Atlantic’s aerial attack and control the time of possession with defensive stops.
“We have to make them earn it and not give up big plays,” Morrison said. “Field position will be critical. We have to win the special teams.”
OFFENSE
T Max Chapman6-4240Jr.
G Austin Seaton6-0195Sr.
C Jagger Luther5-8210Jr.
G Tucker Rohrig6-1215Jr.
T Quinten Fuller6-2235Jr.
WR Brandon Briley5-8145Jr.
WR Trey Chesnut5-9165Sr.
WR Dylan Calvin6-0165Jr.
QB Kyle Strider6-2185Sr.
RB Brennan Hayes6-0180Jr.
H Will Bolinger5-9180Jr.
PK Brennan Hayes6-0180Jr.
DEFENSE
DL Max Chapman6-4240Jr.
DL Quinten Fuller6-2235Jr.
DL Payton Conley6-0160Sr.
OLB Austin Evans5-8150Jr.
ILB Ty Morrison6-0185Sr.
ILB Austin Seaton6-0195Sr.
OLB Cade Wurster5-10170Sr.
CB McCoy Haines5-9145Jr.
CB Dylan Calvin6-0165Jr.
S Gannon Greenwalt6-0185Sr.
S Cael Turner6-2165Jr.
P Dylan Calvin6-0165Jr.