Never did a cold, wet and muddy night feel so glorious.
In vanquishing previously unbeaten West Elk, 38-36, to open the Kansas Eight Man, Division I playoffs, Yates Center High’s Wildcats toppled an offensive juggernaut that had previously over-powered all nine of its opponents — including those same Wildcats. The Patriots knocked off Yates Center 52-6 in the second game of the year, ending the contest at half-time.
But Yates Center head coach Ben Wiehn knew the rematch was going to be different as the Wildcats began their first drive of the game.
“I knew then it was going to be a heckuva game,” Wiehn said. “Our offensive line did a tremendous job with its drive blocking.”
A similar effort to the West Elk win may be needed Saturday to contend with the Wildcats’ regional hosts at Clifton-Clyde. Kickoff is at 5 p.m. at Clifton-Clyde’s Ed Buller Field.
THE LINE figured prominently in Yates Center’s rushing totals against West Elk. The Wildcats churned out 330 yards on the ground, led by senior Caleb DeNoon’s 223-yard effort with three touchdowns.
The Wildcats average more than 270 rushing yards per game.
DeNoon leads the way with 1,546 rushing yards and 31 touchdowns. Austin McNett follows with 767 yards on the ground and 11 scores.
If opponents focus too much on stopping the Wildcat running game, DeNoon is fully capable of doing damage through the air. He has 659 passing yards and nine touchdowns, with only two interceptions.
Two senior classmates, Robert Arnold and Trevor Chism, are his favorite targets. Arnold leads Yates Center with 23 catches for 401 yards with five touchdowns. Chism has 153 yards on nine catches for three touchdowns. McNett has 105 yards on 10 receptions.
McNett and DeNoon lead the Wildcat defense with 10 and nine tackles per game, respectively. Justin Rossillon, a junior has 72 tackles, including two tackles for loss. Arnold leads the Wildcats with five tackles for loss.
THE EAGLES stick to the ground for most of their damage, averaging 303 rushing yards per contest, led by quarterback Caleb Gelino.
The 5-11, 175-pound senior has rushed for 1,293 yards — nearly 8 yards per carry — while completing 40 passes for 579 yards.
Two other standouts also are capable of racking up big yards. Senior Austin Biggerstaff, 5-8, 150, has 769 yards on 134 carries. Senior Courtney VanCampen has 651 yards on 120 carries.
Clifton-Clyde returned to the playoffs this year after missing out the past two seasons, despite going 7-2 and 6-2, respectively.
There were no such issues for Clifton-Clyde this season. Their 8-2 overall record included a 5-1 district mark.
Yates Center is 7-3.
They scored 14 unanswered points in the second half in knocking off Peabody-Burnes, 42-26. The Eagles racked up 257 yards in the contest, also played in wet, dreary conditions.
