Canistota at Howard

HOWARD — Two nine-man blue bloods will collide again in a Cornbelt Conference showdown on Friday. 

Canistota and Howard face each other every season, and it’s annually one of the top nine-man games of the season. The Tigers clipped the Hawks last season, 21-20, in another tight contest. 

The teams started their 2023 seasons with shutout wins. Class 9AA No. 1 Howard blanked Howard, 26-0, in Alexandria. Howard’s Taiden Hoyer tossed three passing touchdowns and threw for 161 yards in the season opener.

The Tigers return 15 letterwinners — three starters on offense and three starters on defense — from last season’s 9-1 team. In addition to Hoyer, the Tigers also return tight end Luke Koepsell and running back Karsyn Feldhaus, while they also bring in McCook Central/Montrose transfers Weston Remmers, Jackson Remmers and Kade Grocott. Jackson Remmers and Grocott were Class 11B honorable mention all-staters last season. 

In its season opener, Class 9A No. 4 Canistota defeated Irene-Wakonda, 55-0. The Hawks are powered by all-state honorable mention selection Tage Ortman, who threw for 1,147 yards and 11 touchdowns last season, while rushing for 700 yards and nine more scores.

Gregory at Wolsey-Wessington 

WOLSEY — A pair of nine-man powers and Missouri Valley Conference foes will clash on Friday.

In a potential postseason preview, Class 9A No. 1 Gregory plays at Class 9A No. 3 Wolsey-Wessington in an early-season contest. 

It will be the third meeting in the past two seasons between the Gorillas and Warbirds. Gregory, which won last season’s Class 9A state championship, defeated Wolsey-Wessington (34-19) in the quarterfinals. The Gorillas also won the 2022 regular-season contest, 60-34. 

The conference rivals return a handful of playmakers and all-state caliber players. 

Gregory, which had its bye week in Week 1, will be led by quarterback Rylan Peck. Last season, the all-state quarterback and Joe Robbie MVP threw for 1,226 yards and 18 touchdowns, while rushing for 986 yards and 22 more scores. Fullback Trey Murray was also an all-state performer last season. 

Wolsey-Wessington won its season opener, a 50-0 win vs. Iroquois/Lake Preston. In the opener, the Warbirds rushed for 351 yards and received rushing scores from five different players. Austin Wyant racked up 111 rushing yards and a score. Tate French, an all-state tight end, added 85 rushing yards and a touchdown. 

Philip at Wall 

WALL — Two Western Great Plains Conference rivals will play in Wall on Friday.

Class 9AA No. 2 Wall hosts Philip, which is honorable mention in the Class 9A poll, in a conference clash. 

Wall won last year’s meeting, 49-14, extending its winning streak to nine games over the Scotties. 

The Eagles, who won last season’s Class 9AA state championship, racked up 449 total yards in the season opener. Wall’s Burk Blasius completed 13 of 15 passes, threw for 252 yards and tossed four touchdown receptions. He added 131 rushing yards and three more scores. Blasius threw passing touchdowns to Dawson Handcock, Younger Amiotte, Kale Crowser and Levi Sharp. 

Philip was idle during the first week of the season. The Scotties are headlined by all-stater Layton Terkildsen, who rushed for 1,494 yards and 16 touchdowns last season, while he added 153 receiving yards and two touchdowns. He intercepted six passes on defense last season. 

Hamlin at Dell Rapids St. Mary 

DELL RAPIDS — Two top-five nine-man teams will face off in Dell Rapids on Friday.

Class 9AA No. 4 Hamlin will play at Class 9B No. 3 Dell Rapids St. Mary in a marquee nine-man tilt. The Chargers defeated the Cardinals last season, 52-12. 

In their season opener, Hamlin blanked Florence-Henry, 54-0. The Chargers are headlined by senior running back Luke Fraser, who rushed for 1,634 yards and 18 touchdowns last season. He added 368 receiving yards and six more scores. Evan Stormo and Jameson Nebel were all-state honorable mention players last season.

In its opener, Dell Rapids St. Mary defeated Waverly-South Shore, 38-12. Nic Gaspar, an all-state running back, finished with five total touchdowns in the opener. Last season, Gaspar logged 887 rushing yards and 15 rushing touchdowns, while he hauled in 256 yards and two more scores. 

Faulkton Area at Hitchcock-Tulare 

TULARE — Two Class 9B top-five teams will clash in Tulare on Friday.

No. 1 Hitchcock-Tulare hosts No. 4 Faulkton Area, a matchup that features two Class 9B contenders. The Patriots won last season’s meeting, 50-14. 

Hitchcock-Tulare, which won last year’s Class 9B state championship, returns a pair of all-state players in Erik Salmen and Brendan Nowell. In a 50-0 win vs. Northwestern in the opener, Salmen rushed for 125 yards and two rushing touchdowns. Nowell scored five total touchdowns, two rushing and three passing. He finished with 151 passing yards and 43 rushing yards. 

The Trojans opened their 2023 season with a 24-6 win over Ipswich. Against the Tigers, Garrett Cramer and Spencer Melius scored rushing touchdowns. 

Sioux Falls Jefferson at Harrisburg

HARRISBURG — The 2023 Class 11AAA season starts with a rematch of last year’s state championship game.

No. 4 Sioux Falls Jefferson, which won the 2022 state championship, will play at No. 2 Harrisburg in a rematch of the title tilt. Jefferson won both meetings last season, including a 48-21 victory for the state title. The Cavaliers also won the opener, 43-13. 

The teams were hit hard by graduation, but both return playmakers to help offset the departures. 

Harrisburg is headlined by wide receivers Tytan Tryon and Max Carlson. 

Tryon hauled in 1,082 receiving yards and 18 touchdowns last season. Carlson registered 752 receiving yards and seven touchdowns, while rushing for 268 yards and nine more scores. 

Jefferson brings back three all-state defenders in Dawson Sechser, Thomas Heiberger and Dawshan Rolik. Heiberger, a University of Wisconsin commit, recorded 44 tackles and six sacks last season. Sechser posted 64 tackles, while Rolik recorded 40 tackles.