Chanute (1-2) @ Ottawa (1-2)
The Blue Comets are coming off a tough loss at home against Fort Scott and prior to that outmatched against Pittsburg. Chanute’s offense was without sophomore quarterback Ty Bowman and plagued with illness on the front line heading into last weeks game. Coach Shields however didn’t make excuses on his teams performance on both sides of the ball with lack of tackling and blocking being problems.
Last year, Ottawa came to Chanute and put up a final score of 48-14. In fact, they wiped SEK League teams out of the playoffs last year beating Labette County and Fort Scott.
Ottawa is coming off a physical game against Baldwin. They are also a much different team than Chanute and other SEK League teams saw last year.
Chanute’s offense is averaging 19 PPG while the Cyclones are averaging 16 PPG through 3. This one will come down to defensive stops and eliminating mistakes. This should be a much more even match up than last year.
Coffeyville (2-1) v. Towanda-Circle (0-3)
Coffeyville-Field Kindley will be shooting for a third straight win this week as it opens a three-game homestand against winless Towanda-Circle.
The Golden Tornado improved to 2-1 overall with a 61-0 victory at Riverton a week ago. Since a season-opening loss to Class 5A playoff qualifier Great Bend, the Golden Tornado have won back-to-back games, which included a week-two home victory over Parsons.
In last week’s win over Riverton, the ‘Nado jumped out to a 43-0 halftime lead and never looked back. They racked up 382 total yards of offense, including 206 through the air on 9-of-13 passing from quarterback CJ Kelley. His top receiver was Tajahn Thomas, who had four catches for 106 yards.
Friday’s opponent, Townada-Circle, enters the contest at 0-3 overall following a 26-0 home loss to Augusta last week. Prior to that, the Thunderbirds fell to Maize South (47-0) and Winfield (32-16).
Last season, the Golden Tornado picked up a wild 42-38 victory over Circle in Towanda. Coffeyville jumped ahead 14-0 in the contest but needed a late touchdown to pull out the win.
Independence (1-2) @ Basehor-Linwood (3-0)
After posting its first win of the season, Independence will try to make it two in a row as it makes the long trek north to take on unbeaten Basehor-Linwood. The Bulldogs improved to 1-2 overall last week with a wild 56-50 victory at Parsons.
Independence racked up what is believed to be a school record 577 yards rushing in the win over the Vikings. The 106 combined points were the fourth-most ever recorded by two teams in an SEK contest. IHS had three players rush for more than 100 yards, including Jaden McGrath with 195, Amauryon Farley 193 and Josh Pralle 165.
The Bulldogs will have their hands full this week against a Basehor-Linwood squad that has been dominant in all phases of its game. The Bobcats are 3-0 on the season following last week’s 63-0 road win at Kansas City-Turner. Independence will try to be the first team to reach the end zone this season against Basehor-Linwood as the Bobcats have outscored their opposition 173-0.
A year ago, Basehor-Linwood captured a 46-6 victory at Independence’s Emmot Field. That was part of an 11-1 season by the Bobcats. They advanced all the way to the Class 4A-Division I playoff semifinals before falling to eventual state champion Bishop Miege.
Parsons (0-3, 0-3) @ Labette County (2-1, 0-0)
Parsons comes off a back and forth match up against Independence. Typically, one would have to wonder what is the mental mindset of a young team that came so close, but finished just short of a win. However, this isn’t a typical week. This is Parsons v. Labette County. One of the fiercest rivalries in all of the SEK League.
There has not been a more Dr. Jeykll / Mr. Hyde team in all of Southeast Kansas than the Grizzlies. Labette County comes home off a shut out win over Osawatomie. The week before they were shut out by Andale at home.
According to the SEK-Sports.com Twitter Poll, this is the game of the week and for good reason. These match ups are some of the best, regardless of team records. Expect a packed Lucas Field and loud crowd. This will be a fun, athletic contest and don’t be surprised if this turns out to be the second week Parsons is playing back and forth on the scoreboard.
Pittsburg (3-0) @ Fort Scott (3-0)
Not sure there’s much else to say about this ballgame other than this should be one of the best games in not just Southeast Kansas, but all of the state.
Fort Scott bring a quick offensive ground game, while Pittsburg will flex their strength on both sides of the ball.