Nebraska high school football: Top stars, best performances from the state championship games (11/25/2023)
There weren’t many close games or down-to-the-wire plays in any of the seven Nebraska high school football championship games. But while the entertainment value of the result might have been lacking, there were more than enough superstars to get fans out of their seats. Here is a list of those who were the best of the best at Memorial Stadium.
Quinton Archer – Bennington Running Back
Running back at Bennington has been a prestigious position to fill in recent seasons. For the past three, the Badgers have had a 1,000-yard rusher each year and had one season, 2021, that included 3,000 from Dylan Mostek. Archer stepped into the position with a new quarterback under center and several new linemen up front. Bennington also adjusted its offensive system and left several questions before considering a three-peat. One of the answers was Archer. The senior ran for more than 1,600 yards before Monday’s Class B state championship then capped a great season with 31 carries for 117 yards and a touchdown in the win over Skutt. Archer had just one shot at being the Badgers’ starting running back and he took advantage with nine games of more than 100 rushing yards.
Caleb Benning – Westside Wide Receiver
It might be the last time he lines up on the edge of an offensive formation, and Benning took advantage. The Husker recruit, who looks like probably a safety at the next level, and definitely a member of the secondary, has been playing both ways at Westside and dominating. He’s had some of his best games in the last two state championships. In this year’s edition, Benning caught six passes for 82 yards and a touchdown on offense and made three tackles with an interception on defense. A year ago after missing much of the season, Benning returned with 13 catches for 96 yards and had two interceptions. When the stage is the biggest, Benning is at his best.
Parker Borer – Boone Central Running Back
Offense came at a premium for everyone else but Borer in the Class C-1 state championship game. During a defensive, 12-0 battle that earned Boone Central its third football title, Borer had all 12 points on two touchdown runs. He went for 11 yards to cap a 12-play drive late in the third quarter then put the game away with a 61-yard dash with 5:17 left in the game. Borer’s day ended at 25 carries for 127 yards. For the season, the Cardinal senior was two yards short of 2,000, scored 23 times and had more than 100 yards in every game but one. Borer closes his varsity career with 3,340 yards and 44 touchdowns.
Kyle Cox – Sandhills/Thedford Quarterback
It might be a long time until we see another performance like Cox had in the D-2 championship win over Wynot. Sandhills/Thedford ran 70 plays, called 68 runs and Cox was the ball carrier on 65 of those. That set a new state record for attempts and nearly set a state record for yards when Cox turned those 65 carries into 486 yards and six touchdowns. He had touchdown runs of 12, 8, 6, 14, 11 and 3 and closed out a season that included exactly 2,900 yards and 55 touchdowns. In the playoffs, Cox rushed 1,436 yards and scored 24 touchdowns in five games while leading the Knights to their first football championship.
Hank Hudson – Boone Central Linebacker
Hudson terrorized the opposing quarterback all day and led a suffocating effort that gave Boone Central a championship shutout. The Cardinal senior made nine tackles, 2 and 1/2 of those for loss and forced Wahoo’s Jase Kaminski into three quarterback hurries. The Warriors had just 76 total yards and only 24 through the air with an interception. Hudson made it uncomfortable and has been a tone-setter all season long, totaling exactly 100 tackles with 16 for loss. Hudson had a TFL in nine of 13 games, blocked two kicks and also averaged 7.2 yards per carry on 46 rushing attempts on offense.
Mitchell Hupp – Stanton Wide Receiver
Hupp has been Mr. Efficiency for the Stanton offense this season – turning 22 catches into 741 yards and 15 touchdowns. That’s a rather impressive 33.7 yards per catch. He was a little bit below that average in the Class D-1 state title game but still rather efficient with four catches for 79 yards and two touchdowns. Hupp scored on an 18-yard pass midway through the first quarter for a 12-8 Stanton lead then connected with his quarterback again for 26 yards to seal the win with 3:26 remaining in the game. It was the fifth time this season he has had multiple touchdown catches and the third time he did it during the Stanton playoff run to a championship.
Carter Janssen – Norfolk Catholic Quarterback
Janssen couldn’t have been much better in the Class C-2 state championship win for Norfolk Catholic. The Knights quarterback orchestrated an offense that totaled 346 yards, averaged 6.2 yards per play and scored 41 points. As a passer, Janssen was 6 of 10 with 126 yards and a touchdown. When he pulled it down and took off in the running game, Janssen churned up 66 yards with a score on 12 carries – an average of 5.5 yards per carry.
Maddox Jones – SEM Running Back
Jones was a workhorse for the Mustangs and the main reason SEM established offensive balance in a 21-20 six-man title win over Hay Springs. The junior averaged seven yards per carry on 23 attempts for 161 yards and scored two touchdowns. He found the end zone on a 50-yard run early in the third quarter that put his team up 14-6 then got loose again for a 30-yard scoring run that broke a 14-14 tie with 4:12 left in the game. Jones was also the best defender in the game, collecting 15 tackles and one for loss.
Brandon Kollars – Norfolk Catholic Running Back
Norfolk Catholic leaned on the running game once again and won its 12th state championship in school history. Kollars took more handoffs than any other Knight and turned his 14 carries into 83 yards and scored twice. With his team up 21-3 at halftime, Kollars ended any Ord hopes for a comeback when he scored on a 19-yard run on Norfolk Catholic’s first drive of the third quarter. He then put it totally out of reach less than a minute later when he found the end zone again from 17 yards out.
Kyle Lauridsen – Bennington Outside Linebacker
Lauridsen closes his junior year with a second straight season of more than 100 tackles. The Bennington junior, also a Class B 138-pound wrestling champion last season, has proven to be pretty adept at taking people down. He’s done it 162 times on the mat in two seasons and 213 times on the gridiron. In Monday’s Class B title win over Skutt Catholic, Lauridsen led a defense that allowed fewer than 200 yards and put together a shutout. His contribution in that was 10 tackles and a quarterback sack. It was the fourth time this season he’s had double-digit tackles and the second in a row after also making 10 stops with two TFLs in the semifinals.
Gage Mintken – Hay Springs Quarterback
Mintken was a one-man wrecking crew in the Nov. 17 six-man championship game. The Hay Springs quarterback made play after play with his legs, turning 29 carries into 198 yards and three touchdowns. He scored on a 50-yard run in the third quarter, a three-yard dive in the third quarter and put his team on the brink of a championship with a 21-yard run on fourth-and-1 with under a minute remaining in the game. Mintken closes his career with over 3,900 rushing yards and 84 touchdowns.
Anthony Rezac – Westside Quarterback
Rezac has been so good for so long that another big game is part of the expectations he’s established for himself. Tuesday’s state championship win was another in a long line of fulfilling those expectations. Rezac put together his fifth 200-yard passing game of the season and the eighth of his last two years as the starter under center. He passed for 259 yards on a near-perfect throwing day of 21 for 25 and tossed a touchdown. He connected with seven different receivers and hit twice for over 30 yards. Rezac ends his varsity career with back-to-back titles, 5,776 passing yards, 68 passing touchdowns, 2,270 rushing yards and 36 scores on the ground.
Cohen Rohde – SEM Wide Receiver
Rohde was good for just about a catch per game this season, three times hauling in multiple receptions. He averaged 12.5 yards per catch then exploded for 80 yards on four receptions in the six-man title game. Rohde opened the scoring with a 42-yard catch late in the first half that accounted for his longest grab of the year and his fourth touchdown. Rohde also had an interception on defense and kicked off three times for an average of nearly 35 yards per kick.
Jahmez Ross – Westside Running Back
Ross isn’t the first name that likely comes to mind when fans think about Westside. He may not be the second, or even the third, or the fourth. But while there are bigger names with more recruiting attention on the Warrior roster, there were few players that were as crucial to the Warriors’ success this season and in Tuesday’s state championship than Ross. While Westside was dominating its way to a second straight title, Ross rushed for 100 yards for the eighth time this season and scored twice. Ross finished the year with 1,524 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns. In the playoffs, Ross had 521 yards and nine scores.
Peyton Sanmann – Bennington Quarterback
Sanmann had thrown six varsity passes and rushed 14 times prior to taking over as the quarterback this fall. His ability and leadership were one of many questions Bennington faced while seeking a third straight title. The Badgers arrived at that historic achievement on Monday and Sanmann led the journey effectively with a season that included 1,495 passing yards and 16 touchdowns to go with 327 rush yards and four more scores. He accounted for two of Bennington’s championship touchdowns with passes of 36 and 32 while totaling 165 yards and a QB rating of 129.8. Sanmann threw for more than 100 yards in 10 games this season and during all four games of the playoffs.
Breckan Schluter – Exeter-Milligan/Friend Quarterback
Schluter has been the straw that stirs the drink this season for EMF football. That was no different in the Class D-1 championship game when he carried it 39 times for 266 yards and scored five touchdowns. Schulter had a long of 58 yards and scored on plays of 23, 58, 3, 26 and 3 again. It was the ninth game this season Schluter rushed for more than 200 yards and closed his senior season with 3,012 rushing yards and 57 touchdowns. Over the past two seasons, Schluter has amassed 4,942 rushing yards and 89 touchdowns.
Caden Stokes – Boone Central Wide Receiver/Linebacker
Stokes has been a difference-maker on both sides of the ball for the Class C-1 champion Cardinals. He finished his final season of varsity play with 26 catches for 285 yards and three touchdowns on offense plus 77 tackles and seven for loss on defense. He had another terrific two-way performance when Boone Central took down Wahoo 12-0 at Memorial Stadium. As a pass catcher, Stokes collected two receptions for 25 yards. On defense, he led all players with 11 tackles and picked off a pass – his second interception of the season.
Carson Wieseler – Wynot Wide Receiver
Wieseler has been a superstar in the passing game for the Blue Devils each of the past three seasons, catching 50 or more passes while amassing more than 700 yards in all three. He capped his career in Monday’s D-2 championship game with eight receptions for 77 yards and a touchdown. It was the fourth time this season he had eight or more catches and the 10th time he’s done that in his career. Wieseler opened the scoring on a six-yard catch in the title game, was targeted 12 times and had a long of 18 yards. He also led all players with 16 tackles and had a forced fumble. Wieseler finishes the year with 65 receptions for 797 yards and seven touchdowns. His career ends with 192 catches for 2,462 yards and 35 scores.
Barrett Wilke – Stanton Quarterback
Wilke led the Mustangs into the Class D-1 state title game behind back-to-back performances of 254 yards in quarterfinal and semifinal wins of Arapahoe and Sandy Creek. He wasn’t quite that good in Monday’s championship game, but coming up four yards short of those two rushing totals while scoring six total touchdowns was enough to make Stanton history. Wilke carried it 38 times for 250 yards and found the end zone three times. Through the air, he connected on 6 of 10 passing for 135 yards and three more scores. Wilke helped earn Stanton its first football title with a season that had 2,140 rushing yards and three touchdowns plus 1,292 passing yards and 24 touchdowns.
Photo by @njbenes on X (Twitter)
