Week Nine Friday Night Lights Football Heroes - 11-Man

Aurora RB Ian Jensen (Right) celebrates with teammate Canon Allen after a touchdown in the Huskies 27-12 win over Central City.

*Kip Brigham, Harrison Krueger-Wahoo - Kip Brigham, arguably the best running back in the state, rushed for 213 yards on 11 carries and scoring runs covering 38, 4, 60, and 39 yards PLUS Punt Return TDs covering 60 and 70 yards in a 59-24 victory over Omaha Concordia. Harrison Krueger had nine tackles in the game plus 59 yards on two rushing attempts. Check out Kip Brigham’s unreal Career Stats which mostly consist of the last two seasons. He has 4,407 yards rushing with an 11.9 per carry average and 75 touchdowns of which 3,965 and 68 touchdowns came in the last two seasons and THIS season is not over yet. Spectacular!

*Thatcher Shelton, Alex Dawes-Lincoln Southwest - QB Shelton completed 18 of 29 passes for 300 yards and 3 TDs in the Silverhawks big 33-32 win over Omaha North. Sophomore Alex Dawes grabbed 6 of those completions for 133 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the upset victory.

*Ian Jensen, Canon Allen, Wyatt Pollett, Huskies Offensive Line Aurora - Quick and shifty running back Ian Jensen bolted for 206 yards and a pair of TDs on 32 carries in a 27-12 victory over previously undefeated Central City. Huskies quarterback Wyatt Pollett added 87 yards on 15 carries while the Aurora offensive line turned in one of the most dominating performances of 2025.

*Grayson Sack, Jack Alberts, Connor Haney, Garrett Watson-Grand Island Central Catholic - In the Crusaders regular season finale 49-15 win over St Paul: QB Grayson Sack completed 4 of 6 passes for 143 yards and 2 TDs while adding 59 rushing yards on five carries and another score. Jack Alberts rushed 11 times for 96 yards and a pair of scores. Connor Haney grabbed 4 receptions for a whopping 162 yards and THREE TDs while freshman kicker Garrett Watson converted 7 of 7 PAT kicks. For the season Watson is 46 of 40 on PAT tries but is 26 of 27 in his last 5 games and 2 for 2 on field goal attempts during that same time period.

*Jaron Cannon-Omaha North - The Vikings may have been upset by Lincoln SW, but Cannon was his usual rushing monster in the loss, gaining 230 yards on 17 carries with 4 touchdowns and catching one pass for 57 yards. Cannon now has 1,430 yards and 20 TDs in 2025.

*Jordan Williams-Ord - Junior QB closed out his 2025 regular season in grandiose fashion by completing 11 or 15 passes for 212 yards and 4 TDs and rushing 23 times for an additional 99 yards and a score and the Chants 35-19 win over Boone Central. For the year, Williams is 52 of 108 passing for 994 yards with 15 TDs. Jordan has also rushed for 934 yards with 15 more scores. Can you say Dual Threat Quarterback!

*Demarkus Robinson-Bellevue West - Jetted for 156 yards and 2 TDs on 14 carries In the Thunderbirds 45-6 win over Lincoln NE.

*Parker Volk, Haydan Smith, Andrew Waters, Jack Poppe-Doniphan-Trumbull - QB Parker Volk completed 10 of 16 passes for 131 yards and a touchdown and rushed 13 times for 29 yards with another pair of scores In the Cardinals 30-6 win over Wood River. Hayden Smith led the ground attack with 126 yards on 8 carries while Andrew Waters wasn't far behind with 124 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries. Three time All-StaterJack Poppe had 7 catches for 78 yards and a touchdown in the win. Contrary to belief, Doniphan-Trumbull CAN RUN the football as witnessed by Smith's 592 yards and Waters 468 yards on the ground during the regular season.

*Tristan Campbell-McCook -All-State candidate cut loose for 252 yards and FIVE TD runs covering 4, 7, 14, 6 and 6 yards in McCook's 49-21 victory over Lexington. That gives Tristan 1,348 yards and 24 touchdowns for the year.

*Alex Doty, Rhys Dorcy, Keian Kaiser-Sidney - Red Raiders outstanding QB Alex Doty completed 11 of 18 passes for 195 yards and 3 TDs in Sidney's 38-14 win over Chadron. But it didn't end there. Doty sprinted for another 161 yards on the ground on just 13 carries with a TD in there. Rhys Dorsey added 160 yards a pair of scores on 28 carries while Keian Kaiser caught 5 aerials for 97 yards and another two touchdowns.

*1000 Yard Rusher Alert*

*Thomas Settje-Columbus Scotus - Two years ago when this young man came off the bench late in the Omaha Concordia game and ran like a man possessed, I told him if he kept running like that he would be a 1000 yard rusher before his high school football career was over and guess what? The Scotus senior exploded for 234 yards and 4 TDs on 17 carries in the Shamrocks 55-12 season ending win over Wayne. That elevated Thomas Settje to 1,043 yards for the season and now he will forever be enshrined in the 2025 edition of the Bobby Mills 1000 Yard Club

*Broxton Teply, Nathan Axmann, Brady Schieffer-Waverly - Quarterback Tepley completed 15 of 26 passes for 176 yards and a TD in the Vikings hard fought 22-7 win over Lincoln Pius X. RB Nathan Axmann rushed 27 times for 102 yards and two touchdowns while Brady Schieffer grabbed 5 receptions for 83 big ones and a TD in the regular season finale.

*Chase Grow, Connor Sams, Seth Kragel, Cade Thompson-Gretna East - In the Griffins exciting 35-28 victory over rival Gretna High things went down like this. Chase Grow completed 10 of 14 passes for 181 yards and 3 TDs. Connor Sams rushed 21 times for 129 yards and 2 TDs Seth Kragel caught 4 passes for 118 yards and 2 TDs and Kade Thompson made 15 tackles, 9 of which were solos, picked off a pass and recovered TWO fumbles in the win.

*Michael Knudsen, Bryce Lakers-Gretna High - Remarkable Pass/Catch Duo really lit up the skies in the Dragons 35-28 loss to Gretna East. Knudsen completed 26 of 40 passes for 333 yards and three touchdowns while Lakers latched on to 10 of those throws for 152 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the loss.

*Braylon Warren, Mo Purify-Omaha Westside - Warren completed 14 of 22 passes for 191 yards and 2 TDS while Purify caught 6 passes for 95 yards and a score in the Warriors 35-14 win over Papillion La Vista.

*Will Janssen, Mason Vintz-Syracuse - Janssen rushed for 180 yards and a pair of touchdowns on just 11 carries in the Rockets 54-7 win over Wilber-Clatonia, but it was Mason Vintz who led the ground game with 235 yards and a trio of touchdowns on just 13 carries. For the season Janssen has 1,649 yards with 21 touchdowns while Vintz has rushed for 907 yards and 9 TDs heading into the postseason for the unbeaten Syracuse Rockets.

*Kaden Rodriguez, Adam Elofson-Fort Calhoun - Rodriguez rambled for 175 yards and 2 TDs on 29 carries while QB Adam Elofson completed 18-25 aerials for 122 yards and an additional score in Fort Calhoun’s 21-20 win over Douglas County West.

*Ben Leslie, Angelo Walker-Creighton Prep - Sophomore QB Ben Leslie was a perfect 5 for 5 for 177 yards passing in Prep’s 35-13 win over Norfolk. Power running Angelo Walker rushed for 119 yards (19 totes) and 2 TDs in the regular season finale win for the Junior Jays.

*Landon Roth, Zane Wittstruck, Zeb Reil-Milford - Roth was 15 of 25 through the air for 182 yards and 2 TDs in Milford's 27-7 win over Adams Central. RB Zane Wittstruck exploded for 247 yards on a grueling 40 carries with 2 TDs while Zeb Reil caught 5 passes for 43 yards and a score in the win.

*Ethan Beachy, Jace Reynolds, Zac Keenan-Elkhorn North - Beachy completed 16 and 27 passes for 255 yards and scored 2 touchdowns on the ground while rushing 24 times with 90 yards in the 29-27 victory over Bennington. Freshman Zach Keenan was a perfect 3 for 3 on field goal attempts while Jace Reynolds recorded a 21 yard Pick Six in the huge win over the Badgers.

*Ty Bouaphakeo, Jack Russell, Lane Molacek Bennington - Bouaphakeo hit 14 of 24 passes for 294 yards and 3 TDs in Bennington's 29-27 loss to Elkhorn North. The Badgers QB also rushed 15 times for 77 yards. Jack Russell had 4 receptions for 117 yards and 2 TDs while Lane Molacek had 2 catches for 59 yards with a 55 yard TD grab.

*Turner Heiss, Brock Eichelberger-O'Neill - This Eagles Pass/Catch Duo threw a huge second half scare into Columbus Lakeview during their 29-19 loss to the powerful Vikings. Heiss completed just 9 of 24 passes but those nine hits went for 218 yards and a pair of scores. EIGHT of those passes were caught by Eichelberger and turned into a 180 yard/2 TD night. This O’Neill football team is dangerous.

**1000 Yard Rusher Alert - 2nd Time Around**

*Kyler Boyles, Lincoln Sanders-Superior - In Boyles last game as a Superior Wildcat, he rambled for 242 yards and 4 TDs on 32 carries in the Wildcats 41-26 win over Gibbon. That raises Boyles season rushing total to 1,057 yards and makes him a 1000 Yard Rusher two years in a row playing for a team that went 4 and 5 both years. Senior QB Lincoln Sander also closed out his career with some good marks, completing 11 of 16 passes for 95 yards and two scores and rushing 12 times for 167 yards, making it a great final appearance.