Iowa high school football roundup: Week 1 scores, stats and more (Aug. 30, 2024)

The Gazette’s Week 1 Iowa high school football roundup with statewide scores and stats and coverage from Gazette-area games.

Iowa City Liberty 56, Iowa City West 45

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What a way to begin a new era.

Iowa City Liberty kicked off the 2024 prep football season under the direction of first-year head coach Scott Chandler, a former University of Iowa and nine-year NFL tight end.

It would be difficult to imagine a better introductory notch on the victory belt than a program-first win against a rival in Iowa City West.

“I think it's always big to win rivalry games,” Chandler said after Liberty outlasted West, 56-45, Friday night at Liberty High School. "The season opener is also big, too. You feel like you get off to a good start and all the work you put in kind of justifies itself.

“But this game is about players. As much as we want to say coaches do stuff, players play. Our players came to play tonight and they finished the game."

Liberty (1-0) displayed a punishing run game that piled up a whopping 354 yards on 55 attempts. Senior tailback Owen Drapeaux led the charge with a game-high 168 yards via 23 carries and three touchdowns, while fellow senior Sutton Koller added 80 yards and two scores.

“If we can run the ball like that, then we can pass the ball when they are not expecting it,” Drapeaux said. “We run, run, run and then throw it over the top to Dallas (Miller) or Sutton or any of our receivers that can catch and run, then we are going to put the ball in the end zone.”

» Read the game story from Gazette correspondent Douglas Miles

Clear Creek Amana 28, Marion 3

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Lance Pedersen’s first game leading Clear Creek Amana was a win.

A really convincing 28-3 win Friday night at Marion. Not too shabby of a way to start his era with the Clippers.

“Not to be cliche, but the wins aren’t as important to me as the kids and the fun that you have with everybody,” Pedersen said. “That’s the most important thing. You know, I don’t even know my career record unless someone tells me. Although I was told tonight was 150. I did remember that because it’s kind of special.”

For certain, 150 victories is a nice round little number. Pedersen should accumulate a few more if they play as they did in this season opener for both teams.

OK, there were a ton of penalties: 12 of them for 150 yards. Some unnecessary personal-foul stuff included in there.

But the offense looked really good, and the defense picked off Marion quarterback Kaleb Diers four times. Owen Rosenberg has two of those interceptions, the last one he was able to return 89 yards for the final points in this game.

“The first half started out a little slow,” said Rosenberg, who also had a TD reception. “We really didn’t get the ball in the end zone as much as we wanted to. Coach Pedersen made a point about that. But we came into the half thinking it was still 0-0. We want to punish these guys, we want to put them down, put their moral down. We just wanted to finish it.”

» Read the game story from The Gazette’s Jeff Johnson

4A No. 7 Cedar Rapids Xavier 14, 4A No. 9 Waverly-Shell Rock 7

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They faced a major disadvantage in experience.

But at the end, the Xavier Saints were the fresher, more disciplined team.

Class 4A seventh-ranked Cedar Rapids Xavier ground out a 14-7 victory over No. 9 Waverly-Shell Rock in a non-district football game Friday night at Saints Field.

“That’s a really good football team,” Xavier Coach Duane Schulte said. “To suck it up and grind out a win ... credit to the boys.”

Xavier (1-0) scored the go-ahead touchdown on Cash Parks’ 11-yard pass to tight end Jack Stevenson late in the third quarter, then handed it over to the defense.

The Saints held Waverly-Shell Rock (0-1) to 18 yards in the fourth quarter, 63 in the second half.

“We came to play,” said defensive back Carson Slaughter, who recovered a fourth-quarter fumble. “Our practice guys prepared us, and we have one of the best coaching staffs in Iowa.”

» Read the game story from The Gazette’s Jeff Linder

Linn-Mar 50, Dubuque Senior 0

Muszynski Magic is alive and well at Linn-Mar.

For the past three seasons, Dylan Muszynski has shown the ability to make something out of nothing as a member of the Lions football team.

A nagging high ankle sprain limited Muszynski last season as a junior.

In Friday night's season-opener against Dubuque Senior at Linn-Mar Stadium, Muszynski was back to his old ways. He scored four first-half touchdowns, including a highlight-reel 5-yard run as Linn-Mar rolled to a 50-0 win.

Muszynski’s final numbers, 88 rushing yards on 16 carries, are not eye-popping at first glance, but the flare with which he ran showed he was back to the form he showed before his ankle injury.

“It was just nice to get back out here and play before our home fans,” he said. “I was ready to run against somebody besides our home team and I know everybody else was ready for that too.”

Three of the TD runs for the 5-foot-9, 170 pounder were fairly routine. His 5-yard score in the second quarter was anything but. The play began as a sweep to the left that the Senior defense appeared to have bottled up. Muszynski put his foot in the ground, reversed field, got a block from quarterback Stone Morgan along the way and ran it into the right corner of the end zone.

» Read the game story from Gazette correspondent Mike Condon

Cedar Rapids Jefferson 33, Muscatine 14

Cedar Rapids Jefferson’s Vernon Benda passed for three touchdowns and rushed for another.

J-Hawks wide receiver L.J. Nyenow Jr. reeled in eight passes for 133 yards, including scores of 1 and 11 yards.

Ishara Kalolero added a 71-yard TD run and finished with 98 rushing yards on 12 carries for Jefferson. His scoring run came in a 20-point second half.

Benda’s 1-yard scoring pass to Nyenow for a 6-0 lead in the first was the last of three straight connections, following gains of 41 and 9 yards. Benda finished with 197 yards.

Jermaine Robinson hauled in a diving 10-yard TD reception with 1:01 left in the second quarter, giving Jefferson a 13-7 halftime lead.

» Read the game story from The Gazette’s K.J. Pilcher

North Linn 12, Alburnett 6 (OT)

The call of the game came from the booth Friday.

With North Linn facing a crucial third-and-goal from the 7 in overtime, assistant coach Jon Wolff shared a key detail with head coach Jared Collum over his headset.

“John Wolff was up in the booth and he’s like, ‘They have an offensive guard as a linebacker on Cael (Benesh),” Collum said. “They have him split out, manned up on Cael … so I drew that play in the mud. I said, ‘We’re going to go ‘twin smash,’ tell Cael to run post corner.’”

It worked to perfection.

Benesh hauled in a well-thrown ball from the arm of sophomore quarterback Will Sommerfelt for the go-ahead and game-winning score Friday as the Lynx (1-0) downed Alburnett (0-1), 12-6, in a non-district high school football season opener.

“I said, ‘It should be there,’” Collum said. “Will threw it up and Cael got it. I actually had to send the play in with a kid that ran cross country last year.”

» Read the game story from Gazette correspondent Ryan Pleggenkuhle

Benton Community 48, Vinton-Shellsburg 0

Despite the Week 1 penalty bug, Benton Community kicked off the season in style, blitzing Vinton-Shellsburg, 48-0, Friday night in Vinton.

The Bobcats leveraged their experience, bulk on both sides of the line, and an explosive night from their quarterback to overcome a number of self-inflicted wounds.

Qarterback Carson Nolan set off a monster night by calling his own number, taking a shotgun snap down the left side for a 75-yard touchdown 13 seconds into the game.

“We had that play drawn up for a while,” Nolan said. “The line did a great job getting out to the edge. (Vinton-Shellsburg) really stacked the box. We took advantage and went to the outside.”

Nolan rushed for 171 yards on seven carries, adding 94 yards through the air.

» Read the game story from Gazette correspondent Culley Kline

Decorah 33, Waukon 0

Louis Bucksa completed 5 of 9 passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns as the Vikings won big.

Tommy Sexton had 13 carries for 89 yards and Trevor Kuennen rush 10 times for 72 yards.

— Randy Iverson

4A No. 3 Western Dubuque 21, 3A No. 3 West Delaware 13

Tanner Anderson and Brett Harris shared quarterback duties and both scored touchdowns as the Bobcats opened with a big win.

Anderson passed 12 yards to Drew Horsfall for a TD and Harris scored on a 1-yard run. Drew Burds rushed for 141 yards on 20 carries.

Brent Yonkovic rushed for 124 yards for the Hawks, scoring on a pair of 1-yard runs.

— Bill Logan

3A No. 5 Mount Vernon 44, Monticello 6

Three touchdowns in a second-quarter span of 6:42, on runs of 2, 16 and 2 yards by Cooper Hird, broke open a 7-0 game as the Mustangs won at Monticello.

Hird finished with 12 carries for 81 yards and three scores. Mount Vernon quarterback Kellen Haverback completed 7 of 14 passes for 197 yards and a touchdown. Jase Jaspers caught three passes for 112 yards, and Watson Krob had a 73-yard touchdown reception.

Lincoln Schneiter had an interception and 25-yard return for Monticello.

— Pete Temple

3A No. 6 Independence 42, North Fayette Valley 14

EJ Miller passed for 282 yards and three touchdowns and Brady Kurt scored three TDs as the Mustangs rolled.

Miller completed 14 of 23 passes, hitting Kurt twice for TDs. Kurt also scored on a 23-yard interception return.

Decklyn Heins passed for 141 yards and a TD for NFV.

Lisbon 30, Durant 0

The offense took awhile to get humming, but the Lions eventually found the right gear at Walmer Field in Lisbon.

Tiernan Boots ran for 165 yards and three touchdown on 24 carries, and quarterback Dakota Clark added 85 rushing yards and 84 passing yards.

— Ryan Suchomel

Cedar Falls 35, Cedar Rapids Prairie 13

Davarrion Clark rushed for 211 yards and four touchdowns as the Tigers opened their brand-new 27th Street Stadium with an emphatic win.

3A No. 1 Williamsburg 55, West Branch 10

Rayce Heitman scored four touchdowns to lead the Raiders.

— Jason Miller

Belle Plaine 46, HLV 24

Belle Plaine is off to its first 2-0 start since 2016.

Wade Sankot had three rushing touchdowns for the Plainsmen, scoring two from 2 yards out and one from 11. Sam Demeeulenaere added two receiving touchdowns from 19 and 47 yards out.

Cael Weisskopf scored all three touchdowns for the Warriors, rushing for a total of 147 yards.

— Ben Lamparek

3A No. 2 Solon 33, Davenport Assumption 7

It was all Spartans from the get go.

The first possession set the tone for the rest of the game when running back Eddie Johnson powered through Assumption defenders on his way to a 39-yard touchdown. It was the first of two touchdowns for Johnson.

— Joel Kellar

Iowa City Regina 42, West Liberty 28

Under new head coach Dustin Elsbury, the Regals took down their former coach, Jason Dumont, in his debut for the West Liberty Comets.

The Regals used a massive third quarter from junior quarterback Kyle Tracy, which proved enough. The Regals used an air raid attack, scoring two touchdowns within three minutes of each other to start the second half, including Tracy finding his favorite target, Tate Wallace, on an 80-yard touchdown.

West Liberty found its groove in the last frame when senior wide receiver Seth Axsom found the end zone twice.

– Kyle Prondzinki

Anamosa 43, Maquoketa 10

Austin Scranton pounded out 182 yards on 20 carries and two touchdowns and added another score through the air, leading the Blue Raiders to a big triumph at Maquoketa.

Nate Fischer added six receptions in the passing game for 120 yards and one touchdown while also intercepting a pass and racing 50 yards for another score.

Anamosa led 14-3 after one quarter and 34-10 at the half.

Maquoketa scored its lone touchdown in the second quarter when quarterback Tate Streets found Brayden DeForest open on a 30-yard pass. Kicker Caleb Koob added a first-quarter 20-yard field goal for the Cardinals.

Anamosa dominated the game, outgaining Maquoketa 422-164 in total yards.

– Daryl Schepanski

Dubuque Hempstead 48, Cedar Rapids Washington 38

There were big plays, monumental momental momentum shifts and plenty of points.

Lots and lots of points.

Most of them by the green and gold.

In other words, just the kind of game Bob Timmerman would have loved.

Dubuque Hempstead saw a big lead evaporate, but rebounded with a big finish to down Cedar Rapids Washington at Dalzell Field on Friday.

Mason Cook’s fourth-quarter interception turned the tide for good and led to Jaden Montgomery’s go-ahead touchdown to lift Hempstead.

The Hempstead community paid tribute to Timmerman with a pregame ceremony. Dozens of his former players and assistant coaches lined the home sideline and welcomed the current Mustangs as they entered the field from the locker room, and the stadium recognized a moment of silence in Timmerman’s honor.

The legendary Timmerman, who coached Hempstead for 17 seasons and won the state championship in 1979, died in June at the age of 86.

– Tom Gregor

Statewide Week 1 Iowa high school football scores

Adel ADM 13, Newton 8

Albia 13, Centerville 6

3A No. 7 Algona 42, 2A No. 1 Spirit Lake 40

Anamosa 43, Maquoketa 10

Ankeny Centennial 31, 5A No. 1 Ankeny 10

Atlantic 62, Clarke 7

1A No. 6 Avoca AHSTW 26, A No. 10 Tri-Center 21

Benton Community 48, Vinton-Shellsburg 0

5A No. 7 Bettendorf 25, Pleasant Valley 24 (OT)

Boone 42, Knoxville 6

Burlington 35, Fort Madison 7

Carroll 34, Greene County 21

Cascade 10, Maquoketa Valley 9

Cedar Falls 35, Cedar Rapids Prairie 13

Cedar Rapids Jefferson 33, Muscatine 14

4A No. 7 Cedar Rapids Xavier 14, 4A No. 9 Waverly-Shell Rock 7

Central Lee 13, Van Buren County 8

Central Springs 50, Mason City Newman 34

Charles City 22, Oelwein 14

2A No. 10 Cherokee 37, Marcus MMCRU 8

2A No. 9 Clarinda 20, Shenandoah 19

Clarion CGD 48, Eagle Grove 8

Clear Creek Amana 28, Marion 3

3A No. 4 Clear Lake 41, Forest City 14

Council Bluffs Lincoln 52, Sioux City West 14

Davenport Central 52, Clinton 32 (Thursday)

Davenport North 28, Davenport West 20

Davis County 27, Chariton 19

Decorah 33, Waukon 0

Denison-Schleswig 41, Council Bluffs Jefferson 26

Denver 28, New Hampton 21

Des Moines Christian 56, Pella Christian 0

Des Moines East 20, Des Moines North 16

Des Moines Roosevelt 49, Des Moines Lincoln 16

Dubuque Hempstead 48, Cedar Rapids Washington 38

Dubuque Wahlert 41, Camanche 0

Dyersville Beckman 57, Waterloo Columbus 14

Earlham 41, Central Decatur 12

East Marshall 19, Conard BCLUW 7

1A No. 7 Emmetsburg 20, 2A No. 6 Central Lyon/George-Little Rock 19

Gilbert 35, Dallas Center-Grimes 28 (OT)

Grand View Christian 38, Martensdale-St. Marys 7

Grinnell 28, Center Point-Urbana 0

1A No. 2 Grundy Center 21, 1A No. 1 Dike-New Hartford 7

A No. 2 Guthrie Center ACGC 40, Ogden 0

Hampton-Dumont-CAL 13, Iowa Falls-Alden 0

Highland 26, North Cedar 0

Hinton 21, Le Mars Gehlen 0

Hudson 18, North Tama 0

Humboldt 27, Spencer 10

1A No. 5 Ida Grove OABCIG 47, Estherville-Lincoln Central 20

IKM-Manning 49, East Sac County 34

3A No. 6 Independence 42, North Fayette Valley 14

4A No. 4 Indianola 21, Urbandale 17

Interstate 35 27, Pleasantville 14

Iowa City Liberty 56, Iowa City West 45

Iowa City Regina 42, West Liberty 28

Jesup 20, A No. 5 Wapsie Valley 13

5A No. 8 Johnston 28, 5A No. 10 Waukee Northwest 17

Joliet Catholic (Ill.) 50, 5A No. 8 Iowa City High 22

Kingsley-Pierson/River Valley 13, Alta-Aurelia 8

Lake Mills 20, Ackley AGWSR 0

4A No. 1 Lewis Central 31, 3A No. 9 Harlan 10

Linn-Mar 50, Dubuque Senior 0

Lisbon 30, Durant 0

A No. 6 Logan-Magnolia 40, Missouri Valley 0

Lynnville-Sully 30, Danville 22

Manson-Northwest Webster 28, Southeast Valley 26

Mapleton MVAOCOU 34, Westwood 18

Mason City 26, Marshalltown 25

Mediapolis 42, Columbus Community 19

1A No. 9 MFL MarMac 9, Crestwood 7

3A No. 10 MOC-Floyd Valley 22, Unity Christian 18

2A No. 3 Monroe PCM 54, Sigourney-Keota 14

A No. 9 Mount Ayr 58, Nodaway Valley 6

Mount Pleasant 13, Fairfield 12 (OT)

3A No. 5 Mount Vernon 44, Monticello 6

Nashua-Plainfield 33, Postville 14

3A No. 8 Nevada 33, West Marshall 7

North Butler 14, Belmond-Klemme 8

North Linn 12, Alburnett 6 (OT)

North Mahaska 43, Eddyville EBF 0

4A No. 6 North Polk 42, 4A No. 4 Bondurant-Farrar 41 (OT)

4A No. 2 North Scott 41, Central DeWitt 6

Northeast 58, Bellevue 20

Norwalk 35, Carlisle 7

Oakland Riverside 68, West Monona 0

Okoboji 41, North Union 7

Ottumwa 47, Keokuk 26

Pekin 76, Eldon Cardinal 0

4A No. 9 Pella 29, 4A No. 8 Ballard 17

Ridge View 10, Akron-Westfield 0

Roland-Story 47, South Tama 0

A No. 6 Saint Ansgar 28, Osage 14

Sergeant Bluff-Luton 21, Le Mars 15 (OT)

Sheldon 20, Sibley-Ocheyedan 6

Sioux Central 32, South O’Brien 8

Sioux City East 41, Glenwood 14 (Thursday)

Sioux City Heelan 32, 2A No. 5 Carroll Kuemper 14

Sioux City North 21, South Sioux City (Neb.) 13

3A No. 2 Solon 33, Davenport Assumption 7

South Central Calhoun 35, Pocahontas Area 12

South Hardin 53, South Hamilton 20

Southwest Valley 13, Red Oak 0

A No. 8 Starmont 15, South Winneshiek 14

Storm Lake 50, Saydel 30

1A No. 7 Sumner-Fredericksburg 33, East Buchanan 0

Tipton 70, Louisa-Muscatine 0

1A No. 10 Treynor 28, Council Bluffs St. Albert 23

Union Community 14, Aplington-Parkersburg 0

2A No. 4 Van Meter 17, 1A No. 3 Underwood 7

Washington 21, Oskaloosa 14

Waterloo West 19, Waterloo East 6

5A No. 3 Waukee 59, Ames 14

Wayne 26, Colfax-Mingo 7

Webster City 41, Fort Dodge 13

West Burlington-Notre Dame 48, Wapello 6

West Central Valley 28, Panorama 21

5A No. 3 West Des Moines Dowling 24, 5A No. 6 Cedar Rapids Kennedy 12

5A No. 2 West Des Moines Valley 20, 5A No. 5 Southeast Polk 17

West Fork 32, Clayton Ridge 6

A No. 3 West Hancock 22, Garner GHV 20 (2OT)

2A No. 2 West Lyon 35, Sioux Center 7

West Sioux 49, Hartley HMS 14

2A No. 7 Western Christian 21, Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley 14

4A No. 3 Western Dubuque 21, 3A No. 3 West Delaware 13

3A No. 1 Williamsburg 55, West Branch 10

1A No. 4 Wilton 19, 2A No. 8 Mid-Prairie 14

Winterset 31, Creston 6

A No. 1 Woodbury Central 32, Lawton-Bronson 9

Woodward-Granger 29, A No. 4 Madrid 28 (OT)

8-PLAYER

No. 4 Algona Garrigan 48, Fort Dodge St. Edmond 22

No. 9 Audubon 38, No. 3 Anita CAM 20

No. 2 Bedford 58, Moravia 0

Belle Plaine 46, HLV 24

BGM 86, Meskwaki Settlement 6

Boyer Valley 49, Griswold 0

No. 8 Clarksville 46, North Iowa 7

Collins-Maxwell 64, Garwin GMG 0

Colo-Nesco 48, Murray 0

No. 6 Don Bosco 33, No. 7 Gladbrook-Reinbeck 26

Dunkerton 40, West Central 8 (Thursday)

East Mills 64, West Harrison/Whiting 26

Easton Valley 40, New London 21

Edgewood-Colesburg 60, Elkader Central 6

Iowa Valley 70, Lone Tree 12

Janesville 41, Northwood-Kensett 6

Lamoni 62, Twin Cedars 12

Lansing Kee 66, Tripoli 18

No. 5 Lenox 50, Stanton/Essex 18

Melcher-Dallas 62, Mormon Trail 6

Midland 19, English Valleys 14

No. 1 Remsen St. Mary’s 51, Harris-Lake Park 6

Riceville 61, Rockford 0

Ruthven GTRA 56, Siouxland Christian 6

Sidney 44, East Union 28

Southeast Warren 50, Montezuma 44

Springville 57, Waterloo Christian 0 (Thursday)

West Bend-Mallard 86, Newell-Fonda 56

Westside Ar-We-Va 34, Exira-EHK 0

Winfield-Mount Union 40, Central City 28

Woodbine 58, Glidden-Ralston 0

Coon Rapids Bayard vs. No. 9 WACO, 3 p.m. Saturday at West Des Moines Valley

Fremont-Mills vs. Turkey Valley, 7 p.m. Saturday at West Des Moines Valley