VOTE: The top 10 prep football games this week

A look at the week's top area football games:

WATERLOO WEST at CEDAR RAPIDS KENNEDY

Time & place: 7:15 p.m. Thursday, at Kingston Stadium

Records: West is 2-5; Kennedy is 3-4.

Notable: Nothing is set in stone yet, but Kennedy's two-game win streak has positioned the Cougars nicely to qualify for the playoffs. They're favored to win out and capture a winning season, not a bad accomplishment figuring they started 0-3 and 1-4. R.J. Adams has rushed for 579 yards. West's leading rusher is a sophomore - Dequayvious Martin (355 yards).

LINN-MAR at IOWA CITY HIGH

Time & place: 7:15 p.m., at Bates Field

Records: Both teams are 7-0.

Notable: The MVC Mississippi Division title chase will be decided this week. Class 4A second-ranked City High has won 21 straight games and appears to be picking up steam. The Little Hawks have surrendered only seven points in the past three weeks. Ronald Thompson has rushed for 898 yards and 13 touchdowns while quarterback Andrew McNulty is lethal by air (799 yards, 7 TDs) and land (670 yards, 6 TDs). No. 6 Linn-Mar counters with Jer Garman, who has rushed for more than 4,000 yards in his career, including 1,158 (and 18 touchdowns) this fall. The Lions rallied from a big early deficit to outlast Cedar Rapids Washington, 42-35, in overtime and has scored 40 points or more in each of its last four games.

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UNION at MARION

Time & place: 7:30 p.m., Thomas Park Field

Records: Both teams are 7-0 overall, 5-0 Class 3A District 5.

Notable: Both teams are playoff-bound, and the winner is the district champion. This game could be packed with points. No. 8 Union is the state's leading team in 3A, averaging 46.7 points per game. But the Knights' defense can be scored upon, and No. 5 Marion is capable of lighting up the scoreboard as well. The Indians have outscored their foes, 240-45. Both teams' featured backs are in the midst of big seasons: Union's Wes Burnside has rushed for 1,598 yards (9.3 per carry) with 23 touchdowns while Marion's Colton Storla has netted 1,044 yards (7.2 per carry) with 15 TDs. The Indians have held six opponents to seven points or less, including four in a row.

IOWA CITY WEST at CEDAR RAPIDS WASHINGTON

Time & place: 7:15 p.m., at Kingston Stadium

Records: West is 3-4; Washington is 5-2.

Notable: Both teams are trying to break out of two-game losing funks. Tenth-ranked Washington is coming off an overtime loss to Linn-Mar despite a 289-yard output by Alex Carr, who ran his season total to 1,393 yards. Both defenses have sprung a leak since October began. Washington has given up 73 points to Iowa City High and Linn-Mar; West has gone flat in a pair of losses to Cedar Rapids Xavier and Cedar Rapids Kennedy, a stretch in which the Trojans were outscored 79-10. West's Charles Rogers has rushed for 428 yards and passed for 1,118.

CEDAR RAPIDS JEFFERSON at CEDAR RAPIDS XAVIER

Time & place: 7:15 p.m., at Saints Field

Records: Jefferson is 0-7; Xavier is 5-2.

Notable: Xavier is heavily favored to keep the J-Hawks winless. The 4A ninth-ranked Saints have rolled in their past two games and ought to make it three in a row heading into next week's showdown at Linn-Mar. Quarterback Andy Didio has completed nearly 79 percent of his passes for 902 yards and 14 touchdowns against three interceptions. Nathan Even (23 receptions, 368 yards, 5 TDs) is his primary target while Pat Chizek has run for 641 yards. Jefferson quarterback Alex Baxter has 866 yards of total offense.

DECORAH at WAVERLY-SHELL ROCK

Time & place: 7:30 p.m., at Waverly

Records: Decorah is 6-1 overall, 5-0 Class 3A District 4; WSR is 6-1, 4-1.

Notable: Tenth-ranked Decorah can clinch the district championship if it picks up a tough road win. The Vikings are clicking, with six straight wins. They've scored 30-plus points in five consecutive games. Cody Sacquitne has rushed for 632 yards and is an effective kicker. The Go-Hawks were knocked from the ranks of the unbeaten last week by West Delaware, 29-3. Sophomore Bryce Miller has rushed for 553 yards and seven touchdowns.

CLEAR CREEK AMANA at WILLIAMSBURG

Time & place: 7:30 p.m., at Williamsburg

Records: CCA is 4-3 overall, 3-2 Class 3A District 6; Williamsburg is 6-1, 4-1.

Notable: Williamsburg was unbeaten and rated No. 1 before suffering a 22-7 loss at Solon last week. The Raiders managed a paltry 83 yards of total offense. Now ranked seventh, they'll try to bounce back against the pass-happy Clippers. Junior quarterback Dylan Villhauer has thrown 200 passes, completing 142 for 1,784 yards with 17 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. Josh Rohret has caught 47 balls for 618 yards, Zach Manders 38 for 634. Williamsburg QB Kelly O'Rourke has 1,034 passing yards and 14 TDs.

MONTICELLO at DYERSVILLE BECKMAN

Time & place: 7:30 p.m., at Dyersville.

Records: Monticello is 5-2 overall, 3-2 Class 2A District 4; Beckman is 5-2, 4-1.

Notable: Beckman has yet to experience a down-to-the-wire game. The Blazers have not played a game closer than 22 points. Lately, they've been winning big, outscoring their last four opponents by a 157-35 margin and moving into second place in the district. Connor Golden has passed for 1,269 yards; Robbie Anstoetter has 28 catches for 507 yards. With North Fayette looming next week, this is probably a must-win for the Panthers' playoff hopes. Quarterback Cody Gullett has rushed for 572 yards (and 12 touchdowns) while passing for 1,027 yards.

SIGOURNEY-KEOTA at MID-PRAIRIE

Time & place: 7 p.m., at Wellman

Records: Sigourney-Keota is 7-0 overall, 5-0 Class 2A District 6; Mid-Prairie is 4-3, 3-2.

Notable: Fourth-rated Sigourney-Keota is having its best year of the post-Bob Howard era. The Savage Cobras have won all seven of their games by two touchdowns or more. The Cobras are a run-heavy team; putting the ball in the air only 14 times all season. Andrew Utterback has netted 1,377 ground yards and 20 touchdowns. Mid-Prairie is a dangerous foe. Brody Barthelman has rushed for 1,233 yards and 18 touchdowns. The Golden Hawks had won three straight games before dropping a 49-35 decision to Albia last week.

WAPSIE VALLEY at TURKEY VALLEY

Time & place: 7:30 p.m., at Jackson Junction

Records: Both teams are 6-1 overall, 4-1 Class 1A District 5.

Notable: This game is a battle for second place in the district, and Wapsie Valley still has control of its destiny in the 1A-5 title race. Turkey Valley fell from the ranks of the unbeaten and out of the rankings with a 37-28 loss to Starmont last week. Jordan Mitchel has rushed for 1,102 yards and 12 touchdowns. Wapsie Valley, which stubbed its toe in Week 6 at Maquoketa Valley, counters with Connor O'Brien (1,457 rushing yards, 23 touchdowns). A Wapsie victory would vault the Warriors into a winner-take-all-battle with Starmont next week at Fairbank.

OTHER GAMES INVOLVING METRO/IOWA CITY TEAMS Cedar Rapids Prairie (2-5) at Dubuque Hempstead (5-2), 7:15 p.m.Iowa City Regina (7-0) at Louisa-Muscatine (4-4), 7 p.m.