Friday Football: 8-man edition week 3

Week three is shaping up to be a big one all across 8-man district 8. There are two games featuring the top four teams in the district. Stanton will be home as they try to avoid starting the season 0-3 and Villisca will look to get back in the win column.

Corning Red Raiders @ Stanton Vikings

Stanton is trying to avoid their first 0-3 start to the season since 1991. They’ll play a team that is also having their fair share of problems in Corning.

The Red Raiders will also starting the year 0-3. They’re coming off losses to Fremont-Mills and Essex/South Page. Stanton meanwhile has had losses to Villisca and Lenox.

Both Jeff Marshall and Cade Confer have stepped up their game thus far in the first two games of the season. Marshall (370 is second and Confer (225) is fourth in the district in rushing. Confer rushed for 130 yards in the loss to Lenox, last week.

Jordan Stuart will be a player to watch for Corning. Stuart had five total touchdowns in the loss to Essex/South Page, last week.

Stanton is 0-2 for the first time since the 1995 season.

Villisca Blue Jays @ Nishnabotna Blue Devils

Nishnabotna is also trying to avoid a 0-3 start. They’ll play a Villisca team that is coming off a rough loss to Sidney in week two.

Villisca lost to Sidney last week, 64-20. They’re now 1-1 for the season and will look to get their second district win this season.

For Nishnabotna, both losses haven’t been close this season. They’ve given up 50 points in both games (Sidney and CAM). With Lenox on the schedule for week four, the Blue Devils could be in trouble and possibly start the season 0-4.

One player to watch for Villisca will be Gunner McCuen. McCuen had a touchdown and had quite a few reps at tailback last week, including after Travis Herzberg went down with an injury.

For Nishnabotna, Johnny Wood will be a player to watch. Wood scored one of Nishnabotna’s touchdowns in last week’s loss to CAM.

Heartland Christian @ Essex/South Page- South Page High School in College Springs

ESP has a very good opportunity to start the season 3-1. They’re coming off of a big win against Corning in week two. This is the first chance for Essex to win two in a row since the 2007 season. ESP could be 3-1 heading into their game with Fremont-Mills, next week.

For Heartland Christian, they started out their season with a week zero victory against Ankeny Christian Academy. Since then, both Glidden-Ralston and Coon Rapids-Bayard have blown out Heartland Christian.

For Heartland Christian, keep an eye on Nick Watson. Watson, a sophomore, leads the team in rushing yards (252) and touchdowns (5).

This is the only non-district game for district 8 this week.

Fremont-Mills @ CAM

This is one of the big games of the week for District 8 and it could make a difference come playoff time. Both teams are playing well. CAM has recovered to win two in a row, following their week zero loss to Adair-Casey.

Fremont-Mills has dispatched both Corning and Whiting in their first two games of the season. This will be one of their first tests of the season.

The last time these two teams met was in 1996. CAM won that game, 54-0.

Lenox @ Sidney

This will be the other big game for the week. Both teams have gotten off to fast starts. Lenox is 3-0, while Sidney is 2-0. Sidney defeated Villisca in week two, while Lenox defeated Stanton.

Lenox and Sidney, as well as Fremont-Mills and CAM, will likely be fighting for playoff positioning as the season progresses.