Nebraska HS Football: Week 5 Top Performers
The Top 10 Explanation

Player of the Week
Quinn Bailey | Chadron | RB
– In a 34-14 victory over Ogallala, Bailey rushed for 301 yards and five touchdowns to continue his torrid pace this season. Through five games, Bailey has rushed for 1,420 yards (284 yards per game) and 16 touchdowns. It was Bailey’s third 300-yard game this season and fourth of his career. Bailey is now 90 yards shy of 5,000 career rushing yards and has rushed for 62 rushing scores as a prep.

Team of the Week
Boys Town Cowboys – It was difficult to vault the Cowboys into No. 5 in the Class C-1 ratings this week, up from No. 9. It needed to happen. Big plays were a major reason why Boys Town won 52-7 over Omaha Gross on Thursday night. Led by sure-fire FBS prospect Darien Whitaker Jr. and his five touchdowns in four different verities (two rushing, one receiving, one interception return, one kickoff return). Quarterback Nyree Poteet has been solid in running the offense, while Baltimore area move-in LaDainian Blackwell (6’3/230) and wide receiver Marqas Gray (6’6/215) have been huge for the Cowboys.

Week 5 Top Performers

Class A

Keynan Cotton | Omaha Westside | WR/Ret – Cotton caught five passes for 115 yards and a 71-yard touchdown pass from sophomore Braylen Warren in a 48-14 win over Omaha Central. Cotton added a 90-yard kickoff return for a touchdown for the two-time defending Class A champions.

Mikey Gow | Omaha North | QB – Gow accounted for three touchdowns (two passing, one rushing) in a 47-3 win over Lincoln Northeast. Junior running back Jaron Cannon rushed for 143 yards and two touchdowns to pace the Vikings.

Amarion Jackson | Millard South | WR – Jackson caught six passes for 148 yards and three touchdowns from quarterback Jett Thomalla in a 56-12 victory over Lincoln Southeast.

Derek Jones | Papillion-La Vista South | RB – Jones rushed for 224 yards and three touchdowns in a 41-0 win over Norfolk.

Griffin Novacek | Kearney | QB – Novacek accounted for 341 yards and a pair of touchdowns in a 24-13 victory over Lincoln East.

Madden Riggs | Elkhorn South | QB – Riggs completed 8 of 11 passes for 168 yards and four touchdowns to four different receivers in a 70-0 rout over Omaha South.

Dominic Smith | Bellevue East | RB – The sophomore rushed for 173 yards and three touchdowns in a 47-12 win over Omaha Northwest.

Marcus Wynne | Lincoln North Star | DL/LB – In a 20-0 victory over Omaha Westview, Wynne recorded eight tackles, four tackles for loss, and two sacks to help the Navigators to a shutout win.

Class B

Jarrett Behrends | Norris | QB – The underrated quarterback prospect completed 18 of 25 passes for 381 yards and three touchdowns in 24-14 victory over Lincoln Pius X. Sophomore Evan Greenfield caught three passes for 158 yards and two touchdowns for the Titans. Through five games, Behrends has 1,336 passing yards and 11 touchdowns while completing 67.7 percent of his passes.

Tristian Campbell | McCook | RB – Campbell ran for 259 yards and two touchdowns in a 24-23 victory over Gering.

Chase Grow | Gretna East | QB – Grow, just a sophomore, tossed three touchdown passes in a 41-6 win over Plattsmouth.

Tresten Hass | Seward | QB – In a 41-7 win over Lincoln Northwest, Hass completed 13 of 16 passes for 229 yards and four touchdowns.

Michael Knudsen | Gretna | QB – In a 56-35 loss to top-ranked Bennington, Knudsen completed 24 of 40 passes for 414 yards and five touchdowns.

Troy Schmid | York | QB – Schmid accounted for 165 yards and three touchdowns in a 31-0 Homecoming win over Crete.

Dez Smith | Scottbluff | RB – Smith ran for 155 yards and three touchdowns in a 56-7 win over Lexington.

Jett Tinglehoff | Elkhorn North | RB – Tinglehoff rushed for 151 yards and three touchdowns in a 21-7 victory over Blair. On Monday, Tinglehoff committed to the University of South Dakota to pursue a collegiate career in track and field.

Dylan Van Dyke | Omaha Skutt | QB – Van Dyke completed 16 of 22 passes for a school record 358 yards and three touchdowns in a 35-7 victory over Elkhorn.

Class C-1

Canon Allen | Aurora | WR – Allen caught 14 passes for 172 yards and rushed for a touchdown in a 36-35 win over Northwest.

Alek Doty | Sidney | QB – Doty accounted for 325 yards and threw for a pair of touchdowns in a 21-10 victory over Gothenburg.

Auburn Bulldogs – Auburn rushed for 407 yards on 30 carries as a team in a 68-0 win over Wilber-Clatonia. Quarterback Nixon Ligouri led the Bulldogs with 128 yards, while Brant Gulizia and Cambde Taylor also went over 100 rushing yards.

Orrin Kuehn | Minden | RB – In a 20-13 win over Huldrege, Kuehn ran for 242 yards and three touchdowns.

Dominick Roth | LIncoln Christian | RB/DB – Roth rushed for 154 yards and two touchdowns while picking off three passes in a 31-0 win over previously unbeaten Milford.

Noah Shoemaker | Cozad | QB – In a 42-7 victory over Broken Bow, Shoemaker accounted for five touchdowns (three passing, two rushing).

Class C-2

Braylon Anderson | Oakland-Craig | QB – In a 45-38 loss to Battle Creek, Anderson completed 25 of 34 passes for 381 yards and five touchdowns while adding a rushing touchdown. Corbin Guill had 144 receiving yards, while Jeremiah Druckenmiller caught two touchdowns for the Knights.

Tycen Bennett and Jack Poppe | Doniphan-Trumbull – Bennett rushed for 157 yards and three touchdowns on just 10 carries while Poppe hauled in a pair of touchdown passes and intercepted two passes for the Cardinals in a 45-7 victory over Gibbon.

Conor Booth and Jake Rezac | Wahoo Neumann – Booth, a Nebraska commit, rushed for 219 yards and three touchdowns in a 74-0 win over Palmyra. Rezac threw for five touchdown passes for the Cavaliers.

Trace Buechle | Valentine | QB – In a 36-16 victory over Hershey, Buechle accounted for five touchdowns (three passing, two rushing).

Wyatt Jelinek | Raymond Central | QB – Jelinek rushed for 135 yards and three touchdowns in a 32-21 victory over Lincoln Lutheran.

Jaxon Mettler and Aden Pochup | Battle Creek – The two combined for 325 rushing yards with both rushing for a pair of touchdowns in 45-38 win over Oakland-Craig.

Beau Rohrich | Wood River | RB – Rohrich rushed for 329 yards and five touchdowns in a 37-20 victory over Hastings St. Cecilia.

Greyson Sack | Grand Island Central Catholic | QB – Sack completed 11 of 15 passes for 191 yards and three touchdowns while adding 85 yards rushing and three scores in a 61-0 win over Centura.

Lincoln Sander and Kyler Boyles | Superior – Sander accounted for 233 yard and three touchdowns (two rushing, one passing), while Boyles rushed for 159 yards and a pair of scores in a 41-21 win over Fillmore Central.

Breiton Whitmire | Cedar Catholic | RB – In a 49-14 victory over West Point-Beemer, Whitmire rushed for for 143 yards and five touchdowns.

Jordan Williams | Ord | QB – Williams completed 9 of 16 passes for 216 yards and five touchdowns in a 49-13 win over St. Paul. Landon Critel caught two touchdown passes for the Chanticleers.

Eight Ma

Mikey Bartu | E-M-F | RB – Bartu rushed for 148 yards and three crucial touchdowns in a 34-30 victory over Sutton.

William Cacy | Arapahoe | RB – Cacy rushed for 241 yards on 31 carries and returned a punt for a touchdown in a 26-20 win over Dundy County-Stratton.

Kyle Cox | Sandhills/Thedford | QB – Cox rushed for 203 yards and three touchdowns on nine carries and threw for 101 yards and another pair of touchdowns in a 61-14 win over Maxwell.

Coach Kevin Dodson | North Platte St. Patrick’s – Dodson picked up his 200th career victory in a 50-14 win over Hi-Line.

Dane Duryea | Anselmo-Merna | RB – Duryea ran for 211 yards and five touchdowns in a 50-14 win over Chambers/Wheeler Central.

Wyatt Frey | Lawrence-Nelson | QB – The 6-foot-5, 210-pound sophomore rushed for 268 yards and four touchdowns while completing 13 of 17 passes for 174 yards and four scores in a 64-38 victory over Deshler.

Cody Galles | Hemingford | RB – Galles rushed for four touchdowns in a 92-28 win over Morrill. The Bobcats ran for 11 touchdowns in the victory.

Luke Harms | Weeping Water | RB -Harms rushed for 136 yards and four touchdowns in a 58-6 win over Cedar Bluffs.

Yahya Harris | Twin Loup | QB – Just a freshman, Harris threw for 166 yards and a touchdown while adding 118 rushing yards and five touchdowns in a 47-38 victory over Palmer. Harris is already 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds with a very bright future.

Gage Hedstrom | O’Neill St. Mary’s | QB/LB – The junior did all he could to avoid a 70-68 loss to Ainsworth, but fell just short. The junior completed 18 of 28 passes for 268 yards and four touchdowns, rushed for 144 yards and three scores, while adding two kickoff return touchdowns in the loss. On defense, Hedstrom recorded 15 tackles.

Brock Jeannoutot | Bloomfield | RB – Jeannoutot ran for 209 yards and five touchdowns in a 36-14 win over Wausa/Osmond.

Morgan Kinney | Ainsworth | RB – Kinney rushed for 209 yards and accounted for seven touchdowns (three rushing, two passing, one receiving, one punt return) in a 70-68 victory over O’Neill St. Mary’s.

Owen Kneifl | Pender | RB – Kniefl rushed for 179 yards and five touchdowns in a 60-36 victory over Homer.

Michael Koenig and Mathias Wagner | Summerland – Koenig accounted for for 324 yards and four touchdowns (three passing, one rushing) while Wagner rushed for 151 yards and four touchdowns in a 60-42 victory over Plainview.

Weston Koontz | Nebraska Lutheran | QB – Koontz accounted for 320 yards and seven touchdowns (five passing, two rushing) in a 56-42 victory over Giltner.

Karter Lingenfelter | Plainview | QB – Lingenfelter accounted for 374 yards and five touchdowns (three passing, two rushing) in a 60-42 loss to Summerland.

Tucker Matthies | Clarkson/Leigh | RB – Matthies only needed 10 carries to run for 226 yards and four touchdowns in an 84-26 victory over Madison. Wyatt Crosley tacked on three scores on the ground for the Patriots, who did not attempt a pass in the win.

Hayden Muirhead | Overton | QB – Muirhead rushed for 163 yards and four touchdowns while completing 7 of 10 passes for 96 yards in a 65-27 win over Maywood-Hayes Central.

Taylor Nilson | Creighton | QB – Nilson completed 19 of 28 passes for 297 yards and five touchdowns while picking up 93 yards on the ground and two scores in a 68-20 win over Elgin/Pope John. Jorgan Condon caught three touchdown passes for the Bulldogs.

Mason Nitz | Elkhorn Valley | QB – Nitz accounted for 293 yards and four touchdowns (three passing, one rushing) in a 46-32 win over Laurel-Concord-Coleridge.

Quin Oberg | Elm Creek | RB – Oberg rushed for 252 yards and five touchdowns in a 63-14 victory over Franklin.

Degan Ortgiesen | Wilcox-Hildreth | QB – Ortigiesen threw for 306 yards and six touchdowns in a 70-22 victory over Blue Hill.

Connor Paulsen | South Loup | RB – Paulsen ran for 172 yards and three touchdowns in a 25-24 win over West Holt.

Becker Pohlman | Stanton | RB – Pohlman rushed for 155 yards and three touchdowns in a 62-8 win over Lutheran-Northeast.

Cinch Sanger | Brady | QB – Sanger completed 14 of 21 passes for 284 yards and five touchdowns while adding 76 rushing yards and another score in a 44-38 win over Bayard.

Ethan Shaw | Sandy Creek | QB – Shaw accounted for 314 yards and five touchdowns (four rushing, one passing) in a 43-8 victory over Thayer Central.

Zaden Wolf | Central Valley | QB – Wolf accounted for four touchdowns (2 passing, 2 rushing) in a 64-6 win over Burwell.

Six Ma

Luke Bailey | Ansley/Litchfield | QB – Bailey rushed for 254 yards and four touchdowns, threw for a score, added a receiving touchdown, and returned a kickoff for six points in a 46-40 overtime victory over Shelton. Bailey also had an interception. (Thanks to Larry Cotnoir of KBBN on the additional stats)

Houston Billeter and Trenton Williams | Southwest – Billeter completed 29 of 40 passes for 402 yards and six touchdowns in a 67-45 loss to Wallace. Williams caught 16 passes for 243 yards and four touchdowns. Williams’ 16 catches were a Six Man state record. The previous record was 13, which two players set in 2021 in the same game. Kellen Eggleston of S-E-M and Lance Vasa of Arthur County were the previous record holders. Arthur County won the game 101-80 in 2021.

Gage Ely | Red Cloud | RB – Ely rushed for 205 yards and four touchdowns in a 53-20 win over Meridian.

Kole Fornander | Garden County | QB – Fornander accounted for four touchdowns (three passing, one rushing) in a 65-14 win over South Platte. Fornander completed touchdown passes to three different receivers for the Eagles.

Austin Johns | Wallace | RB – Johns rushed for 178 yards and four touchdowns in a 67-45 victory over Southwest. Sophomore Colt Franklin threw for four touchdowns, while Masen Messersmith caught three passes for 151 yards and three scores for the Wildcats.

Brady Skinner | Cody-Kilgore | RB – In a 50-14 victory over Crawford, Skinner rushed for 134 yards and four touchdowns.

Stuart Broncos – In a 90-27 victory over Santee, the Broncos intercepted six passes. Gavynn Mustin swiped two passes to lead the way.

Alec Watchorn | Leyton | QB – Watchorn accounted for 337 yards and five touchdowns (three passing, two rushing) in a 47-32 win over Potter-Dix.