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1. Connor Perkins, Dietrich

The Blue Devils traveled to Long Pin champion Council on Thursday night and played opportunistic football to score the upset, 50-28.  Junior quarterback/defensive back Connor Perkins led the charge with five total touchdowns, three passing and two rushing, to get Dietrich to a quarterfinal matchup with top-ranked Kendrick, a rematch of last season's 1A Division 2 state championship game.

2. Soyer Young, Murtaugh

Last fall, Murtaugh beat Lighthouse Christian in the final week of the regular season before Lighthouse Christian flipped the script the following week, beating Murtaugh to advance in the playoffs.  Somehow, this year, the same two teams closed the regular season against one another before opening the palyoffs, but, this time, sophomore Soyer Young rushed for five touchdowns, threw one more, and intercepted a pass to help Murtaugh advance in the 1A Division 1 playoffs.

3. Martin Gonzales, Hagerman

It had been ten years since Hagerman had played at home (10/31) or won (11/23) in the playoffs.  That was the year the Pirates won the 1A Division 1 championship.  Could similar magic be in the air along the Snake River?  Junior Martin Gonzales led a potent attack in an opening round win over Mackay with five rushing touchdowns.  Up next for Hagerman, a long bus ride north to face North Star champ Mullan/St. Regis in the quarterfinals.

Honorable Mention:

Nik Versis (Carey)
Chase Sanroman (Clark Fork)
Mason Roberts (Council)
Max Yearsley (Garden Valley)
Wyatt Cutler (Grace)
Tell Jewell (Idaho City)
Connor Weddle (Kamiah)
Gage Crow (Lewis County)
Case van Leeuwen (Lighthouse Christian)
Paylen Bruley (Mackay)
Jack Clark (Potlatch)
Jace Waggoner (Tri-Valley)
Thomas Vargas (Valley)

Got Back In

There's a saying about defining a person not by how many times he or she gets knocked down, but rather define them by how many times that person got back up.  Lewis County senior Noah Watson could be remembered for fumbling in his final game, a playoff loss Friday against Tri-Valley.  But what head coach Monty Moddrell immediately mentioned is that Watson dislocated his shoulder on the play - and somehow missed just four plays getting the shoulder popped back into place.  Watson got back up and finished the fight with his teammates.  That's the story to remember.

Not Much Drama

In the eight games played in the opening round, a total of 228 points separated the winning teams and the losing teams.  That's an average of 28.5 points per game.  The closest games were Tri-Valley over Lewis County (10 points, 32-22) and Valley over Potlatch (14 points, 30-16).

Upcoming Matchups

In Division 1, Notus travels to Oakley, Kamiah will host Grace, Valley goes on the road against Butte County, and Logos welcomes in Murtaugh.  In Division 2, Hagerman will venture north to play Mullan/St. Regis, Kendrick and Dietrich will face off in Moscow's Kibbie Dome, Camas County will greet Garden Valley in Fairfield, and Tri-Valley goes to Rockland.  The winners will meet in next week's semifinal round as we move closer to crowning the 2023 1A Division 1 and Division 2 state champions on the football field.