Football advances with win over Wichita Southeast

Jacob Clanton, Sports Editor

Typically, playoff games are more intense than the regular season. These games are close ones that go down to the wire, leaving everyone feeling exuberated after the game.

That was not the case Friday night, as Manhattan High (9-0) beat Wichita Southeast (1-8) 63-20 in the first round of the 6A playoffs. With the win, MHS moved on to the regional round of the playoffs, while Southeast’s season is over. The win also gave Manhattan some momentum going forward.

“Our goal every week is to go 1-0,” junior defensive back Caleb Payne said, “so to go 1-0 the first week by a big margin was very helpful.”

Though Manhattan clearly had the advantage on paper coming in, the team didn’t let it get to their heads too bad. MHS held Southeast to a three-and-out on the first drive of the game, leading to senior Tariq Gerald’s 30-yard run for a touchdown on MHS’ first offensive play.

“We really executed well at times, [but] we made a few bonehead plays,” head coach Joe Schartz said. “Overall, we executed really well, and I was pleased [with our mental state].”

Gerald would finish the game with 31 yards on two rushing attempts and one touchdown.

Even with the great start, Manhattan would hit its first road block soon after. The next drive of the game was capped by a 49-yard touchdown pass for WSHS. The field goal was mishandled, allowing MHS to retain the lead, 7-6.

After the early score, Manhattan’s defense would buckle down, preventing Southeast from scoring the rest of the half. A large part of its success was the defensive line’s ability to penetrate the backfield of WSHS. This penetration was led by junior Sam Edwards, one of many Indians to sack Southeast junior quarterback Tarik Adams.

“[Edwards] did a really nice job,” Schartz said. “He’s explosive, he’s fast, he gets off the ball [and] he has the speed to chase opposing quarterbacks down, so he was in the backfield all night. He had a heck of a game.”

While having a great defense to stop the other team is a must, an offense is still needed to score points. The Indians were not lacking in this remark either, as MHS would run three offensive plays and score two touchdowns midway through the first half. Both touchdowns came off the feet of senior running back Iverson Robb, who went off for a huge game against Southeast.

“We wanted to get the ball into [Robb’s] hands,” Schartz said, “and give Ian [Trapp, senior quarterback] a little bit of rest, and we were able to do that. The offensive line executed really well, and overpowered [WSHS’ defensive line], and we had some smooth sailing.”

As the main rusher for Manhattan, Robb finished the game with 153 yards on eight carries, scoring four touchdowns.

Much of the offensive success was gifted by short fields. A big part of that was Manhattan’s special teams. After an early gaffe on a punt return, the special teams kicked into gear, with Payne recovering two straight fumbles on successive kickoffs.

“[Getting the fumble recoveries] felt pretty great,” Payne said. “I saw the ball, and I jumped on it. No one else was getting that away from me.”

The second recovery led to a Kevonte McDonald 20-yard touchdown run. The sophomore scored a touchdown on the next drive as well, finishing the game with 83 yards on 15 attempts.

McDonald was not the only backup in the game, as the Indians were able to put in third — and fourth — stringers near the end of the third quarter. Not only did senior Brady Woborny, MHS’ backup quarterback, get time under center, but sophomore Brady Flint did as well. Neither would attempt a pass though, as Trapp would be the only MHS quarterback to do so. Trapp went 2-2 for 52 yards passing, with one touchdown, and added 32 yards in three carries rushing.

With the win, Manhattan moves on to the next round of the playoffs, hosting Washburn Rural (6-3) next week. With the repeat opponent, it will be the first time since 1989 that MHS has played the same team twice in a season.

As a result, Schartz sees the game being another tough, physical game.

“Well they’re going to be highly motivated,” Schartz said. “We’re going to be highly motivated. It’s going to be a heck of a physical football game. They like to run the ball, they’ve got some very good linemen, so it’ll be a battle in the trenches.”

Having come away with a win the last time these two teams played, the Indians have a boost as they prepare for this game.

“I mean, we already got a game plan,” Payne said. “We’ll probably change it a little bit, but same game plan as last time, and it ended up good.”