The Central Plains High School Oiler football team captured the 2018 Class Eight Man I football championship.
The Barton County Commission Monday morning adopted a proclamation acknowledging the efforts and recognizing the student athletes, managers and coaching staff for their commitment to excellence.
It also declared Monday as Central Plains High School Football State Champions Day.
“This is a really big honor,” head coach Chris Steiner said.
The team went 13-0, including nine shutouts, and ended up the third ranked eight-man team in the nation.
In fact, he said, due to the 45-point mercy rule, the team only played three complete games all season with the rest ending at halftime. The team allowed a state record 34 points, which averaged out to fewer than three points by opponents per game.
At the same time, the Oilers racked up 628 points, or about 45 points per game. The offense was potent, Steiner said, “but we hung our hats on our defense.”
In addition, teammate Brett Liebl was the Eight-Man Player of the Year and Steiner was the Coach of the Year.
“The County Commissioners of Barton County, Kansas, honor the young men and women of this community that make a difference through academic, artistic and physical activities,” the proclamation reads. “When a single school brings positive recognition to Barton County through significant achievements, it is crucial that the Commission recognize the team members, their coaches and administrative staff for their commitment to excellence.”
It went on to read “the student athletes and managers, along with the coaching staff have brought honor to CPHS, the Cities of Claflin, Bushton, Frederick, Geneseo, Holyrood, Lorraine and Odin, and Barton, Ellsworth and Rice counties. It is recognized that the commitment of the family, the student body, the administration and the community impacts student athletes as they tend to have higher grade point averages, fewer school absences and work habits and self-discipline skills that help them become responsible and productive community members themselves.”
The 2018 CPHS roster includes Karter Beck, Jerred Bieberle, Myles Menges, Alex Hickel, William Laymon, Devin Ryan, Bralen Thompson, Brett Thompson, Grant Heldstab, Jacob Oberle, Lawson Oeser, Dawson McNeal, Matthew Donecker, Cole Lamatsch, Mason Doll, Brett Liebl, Juan Vasquez, Michael Menges, Kealy Burris, Mason Wimmer, Tyler Holmes and Denver Crenshaw
Other coaches are Dustin Robison and Bryce Steiner. The managers were Ethan Hurley, Kerrick Benavidez, Jaydon Whiterock and Mason Cox.
Steiner none of the 22 players and three managers were never ineligible due to grades.
