Central Plains has enjoyed recent football success, but the No. 2 state-ranked Eight-Man 2 Otis-Bison Cougars have beaten the Oilers in three of the past four meetings.
The teams have not met since the Oilers won 40-0 in 2013. The Cougars dominated the Oilers and Claflin in the past three games entering Fridy’s Central Prairie League showdown at Otis.
“They are state-ranked and and that gets our attention,” said Central Plains coach Chris Steiner. “We generally thrive when we have an underdog mentality, and something to prove.”
The Cougars (2-0, 2-0 CPL) have beaten Ellinwood 66-26 and Ness City 50-0. The Oilers (2-0, 2-0 CPL) defeated Victoria 48-22 and Ness City 54-8 behind two scores apiece by RB Bryce Miller and RB Dalton Beck.
RB Blake Bahr (218 yds-5 TDs) has been the Cougars’ top threat along with TB Brad Lightfoot (177 yds-3 TDs) and QB Kade Urban (133 yds, 3 TDs).
“Lightfoot is a phenomenal runner, but Bahr is a smooth runner who’s been a bit of a surprise,” said Steiner. “Coach Starr obviously has faith in Bahr because he’s returning kicks.”
The Cougars’ offensive front of 245-pound center Landon Hoopingarner, 255-pound Bryce Maneth and 215-pound Luke Higgason engage the defense and the backs feature a cutback style against pursuit. TE Maitland Wiltse and WR Anton Foust are the top receivers.
“We’ve reminded our defense to stay at home and cut off their gaps because 90 percent of their offense is a cutback style,” Steiner said. “We’re working on our pursuit angles. It’s a difficult offense to defend. They are a lot like us. They show ability on offense and defense and can hit the big pass play.”
The Oilers start C James Radenberg, G Trey Schulte, G Phillip Donecker and WR Alex Barton and either WR Kade Beck or TE Brett Liebl. Sophomore QB Devin Ryan targeted WR Alex Barton for two TD passes against Ness City. Barton caught nine balls for 204 yards and two TDs against Victoria.
“With a new quarterback, we’ve been pleased by how well we’ve thrown and caught the football,” Steiner said. “We expected we’ve throw the ball fairly well. We’ve run the football well from our double tight end formation. We like to mix our run and pass and keep the defense on their heels.”
Urban leads the Cougars’ defense with seven tackles per game along with Daniel Scott (5.5 tackles) and DL Cody Kaler (5 tackles). The Cougars feature six two-way players.
Otis-Bison coach Travis Starr believes the Cougars’ offensive front sets an aggressive tone.
“Up front we’ve been getting after it with big athletic kids,” Starr said. “You’re only as good as what you have on the field. We’ve been blessed with good players.”
The Cougars feature a trio of offensive threats with breakaway speed.
“Blake has shown great speed and vision,” he said. “Hopefully, we’ll play our best football. It will be a good test. Both teams will see where they are at. They are athletic team that will hit hard.”
Starr said the Cougars have met their high expectations.
“We’ve looked sharp,” he said. “We can do good things if we continue to improve.”

Hoisington (2-0, 1-0 CKL)
at Hillsboro (1-1, 1-1 CKL)
RB Hunter Hanzlick sparked a 31-22 victory over Wichita Collegiate with 253 yards and a TD. QB Tyler Specht, RB Redy Gearhart and RB Cameron Davis (89 yds) scored TDs. LB Landen Urban had 12 tackles. Brenner Donovan intercepted pass.

Larned (0-2, 0-2 CKL)
at Hesston (0-2, 0-1 CKL)
Larned’s second week 19-12 loss was plagued by 11 penalties that negated 229 yards rushing. RB Brandon Bartz (62 yds), RB Kolby Keith (49 yds) and FB Nate Williams (45 yds) key a balanced run game.
Halstead stunned Hesston 34-30 to hand the Swathera a two-game losing streak. QB Zach Esau threw for 180 yards, targeting WR Reese Nebel (109 yds, TD) amd Zach Vogt (TD pass). RB Parker Roth rushed for 180 yards and two scores.

Victoria (1-1, 1-1 CPL) at Ellinwood (1-1, 1-1 CPL)
Ellinwood QB Myles Menges rushed for two scores and passed for two scores to WR Tyson Martinez in a 66-26 loss to Otis-Bison. Menges threw for three TDs in week one. Eric Jones, Peyton Duvall and Martinez caught week one TD passes.

Ness City (1-1, 1-1)
at St. John (1-1, 1-1)
St. John broke a 12-game losing streak with a 44-34 victory Kinsley. RB Troy Devine rushed for 125 yards and three scores. QB Jorge Calleros threw for 119 yards and RB Eddy Ibarra gained 70 yards.

Macksville (0-2, 0-2 CPL) at Kinsley (1-1, 1-1 CPL)
Macksville QB Jacob Rein threw for two TDs and rushed for 59 yards in a 50-20 loss to Victoria after throwing for 218 yards week one. WR Kreed Parr has 79 yards receiving and Karson Waters has 118 yards receiving in two games. MLB Taylor Rodriguez had 30 tackles in two games. Brigdon Russell had 10 solo tackles last week.

Central Christian (2-0)
at Stafford (0-1)
Central Christian has opened with wins over Pretty Prairie 54-22 and Pratt-Skyline 36-12. Stafford’s football game at Burrton is rescheduled for Sept. 19. Stafford’s LB Caleb Hildebrand (89 tackles), RB Josh Harter (653 yards, 8 TDs) and TE Laithen Shocklee lead the Trojans.

Natoma (0-2) at
Pawnee Heights (1-1)
Natoma lost 52-6 to Golden Plains and 27-6 to Weskan. Golden Plains outraced Pawnee Heights 51-29 after the Tigers won their opener. In tjhe opener, the Tigers’ Roger Klenke scored four TDs, Kade Scott had three TDs and Caleb Karst had two TDs.