OTTUMWA —
It’s the biggest game of the regular season for the Davis County football team.
Not only is tonight the last home game — barring hosting a playoff game — of the season, but it is also Senior Night in Davis County.
To add to the drama and spectacle, eighth-ranked Bondurant-Farrar (4-0, 6-0) comes to Bloomfield tonight to take on the Mustangs (2-1, 5-1), and a win by the Blue Jays would all but wrap up the Class 2A, District 6 title for the visitors.
A Davis County upset, however, would throw the title race into a three-team skirmish and make the final weeks of the season more than a little interesting.
Davis County’s only loss on the season is to Albia (3-1, 5-1), and Albia’s only loss is to Bondurant. The Blue Demons are at C-M-B (1-2, 2-5) tonight, as Brett Leshen continues to lead Albia through the air this season with 877 passing yards, while Alex Schultz leads the ground game with over 600 rushing yards on the season.
Davis County, meanwhile, is coming off a 42-8 non-district win over Central Lee, in a contest that coach Joe Rassmussen said “may be the best overall game we’ve (the Mustangs have) played this season.” Colton Roberts led the way, as he rushed for 175 yards and four touchdowns. Calvin Utt and Spencer Bassett also added scoring runs for Davis County, and Bassett finished with 98 rushing yards as the Mustangs accumulated 425 yards on the ground.
Utt pulls the trigger for Davis County, as the QB has nearly 1600 total yards of offense this season (over 600 rushing and nearly 1000 passing.) Roberts is fifth in the district in rushing with just under 600 ground yards.
Eighth-ranked Bondurant brings in senior running back Colton Halder, who is approaching 1200 yards this season on nearly nine yards per carry. He gained 258 yards last week in a win over Clarke. The Blue Jays’ quarterback is senior Josh Block, who has passed for over 1100 yards and is also a rushing threat, as he has gained 263 yards on the ground.
In Class 3A, District 7, Fairfield’s win last week did more than just get the zero out of the Trojans’ won-loss record. It also made tonight’s home contest between Fort Madison (1-2, 2-4) and Fairfield (1-3, 1-5) a contest with some meaning.
Fairfield took a big 33-10 District 7 win over rival Mount Pleasant last Friday night, as Mason Carnahan rushed for 226 yards and three touchdowns — including a 73 yard scoring run. Quarterback Dillon Fry, meanwhile, was 13-of-20 passing for 159 yards and a 20-yard touchdown pass to Spencer Peterman, who finished with 107 receiving yards in the contest.
Now, despite having lost its first five games of the season, Fairfield is now actually in a position to earn a playoff berth.
A win tonight over Fort Madison and a victory at Centerville next Friday would put the Trojans at 3-3 in district play. Mount Pleasant, meanwhile, has district games remaining with the top three teams in the league — Washington tonight, Keokuk next week and Williamsburg the final week of the season. Mount Pleasant would need to win at least two of those three challenging contests to finish ahead of a 3-3 Fairfield team for the final postseason slot.
Fry is second to only Keokuk’s Gabe Vandenberg in passing yardage this season in District 7, while Carnahan leads the district in rushing with 662 yards.
Also in District 7, Carlisle (2-2, 3-3) is at Centerville (0-4, 0-6) in a non-district contest while in District 8, Knoxville (0-3, 2-4) plays at Chariton (0-4, 1-5) and Winterset (3-1, 4-2) is at Oskaloosa (1-2, 1-5)
In Class 1A, District 6, Sigourney-Keota (1-2, 2-4) plays at Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont (1-3, 2-4) as both teams are fighting for that final playoff spot. S-K’s Colton Greiner is second in the district in rushing with 693 yards while E-B-F’s Drake Menius is fifth with 419 yards on the ground. Also in District 6, Wapello (1-2, 3-3) plays at Cardinal (0-3, 3-3).
In Class A, District 6, fifth-ranked Pekin (4-0, 6-0) hosts Montezuma (4-0, 5-1) for a homecoming game with the league title in the balance. The Panthers lead the district as one of the top 10 teams in the state with 2,163 total rushing yards. Quentin Garrels leads the attack for Pekin as the state’s eighth-leading rusher with 1,180 total yards on the ground and 21 touchdowns.
Montezuma’s defense should test the Panthers’ rushing attack. Montezuma has won their first four district contests without allowing a point.
Also in District 6, North Mahaska (1-3, 1-6) is at Lynnville-Sully (3-1, 4-2); while in District 5, Van Buren (1-3, 1-5) hosts Lone Tree (4-0, 4-2).
In Eight-Player, District 5 action tonight, Moravia (0-4, 0-7) is at Meskwaki Settlement (0-4, 1-5), HLV (5-0, 6-0) is at Seymour (1-4, 1-6) and Grandview Park Baptist (2-3, 2-5) is at Tri-County (2-3, 2-4) in a non-district contest.
2012 DISTRICT FOOTBALL STANDINGS
CLASS 4A
Division 3
Marshalltown 2-0 5-2
Dowl. Cath 1-0 4-2
Ottumwa 1-1 3-4
DM Hoover 0-1 1-5
Mason City 0-2 0-7
CLASS 3A
District 7
Williamsburg 4-0 5-1
Keokuk 2-1 3-3
Washington 2-1 3-3
Mt Pleasant 2-1 2-4
Fort Madison 1-2 2-4
Fairfield 1-3 1-5
Centerville 0-4 0-6
CLASS 3A
District 8
Norwalk 3-0 6-0
Pella 3-0 4-2
Winterset 3-1 4-2
Carlisle 2-2 3-3
Osklaoosa 1-2 1-5
Knoxville 0-3 2-4
Chariton 0-4 1-5
CLASS 2A
District 6
Bond-Far 4-0 6-0
Albia 3-1 5-1
Davis County 2-1 5-1
PCM 2-1 3-4
C-M-B 1-2 2-5
Clarke 0-3 3-4
I-35 0-4 0-6
CLASS 1A
District 6
Wilton 4-0 5-1
IC Regina 3-0 6-0
West Branch 2-2 4-2
Wapello 1-2 3-3
S-K 1-2 2-4
E-B-F 1-3 2-4
Cardinal 0-3 3-3
CLASS A
District 5
Lisbon 4-0 5-1
Lone Tree 4-0 4-2
Highland 3-1 4-2
WACO 2-2 4-2
Danville 2-2 3-3
Van Buren 1-3 1-5
New London 0-4 0-6
Winfield-MU 0-4 0-6
District 6
Pekin 4-0 6-0
Montezuma 4-0 5-1
B-G-M 3-1 4-2
L-S 3-1 4-2
Eng. Valleys 1-3 2-5
North Mahaska 1-3 1-6
Pleasantville 0-4 0-6
SE Warren 0-4 0-6
EIGHT-PLAYER
District 5
HLV 5-0 6-0
Wayne 5-0 6-0
Melcher-Dal 4-1 5-1
Twin Cedars 2-3 3-4
Tri-County 2-3 2-4
Seymour 1-4 1-6
Meskwaki Set. 0-4 1-5
Moravia 0-4 0-7
