Top stars, best performances from Iowa high school football this week

Some of the top performances from the Round of 16 in Iowa prep football

By Barry Poe 

Here are some stars from the round of 16 high school football playoff games across Iowa.

If you know of a top performance we should include, please let us know. 

Ra’Shawd Davis, W.D.M. Dowling

The sophomore rushed for 132 yards on 14 carries, scoring two touchdowns in the No. 1-ranked Maroons’ 35-0 Class 5A win over Davenport West. With its ninth straight win, Dowling (9-1) will face Waukee Northwest in a quarterfinal.

Carson Robbins, Southeast Polk

The junior caught a 38-yard touchdown pass and returned a fumble 75 yards for a score in the Rams’ 49-3 first-round 5A playoff win over Ames. Defending state champion Southeast Polk (9-1) shut down an Ames offense averaging 35.2 points.

Michael Provenza, W.DM. Valley

The senior quarterback passed for 158 yards and rushed for 49 as the Tigers upended previously unbeaten Pleasant Valley 15-10 in the opening round of the 5A playoffs. Dawson Stine kicked three field goals and Valley outgained Pleasant Valley 151-31 in the second half.

Michael Cunningham, Cedar Rapids Xavier

Cunningham carried 18 times for a team-high 112 yards and two touchdowns, leading fifth-ranked and unbeaten Xavier to a 44-7 win over Cedar Rapids Washington in a 4A playoff opener. The Saints (10-0) went on a 28-0 run in the third quarter.

Asa Newsom, Waverly-Shell Rock

Newsom rushed for 78 yards and had an interception on defense for the G-Hawks, who rolled to a 49-7 Class 4A playoff win over Fort Madison. Waverly-Shell Rock )10-0) rushed for 342 yards and had a continuous clock the entire second half.

Braylon Kammrad, Lewis Central

The senior threw six touchdown passes – two each to Curtis Witte and Lual Maker – as the Titans belted Le Mars 60-7 in Class 4A playoff action. Defending state champion Lewis Central (10-0) will play Glenwood in a quarterfinal next Friday.

Aidan Hall, Harlan

The University of Iowa recruit had 89 receiving yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 73 yards and another score. The defending Class 3A state champs rolled to a 42-7 first-round playoff win over MOC-Floyd Valley.

Zach Lutmer, Central Lyon/George-Little Rock

Lutmer, another future Iowa Hawkeye, rushed for 134 yards on 11 carries for two touchdowns and passed for another score. He also had an interception on defense in the No. 9 Lions’ 42-16 Class 2A second-round playoff win over Clarinda. CL/GL-R (10-0) led 35-0 at halftime.

Joey Rhomberg, Mount Vernon

The junior quarterback passed for 157 yards and rushed for 57 yards and a touchdown as No. 11 Mount Vernon beat Central DeWitt 23-9 in a Class 3A playoff opener. Clark Younggreen, Henry Ryan and Mikey Cabrera also scored touchdowns for the 10-0 Mustangs, who pulled away after leading 7-6 at halftime.

Caden Lundt, Spirit Lake

The sophomore quarterback completed 9 of 13 passes for 161 yards and two touchdowns and ran for two more scores as the unbeaten Indians outscored Clear Lake 43-21 in a Class 2A second-round playoff game. Jake Cornwall had 75 rushing yards and 48 receiving for 10-0 Spirit Lake.

Kyler Gerardy, North Scott

Gerardy racked up 342 yards of total offense, rushing for three touchdowns and passing for another in North Scott’s 38-15 first-round Class 4A playoff win over Western Dubuque. Gerardy passed for 179 yards and rushed for 163 as the Lancers advanced to meet unbeaten Waverly-Shell Rock.

Andy Henson, West Branch

Henson rushed for 136 yards and two touchdowns, leading unbeaten West Branch to a 27-14 Class 1A second-round playoff win over Waterloo Columbus. Tye Hughes passed for 136 yards and a TD for the 10-0 Bears.

Makelle Taylor, Cedar Rapids Prairie

Taylor broke loose for 332 rushing yards on 21 carries, scoring two touchdowns in Prairie’s 50-28 Class 5A playoff win over Linn-Mar. Prairie avenged a loss to Linn-Mar in a regular-season finale last week.

Alex Ravlin, Underwood

The senior quarterback passed for a school-record six touchdowns as the Eagles soared to a 62-14 win over ACGC in a second-round Class 1A playoff game. Underwood moved to 10-0 on the season and will play Pella Christian in a quarterfinal.

Mitchell Smith, West Hancock

Smith passed for 110 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 83 yards and another score as West Hancock held off Wapsie Valley 16-9 in a Class A playoff game. The Eagles remained unbeaten at 10-0 and advanced to a quarterfinal against North Linn.

Ben Gordon, Van Meter

The junior rushed for 220 yards and three touchdowns on 21 carries, helping the Bulldogs blank Woodward-Granger 42-0 in a second-round Class 1A playoff game. It was the second straight playoff shutout for 9-1 Van Meter.

Brady Grisham, Waukee Northwest

Grisham carried 33 times for 215 yards in Northwest’s 9-0 first-round Class 5A playoff win over Cedar Rapids Kennedy. Northwest forced three second-half turnovers.

Lance Coon, Humboldt

The Wildcats’ tailback eclipsed 100 yards on the ground and scored three touchdowns as Humboldt blanked Hampton-Dumont 39-0 in a Class 3A playoff opener. It was a repeat of an opening-round playoff contest a year ago and Humboldt (9-1) moves on to a quarterfinal against Independence.

Will Nuss, Johnston

The sophomore passed for 272 yards and five touchdowns as the Dragons outlasted Iowa City High 38-31 in overtime in a Class 5A playoff opener. City High rallied from a 24-7 deficit to tie the game, but Johnston won it on a TD pass from Nuss to Jacob Simpson.

Kooper Ebel, Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn

The senior and Iowa State recruit had 23 carries for 213 yards and three touchdowns, while also passing for 92 yards and a score as the Hawks outscored Hinton 46-27 in a Class A second-round playoff game.

Blake Timmons, Solon

Timmons rushed for 162 yards and scored two touchdowns as Solon opened Class 3A playoff action with a 42-18 win over West Delaware. Timmons had a 20-yard interception return for a touchdown and an 80-yard scoring run.

Brody Tuttle, Centerville

The Centerville quarterback scored four touchdowns and the Big Reds rallied from a 21-0 first-quarter deficit to clip Monticello 28-27 in a Class 2A playoff game. Tuttle rushed for 168 yards on 35 carries.

Carter Bultman, West Sioux

Bultman rushed for 223 yards on 26 carries as the Falcons breezed to a 45-7 win over Carroll Kuemper in a Class 2A second-round playoff game. West Sioux (9-1) will meet Hull Western Christian, which won at Aplington-Parkersburg 49-27, in a quarterfinal matchup.

Camden Kruse, West Lyon

The senior had two interceptions and 5.5 tackles and also caught a 23-yard touchdown pass in the Wildcats’ 43-7 Class 2A playoff win over Greene County. West Lyon now gets a second shot at rival Central Lyon/George-Little Rock in a quarterfinal.

Mason Dicks, Newell-Fonda

The senior quarterback threw a touchdown pass to Ryan Greenfield and ran for a 69-yard score as the Mustangs stunned previously unbeaten Don Bosco 35-10 in an 8-player second-round playoff game. Newell-Fonda (9-1) trailed 10-0 at halftime but scored 35 unanswered points in the second half.