Each week throughout the regular season, The Pick List will feature a few of the best match-ups across the state and make our predictions on a handful of other games.
Feature Games of the Week:
5A No. 4 Spring Hill (7-0) at De Soto (7-0)
The overwhelming choice for Game of the Week pits the top two teams on the eastern half of Class 5A. Fourth-ranked Spring Hill will travel to De Soto to take on the unbeaten and unranked Wildcats.
This one has been building for a few weeks now.
The Spring Hill Broncos are in their first season in the United Kansas Conference and have introduced themselves with a 7-0 run through league competition.
Veteran coach Fred Bouchard is in his second season at Spring Hill and has posted a 15-2 record with the Broncos. A member of the Missouri Football Coaches Hall of Fame, Bouchard has had a decorated career with a record of 266-59 with five state championships. He’s spent time at Mary Institute St. Louis County Day School (MICDS), Staley and Harrisonville in Missouri.
His Broncos are built on a stout defense and a relatively young, but explosive offense. Spring Hill allows only 11.3 points per game while scoring nearly 49 points per game.
Junior all-purpose back Maysen Dodson (5-9, 180) leads the Bronco offense with 1,035 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns on only 102 carries. Dodson is averaging 10.1 yards per carry. He also has 14 receptions for 299 yards and four touchdowns.
Sophomore quarterback Blace Rodina has completed 72 percent of his passes for 1,007 yards and 13 touchdowns against only one interception. Senior Cameron Wells is Rodina’s leading receiver with 24 catches for 366 yards and five scores.
The Bronco defense is led by defensive lineman Brooks Bayer (6-2, 245). Bayer, a Pitt State commit, leads the team with 43 tackles including 20 for loss and 7.5 sacks. Sophomore Easton Bowers and junior Michael Beck are among the team leaders in tackles. Bowers has added four interceptions, while senior Caden McKanna has added three picks for a unit that has 20 takeaways.
On the other side the De Soto Wildcats have been rolling along at 7-0 and sitting right outside the Class 5A top five poll. De Soto defeated Topeka Seaman, 48-34, in the season opener, then used a late field goal to knock off Basehor-Linwood, 31-28, back in Week 3. The Wildcats are averaging 48.3 points per game while allowing 15.6 points per contest.
The Wildcats are led by Brian King who has posted a 96-43 record in his 14th season at De Soto.
De Soto is balanced in their run game with senior Emerson Tjaden leading the team with 723 rush yards and seven touchdowns on 105 carries. Will Morton has rushed for 554 yards and eight scores. Quarterback Ben Parks has added 308 yards rushing and Brady DeArmond has rushed for 301 yards. Both Parks and DeArmond have rushed for three scores.
Parks has only attempted 41 passes but he has completed 71 percent of those for 646 yards and 10 touchdowns. Morton and DeArmond lead the team in receiving yards with 273 and 218, respectively. Both have three touchdowns catches.
On paper, Spring Hill may look like the favorite thanks to a defense that shut out Basehor-Linwood (24-0) and shut down high-flying Topeka Seaman (27-10). But a key will be how well the young skill players for the Broncos handle the atmosphere on the road against the senior-heavy skill players from De Soto.
The all-time series is nearly even with De Soto holding a 22-21 advantage. The last meeting was in 2022 – a De Soto win.
The winner will be the United Kansas Conference champions and will earn the No 1 seed on the eastern side of Class 5A.
Our Pick: Spring Hill 27, De Soto 24 (Gilmore)
Chapman (6-1) at 3A No. 3 Hesston (6-1)
Both teams have taken a nice climb in 2026. This game will decide the Class 3A, District 5 championship.
Hesston has risen to No. 3 in Class 3A after starting the year unranked. Hesston took a surprising (especially by margin) 42-14 loss to 4A powerhouse Wamego last Friday. Hesston finished 6-4 last season with 35.9 points per game and 23.5 points allowed a contest. This year, the Swathers are nearly identical with 35.9 points scored a contest, though is much better defensively with 13.1 points a game.
Chapman, a Kpreps Potential Breakout Team in the preseason, went 1-8 last year. Jason Grider, who had a strong run at Halstead, has done well turning around Chapman. The Irish lost three games by a combined 15 points. Chapman had significant returners on both sides, especially running back Audiel Becker. The Irish has averaged 39.7 points per game with its only loss, 25-22, at Wellsville in Week 4.
Becker has been among the state’s leading rushers with 164 carries for 1,425 yards and 19 scores and 19 scores. Chapman has delivered 346 rushing yards a game and 7.6 yards per game. The Irish ran the ball more than 85 percent of the time last year. That number is higher than year at 93.2 percent. Chapman has 7.5 yards per play.
Hesston is very balanced and has run the ball on 47 percent of snaps. Senior Jerick Humphreys has completed 133 of 181 passes for 1,663 yards with 24 scores against two interceptions. He has 238 rushing yards and six scores. Senior Gavin Larson has 48 catches for 721 yards and 13 TDs. Hesston is plus-10 in turnover margin and has just four turnovers all year. Chapman has six turnovers and plus-11.
This is the first matchup between the teams since 2023. Hesston is 7-1 against Chapman since 2008. It will be a contrast of differing styles. Hesston’s passing game has paid off in several past games with Chapman and could be the edge here.
Our Pick: Hesston 35, Chapman 28 (Nicholl)
Osage City (6-1) at 2A No. 2 Silver Lake (7-0)
Osage City will travel to second-ranked Silver Lake to decide the Class 2A, District 3 championship. Both the Indians and Eagles are 3-0 in district play. The winner will be the District 3 champion with the loser advancing as the runner-up.
Osage City has picked up five consecutive wins since a 22-14 loss to Council Grove back in Week 2. The Indians have averaged 41.7 points per game while allowing 10 points per game.
Reed Silver leads the Osage City offense. The senior signal-caller has completed 64 percent of his passes for 582 yards and 10 touchdowns. Silver is also the team’s leading rusher with 793 yards and ten touchdowns on 100 carries.
Junior Sawyer Speece has added 637 yards rushing with seven scores. Speece is also a threat in the passing game having caught a team-high 14 passes for 197 yards and three touchdowns. Layken Peterson has added 121 receiving yards and three scores.
Defensively, senior Zach Green leads the Indians with 28 stops while Silver has added 27 tackles. Six different Indians have between 20 and 28 tackles. Green has 2.5 sacks, while Speece has a pair of interceptions. Osage City has forced 13 opponent turnovers.
Silver Lake has come through a difficult Big East League schedule unscathed. The Eagles have quality wins over St. Marys, Rossville, and Jefferson West. Silver Lake has dominated in its three district victories outscoring Oskaloosa, West Franklin, and Maranatha Academy by a combined 227-20.
The Eagles kept their consistent play going in a 61-0 thrashing of Holton in a non-district game last week.
Sophomore quarterback Kipton Kruger has completed 62 percent of his passes for 1,334 yards and 21 touchdowns with only two interceptions.
Six Eagle receivers have at least 100 yards this season. Junior Mason Vanvactor has a team high 21 catches for 331 yards and five touchdowns. Owen Rottinghaus has added 245 yards and four touchdowns on 16 receptions. Sophomores Rylan Young and Braun Johnson have contributed 237 and 199 receiving yards, respectively. Johnson has five touchdown catches.
The Eagles are equally effective in the run game with Dominic Monhollon leading the way with 592 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns on just 66 carries. Junior Tyler Rollenhagen has added 256 rushing yards and four touchdowns.
Myles Fisher leads the Silver Lake defense with 55 tackles, including 10 for loss. Vanvactor has four interceptions for an Eagle defense that has forced 17 turnovers.
Silver Lake won last year’s district meeting 28-21. The Eagles have reached the second-round of the 2A playoffs in each of the last two seasons.
Osage City defeated Silver Lake 35-21 in districts back in 2024. The Indians advanced to the 2A quarterfinals that season and reached the state semifinals last fall.
Silver Lake may have too many weapons in this meeting.
Our Pick: Silver Lake 34, Osage City 21 (Gilmore)
Dighton (5-2) at Quinter (7-0)
Both teams have enjoyed strong turnarounds and will play for the Northwest Kansas League and Eight-Man, Division II, District 8 title. These teams have played every year since 2016 and had two meetings in ’21. Since 2012, Dighton has a 7-6 edge in the series.
Quinter is 4-0 in the league, while Wallace County is 4-1 in the conference, and Dighton and Oberlin are both 3-1. Last year, Quinter was 4-5. Dighton, a Kpreps Potential Breakout Team, was 3-7 in ’25.
Quinter, buoyed by a great offensive line and several talented young players, enjoyed a nice 36-22 comeback against Wallace County last week. The Wildcats led Quinter 22-0 in the first half. Wallace County had defeated Dighton, 40-38.
For Dighton, junior Rangler Price has completed 68 percent of his passes with 1,170 yards and 16 touchdowns against four interceptions. Running back Westin Johnson has 406 rushing yards and nine scores. Charles Vogel (6-4, 190) has 37 catches for 489 yards and seven scores and is a potential college prospect. Shawn Redburn has 26 catches for 257 yards and three TDs. On defense, Conner Wilson has 56 tackles, Redburn with 52.
Quinter has a group that enjoyed great success in basketball the last two winters and had a lot of success in football/basketball in the younger ranks. Quinter features Easton Blackwill at quarterback, along with Cooper Havlas and Colt Werth at running back. Brothers Bo and Jax Ruf are at wide receiver. Berkeley Mesch is a 310-pound junior center. Jarrett Packard is a 215-pound guard, and Isaac Gillespie is a 245-pound guard.
Quinter has the likely advantage up front, though Dighton, with longtime coach Ken Simon, has often exceeded expectations and won games when they aren’t the favorite. This could come down to line play and the margins.
Our Pick: Dighton 36, Quinter 34 (Nicholl)
The Pick List:
6A No. 2 Derby (7-0) at Salina South (6-1) – Derby
4A No. 1 Bishop Miege (7-0) at Blue Valley Northwest (4-3) – Miege
6A No. 4 Gardner-Edgerton (6-1) at Olathe North (4-3) – Gardner-Edgerton
Wichita Southeast (5-2) at Wichita Northwest (5-2) – Northwest
Blue Valley (5-2) at 5A No. 13 St. James Academy (5-2) – St. James
KC Sumner Academy (6-1) at KC Washington (5-2) – Washington
KC Piper (5-2) at Topeka Seaman (4-3) -- Seaman
Salina Central (5-2) at Andover (7-0) – Andover
Augusta (5-2) at Buhler (5-2) – Buhler
4A No. 5 Eudora (6-1) at Paola (4-3) -- Eudora
Jefferson West (6-1) at Wamego (5-1) – Wamego
Rose Hill (5-2) at Wellington (5-2) – Wellington
Hoisington (5-2) at 2A No. 4 Garden Plain (6-1) – Garden Plain
Riley County (5-2) at 2A No. 3 Council Grove (7-0) – Council Grove
Riverside (6-1) at Royal Valley (4-3) – Riverside
Onaga (5-2) at Centralia (4-3) -- Centralia
Haven (6-1) at Halstead (4-3) – Haven
McLouth (7-0) at Jeff Co. North (6-1) -- McLouth
8M-I No. 1 Lincoln (7-0) at Ell-Saline (4-3) – Lincoln
Madison (6-1) at Flinthills (5-2) – Madison
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