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STEELE SPORTS

Key matchups in new Steele gridiron season
By
Johnnie Phillips, Sports Editor
Johnnie Phillips, editor, sports, Steele County Times

The beginning of September can’t arrive soon enough for football fans in southern Minnesota as local high school squads prepare to take the field for the first time beginning on Sept. 1.

A new season filled with wins, losses, tears, and cheers is on the doorstep for students at Blooming Prairie, Medford, NRHEG, and Owatonna High School, and with that, I think there is no better time to focus on each school’s key matchup during the season.

Blooming Prairie

This season, Blooming Prairie will undoubtedly be looking to get back to its winning ways early and often to put itself back in the driver’s seat for the Gopher Conference title.

However, a matchup with Lester Prairie on Sept. 9 looms on the horizon right after the team’s first game of the season against Hayfield.

After beating Hayfield 57-6 in a one-sided rout a year ago, Blooming Prairie showed flashes of difficulty at home against the Bulldogs and trailed 14-6 at halftime before ultimately winning 41-26.

Compound a tough road matchup early in the season with the loss of offensive stars Drew Kittelson and Colin Jordison, and the game will be a must-watch for Awesome Blossom fans to see how quickly this team can return to form.

Owatonna

After falling twice to Rochester Mayo, 58-31 and 38-33, a season ago, the Huskies’ Week One matchup at home against the Spartans on Sept. 2 is surely a game that head coach Jeff Williams’ squad has had circled on the calendar since last November.

Offensively, Owatonna was able to break the 30-point mark in both games against Mayo last year, however, the defense will be the key against the Spartans.

Rochester Mayo was a senior-heavy squad in 2021 that will return this fall without its starting quarterback, running back, and leading wide receiver – something Williams and experienced defensive coordinator Marc Achterkirch will look to exploit for the Huskies to get into the win column early.

NRHEG

NRHEG returns to the mix this fall with nothing short of big expectations from a team that will bring back a healthy amount of varsity starters on both sides of the ball.

Senior running back Andrew Phillips will come back to the Panthers’ backfield this season as the spearhead of NRHEG’s offense after a solid junior campaign in 2021.

Phillips and head coach Marc Kruger will look to build off last season’s offensive struggles that saw three of NRHEG’s losses come by six points or less.

A key game for Panthers fans to tune in for will be the squad’s Sept. 23 home matchup against St. Clair/Loyola.

The Cyclones stole two games against the Panthers by scores of 14-13 and 13-7 a season ago, making the difference between NRHEG’s record finishing at 4-5 instead of 6-3 or better.

Medford

The 2021-22 season was a long haul for Tigers fans as Medford’s growing pains led to the team finishing winless at a record of 0-9.

However, Medford only graduated six seniors this past spring and will look to bounce back with a more experienced roster.

Week One brings a tough Rushford-Peterson team to town on Sept. 2 in what should be a good game for fans to use as a season-expectations benchmark.

Regardless of whether the game is won or not, Medford should only continue to build from its woes a season ago as the team tries to build its way back to the 6-2 team it was in 2020.

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