We start our previews with the Division 1 and 2 State Semifinal Games tonight.
Waunakee vs Arrowhead @ Madison Memorial
Live Stream: ESPN Madison
Waunakee Warriors
12-0, 1st place Badger-Large
Playoff Wins: 28-21 over Chippewa Falls, 20-0 over Mukwonago, 42-28 over DePere
Losses: None
Waunakee is looking to get back to the WIAA State Football Championships after losing in heartbreaking fashion to Lake Geneva Badger in 2023. Waunakee walked through the regular season with just a single tough game: a 14-13 win over 2nd-place Monona Grove.
The Warriors present a balanced attack with Cole Krause leading the way in the passing game, completing 67.7% of his passes for 1130 yards, 15 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions. Krause spreads the ball around as 5 different receivers have over 100 receiving yards, led by Devonte Bacon, who has caught 34 passes for 357 yards and 5 touchdowns. Cooper Johnson has caught 13 passes for 336 yards and 5 touchdowns.
While a stable of running backs have put up numbers, with Colin Murphy leading the way, 105 carries, 791 yards and 11 touchdowns, Eli Drangstveit with 131 carries, 696 yards and 10 touchdowns, and Jack Solverson with 63 carries, 458 yards and 8 touchdowns.
Arrowhead Warhawks
11-1 2nd place Classic 8
Playoff Wins: 56-12 vs Wausau West, 31-29 vs Brookfield East, 34-24 vs Sussex Hamilton
Loss: 21-17 @ Muskego
One of two Classic 8 Teams in the Division 1 Semifinals, the Warhawks are looking to build on a Sectional Final appearance last year as a 4 seed. Their lone loss on the season is to Muskego, which is still alive in the Division 1 playoffs.
Arrowhead is led by its Junior Quarterback Nolan Hanson, who has completed 63.9% of his passes for 1718 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 9 interceptions. His favorite target is Ryan Heiman, who has caught 37 passes for 697 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Arrowhead also sports a 1000-yard rusher, as senior Jacob Siner has rushed for 1048 yards and 11 touchdowns, and Jebari Craig has rushed for 631 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Muskego vs Bay Port @ Titan Stadium – UW Oshkosh
Live Stream: Voice of BP Stream
Muskego Warriors
11-1, 1st place Classic 8
Playoff Wins: 64-16 over Madison West, 34-6 over Racine Case, 20-13 over Lake Geneva Badger.
This one is a rematch of last year’s Division 1 State Championship game. Muskego is going to be looking for revenge after a tough loss to Bay Port under the lights at Camp Randall last year.
Muskego has been on an 11-game win streak after losing an opening-night game at Neenah. They rolled through the always tough Classic 8 with their closest game being a 21-17 win over Arrowhead.
As expected, it has been a strong season on the ground for the Warriors, with sophomore Bryson Hoeffler leading the way with 128 carries for 942 yards and 7 touchdowns, and senior Jackson Niemiec has been right behind him with 93 carries for 906 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Muskego’s junior quarterback Joey Shaw has impressed as well, completing 36/31 passing for 861 yards, 13 touchdowns, and 1 interception. His main targets have been Niemiec, who has caught 13 passes for 311 yards and 5 touchdowns, and Ben Kreil, who has caught 10 passes for 277 yards and 4 touchdowns.
Bay Port Pirates
10-2 2nd in the FRCC-North
Playoff Wins: 41-6 over Appleton North, 49-8 over Milwaukee Reagan, 42-13 over Franklin
Losses: 23-7 vs Kimberly, 48-45 vs West De Pere
Bay Port is the defending Division 1 State Champions and had a rougher road to get to this point than last year, with a loss to Division 1 Power Kimberly in the non-conference and then a shootout loss to West De Pere (who is still alive in Division 2).
Bay Port has a prolific offense led by senior running back Brady Moon, who has carried the ball 224 times for 1946 yards and 28 touchdowns. Senior quarterback Matt Stevens has carried the ball 101 times for 733 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Bay Port can also pass the ball, with Stevens completing 69.4% of his passes for 1772 yards, 21 touchdowns, and just 2 interceptions. Jackson Otradovec and Moon have been Stevens’ biggest targets, with Otradovec catching 31 passes for 574 yards and 6 touchdowns, and Moon catching 28 passes for 383 yards and 8 touchdowns.
