High School Football Focus: Unbeaten, 'gritty' Chatfield staying in the moment

Oct. 21—Dive into the Xs and Os all you want, the domination on both sides of the football for two seasons.

Point out the "freakish" once-in-a-generation athlete who plays a hybrid quarterback/running back position that few teams have an athlete capable of pulling off.

Take a look at the numbers: A 21-game winning streak in which the Chatfield football team has averaged 39.4 points per game, while allowing just 12.1.

All of those are reasons why Chatfield is ranked No. 1 in the state in Class AA, is the defending Class AA state champion, is unbeaten at 8-0 this season, and takes the No. 1 seed into the Section 1AA playoffs, which begin Tuesday.

When all of the layers of the onion are peeled back, though, Gophers head coach Jeff Johnson said his team's success over the past two seasons can be attributed to something much more basic.

"The simple answer is we have a group of pretty tough kids who are strong and fast," Johnson said. "No matter what you do from a schematic standpoint, if you have those three intangibles — you're tough, strong and quick — you'll have a good defense.

"There are a lot of good offenses out there in our district and section, and we'll be exposed at times. ... Sometimes we make the plays we need to make, sometimes we don't. At times we look like a dominating defense. At times, we look like there is still work to be done. We're still in that process."

It sure helps to have the offense go through one of the state's most imposing and talented ball carriers, Sam Backer. The senior quarterback/running back has been a nightmare matchup for opposing defenses since his varsity career began four years ago. And after a 255-yard performance in a narrow 28-20 win against Goodhue in Wednesday's regular season finale, Backer has the third-most rushing yards in a career all-time in Minnesota high school football, at 6,462.

Only two names are ahead of his on the list, and if the Gophers — as they hope — play six more games, it's nearly assured that Backer will pass Owatonna graduate Jason Williamson (7,009 yards) for second place. It's also not out of the question that he eclipses former McLeod West star Tyler Evans' record of 7,503. Backer would need to average 173.5 yards per game over six more games to accomplish that feat.

But as impressive as Backer has been, he's not a one-man show. As his coach mentioned, he runs behind a line that isn't supersized, but is loaded with strength, grit and determination to win their matchups on every play. It's anchored by seniors Blake Thompson (6-1, 220); Mike Greiner (5-10, 190) and Isaac Stevens (6-2, 205). They're joined by sophomore Ethan Cole (6-3, 220) and junior Nathan Allen (5-11, 175).

Thompson and Stevens also start on the defensive line. They're joined on that side of the ball by seniors Sean Koenigs (6-3, 220) and Thad Evans (5-11, 185), and junior Miles Mulhern (5-11, 225).

"It's the same thing as our defense," Johnson said. "Our offensive line is quick and athletic and they're gritty kids. At times, they all really work well and mesh and mold together, and they all move in the same direction. They're tough kids, they sustain blocks.

"At times our offense as a whole has some miscues, some things we still want to clean up."

For all the success the Gophers have had over the past two seasons, they need look no further than their own section for some of the toughest competition they'll see in the postseason. Caledonia, the No. 2 seed in the section, played the Gophers to a tight 19-6 game on Oct. 7. Then in Wednesday's regular-season finale, Goodhue led Chatfield at halftime and hung with it to the final buzzer in a 28-20 game.

For perspective on how stacked the Section 1AA tournament is, Goodhue is the No. 5 seed.

"They drove the ball on us several times," Johnson said of the Wildcats, whose defense forced three turnovers in the first half. "They ran a lot of clock. It was an excellent game plan and execution on their part. They got some first downs and did what they needed to do.

"We had a few miscues — and, I'm just joking here, but I told our coaches we probably broke some kind of record. We ran 24 offensive plays. They ran 71. ... Again, credit to them. They executed a great game plan."

The close call against the Wildcats was, in a way, a perfect scenario for Johnson and the Gophers' coaching staff. Chatfield earned the victory, improved to 8-0 and locked up the top seed in the section, yet there were plenty of teaching points as the Gophers head into the playoffs.

"We're not where we want to be yet on both sides of the ball," Johnson said. "We're really looking at one game at a time here. We made that clear to the kids (Wednesday) night. There is no looking ahead in this section or past it. We have some very good teams right in front of us.

"Anybody can beat anybody now. The seeds, rankings, records, they're all back at zero now. As cliche as that is, it's do or die now."

With its unbeaten regular season, Chatfield once again holds down the No. 1 spot in our Power Rankings this week — though it is sharing it with Stewartville for this week. Here is the rest of the final High School Football Focus of the 2022 regular season:

1. Broc Barwald, Kasson-Mantorville

There might be a riot at the Hubble House if Barwald wasn't named Week 8's top performer. The K-M running back certainly earned it, rushing for 302 yards and four touchdowns in the KoMets' 28-21 victory against Owatonna. Barwald did it all on just 12 — TWELVE! — carries. That's an average of a whopping 25.2 yards per rush. He scored on runs of 68, 80, 24 and 1 yards. Take away those scoring runs and Barwald still averaged 16.1 yards per carry. His final two scoring runs helped K-M (6-2) rally from down 21-14 in the fourth quarter to get the victory.

2. Carter Todd, La Crescent-Hokah

Todd and first-year Lancers QB AJ Donovan have formed a prolific passing connection this season. That was on full display Wednesday, when Todd caught 13 balls for 147 yards and a touchdown in the Lancers' 42-21 win against Pine Island. The win helped the Lancers secure a home playoff game in Terry Donovan's first season as head coach. It's a huge turnaround for a program that didn't even field a varsity team two years ago, and was 0-9 last season.

3. Beau Wiersma, Kingsland

The Knights' junior running back capped an outstanding regular season for himself and his team by rushing for 211 yards and four touchdowns on 20 carries as Kingsland's offense erupted for 68 points in a 68-32 win against Grand Meadow. Wiersma finished the regular season with 1,386 rushing yards, an average of 173.3 per game.

4. Cal Luebke, Kenyon-Wanamingo

The 5-foot-11, 170-pound senior running back didn't have a massive workload in Wednesday's 44-0 win against Wabasha-Kellogg, but Luebke made the carries he did get count. He ran the ball just 12 times, but compiled 182 yards and two touchdowns on those carries, averaging 15.2 yards per carry.

5. Trey Anderson, Lyle/Pacelli

The Athletics' senior running back had a big game in their final game of the regular season. Anderson ran for 189 yards and four touchdowns on just 21 carries. He helped L/P finish the regular season with a 4-4 record, marking the first time in 17 years the Athletics had gone .500 or better in the regular season (they went 8-2 in 2005).

(Editor's note: These rankings are considered "pound-for-pound" rankings, similar to many rankings systems in boxing and mixed martial arts. They represent the best teams in southeastern Minnesota, relative to the class they play in.)

1 (tie). Chatfield (8-0)

Last week: No. 1

For all the reasons mentioned above, the Gophers remain in this spot. After an 8-0 regular season, now the real work begins. Section 1AA is loaded, with five teams that have legitimate title hopes. Whether you're the 1-seed or the 8-seed, getting through this section is running a gauntlet. "It's like that every year," Gophers head coach Jeff Johnson said. "We continue to talk about it every year in the preseason and some people don't believe us. They think we're just talking up our section. But, really, anybody can beat anybody now. Seeds, rankings, records, it's all 'zero' right now."

1 (tie). Stewartville (8-0)

Last week: No. 2

If we could have a tie for this No. 1 spot, we would. And we can, because there are no rules to our Power Rankings and it's absolutely justified in this case. And, well, YOU tell Stewartville that it's not the No. 1 team. Go ahead, we dare you. The Tigers have all the attributes a championship team needs: Speed, size, experience, a balanced offense and a stingy defense that allows the fewest points per game (4.1) of any team in Class AAAA. We'd love to see the Tigers face Chatfield. How about it, Stewie? Whaddya say, Chatfield? Meet up in a random 100-yard field somewhere in December? We won't tell anyone.

3. Cannon Falls (7-1)

Last week: No. 4

This Bombers team is reminiscent of so many of the outstanding Owatonna teams we watched over the past decade-plus. Their unorthodox offense by nature makes it incredibly difficult to weed out who is carrying the ball on any given play. They chip away at opposing defenses a few yards at a time, then — BAM! — they hit a home run breaking a long run or lulling the defense into a false sense of security before throwing a pass over the top for a touchdown. In other words, opponents need to be ready for a track meet when the Bombers come to town. They've scored more than 50 points in four of their past six games and put up 38 against a very good Caledonia team — on Caledonia's home field — in a 38-20 win Wednesday night.

4. Mayo (7-1)

Last week: No. 3

The Spartans drop one notch this week, despite beating Byron 38-12 for a third consecutive win. Mayo turned the ball over six times in the game, a week after allowing Austin to throw for 300 yards. Penalties and turnovers can be problematic come playoff time, with a season on the line in every game. But we know this about Mayo: The Spartans know how to win and they know what it takes to get to state. A team loaded with playmakers like Mayo's can never be counted out of a game, either. They're the No. 1 seed in Section 1AAAAA for a reason and a first-round bye gives them four extra days to work on limiting the miscues and taking their game to whoever lines up across from them in the semifinals on Oct. 29.

5. Lourdes (7-1)

Last week: No. 5

They're not flashy. They don't have a superstar that every opponent has to gear up for. They're not the biggest team in the world. The best way to describe the identity of this Eagles club: It's simply a bunch of winners. Lourdes has figured out how to win games, whether it's a last-minute drive or methodically pulling away. The Eagles also have a bullseye on their backs now as the No. 1 seed in the Section 1AAA playoffs. They'll gladly take that bullseye, and the first-round bye that comes with it, to attempt to heal some injuries and be ready to go when they take the field again on Saturday, Oct. 29, in the section semifinals against either Plainview-Elgin-Millville or Lake City.

6. Fillmore Central (8-0)

Last week: No. 8

We see you, Falcons. Last week in this space we had the audacity to question your strength of schedule. You responded by dropping 42 points on Winona Cotter Wednesday night. IN THE FIRST QUARTER. Eleven different players carried the ball — none for more than 99 yards — as you rushed for 382 yards in the 69-21 victory. You've passed every test put in front of you this season with flying colors and at 8-0 are averaging 41.2 points per game, the third-best mark in Class A. Just like every opponent you've faced this season, we get it now. You're the real deal.

7. Spring Grove (8-0)

Last week: No. 7

The Lions established themselves as the alpha in Section 1 9-Man with a convincing 28-6 win against Lanesboro on Wednesday night in Spring Grove. That victory secured the top seed in the Section 1 playoffs and an unbeaten regular season for the Lions. In a section where seeds No. 2-5 seem capable of winning on any given night, Spring Grove has won all of its games this season by at least 19 points and is outscoring its opponents by four touchdowns per game.

8. Caledonia (6-2)

Last week: No. 6

Even though the Warriors have lost twice in the past three weeks, they could likely justify a higher position than No. 8 in our Power Rankings. Those two losses came at the hands of No. 1 Chatfield (19-6 on Oct. 7) and Cannon Falls, the No. 5-ranked team in Class AAA (38-20 on Wednesday night). The Warriors have their eyes on a rematch with Chatfield, but they'll have to get through the Section 1AA quarterfinals and semifinals first to make that happen. Caledonia has taken it to some of the other top teams in Section 1AA, though, shutting out No. 3 seed Triton and No. 4 Dover-Eyota, and beating No. 5 seed Goodhue by two touchdowns.

9. Kasson-Mantorville (6-2)

Last week: Not Ranked

Welcome back to the top 10, KoMets. We've kept a spot warm for you. Any victory against Owatonna will make a team Power Rankings-worthy, especially in the fashion K-M won Wednesday night. It did so, as usual, with a powerful rushing attack, rolling up 358 yards — 302 of those by Broc Barwald — in a 28-21 win. The KoMets have earned a first-round bye in the Section 1AAAA playoffs and could be on a collision course with rival Stewartville.

10. Lanesboro (7-1)

Last week: No. 9

The Burros' bid for an unbeaten regular season was snapped by powerful Spring Grove on Wednesday, a 28-6 Lions victory in the final game of the regular season. Lanesboro coach James Semmen told the Post Bulletin earlier this fall that every game is a learning experience for the Burros. Perhaps they learned a good deal about themselves and about Spring Grove, in the event that the top two teams in Section 1 9-Man get a rematch of the regular season finale, in the section championship game.

Dropped Out (last week's rank): Dover-Eyota (No. 10).