The South Hamilton Hawks hit the road for the first Friday in October, as they travel to Calhoun County to take on the Cougars of Manson-Northwest Webster in Class 1A, District 2 action. The Hawks enter Friday with a 5-1 record, and a 3-0 district record, while the Cougars enter with a 1-5 record, and a 1-2 district mark.
South Hamilton comes into Friday night following one of the biggest wins in program history in Week 6, knocking off a South Central Calhoun program that the Hawks had never defeated, 62-8.
Manson-Northwest Webster presents a more-modern attack for the Hawks, with the Cougars running more a traditional spread offense. Manson’s offense runs through quarterback Logan Moline, who’s thrown for 522 yards and 6 touchdowns, but 7 interceptions. Moline’s favorite target has been sophomore Matt Condon, who’s caught 12 balls for 244 yards and 4 touchdowns, averaging 20.3 yards per reception. Jaydin Anderson, Caydin Anderson and Brody Poppen have over 100 receiving yards as well. In the run game, sophomore Kamden Birkey has led the charge with 193 yards and 2 touchdowns, while Moline has added 109 yards of his own.
Defensively, the Cougars have a solid group of linebackers, between Cooper Harman, Kaden Hudek and Kamden Birkey. Hudek leads the trio with 34 tackles, while Harman and Birkey have 32.5 tackles each. Austin Jaeschke has been Manson’s most disruptive defensive lineman, with 16 tackles, a sack and 3 tackles for loss on the season. In the secondary, Jaydin Anderson has been the Cougars statistical leader, with 3 interceptions on the season, while Caydin Anderson and Tatuem Hanson have one interception each. South Hamilton’s key will be a quick start and avoid the hangover of the thrashing of South Central Calhoun. That will keep the Hawks on track for a district title.
Kickoff is slated for 7 PM on Friday night from the Keith Hart Athletic Complex in Manson.