High School Football: Five metro games to watch in Week Five

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Chad Harberts

Cedar Ridge Christian (2-2) at Janesville (2-3)

Where: Jack Bolt Field | Janesville

When: Friday, 7 p.m.

The buzz around Friday's game: There is an argument to be made this Friday's game is the most important game in Cedar Ridge Christian football history. The three-year old program has an opportunity to pick up a third district victory on the road at Janesville. Cedar Ridge's closes the season with three tough opponents in Don Bosco, Turkey Valley and Central Elkader. The Regents are riding high with a pair of home wins to get back to .500. Transfer quarterback Asher Meyer passed for 466 yards and seven touchdowns. Junior running back David Comer has come back from an injury to rush for 262 yards and four touchdowns in the past two weeks. Janesville opened the season with a win over Belle Plaine before losing three straight games. The Wildcats bounced back last week to be Tripoli 50-21. Senior quarterback Blayne Porter has nine touchdowns this season (six passing, three rushing). Talan Pletz is Janesville's top rusher with 176 yards and three scores. "Their (Janesville's) skill positions have outstanding speed, which is a concern for us," Cedar Ridge coach Andy Bruemmer said. "We need to play together. It is going to be team game. We are going to have to have everybody step up and play well." This is the first meeting ever between the teams.

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No. 4 Decorah (3-1) at Waterloo East (0-4)

Where: Memorial Stadium | Waterloo

When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.

The buzz around Friday's game: Waterloo East continues to its brutal schedule back at Memorial Stadium after construction moved the team's first two games to the UNI-Dome. The Trojans' first five opponents have a combined record of 16-4 this season. Decorah is led by a dual threat quarterback in senior Tanner Caddell. He has 468 yards passing and six touchdowns this season to go along with 165 yards rushing and four scores. Senior running back Trevor Kuennen adds 263 yards on the ground and two touchdowns. Waterloo East's offense is stuck in neutral after cycling through four different quarterbacks due to injuries. Starter Chris Pierce has missed the last two games but is expected to be available this week. Without Pierce again last week, the Trojans were held to six passing yards and 114 rushing yards in a loss at Charles City. Without being able to sustain drives, the East defense has spent a lot of time on the field. "We're taking some lumps with a young team right now," Waterloo East coach De Carlos Anderson said. "Without Chris (Pierce) we've struggled a bit. When we put Terrance Sayles in at quarterback last week, I think nine of our 11 players on the field were sophomores. They (Decorah) are a physical team. For us, it is going to be important to stay disciplined, and we go out there and compete." Decorah has won seven straight games in the series.

Dubuque Hempstead (1-3) at No. 9 Cedar Falls (3-1) Where: Cedar Falls High School | Cedar Falls

When: Friday, 7 p.m.

The buzz around Friday's game: Dubuque Hempstead hasn't been competitive in three losses to Cedar Rapids Kennedy, Iowa City West, and Pleasant Valley. The Mustangs did beat Waterloo West 42-32 in the UNI-Dome two weeks ago. Quarterback Liam Olsen threw his first touchdown of the season last week but also has four interceptions in four games. Jaden Montgomery powers the offense with 578 yards and eight touchdowns this year. He is second in Class 5A in rushing touchdowns, rushing yards, and all-purpose yards this season. "They (Hempstead) have a good scheme," Cedar Falls coach Brad Remmert said. "They will spread you out, but they also want to run the football. You have to tackle well in space. We have to build on what we did last Friday night. We have to continue that theme of getting some takeaways and then take advantage of those takeaways." Cedar Falls' offense got untracked last week in a 40-21 thrashing of Iowa City High. The Tigers' dominant defense also shined, allowing just seven points. City High scored their last 14 points against Cedar Falls' third stringers. Quarterback Leyton Wolf has thrown for 474 yards and four touchdowns this season. He also has four touchdown runs. After missing the team's opening game with an injury, Ian Fuchtman has rolled to 325 yards on the ground in the past three weeks. The defense has forced seven turnovers in four games while piling up 10.5 sacks. Cedar Falls has won eight of the past nine meetings in the series, losing 20-13 in 2020. In the team's last meeting, Cedar Falls won 34-7 in 2022.

Hudson (1-3) at Columbus Catholic (2-2)

Where: T.J. McLaughlin Field | Waterloo

When: Friday, 7 p.m.

The buzz around Friday's game: Hudson is coming off its first win of the season behind quarterback Tade Roberts. The sophomore has 731 yards passing and four touchdowns this season. His primary target is Anderson Yoder, who has 27 catches for 328 yards and two scores this year. "Hudson played a tough non-district," Columbus Catholic coach Brad Schmitt said. "We have a lot of familiarity with Hudson and Coach (Justin) Brekke. He always gets his teams to play hard. We have a lot of respect for him and what they've done over the years." Columbus Catholic is on a two-game winning streak after beating Lisbon and Jesup. The Sailors are getting players back from injuries that hurt the team early in the season. Quarterback Amani Robinson has three total touchdowns. Isaac Sitzmann has stepped into a starting role and rushed for 180 yards and one score. Hudson won last season's meeting between the team 33-6. The victory snapped a Columbus Catholic three-game winning streak in the series.

Waterloo West (2-2) vs. No. 5 Dowling Catholic (3-1)

Where: Valley Stadium | West Des Moines

When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.

The buzz around Friday's game: Waterloo West is reeling from two straight home (in the UNI-Dome) losses and now travels to one of the top teams in Class 5A. The Wahawks offense stalled out in the second half of last week's loss to Fort Dodge as the team couldn't sustain any drives. Senior quarterback Brett McGovern has 814 yards passing and seven touchdowns this season. He has also rushed for three scores. Felix Annan leads the rushing attack with 451 yards and six scores. Moore is also hoping to welcome back senior Melakhi Hickey after he missed last two games with an injury. Hickey is among the state leaders in quarterback sacks. Dowling Catholic senior quarterback Joey Nahas is one of the top passers in Class 5A with 849 yards and eight touchdowns. Senior running back Ian Middleton adds 451 yards and six scores. Senior wideout Jeffrey Roberts is second in Class 5A with five touchdown catches this year. "It's obvious they are a very good team," Waterloo West coach Lonnie Moore said. "It's a big challenge for us. We have been working on ourselves this week. We have a lot of things we need to correct on our end." The two programs haven't played since 2020, when Dowling Catholic won 38-12.

-- Compiled by Courier

Sportswriter Chad Harberts

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