MONROE - For four teams the dream of playing for a state championship and gold ball at Camp Randall Stadium starts Friday, Oct. 25 with the first-round playoff games set to take center stage.

Brodhead-Juda (7-2) is making its 22nd straight playoff appearance, which is the second longest streak in the state. The Cardinals, ranked No. 7 in the WisSports.net Division 4 coaches' poll, will host Saint Thomas More in a Level 1 playoff game at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 25.

"We are clicking on all cylinders," Brodhead-Juda coach B.J. Bockhop said. "I think we can make a run. It will all come down to our senior leadership. We will go as far as our seniors take us."

Saint Thomas More runs a spread offense. The Cardinals are focused on forcing turnovers.

"They are pretty big and have size and speed," Bockhop said. "It will be a tough game for us. We will have to get some pressure on the quarterback before they can get it out to those quick wide receivers."

If the Cardinals beat St. Thomas More, they would play the winner of Platteville (5-4) and Dodgeville (5-4). The biggest hurdle to a state run will likely be No. 1 ranked Walworth-Big Foot (9-0), the Rock Valley South Conference champions who beat the Cardinals 16-3 last week.

Brodhead-Juda senior Derek Turner has rushed for 706 yards and scored nine touchdowns this season. Fellow senior Jordan Douglas has rushed for 494 yards and eight touchdowns.

"We have to make sure we can establish the run," Bockhop said. "That is the game plan. Our passing game has really improved a lot. We feel more confident in our passing game."

New Glarus-Monticello (5-4), the Capitol South Conference champion, will host Clinton at 7 p.m. Friday. If the Glarner Knights win, they would then play No. 1 seed Big Foot. New Glarus-Monticello coach Desie Breadon didn't shy away from any matchup after the Knights defeated Cambridge 35-0 to win the conference outright.

"If you are going to win the state title, you are going to have to beat some good teams," Breadon said. "Winning a state title is our goal."

New Glarus-Monticello senior Jim Chenoweth has rushed for 1,226 yards and 12 TDs. He is averaging 136 yards per game and is a big reason the Knights have been able to rebound from a three-game losing streak at the start of the season. The Knights moved Gavin Binger to quarterback and switched senior Patrick Elzen to wingback, and since then they have won six of their last seven games. Elzen leads the Knights with four touchdown catches.

"We thought that would give us the most dangerous option with Gavin at quarterback and Patrick at wingback," Breadon said.



Division 6

Pecatonica-Argyle received a No. 7 seed in the Division 7 field and will open up the playoffs playing at 5 p.m. Friday against Lourdes Academy (8-1) at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.

Pecatonica-Argyle junior quarterback Drew Schliem has passed for 991 yards with 11 TDs and five interceptions. He has completed 57 percent of his passes. Pecatonica-Argyle senior Alec Treuthardt leads the Vikings in rushing 544 yards and five TDs and has 21 catches for 401 yards and three TDs. Senior Tylor Henneman has rushed for 449 yards and nine TDs. If the Vikings win their first-round game they would play the winner of Ozaukee (7-2) and Reedsville (7-2).



Division 7

Black Hawk (9-0), ranked No. 1 in Division 7, is one of just three unbeaten teams in the Division 7 field, and there are just four conference champions in the playoffs. Black Hawk has a tough test in the first round against Six Rivers Conference rival Belmont. The Warriors came back in the final minute to beat Belmont 27-24 three weeks ago.

Five of the state's top 10 ranked teams are in Black Hawk's region. There is a conference mix in the playoffs as Belmont, Cassville and No. 8 ranked Potosi are in the same eight-team grouping as the Warriors. If Black Hawk beats Belmont, they would play the winner of Weston (7-2) and DeSoto (6-3) in the Level 2 playoffs.

"I don't think they are a No. 8 seed," Black Hawk coach Cory Milz said of Belmont. "I thought they would contend for a conference championship. This will be a test and a good matchup."

The Warriors could face No. 7 ranked North Crawford (8-1) or conference rival Potosi (8-1) in the state quarterfinals. If the Warriors are going to make a state championship game run to Camp Randall Stadium, the biggest hurdle may be No. 3 ranked Fall River (9-0) or No. 6 ranked Lake County Lutheran (8-1) in the state semifinals.

"We have the talent and ability to beat anyone in the field," Milz said. "I think anything is a possibility. With high school and young kids you never know how they will handle every situation. They have been in a couple of sticky situations this year against Cuba City and Belmont and didn't fold. It gives me confidence that if they are in a sticky situation they will keep fighting."

Black Hawk is led by a strong one-two rushing attack led by senior Tanner Sweeney who has rushed for 1,112 yards and 15 TDs and senior Jayden Rufenacht who has rushed for 830 yards and 17 TDs. Black Hawk junior quarterback Heath Butler has proven to be a dual-threat at quarterback. He has passed for 971 yards with nine TDs and he has completed 63 percent of his passes. Butler has also rushed for 575 yards and added nine TDs on the ground.

The top wide receivers for the Warriors are senior Tyler Peterson (20-362 and five TDs) and senior Brett Lovelace (15-412 with six TDs).

"Our challenge is we have to look our offensive line dead in the eye to see if they can get it done," Milz said. "We want to be a balanced offense. We have to be able to run the football. Our challenge is to see if we can speed up our play off the ball so they just can't pin their ears back and come after us."