South Dakota Class 11A

Hot Springs at Madison – Saturday November 8 at 4:00 PM

Madison has put together an outstanding season to follow up their great season last year. Here’s a look at how close they came to repeating last season’s success.

Mitch Hansen (PASS: 97/154, 1362 yds 14TD 8 INT, RUSH: 514 yds, 10TD) has been a great leader in his first year leading the Bulldogs at quarterback. Hansen’s targets include Carter Kasuske (26 rec, 280 yds) Mason Leighton (14 rec 257 yds) and Heith Williams (10 rec 180 yds). Brodie Frederiksen (992 yards, 11 TDs) is a threat to score from anywhere on the field in the running game. This young group has really exceeded expectations. Hot Springs did all they could do in the quarterfinals to etch out a 10-0 win over Belle Fourche. Jared Harkless has had a great season but Belle Fourche did a nice job of keying on him and stopping him (21 carries for 38 yards). Hot Springs will need a great performance from Harkless to beat the #1 seed on Saturday.

PREDICTION: Madison takes care of business with a 50-0 win over the Bison and move on to the finals again.

West Central at Dell Rapids – Saturday November 8 at 4:00 PM

This is one of the premier rivalries in the state. West Central or Dell Rapids have won the 11A title in 16 of the last 18 years and each of the last four seasons. They will have a rematch from their October 10^th meeting when Dell Rapids took it to West Central in the second half and won 34-25. Cody Bussell has done a little bit of everything for the Trojans, he’s becomd one of the most versatile players in the class. Head Coach Kent Mueller talks about getting back to the dome.   

Dell Rapids have started to hit full stride. They dropped their opening game to Madison and haven’t lost since. Riley Schmidt leads a great running game, last week he ran for 178 yards on 8 rushes. Schmidt has gone from great to elite in the last month. He is finding room behind his blockers and breaking into the open field at an alarming rate. Quarterback Jase Nelson has been solid as well. He hooked up for three touchdown passes in the quarterfinals and is comfortable if the team needs to pass the ball.

PREDICTION: West Central finds a way to get back to the dome with a hard fought win. Something crazy will happen at the end of the game and the Trojans will march to the dome to defend their title. West Central wins 22-20