WEEK 6 FOOTBALL PREVIEW: Effingham looking to stay hot and win fourth game in a row Friday

Alex Wallner, Effingham Daily News, Ill.
·6 min read

Sep. 30—Below is this week's Effingham Daily News High School Football Preview — an article detailing the matchups for Effingham, Newton, and Cumberland.

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MT. ZION AT EFFINGHAM

Last Year: Effingham defeated Mt. Zion, 28-27, at Mt. Zion.

Last Week: Effingham defeated Taylorville, 48-13, at Klosterman Field at Washington Savings Bank Stadium.

Effingham Notes: Effingham racked up 272 rushing yards against Taylorville in Week 5 en route to a 48-13 victory at Klosterman Field at Washington Savings Bank Stadium. Weldon Dunston had 133 yards on 18 carries and three touchdowns in Week 5. He has 221 rushing yards on 48 carries and five touchdowns this season. Evan Waymoth had 78 yards on 15 carries and three touchdowns in Week 5 and now has 267 yards on 62 carries and five scores this season. Meanwhile, on defense, Logan Heil racked up 12 tackles. Michael Love had eight. London Rinkel had seven to go along with one interception. Connor Simmons had six. Josh Kelley had five. Spencer Fox had four. Charlie Ring and Jack Harper had three. Waymoth, Max Seachrist, and Zach Donaldson had two, and Carter Bushue, Hunter Reed, Gaige Gillum, and Colton Webb had one.

Opponent Notes: Mt. Zion enters Friday night with a 4-1 record, losing only to state-ranked Mahomet-Seymour, 49-14, in Week 3. Last week against Lincoln, the Braves won 41-14. Junior Makobi Adams completed 13-of-21 passes for 329 yards and five touchdowns. He has completed 76-of-125 passes for 1,139 yards and 17 touchdowns to two interceptions this season. He also ran for minus-three yards on five carries and one score last week and has 20 carries for six yards and two touchdowns this season. His top target last week was sophomore Brayden Trimble, who had five catches for 148 yards and three touchdowns. Trimble has been Adams' go-to guy this year, catching 35 passes for 572 yards and nine touchdowns. Junior Grant McAtee is also a weapon for Adams, catching 16 passes for 344 yards and five touchdowns this season. He had four catches for 126 yards and one score last week. Lastly, freshman Jacob Harvey is his other target, with over 100 yards receiving. Harvey has 18 catches for 176 yards and two touchdowns this season and had three catches for 45 yards and one score last week.

NEWTON AT MT. CARMEL

Last Year: Mt. Carmel defeated Newton, 43-7, at Newton.

Last Week: Robinson defeated Newton, 27-14, at Robinson.

Newton Notes: Newton is looking to bounce back after three-straight losses, the last one coming to Robinson in Week 5, 27-14. Meyer Tarr had one catch for 72 yards and one touchdown and added six carries for six yards on the ground. Payton Harris led the team on the ground with 21 carries for 69 yards. Gage Reynolds added one carry for 27 yards, and Kohlten Barthelme had five carries for 15 yards. Behind-center, Max Meinhart completed 6-of-19 passes for 137 yards and two touchdowns to go along with one carry for two yards. Aside from Tarr, Meinhart also connected with Trevor Haarman (four catches for 58 yards and one touchdown) and Jack Kinkade (one catch for seven yards). Meanwhile, on defense, Riley Hart finished with a team-best 14 tackles, three for loss. Tarr had 11 tackles. Evan Zumbahlen had eight tackles, one for loss. Braxton Griffith, Gus Bierman, and Austin Moore had six. Dominik Utley had four. Dawson Dietz, Reynolds, Cole Phillips, Barthelme, and Jacob Wickham had three. Evan Baltzell and Harris had two, and Caleb McNary had one.

Opponent Notes: Mt. Carmel enters Week 6 with a perfect 5-0 record, winning games handily. The Aces boast a 53-0 win over Marshall in Week 1, a 62-21 win over Robinson in Week 2, a 48-6 win over Casey-Westfield in Week 3, a 60-6 win over Lawrenceville in Week 4, and a 64-28 win over Richland County in Week 5. Blayne Sisson is the team's quarterback and leading rusher. He has 720 rushing yards on 48 carries and 11 touchdowns on the ground and has completed 36-of-59 passes for 657 yards and eight touchdowns to two interceptions. His top targets on the outside are Andrew Gillihan (15 catches for 297 yards and two touchdowns), Gavin Smith (12 catches for 196 yards and two touchdowns), and Gage Kennard (nine catches for 164 yards and four touchdowns). Meanwhile, in the backfield, Sisson also has the luxury of two runners with over 100 yards rushing and three more that are inching it. Asher Kight has 41 carries for 597 yards and 10 touchdowns. Tobias Fullop has 18 carries for 124 yards. Kennard has 10 carries for 99 yards and one touchdown. Gillihan has 12 carries for 94 yards and three scores, and Shain Weir has 10 carries for 76 yards and two scores.

VILLA GROVE AT CUMBERLAND

Last Year: Cumberland defeated Villa Grove, 47-8, at Villa Grove.

Last Week: Cumberland defeated Arcola, 38-28, at Arcola.

Cumberland Notes: Bryant Weber had a day for Cumberland against ALAH in Week 4. Weber threw for 268 yards on 12-of-21 passing and three touchdowns to one interception in the Pirates' 28-27 victory. It was the second-straight win for Cumberland after two-straight losses to open the campaign. His top target was Trevin Magee, who had three catches for 149 yards, and three touchdowns. Blake McMechan added six catches for 68 yards, and Maddox McElravy had three catches for 51 yards. In the backfield, McMechan rushed for 54 yards, and one touchdown on 15 carries to lead the team. There were no stats available from Week 5.

Opponent Notes: Villa Grove enters Friday with a 3-2 record and a 2-1 mark within the Lincoln Prairie Conference. The Blue Devils defeated Argenta-Oreana in Week 5, 42-0. Layne Rund leads the team behind-center, passing for 1,082 yards on 60-of-110 passing and 12 touchdowns to four interceptions. His top targets are Brady Clodfelder (22 catches for 455 yards and five touchdowns), Luke Zimmerman (11 catches for 209 yards and three touchdowns), Brayden Dowler (eight catches for 184 yards and two touchdowns), and Robert Fancher (10 catches for 157 yards and one touchdown). Meanwhile, in the backfield, Zimmerman leads the team with 62 carries for 301 yards and three scores, while Rund has 45 carries for 184 yards and five scores, and Gunner Cline has 18 carries for 141 yards and two touchdowns.

Contact EDN Sports Editor Alex Wallner at 618-510-9231 or alex.wallner@effinghamdailynews.com.