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Every Wednesday during the regular season we will highlight the 8-Player Football game with a spotlight article on WisSports.net. We'll look back at the action and big stories from the previous week, look ahead at the coming week's big match-ups, and select a Star of the Week.

8-Player coaches, please enter player stats on WSN so that we can continue having the necessary information to produce this weekly spotlight of your game, and feel free to send any news or information to us as well.

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There were a number of big games last week in 8-player football, but none as much as the unbeaten Northern Border Conference showdown between Florence and Three Lakes. It was an outstanding matchup, with Florence, the sixth-ranked team, taking down third-ranked Three Lakes 36-32. William Kelley ran for 278 yards and two touchdowns, with a touchdown pass as well. Logan Schuls added 141 yards and two scores on the ground.

Eighth-ranked Lena/St. Thomas Aquinas took down ninth-ranked Gibraltar 38-18 behind a dominating rushing performance, as Calvin Peters, Tyler Shallow, and Logan Graef all went over 100 yards on the ground.

Shell Lake built a big early lead then held on for a 62-52 win against Luck. The Lakers ran for 486 yards in the game, led by 285 yards and five scores from Brock Naessen, while Isaiah McKelton added 186 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries.

A pair of quarterbacks threw for seven touchdowns this week. T.J. Lamb of Almond-Bancroft did it with 383 passing yards in a 59-24 win against Wild Rose. Iin that game, Shane Klismith caught four touchdowns and had four interceptions on defense as well. Also tossing seven interceptions was Cooper Albrecht of Wabeno/Laona, who completed 15-of-20 passes for 392 yards and those seven touchdowns, adding 64 yards and a score on the ground in a 68-34 victory against Niagara.

North Crawford took control of the Ridge & Valley-8 West by defeating league heavyweight Belmont 24-12.

Wade Vandervest of Algoma had another big game, rushing for 196 yards and two scores in a 54-36 win over Oneida Nation/GB NEW Lutheran. He also completed all seven passes for 94 yards and a touchdown. Backfield mate Isaac Yurk addd 118 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.

Not surprisingly, the big game in 8-player this week again comes from the CWC-East. Fifth-ranked Thorp will travel to top-ranked Gilman. Thorp opened the year number one before a non-conference loss to McDonell Central. Both teams have been among the most dominating in the state this year, as Thorp has scored at least 52 points in each game besides the McDonell contest, while Gilman has scored at least 50 in every win except a 28-6 decision over Owen-Withee.

North Crawford is the top team in the Ridge & Valley-8 West, and gets a tough matchup this week against De Soto.

Similarly, Port Edwards is alone atop the Central Conference, and gets a chance to put things away this week against Port Edwards.

Florence remained undefeated in a huge showdown against Three Lakes/Phelps on Friday, winning 36-32. The top ten matchup gave Florence a leg up in the Northern Border Conference race heading into the final two weeks of the season. Kelley ran for 278 yards and two touchdowns, with 35 passing yards and a score through the air as well. He also recorded six tackles on defense for the victorious Bobcats.

Travis Wilson serves as the WisSports.net General Manager, Football Editor, and contributing writer for other parts of the site. Wilson was selected as part of the Sports 40 Under 40 list by Coach & AD Magazine and the National High School Athletic Coaches Association for 2019. The Wisconsin Football Coaches Association (WFCA) named Travis the 2015 recipient of the Dave McClain Distinguished Service Award. He currently serves on the WFCA Executive Board and is a member of the Executive Board of the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association. A graduate of Richland Center High School and Mount Mercy College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Travis was a three-sport athlete in high school (football, baseball, basketball), inducted to the Richland Center High School Hall of Fame in 2023, and currently resides in Reedsburg. You can follow him on Twitter at @travisWSN.

For the latest and most up to date football news and recruiting information, follow Travis on Twitter @travisWSN. Email story ideas, recruiting info, etc. to Travis at travis(at)wissports.net.