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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.

8-Player Football Standings
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The top-ranked team in 8-player football went down last week, as McDonell Central fell to Owen-Withee 58-27 on Friday night. The Blackhawks ran for 444 yards in the game, as Mason Gay, Brandon Geldernick, and Sully Poehler all eclipsed 120 yards. That allowed Owen-Withee to rise to number one in the new WSN Coaches Poll this week, while McDonell Central drops to sixth.

Elsewhere, Highland defeated Wisconsin Heights 36-28 with Bennett Smith throwing his three touchdown of the game in the fourth quarter for what proved to be the game-winner. Smith finished with 302 passing yards as well, with Wes Kraisinger hauling in six receptions for 144 yards and two scores.

Siren scored 20 points in the first half then had to hang on for a 20-16 victory over Frederic.Gannen Reynolds threw for a touchdown and ran for a score, while Joe Wiltrout returned an interception 17 yards for a touchdown.

Port Edwards raced out to a 40-8 halftime lead on Almond-Bancroft and cruised home for a 40-30 win. Max Michel ran for three touchdowns and 156 yards on just eight carries, adding 135 passing yards and two touchdowns. Brynden Beck racked up 174 yards and a score on the ground, carrying the ball 37 times. He also had 12 tackles on defense.

Chequamegon/Butternut/Mercer outlasted Prentice 30-22, with Hudson Hilgart finding Corbyn Phelps for the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter. Hilgart threw a pair of touchdowns, ran for two, and accounted for 237 yards.

Northwood/Solon Springs quarterback Jared Schultz accounted for nine touchdowns (four rushing and five passing) with 356 yards of offense as the team defeated Washburn 70-30. 

Gilman defeated Cornell 75-0, with 10 different players getting at least one carry, including eight different athletes scoring a touchdown of some kind, as the team ran just 31 offensive plays in the win.

Kickapoo/La Farge knocked off Belmont 26-12 behind a big game from junior Aidric Egge. He carried the ball 19 times for 160 yards and two touchdowns, returned a kickoff 84 yards for a score, and had an interception on defense.

In a rare low-scoring 8-player game, North Crawford defeated De Soto 14-8. The Trojans trailed 8-0 at halftime before rallying for the win. The defense limited De Soto to just 111 yards of offense.

After losing last week and falling out of the top spot in the WSN Coaches Poll, McDonell Central looks to re-group this week, but it won't be easy, as the Macks will welcome in undefeated Gilman, the second-ranked team in the poll.

Meanwhile, Owen-Withee's first game as the number one team will be a challenge as well, with the Blackhawks going on the road to take on fourth-ranked Thorp, giving the North Central-East Conference a pair of ranked matchups this week.

Both Port Edwards and New Auburn are undefeated this season, and they'll meet up Friday night in New Auburn.

Wisconsin Heights has lost its first two Ridge & Valley Conference games, but they were competitive contests against ranked teams North Crawford and Highland. The Vanguards still have a shot at the playoffs, but may need to win out to make it happen. They have a tough game this week at De Soto, scheduled for Saturday at 12 pm.

In a 52-0 win over Princeton/Green Lake, Mitchell Moser of Oakfield put up 262 yards of offense (190 passing, 72 rushing) and accounted for four touchdowns, two each rushing and passing. Moser also recorded an interception on defense for the Oaks.

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.