For the last decade, Eight-Man Division II football has ruled by two dynasty programs.
Hanover and Axtell.
Hanover started the string of domination, claiming three straight undefeated state crowns from 2016-18 and adding a fourth undefeated title in 2020. During that span the Wildcats authored a 43-game win streak that stood as a record for the eight-man football ranks.
In 2021, Axtell took the baton from its Twin Valley League rival and began its current string of four straight undefeated state championships. Along the way, the Eagles broke Hanover’s winning streak record with a string that has now reach 58 consecutive victories after their 6-0 start to this season.
So when it comes to this rivalry, it simply doesn’t get much better.
“We know we’re going to get their best shot but that’s no different than any other year,” Axtell coach Eric Detweiler said. “That’s just to be expected when these two programs get together.”
While both teams have taken their turns dominating each other during their record runs, this year’s meeting has all the makings of being an absolute dogfight. Not only is Axtell 6-0 and ranked No. 1 in Eight-Man Division II, Hanover is also 6-0 and ranked No. 3.
And the argument could be made that Hanover’s route to 6-0 has been more impressive.
Coming off a bit of a turnaround season a year ago when it went 8-2 after “down years” of 6-4, 5-5 and 6-5 from 2021-23, Hanover hit the ground running with an experienced and deep team this fall. The Wildcats opened a season with a 32-8 victory over Ell-Saline, which was ranked No. 4 in Division I to start the season.
Hanover fell behind 8-0 early in the game, but used three touchdown passes from Kadrick Cohorst to take control of the game and saw the Wildcat defense hold the Cardinals to just 107 yards in the game.
“Coming in, we weren’t completely confident and completely sure with what we had,” Hanover coach Matt Heuer said. “We knew potentially that we had probably one of those situations where we were capable of being that caliber. Right off the get-go, having a test like Ell-Saline helped us establish an identity and know what we were from the start. It took about a quarter and a half, two quarters that we realized that we were the caliber that we need to be to compete at an elite level.
“I thought our kids did a really good job after a rough couple of first possessions being down 8-0. In the last couple of years, that could have turned into 16, 18, 24-0 and go downhill. But our kids dug in and that showed some growth and maturity. From that point forward, we’ve continued to grow and be better every single week. I think it’s fair and safe to say that we are probably as close to the 2020 team as we’ve been since then.”
It's swagger back, Hanover has been dominant since, blowing out Clifton-Clyde 56-6 in Week 2 to start a string of mercy-rule wins in which the Wildcats have outscored their last five foes by a combined 267-12.
Which is comparable to what Axtell has done to its opponents all season. Despite losing a stellar senior class that was the foundation for the four straight undefeated championship seasons, including All-State Top 11 selection Brandon Schmelzle, the Eagles haven’t shown any signs of dropping off.
After opening the season with a 52-6 win over a Linn team that is now 4-2, the Eagles have posted mercy-rule victories in all six contests, outscoring their opponents 310-14 on the season. Axtell has posted at least 46 points in the first quarter of its last three games.
Detweiler knows Friday night will be a completely different story.
“I told our guys we’re definitely going to face some adversity, whether it’s this Friday night or some other point of the season,” he said. “It’s how we react that will make this our team. How a team reacts to that is what makes the identity of a team. Obviously adversity is a huge thing and we haven’t faced it yet, but we’ve got a good core group of kids who aren’t going to blame each other if things go bad, they’re just going to go fix it.”
While the likes of Schmelzle, Eli Broxterman and others from last year’s senior class left huge holes to fill this year, Axtell didn’t exactly start this season with complete unknowns. The likes of Landon Schmitz, Collin Shaughnessy, Joe Lybarger and Wyatt Detweiler have been more than solid complements for the past two or three seasons and this season have been nothing short of efficient.
Schmitz has just 8 carries this season, but 5 have gone for touchdowns. Lybarger has run the ball 11 times, six for scores, while Detweiler leads the team with 31 carries for 318 yards with 11 touchdowns. Detweiler has also completed 39 of 45 pass attempts for 644 yards and 13 touchdowns.
13 catches, but six have gone for touchdowns and he’s averaging just more than 18 yards per catch. Half of Lybarger’s six catches have gone for touchdowns and he’s averaging 17 yards per catch while Shaughnessy has 3 TDs among 12 catches.
“A lot of guys look at our team and people were saying, ‘Oh, Axtell’s done. That senior class was 52-0,’ Eric Detweiler said. “They were using that as motivation all summer long to hopefully prove people wrong.
“They’re ready to make it their own. They’ve always been with last year’s seniors who went 52-0 and that was great and they were happy to be a part of it. But I think they’re ready to let everybody know we can do it without those seniors. They’re ready to make it their own team and hopefully keep the winning streak going. These guys have just flown under the radar and now they’re getting their time. They’ve just been waiting for their turn.”
When Heuer looks at Axtell, he doesn’t see much difference from the past four seasons. Or more.
“They do the same thing they’ve been doing for the last four years, and you can probably go further back than that, whether it was (Quinn) Buessing, (Isaac) Detweiler or (Brandon) Schmelzle or now this (Wyatt) Detweiler,” Heuer said. “They are very efficient in what they do and they want to attack that same places they’ve always attacked. They’re extremely effective in doing so and it makes it tough to defend because they’re going to attack every single part of the field. And that puts a lot of pressure on the defense and it’s going to be key for our kids to be defensively sound.”
Offensively, Hanover has thrived with Kadrick Cohorst settling in and taking over at quarterback. He’s completed 36 of 45 passes for 645 yards and 15 touchdowns while throwing only two interceptions and also is the leading rusher with 270 yards and 9 touchdowns. Braylon Meyn, who also was in competition for the quarterback job in the offeseason after splitting time there a year ago, has flourished as Cohorst’s top target in the passing game with 391 yards and 9 touchdowns.
“Coming into the year we had an idea Kadrick could step into that role and be the guy,” Heuer said. “As the season has progressed, his confidence has grown and he’s become more comfortable in what we’re trying to do and that’s paid dividends on how he’s playing the game. The Frankfort game was the turning point for him where you could really tell he was a lot more comfortable and taking a lot more control and being assertive not only with his arm but with his legs as well.”
While Axtell has dominated the series in recent years, winning five straight with only a 30-24 regular-season win in 2021 an outcome closer than 26 points, Detweiler said he sees a different team on the opposing sidelines this season.
“You can definitely tell their athleticism has gotten better this year, and even last year,” he said. “You could see that it was coming. They’re getting better every week.”
There’s also a minor sub-plot to the contest. It was Axtell that ended Hanover’s state-record winning streak in 2019, taking a 28-20 win over the Wildcats’ home field. Axtell then also ended Hanover’s reign as state champions with a 26-12 playoff semifinal victory that year as well.
With Axtell now the team trying to protect victory and state-title streaks, Detweiler knows the Wildcats are eager for a little payback.
“I’m sure that’s one of their focal points this week, to get even with us,” he said. “We tell our kids that, we’re not dumb.”
But Heuer insists that Axtell’s streak and Hanover’s desire to end it has been the least of their concerns.
“For us, it’s more so just a big-game situation,” he said. “It’s game where our kids really haven’t been in a situation like this. It’s a stepping stone to see where we’re at. This doesn’t make or break our season, it’s not about their streak. It’s about us and especially at this point of the year where we are as a football team and where we want to go as a football team.
“Having that giant measuring stick – maybe the measuring stick of all measuring sticks in eight-man football right now – seeing if we’re back to that status as a football team or if we still need to dig in and make adjustments.”