The Iowa Falls-Alden and South Hardin football teams will battle on the Cadet Field turf in their annual Hardin County rivalry on Friday. The game will air on 104.9 KLMJ. A cool addition to the rivalry is a traveling tire awarded to the annual winner and that it will also be senior night for the Cadets.
Iowa Falls-Alden (0-1) fell 42-8 to Webster City in their season opener last week. The Cadets had success through the air as Karsen Kalous passed for 211 yards and a touchdown and Cade Olberding had 137 receiving yards and a touchdown. The Cadets defense facing a quality Tigers rushing core allowed 346 rushing yards last week. Cadets Head Coach Eric Walkingstick with keys for the defense on senior night.
“I think defensively we have to stop Sam Benson. We have to be smart. We have to create turnovers. We can’t allow big plays. Their running backs are really good. They do a good job of running downhill. They have a solid line and a really good quarterback. We got to be disciplined, play smart and capitalize on the mistakes that are made,” says Walkingstick. “It’ll be awesome. The kids are going to be excited. They’re already ready to go. It’s going to be fun to recognize our seniors and all their hard work and dedication.”
South Hardin (1-0) won 28-7 at home over West Marshall in their season opener last week. The Tigers had a balanced night offensively against the Trojans with 241 passing and 160 rushing yards. Peyton Welch had a standout performance with 202 passing yards and three touchdowns. Sam Benson had 129 receiving yards and a touchdown. The Tigers defense facing a heavy passing attack from the Cadets allowed only 79 passing yards last week. Tigers Head Coach Nick Eller on playing with discipline in county rivalry.
“The towns are close and we know each other well. Both competitive towns and football rich tradition towns. I think that helps spur it up a little bit too. It’s a good rivalry, fun for the kids, for the coaches and the community. We know every year we’re gonna get their best shot,” says Eller. “We need to really work on containing their offense, keeping them in front of us, not falling for all the different things they try to do to throw you off your game. Really good discipline defense. Then offensive wise, similar to last week, we have got to mix our run and pass and be consistent on both. We were a little bit hit and miss last week I thought on both. We’re just looking for more consistency there.”
South Hardin has won three straight in the series, the Cadets will be in pursuit of their first win in the series since 2021.
Pregame Coverage will begin at 6:15 p.m. followed by the kickoff at 7:00 p.m. in Iowa Falls.
