By TYLER HENRY
Lead Sportswriter - Salina Post
The Wamego Red Raiders started their playoff run with yet another bang last week, dismantling El Dorado 58-14 in front of the Boom Town faithful.
“Any time you’re a 1-seed facing a 16-seed you’re going to be favored and sometimes you come out flat but we focused on ourselves and how we wanted to get better,” Raider head coach Weston Moody said. “You can’t afford to have bad weeks in the playoffs and I felt like we accomplished a lot of what we wanted to in that game.”
Now, Wamego (7-2) will turn its attention to a battle with Rose Hill (4-5), hosting the Rockets for the second time in as many playoff runs.
“Rose Hill has played good teams tough all year and they’re no slouch,” Moody said. “They can do things on both sides of the ball that could give us issues, and we have to continue to work and get better. This game will all come down to the line of scrimmage.”
While the Rockets have struggled in spots this season, their offense has the potential to be explosive, as Rose Hill has racked up the fourth most passing yards of any team in Class 4A.
Much of that success has come on the back of quarterback Connor Wallis, who has racked up over 1,700 yards passing and 12 touchdowns to six picks.
While Rose Hill’s strength lies in the air game, they’ve been good on the ground as well, with sophomore Keedrin Jones averaging five yards a carry with 704 total yards and eight rushing touchdowns in 2023.
“They can throw the ball around but they’re not one-dimensional,” he said. “Our defense can’t sell out trying to stop one thing but our guys gameplan well and they’ll be on top of things this week.”
Defense however, has not been the Rocket's strong suit, as Rose Hill gives up over 300 yards and 30 points to opponents on any given night, something that should play to the strengths of a Wamego team averaging just under 35 points per game.
“Everything on both sides comes down to balance,” Moody said. “We try not to be too one-dimensional and if you can do everything well you give yourself a really good chance to keep teams back on their heels.”
For another consecutive week, Wamego will play this win-or-go-home game in front of a ruckus home crowd, something that should give another big boost to the Raiders on the field.
“The guys are really excited to have another game here at home,” he said. “After we beat Abilene there was a real weight lifted off of our shoulders and we had to fight for it but we love having the home crowd down the stretch. It’s nice to make teams come to us.”
Kickoff between the Raiders and Rockets is scheduled for 7:00 on the campus of Wamego High School, with the winner advancing to the 4A quarterfinals to await either Wellington (7-2) or Coffeyville (6-3).