(WIAA) – The sixth Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association 8-Player Football State Championship final will feature Owen-Withee (11-0) vs. Lena/St. Thomas Aquinas and will be held Saturday, Nov. 16, at Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln High School at 1 p.m.
LIVE STREAMED ON WIAA.TV: The 8-player football championship game will be streamed live on the WIAA.TV portal of the NFHS Network on a consumer subscription basis. To purchase a subscription to the live programming, log-on to www.wiaa.tv and click on the “Subscribe” link at the top of the page. Archived streams of the games will be available on demand on the NFHS Network 72 hours after the tournament with a subscription.
THE MATCH-UP: Both Lena/St. Thomas Aquinas and Owen-Withee will be making their first appearance in the 8-player championship game. Lena/St. Thomas Aquinas has qualified for the 8-player football playoffs in each of the last four seasons of the tournament. Prior to this season, the Titans’ furthest advance in the bracket was to the second round in 2021 and 2022. Before transitioning to 8-player, the co-op qualified for the 11-player playoff field in Division 6 three times and were eliminated from title contention in the first round in each of their previous experiences. Lena, as a stand-alone program, advanced to the third round of the playoffs in Division 6 in 1991, which accounts for its only stand-alone experience. The Titans were the runners-up in the Across the Bay Conference this fall. They earned the opportunity to play for the championship after beating Northwood/Solon Springs 38-14 in their State semifinal matchup. Owen-Withee has qualified for the playoffs for the second time. The Blackhawks qualified last season and lost to their opening-round foe. Prior to the transition to 8-player, the Blackhawks qualified 18 times in the 11-player playoffs, compiling a 31-15 record. They won Division 6 championships in 1992 and 1999, and were the 2014 champion in Division 7. Owen-Withee is the champion in the East Division of the North Central Conference this season. The Blackhawks advance to the title game following a 23-21 win over Highland in their State semifinal game played at Stanley-Boyd.
2023 CHAMPIONSHIP RECAP: Florence (11-0) capped an undefeated season by winning the State 8-player football championship with a 32-30 victory over Thorp (9-3) at South Wood County Stadium. Florence held the edge in total offense, outgaining Thorp 485-432, including 480 yards rushing, which ranks second most in a State 8-player championship game. The Bobcats dominated the time of possession in the game, controlling the ball for 30:48 compared to 17:12 for the Cardinals. Logen Schuls led Florence in rushing with 272 yards and two scores, and Willliam Kelley rushed for 194 yards and three touchdowns. Kelley also completed just 1-of-5 passes for five yards. Defensively, Dustin Williams picked off two Thorp passes. Denzel Sutton led the Thorp offense with 355 yards of total offense. He rushed for 135 yards and two touchdowns, and he completed 14-of-22 passes for 220 yards and two scores. Logan Hanson rushed for 77 yards and caught three passes for 32 yards and a score. Braden Schultze led all pass catchers with five receptions for 53 yards, and Landon Penk caught three passes for a game-high 75 yards. Hanson also led the Cardinals on defense with 13 tackles and an interception.
CHAMPIONSHIP GAME HISTORY: Sevastopol defeated Luck 38-30 in the first title game played at Stanley-Boyd in 2018. The first year featured an eight-team bracket that was expanded to a 16-team bracket in 2019. There was no championship game in 2020 because of COVID-19 guidelines and accommodations when only one level of the playoff was offered. Newman Catholic is the only program to have won two 8-player football titles. Newman Catholic and Luck have played in the most championship games with three.
REDUCED PLAYER FOOTBALL HISTORY: Reduced-player football has had a long history in the association. The WIAA introduced a reduced-player football option for the first time in 1937 with a 6-player opportunity intended to serve small schools. An 8-player option was introduced a few years later, and prior to 1941, there were 90 schools playing either 6- or 8-player football. World War II had an impact as the number of reduced-player teams declined to 70. In 1950, there were 50 6-player teams and 26 8-player squads. By 1956, the 8-player game had all but replaced the six-player option as 71 programs were playing 8-player to only six schools sponsoring the 6-player option. By 1969, almost every football program was 11-player with the number of teams playing eight-player dwindling to six. In 2012, the WIAA reinstated reduced-player football with 16 teams optioning for the eight-player format that season. For six seasons, the top four teams in two separate regions were afforded an opportunity to match-up and play in a four-game jamboree at the end of the season. In 2018, the 8-player football began with an eight-team playoff, which expanded to 16 teams in 2019.
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