Minnesota High School Football Ends This Weekend

Prep Bowl 35 is this weekend at the spacious US Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis.

Four state champions will be crowned Friday and three more on Saturday, with just two classes seeing possible repeat champions.

In nine-man football, the Grand Meadow Superlarks are going for their fourth straight title. They will be facing the Clippers of Cleveland/Immanuel Lutheran. Both teams are undefeated this season.

The final Minnesota Football Coaches Association Poll for the Associated Press had Grand Meadow rated No. 1 and the Clippers No. 2.

Grand Meadow is very good on both sides of the ball. The Superlarks have shut out their last three opponents in a row and have five shutouts on the season. The most points allowed was 34, twice -- in an 80-34 win over West Lutheran and a 47-34 victory over Spring Grove during the regular season.

Cleveland/Immanuel Lutheran shut out two opponents this season and held three others to just one score. The fewest points scored by the Clippers was 21 against Mountain Lake Area and the most points allowed came against Hills Beaver Creek in a 35-34 squeaker.

Kickoff is scheduled for 10AM Friday.

In Class 2Am the No. 1 rated and unbeaten Caledonia Warriors are hoping to repeat and capture their seventh title in the past nine years. They play Eden Valley-Watkins, ranked No. 4 in the final coaches poll.

I saw Caledonia defeat Zumbrota-Mazeppa in the section final in Rochester and the Cougars have to be proud losing just 27-7. It was the fewest points the Warriors have scored all season and the Cougars were definitely in the game at halftime, down just 14-0.

Junior quarterback Owen King is the straw that stirs the Warrior drink.

Caledonia scored 70 points against Dover-Eyota and had two shutouts during the regular season. In two state tournament games they have scored 58 and 55 points and allowed 16 and 20.

Eden Valley Watkins is 11-1, with their only loss to Pierz 35-20 in week 4. The Eagles have notched two shutouts and the most points scored came against Sauk Centre with 63. They have scored more than 40 points in eight games this season.

Kickoff is scheduled for 1PM.

The Class 4A Winona Winhawks haven't been to the Prep Bowl since 1987. They have never won the title. The unranked Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights are their opponent.

I saw them against Faribault in Winona week six and the game was a 28-8 win for Winona but was close going into the final quarter.

The Winhawks' only loss was to state-ranked Class 5A Mankato West 42-39 in Mankato. Winona has pitched two shutouts and only allowed one score to four other opponents. Their offensive line was the best I saw this season in the high school games I covered.

The Red Knights are 9-3 with losses to Spring Lake Park (playing for 5A title), Robbinsdale Cooper and Robbinsdale Armstrong. Those losses all came in their Suburban Red Conference They have no shutouts and scored more than 40 points five times, including their past four games.

Kickoff is scheduled for 4PM.

The Class 6A championship features a couple of Eagles teams going toe to toe: Eden Prairie and Totino-Grace. This match-up features No. 1 against No. 2 in terms of rankings.

Totino is unbeaten and that includes a season opening 17-14 over Eden Prairie. They have shut out three opponents and the most points allowed was 22 to Coon Rapids.

Totino-Grace is hoping to capture their 10th title and their seventh in the past 13 years. They bumped up to Class 6A a couple of years ago.

Eden Prarie is 10-1 and has seven shutouts. The most points allowed was 21 to Maple Grove when Eden Prarie tallied 63 points. They have scored more than 40 points five times and are going for their 11th title. They have won six in the past nine years, including a four-peat from 2011 through 2014.

Kickoff is 7PM Friday.

On Saturday at 10AM, the Rushford-Peterson Trojans play the unbeaten Minneapolis North Community Polars. The No. 9 ranked Trojans' only loss came to Goodhue their final regular season game. The Polars were in the Prep Bowl last year and fell to Minneota 35-18. Minneapolis North Community was rated No. 2 in the final Class A poll.

Rushford-Peterson is led by senior quarterback Noah Carlson. Goodhue head coach Tony Poncelat has been singing his praises all season on the Goodhue Coaches Show on KDHL Saturday mornings. Poncelat says Carlson is, "a very special athlete."

The 28 points scored by Goodhue in their battle were the most allowed by the Trojans this season. The fewest points scored by Rushford-Peterson came in week two in an 18-8 win over Fillmore Central.

The Polars have allowed more than one touchdown only once and scored more than 30 points in nine games. They are 12-0.

The Trojans are hoping for their fourth state title but their first in a decade. Minneapolis North Community has not won a football title.

At 1PM Saturday, the Class 3A title game features the Rochester Lourdes Eagles and St. Croix Lutheran Crusaders. Lourdes was rated No. 3 in final poll and the Crusaders No. 1. Both teams are unbeaten.

The Eagles have scored more than 30 points in all but two games this season. They have two shutouts of opponents and allowed only one score in three other games. The most points scored against Rochester Lourdes was 28 by Stewartville in the final game of the regular season. The Eagles are going for their fourth title, and third in the past six years.

St. Croix Lutheran is hoping to achieve their third championship in the past five years. The Crusaders have no shutouts and have given up more than 20 points seven times, but their lowest point total was 32 against Belle Plaine in the state quarterfinals.

The final high school football game in Minnesota is scheduled for a 4PM kickoff and features the Class 5A No. 1 and No. 3 rated teams: Elk River and Spring Lake Park.

The Elks have never won a title and the Panthers are pursuing their second title but first since 1991. Both teams are unbeaten.

Elk River has three shutouts of opponents and allowed just one score four other times. The most points allowed was 36 by Alexandria Area in the first round of the state tournament.

Spring Lake Park has two shutouts, including a semifinal blanking of a very good Mankato West team.

The Panthers' win over Benilde-St. Margaret's came in an overtime game 19-13 in week seven. They have scored more than 30 points nine times this season.

A two-day Prep Bowl Pass is $20 for adults and $14 for students per session. Championship game tickets are $14 for adults and $9 for students.