Not even close!

Anyone with an interest in 9-man football was paying attention to last week's matchup between the No. 5 New Rockford-Sheyenne/Maddock Rockets and the No. 2 North Prairie Cougars.

Billed as an early-season bout between two undefeated championship contenders, the game on Friday, Sept. 6 in New Rockford was expected to be a close one – just as it was last season when NR-S/M beat the Cougars in a last-second thriller.

On this occasion, however, the Rockets made it clear to North Prairie and the entire state that they could very well be the team to beat this season.

Friday's matchup began with an explosive opening drive for the Rockets, as NR-S senior Kage Walford converted a quick screen pass into a 55-yard touchdown on just their second offensive play of the game.

That score was followed up by a successful 2-point conversion, and NR-S/M had an 8-point lead less than 60 seconds into the game.

The Cougars would have been looking forward to responding with a score of their own, but NR-S senior Bennett Meier had other ideas.

On the ensuing kickoff, his tackle dislodged the ball from the return man's grip, and the Rockets' Malaki Kukowski quickly fell on top of it, securing back-to-back possessions for the Rockets.

Seven plays later, quarterback Easton Simon earned his second touchdown pass of the game with a 5-yard toss to Easton Benz.

Then it was the Cougars who got back-to-back possessions. Their first offensive drive of the game ended at midfield with a punt, but a deep interception one play later gave the ball right back to North Prairie.

Unlike the Rockets, however, the Cougars were unable to capitalize, and ultimately turned the ball over on downs in the red zone.

It was yet another stop for what has been an impressive Rockets' defense so far this season. They've forced multiple turnovers in each game, and have kept opposing teams from gaining anywhere near enough momentum to keep up with their offense.

The defensive highlight of the first half – and probably the play of the game – came with just 2:57 remaining before halftime, when senior lineman Brody Weisenburger busted a designed screenplay and intercepted a pass from the Cougars' quarterback deep in North Prairie territory.

His interception led to another touchdown connection between Simon and Benz one play later, this time a perfectly thrown 13-yard pitch and catch.

Simon had yet another fantastic game statistically, going 14-of-18 through the air for 263 yards and three touchdowns. It may not be possible to overstate how important Simon has been so far this season, and likely will continue to be.

Ultimately, the Rockets amassed 38 points in the first half of Friday's game, while allowing zero points for the Cougars. With such an overwhelming lead the second half was merely a formality, and by the fourth quarter NR-S/M was resting their starters.

But even the junior varsity squad managed to put some points on the board against North Prairie, and the final score of Friday night's game was 60-14.

So far this season NR-S/M has scored a combined 173 points on offense, while allowing just 28 points across all three opponents. And keep in mind, one of those opponents was receiving votes to be a top-five ranked team, while the other was ranked No. 2 in the state.

In other words, the Rockets aren't just dominating the teams they're supposed to, they're dominating some of the best 9-man football programs in North Dakota.

Following their latest win, the recent media poll now has the Rockets ranked No. 3 in the state. LaMoure-Litchville/Marion takes the cake as they sit in the No. 1 position whereas No. 2 is Westhope/Newburg/Glenburn, No. 4 is South Border and No. 5 is Linton/HMB. North Prairie are no longer ranked in the top five.

The Rockets' win over North Prairie brought them to 3-0 on the season, and they remain at the top of the Region 3 standings as the only undefeated team in their region.

Meanwhile, the Rockets' junior varsity squad came up just short in their bout against Harvey/Wells County on Monday, Sept. 10, falling by a score of 22-32. The loss was their first of the season, bringing their overall record to 2-1.

Non region

9-Man Football

NR-S/M 60, N. Prairie 14

Friday, Sept. 6

in New Rockford

First Quarter:

NR-S/M: Kage Walford 55-yard pass from Easton Simon (Bennett Meier pass from Simon for two-point conversion)

NR-S/M: Easton Benz 5-yard pass from Simon (failed two-point conversion)

Second Quarter:

NR-S/M: Carter Engebretson 17-yard run (Benz pass from Simon for two-point conversion)

NR-S/M: C. Engebretson 1-yard run (Paxton Neppl pass from Simon for two-point conversion)

NR-S/M: Benz 14-yard pass from Simon (Walford run for two-point conversion)

Third Quarter:

North Prairie: Isaac McCloud 13-yard pass from Nicolas Mears (failed two-point conversion)

NR-S/M: C. Engebretson 6-yard run (Benz pass from Simon for two-point conversion)

Fourth Quarter:

NR-S/M: Thomas Allmaras 29-yard run (Jackson Schumacher pass from Jax Demester for two-point conversion)

NR-S/M: Allmaras 63-yard punt return (failed two-point conversion)

North Prairie: Grant Oderman 80-yard kickoff return (Jory Samuelson pass from Jack Rosinski for two-point conversion)

NR-S/M Individual Stats

Passing: Simon 14-of-18, 263 yards, 3 TD, 1 interception

Rushing: C. Engebretson 87 yards, 3 TD; Allmaras 29 yards, 1 TD; Walford 17 yards; Grant Engebretson 1 yard; Simon -1 yard

Receiving: Bennett Meier 4 receptions, 101 yards; Walford 3 receptions, 98 yards, 1 TD; Benz 6 receptions, 56 yards, 2 TD; Neppl 1 reception, 8 yards

Tackles (unassisted-assisted): Walford 5-0, 1 TFL; Benz 4-3; Layton Jacobson 3-1, 1 TFL; C. Engebretson 2-0, 1 TFL; G. Engebretson 2-0; Allmaras 1-0; Meier 1-0; Schumacher 1-2; Alex Weisenburger 1-4, 1 TFL; Kailar Jacobson 1-2; Lucas Laducer 1-0, 1 TFL; Colton Green 1-0; Brody Weisenburger 1-0; Malaki Kukowski 1-0; Chaztin Wobbema 1-0; Porter Granger 1-0

Interceptions: K. Jacobson 1, B. Weisenburger 1

North Prairie

Individual Stats

Interceptions: Jonathan Mears 1