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Nebraska football is not the focus of the Bull this week, of which, I’m sure you could tell by the headline alone, as there was nothing “high octane” about Saturday’s majorly disappointing loss. With that said, I’ll never put down the Huskers, but they certainly aren’t setting well in many Husker fans homes.

Nope, this week, the high octane football takes me back to the 2019 Class D-6 quarterfinals when Harvard and Sioux County (Harrison) locked in for what was by far the most high octane scoring and offensive high school football game that I’ve ever covered.

Harvard held on for a 78-72 win, which paved the way to the Cardinals’ state championship a few weeks later over McCool Junction, the very team that the Cardinals will take on this Friday afternoon in McCool.

That quarterfinal round game for Harvard with Sioux County is a game that I’ll soon never forget, as the two teams not only combined for 1,363 total yards, with Harvard gaining 705 and Sioux County 658.

To top that off, for whatever reason, last year I caught a glimpse of a score in Iowa High School’s state eight-man playoffs when a semifinal game over there wound up totaling 202 total points, when St. Mary’s, Remsen defeated Montezuma 108-94. In that game, the two teams racked up nearly 1,500 yards of total offense.

So you may ask, why are you bringing up a game from 2019 and that Iowa high school game last year, when we’re fresh into the fall sports season of 2021?

Well, I guess you could say it’s my lead-in for what took place in yet another six-man football game this past weekend here in Nebraska.

Arthur County traveled to Sumner to take on Sumner-Eddyville-Miller to open the season and from the onset, at least on paper, this game was destined to be yet another head scratching offensive explosion, as Arthur County outscored S-E-M 101-80.

We all know that six-man can be one of those games that at times can mean defense is schemed to slow down high-powered offenses, meaning that defense doesn’t have near the same impact as it does in eightman and certainly in the 11-man game. That game in Sumner produced 181 total points while the two teams combined for 1,145 yards in total

offense.

The site of the S-E-M scoreboard Friday night with the scoreboard unable to handle 101 points read: “SEM 80 - Visitors 01,” but when the reality was that the Wolves had 101 points It certainly got noticed by many statewide sportswriters, if nothing else to highlight the score and throw in some sort of side comment.

I have to say, that’s the beauty of the six-man game, because, at times, the defense just can’t do much other than to make one or two stops to help the offensive explosions happen.

I for one am a big fan of the high octane kind of game. It just makes for a great show for the spectators on the sidelines. Oh, and it also can make for some breathtaking moments, both good and bad.

Don’t get me wrong, I love a good defensive battle as well, but when you see a track meet break out in the middle of a football game, it makes for highlight after highlight, plus it showcases some very talented athletes that can make games as explosive as that 2019 Harvard-Sioux County game, and for sure like that eight-man game in Iowa had to be.

Gee, maybe, just maybe the Huskers can....nevermind! It is what it is!

BULL

Tory Duncan • ccntory@gmail.com

TORY DUNCAN | CLAY COUNTY NEWS

New pedestrian bridge in Sutton nears completion

The new pedestrian bridge that will span across School Creek on Saunders Avenue in Sutton began to take on a new look Tuesday morning as Van Kirk Bros. Construction began to place the new deck across the creek, replacing the former bridge that had fallen into disrepair in recent years. Sutton Council members approved a bid from Van Kirk Bros. Contracting during the April 2021 council meeting to replace the bridge over School Creek at a cost of $285,725. Of that cost, $253,595 is to remove the current bridge and replace it with the two-piece bridge that is an all-steel structure. The decking of the new bridge is wood.

Clay County Health Department IMMUNIZATION CLINIC

$3.00 per shot IN CLAY COUNTY $5.00 per shot OUT OF CLAY COUNTY Tuesday, Sept. 21 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Parent or LEGAL guardian MUST be present to sign necessary forms.

Vaccine provided by the Federal Vaccine For Children Program ** Note: According to Federal Regulations, those eligible are: those with no insurance, those with Medicaid, and those insured but vaccinations are NOT covered.

For more inFormation, phone: 402-762-3571 202 W Fairfield Street, Clay Center

New incentive program announced for local producers

The Upper Big Blue Natural Resources District is offering a new incentive program for producers in portions of the Recharge Lake Watershed, the Beaver Creek Watershed, and some municipal Wellhead Protection Areas.

Practices included in this program are cover crops, buffer/filter strips, and land treatment practices. Qualifying producers are eligible for an incentive payment to install these practices starting in fall 2021.

The purpose of the program is to increase incentives for producers who are interested in installing these important conservation practices. Cover crops and buffer strips are simple ways to improve water quality, as they keep sediments and agrichemicals on the fields instead of washing into waterways. “Our hope is that this program will allow more producers to plant cover crops and filter strips to improve the quality of the water in our district in key areas where we know we can make a significant impact,” Marie Krausnick, water department manager at the Upper Big Blue NRD, said. “We want to make it as simple as possible for producers who have been thinking about installing these practices to go ahead and take action now and get started.”

These two practices were among those identified by a district stakeholders group as those that are likely to be adopted by the district’s agricultural community, if the right incentives and supports were in place. The stakeholder group that made recommendations to the board of directors of the NRD included landowners, operators, agribusiness owners, recreationists, municipal representatives, and livestock producers in the Beaver Creek watershed.

They met from January to March of 2021 to discuss water quality issues in the district and hosted an open house event to present ideas to the public.

As with much of the state of Nebraska, water quality concerns in the area targeted by this program include nitrates, which are known to cause adverse health outcomes for humans. The program will also help with concentrations of atrazine and phosphorus, which harm wildlife that depend on streams, lakes, and rivers in the district.

If widely adopted, this new incentive program could improve the quality of drinking water in the district, as well as improve the recreational opportunities at Bruce L. Anderson Recreation Area in York, where the fishery has been dramatically decreased due to poor water quality.

Producers who are interested in applying for the incentive program can call John Bush at the NRD office at 402-362-6601 or complete a short form on the NRD website. The application process is quick and easy to allow for installation of conservation practices in fall 2021.

This program is funded directly by the Upper Big Blue Natural Resources District and is not affiliated with any federal conservation programs. However, the program does include collaboration with local NRCS soil specialists to ensure best results. Full program details at www.upperbigblue.org/WQMPIncentiveProgram.

T.M. (Ted) Gill..................................................................................................... Publisher Tory Duncan........................................................................................Managing Editor Ashley D. Swanson....................................................News Editor & Photographer Karla Fehr.............................................................Advertising Sales & Bookkeeping Glenda Griess........................................................... Typesetting and Proofreading Melissa Whitefoot.................................................. Staff Reporter & Photographer Rita Brhel .................................................................. Staff Reporter & Photographer Pam Schroetlin .............................. Typesetting, Bookkeeping & Public Notices Loetta Swanson............................ Staff Reporter & Photographer, Distribution

Clay County News

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Published every Wednesday at Sutton, Clay County, Nebraska. Periodicals postage paid at Sutton, NE 68979-0405. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR are welcomed. Letters to be published must be signed. DEADLINES: Letters to the Editor, News articles, photographs and other materials that readers want published must be in the Clay County News office by each Monday at 5 p.m. ADVERTISING DEADLINE: 5 p.m. each Monday.