Sidney, Hemingford, Garden County retain top spots in our football Top 5 rankings

Three ties emerged in this week's local rankings as the Scottsbluff Star-Herald, North Platte Telegraph and the Lexington Clipper-Herald weighed in on the area's top teams. Two of those ties came at the top. When that happens for us, the tie is going to go to the runner, or in this case, the team ranked higher last week. If you want to unseat someone, kind of like the Ryder Cup, you have to beat them, not just tie. While we saw some shake-ups in 11-man and 8-man, our 6-man rankings remain the same. Sidney (2-0) — Rhys Dorcey threw two touchdowns and ran for two more as Sidney kept things rolling with a 49-7 win over Sterling (Colo.) on Friday. The Red Raiders' defense gave up just 167 yards to the Tigers. Sidney travels to Gering this week. Scottsbluff (2-0) — The Bearcats second win over a statewide-ranked team put them in a tie for first place in our voting. Scottsbluff rushed for 213 yards and a touchdown as a team, Carver Nemnich found Eric Sabala for a 22-yard touchdown throw, and Sabala added a 99-yard kick return touchdown to beat Norris 24-17. The Bearcats host York this week. Chadron (2-0) — Chadron beat Torrington (Wyoming) 45-21 on the road Friday night to move to 2-0. Tobin Landen connected on a pair of passing touchdowns to Trae Owsley, and the running game accounted for three more scores. The Cardinals travel to Broken Bow this week. North Platte (1-1) — The Bulldogs bounced back with a 35-10 win over Grand Island on Friday night. The Bulldogs finally get to play at home this week, in their homecoming game against Standing Bear. Gothenburg (2-0) — After the big rivalry win in Week 1 over Cozad, Gothenburg struggled a little on the road in a 16-6 win at Hershey. Callen Johnson and Braden Ehlers rushed for Gothenburg's two scores. The Swedes host Mitchell on Friday. Hemingford (2-0) — The Bobcats hit 80 points in a win over Gordon-Rushville on Friday. Zaine Feist rushed for 222 yards and four touchdowns to lead the way. Carson Haas also scored three touchdowns for Hemingford. The Bobcats are on the road at Kimball this week. St. Pat's (2-0) — The Irish routed Wilcox-Hildreth 47-6 on Friday to move to 2-0. St. Pat's travels to Kenesaw this week. Hitchcock County (2-0) — The Falcons beat Alma 36-20 on Friday and will host Arapahoe on Thursday. Brady (2-0) — Brady enters our Top 5s after a 46-8 drubbing of Wauneta-Palisade to move to 3-0. Quarterback Cinch Sanger continues to lead the way. With their Week 0 game, the Eagles will take their bye this week before traveling to Dundy County-Stratton in Week 4 for a big test. Anselmo-Merna (1-1) — The Coyotes bounced back from their opening loss to Burwell with a 68-12 victory over Hyannis. Dane Duryea ran for 179 yards and four touchdowns. The Coyotes head to Twin Loup this week. Garden County's Jase Roberson, left, and Colt Roberson put pressure on Hay Springs Arian Mata in play on Aug. 31. The Eagles remain in our top rankings for 6-man football, going into week three. Garden County (2-0) — The Eagles had a week off after their opening win against Hay Springs. Garden County is back at it against our No. 3 Southwest on Friday. Wallace (2-0) — The Wildcats kept things rolling with a 50-22 win over Hay Springs, a team we ranked pre-season. Tobin Pelster and Ty Sullivan led the way with 97 and 95 rushing yards, respectively. Each sored twice. Micah Garrison caught a pair of touchdown passes, as well. Wallace has a week off before a showdown with No. 1 Garden County. Southwest (2-0) — The Roughriders beat Red Cloud 51-20 on Friday, with Jacob Barber and Conner Weaver each rushing for three touchdowns. As noted above, Southwest has a big test against Garden County this week. They follow that up with bye, then a road trip to Arthur County on Sept. 25. Arthur County (2-0) — Arthur County defeated Potter-Dix 60-32 on Friday. Zac Hanna threw for 178 yards and three touchdowns, and Carter Storer added five rushing touchdowns. The Wolves travel to Crawford this week, get a bye and then host Southwest on Sept. 25. Leyton (2-0) — Leyton traveled out to Wyoming this week and topped Guernsey-Sunrise 65-7. Colt Van Anne rushed for 147 yards and three touchdowns in the Warriors' win. Leyton travels to Sioux County this week. Mitchell's Cash Robbins is pursued by Doniphan-Trumbull's Sawyer Smith during the first quarter of their game on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell. Mitchell's James Billingsley tries to stiff arm Doniphan-Trumbull's Rylan Eberle during the first quarter of their game on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell. Mitchell's Michael Plasencio scores a touchdown during the Tigers' game against Doniphan-Trumbull on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell. Doniphan-Trumbull's Andrew Waters goes for the stiff arm against Mitchell's Norman Coley during the Cardinals' game against Mitchell on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell. Doniphan-Trumbull's Kanton Olson is tackled by Mitchell's Juston Keener during their game on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell. Mitchell's Rio Williams and Juston Keener stop Doniphan-Trumbull's Easton Volk just short of the goal line during the Tigers' game against Doniphan-Trumbull on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell. Mitchell's Malachi Bowlin runs the ball up the middle during the Tigers' game against Doniphan-Trumbull on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell. Mitchell's Malachi Bowlin runs through a tackle attempt by Doniphan-Trumbull's Max Ross during the Tigers' game against Doniphan-Trumbull on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell. Mitchell's Juston Keener breaks a tackle by Doniphan-Trumbull's Kanton Olson during their game on Friday, Sept. 4, 2026 in Mitchell. Mitchell's James Billingsley calls for the snap during the Tigers game against Doniphan-Trumbull on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell. Mitchell's Juston Keener runs upfield during the Tigers' game against Donipahn-Trumbull on Friday, Sept. 4, 2026 in Mitchell. Mitchell's Cash Robbins celebrates after a run for a big gain during the first quarter of the Tigers' game against Doniphan-Trumbull on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell. Doniphan-Trumbull's Andrew Waters makes the catch during the Cardinals' game against Mitchell on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell. Doniphan-Trumbull's Kanton Olson runs after catching the ball during the first quarter of the Cardinals' game against Mitchell on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell. Doniphan-Trumbull's Brody Cummings catches a pass during the first quarter of the Cardinals' game against Mitchell on Friday, Sept. 4 in Mitchell.