Since the City Showdown, Lawrence High and Free State’s football teams have been trending in opposite directions.

The Lions bounced back with two solid outings from their defense and offensive linemen. Meanwhile the Firebirds have lost two and haven’t played with the same smashmouth style they had earlier in the year.

Do I think there’s reasons for the Firebirds to be concerned?

Yes, but mainly because of injuries to the defense. I wouldn’t go overboard. They still have a strong offensive line. I don’t think that group of seniors is going to just watch their season go down without a fight. If they clean up some of the mental errors, I think they’ll get back to finding ways to win.

Now just focusing on last week, here are some of my thoughts from Lawrence High’s 19-7 victory over SM South:

•There weren’t any long runs, but the offensive line won the line of scrimmage. The Lions ran for 306 yards on 59 attempts, but didn’t have many long runs. Instead the linemen were forced to grind it out on each play, and it produced scoring drives on the first three possessions. In the second half, they helped run out the clock without any scoring drives, and without attempting a pass for the entire game.

•JD Woods is one of the most explosive running backs in the Sunflower League. His goal this season is winning the league’s rushing yards title. He finally has the lead with 684 yards over Olathe North’s Venus Triplett, who has 616 (and missed most of the second half last week because of injury, per Eli Underwood of Sunflowerfootball.com). Woods has no problem lowering his shoulder for short gains or flashing his speed when he gets to the second level. In the second half, he was running against eight or nine defenders in the box, and he still had some effectiveness.

•The Lions held SM South to just 35 yards on the ground as the defensive line and linebackers stuck with their assignments. Plenty of people have praised defensive coordinator Adam Green’s game plans this season, and Thursday showed how good it can be when the entire defense is on the same page. The Lions were exploited on a few pass plays, but it’s hard to run on a defense that has such a good mix of speed and strength.

•Despite strong winds, Luke Zenger helped the Lions’ defense with a few big punts. The wind was bad enough that LHS coach Dirk Wedd didn’t want to pass in the third quarter. Yet that meant a few extra punts for Zenger when the Lions didn’t move the ball. After his first punt went high in the air but only went a net of five yards, he adjusted and his next punt was 33 yards. When he got the wind to his back, he booted a 40-yard punt.

Free State lost 42-14 to Shawnee Mission East, the top-ranked team in Class 6A, and here are my thoughts:

•Injuries are starting to take their toll. All of the players and coaches have the right approach and are trusting the next man up. Look no further than Joel Spain taking over at running back, and rushing for 70 yards. But against SM East, a fast-paced no-huddle offense that requires a lot of discipline to defend, the Firebirds really could have used their veteran guys at linebacker. Free State has plenty of talented replacements for injured players, but there’s a learning curve, and the Firebirds’ tough schedule hasn’t allowed much time for that.

•The Firebirds were moving the ball but struggled to finish drives. You wouldn’t know it by the 14 points on the scoreboard, but Free State did some solid things on offense. The problem was finding the end zone. Near the end of the first half, the Firebirds had a 11-play, 43-yard drive stall at the 24-yard line. But there were also too many three-and-outs, which puts pressure on the defense, especially against a no-huddle offense.

“We’ll get it sorted it out,” senior center Coleman Houk said after the game. “We’re obviously really disappointed with tonight. …We need to figure it out fast before playoffs come around.”

•SM East looks like the most complete team in the league. Free State has played the top-two teams in 6A, along with Olathe North. The biggest knock against SM East as the top team has been its schedule this year. But from what I’ve seen, the Lancers have a strong offense that’s going to take a veteran defense to stop. They also play solid defense of their own. O-North is strong on both sides of the ball as well, but SM East was the best team I’ve seen (so far) this year.

Now for a look ahead to next week:

Free State at Shawnee Mission South on Thursday at 7 p.m. — The Raiders (1-4) are hoping their starting quarterback, Matt Hollingsworth, will return this week. They have a good passing game, but struggled with the run against LHS last week. Return man Marshall Bland leads the league in kick return yards (288). It will be Free State’s last game against a Sunflower League opponent before heading into districts against Topeka schools.

Lawrence High at Olathe South on Friday at 7 p.m. — The Falcons (4-1) are ranked No. 5 by Kpreps.com, and own one of the best offenses in the Sunflower League. With starting running back Collin Fischer out last week, DaeVonte Nance ran for more than 100 yards and two touchdowns. Quarterback Jake Seurer is fourth in the league with 609 passing yards (36-for-56 on throws). Their defense also forces a lot of turnovers.
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Some quick notes on a couple of Free State grads:

•Two weeks ago, former Free State football player Kirk Resseguie, a defensive back for Missouri Western, was named the MIAA Defensive Athlete of the Week. He earned the honor with seven tackles, a fumble recovery for a touchdown and a sack for a safety.

•Former Free State distance running star Bailey Sullivan was featured by the Big 12 Conference’s website in its student athlete spotlight. The story can be found by clicking the link: here.

•Former Free State linebacker Keith Loneker Jr. is second in tackles for Baker University. Loneker has a total of 31 tackles, including 13 solo and two for a loss.
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As always, feel free to comment, email me, or find me on Twitter @nightengalejr.