Owatonna Football 2021 Schedule Snapshot

Red Division opponents: Mankato West, Rochester Century, Rochester John Marshall, Rochester Mayo, New Prague, Northfield

Crossover opponents: Austin, Kasson-Mantorville

Longest trip: 49 miles to Mankato West

Shortest trip: 29 miles to Northfield

Largest opponent by enrollment: Rochester Mayo (1,739 students)

Smallest opponent by enrollment: Kasson-Mantorville (652 students)

Sectional opponents: 5

Class 5A opponents: 7

Class 4A opponents: 1

Turf games: 2

Friday games: 6

Saturday games: 1

Wednesday games: 1

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Week 1: @ Rochester Mayo, Friday, Sept. 3

DETAILS: Spartan Field (artificial grass), Rochester Mayo High School, 7 p.m.

MATCHUP: Big Southeast District Red Division; Section 1-5A opponents

2020 SPARTANS: 4-3 overall, 2-2 Red Division; lost 30-28 in section title

2020 RESULT: Owatonna won 35-28 in Week 1 and 30-28 in Section 1-5A championship.

EARLY ANALYSIS: As if the much-anticipated 2021 opener needed any further buildup or preseason hype, two of the district’s preseason favorites will clash in a marquee Week 1 matchup.

On the field, the Huskies will have their hands full against a Mayo team that rolls back a bevy of high-end talent, headlined by do-it-all senior Cayden Holcomb and talented quarterback, Bennett Ellsworth. Holcomb was named the district’s Special Teams Player of the Year in 2020 and scored three touchdowns against Owatonna in the two meetings last season. Ellsworth was one of the most efficient QBs in the Big Southeast as a junior, throwing for 13 touchdowns against just two interceptions while averaging 216 yards per game.

In total, Mayo returns four players that made all-district or honorable mention a year ago and will certainly be poised to step into the ring against the Huskies on their home turf following a pair of heartbreaking losses in Owatonna last fall.

SERIES NOTES: The Huskies haven’t lost to the Spartans since Oct. 25, 2014 in the Section 1-5A second round and last played at Rochester Mayo in Week 4 of 2019, winning 31-14.

BOTTOM LINE: On paper, this has the ingredients of an exciting matchup. The bleachers will be at full capacity for the first time in two years and both teams are expected to remain in the race for the sub-district and Section 1-5A titles in 2021.

Week 2: vs. Rochester Century, Friday, Sept. 10

DETAILS: OHS Football Stadium (natural grass), Owatonna High School, 7 p.m.

MATCHUP: Big Southeast District Red Division; Section 1-5A opponents

2020 PANTHERS: 4-3 overall, 2-3 Red Division; defeated John Marshall 28-26 in section tournament

2020 RESULT: Owatonna won 42-0 in Week 3.

EARLY ANALYSIS: When ranking the places it would prefer to visit in the Big Southeast District, the Panthers likely have the Owatonna at the bottom of the list. Having been out-scored by more than 100 points in three trips to the OHS Stadium can have that effect on a team.

In 2021, it will be up to an inexperienced Century roster to break the losing skid against the Huskies as the Panthers roll back none of the five players that made the all-district team last season, including reigning sub-district Offensive Player of the Year, Isaiah Huber, and Lineman of the Year, Peter Lynch.

Offensively, the Panthers — who do retain four returning athletes that made the Red Division honorable mention list in 2020 — don’t have a lot of returning firepower and will likely still be working out a few early-season kinks when they make the trip to OHS, but the Huskies also won’t be anywhere near a finished product. Owatonna will be largely untested as it enters the early portion of the 2021 season and will have to contend with the overall excitement of a home-opening contest that is wedged between a pair of high-profile games against Rochester Mayo in Week 1 and Mankato West in Week 3.

SERIES NOTES: Outside of the last two seasons, the Panthers have actually offered some palpable resistance against a few of the best teams in Owatonna history. In 2018, Century held the eventual state champions to a regular season-low 28 points and was one of just two opponents in 2017 to keep the future Prep Bowl winners below 42 points in 13 games.

BOTTOM LINE: Century hasn’t beaten the Huskies in more than a decade dating back to Sept. 25, 2010 and will have its hands full against a vibrant, albeit largely inexperienced, Owatonna team that will be playing in front of a packed house.

Week 3: @ Mankato West, Friday, Sept. 17

DETAILS: Todnem Field (natural grass), Mankato West High School, 7 p.m.

MATCHUP: Big Southeast District Red Division; non-sectional opponents

2020 SCARLETS: 6-0 overall, 4-0 Red Division

2020 RESULT:: Mankato West won 35-14 in Week 5.

EARLY ANALYSIS: Though universally heartbreaking, the cancellation of the 2020 Prep Bowl — and large portions of various section tournaments — was especially painful for Mankato West. Picking up momentum early and having fully shifted into high gear by the time they visited OHS in Week 5, the Scarlets looked every bit of a bona-fide state title contender when they bullied their way to a 35-14 victory last season.

The loss promptly ended the Huskies’ lengthy winning streak against district opponents and ultimately clinched the Scarlets’ first sub-district title in five seasons. The Scarlets had their regular season finale cancelled due to COVID, but proved just how special the 2020 team was by defeating defending Class 5A state champion, Chaska, in their only postseason game on Nov. 20.

Ultimately, this matchup could serve as the seminal confrontation in determining the sub-district title in 2021 since both teams are expected to challenge for the crown alongside Rochester Mayo. Mankato West, though, might just be the best of the bunch, boasting an ultra-talented senior class that features five players that made the all-district squad in 2020 and another three that were given honorable mention consideration. Iowa State recruit Mehki Collins (6-foot-5, 210 pounds) is one of the state’s toughest defensive matchups out wide and will have his all-league quarterback Zander Dittberner back to deliver him the ball. West also retains the core of its defense — including reigning Red Division Defensive POY, Ryan Haley, at linebacker — and simply doesn’t have many holes on their projected roster.

SERIES NOTES: Mankato West is truly the only Big Southeast District team that has consistently punched in Owatonna’s weight over the last 10 years and has won four of the last five matchups between the Class 5A powerhouses. Prior to that, Owatonna had won two straight in the rivalry, including a 28-0 shutout in the Class 5A state quarterfinals in 2012. 

BOTTOM LINE: With a roster dripping with top-flight athletes, Mankato West will enter the new season carrying legitimate Prep Bowl aspirations and pulling off an upset on the road will be a tall order for a Huskies team that lost as much high-end talent to graduation as any team in the district.

Week 4: vs. Austin, Saturday, Sept. 25

DETAILS: OHS Football Stadium (natural grass), Owatonna High School, 1 p.m.

MATCHUP: Big Southeast District crossover; Section 1-5A opponents

2020 PACKERS: 1-6 overall

2020 RESULT: Did not play. Owatonna won 63-27 in the most recent meeting in Week 3 of 2018.

EARLY ANALYSIS: Following a two-year hiatus, the Packers are back on Owatonna’s schedule.

It wasn’t that long ago when Austin’s unique, fast-paced offensive style was causing headaches for some of the best teams in OHS history, but those days have long since expired. In fact, since the last time the Packers took the field against the Huskies on Sept. 14, 2018, they’ve won just four total games across parts of three seasons and the team appears locked squarely in rebuilding mode.

Austin put just three players on the all-district/honorable mention lists in 2020 and two of them have graduated. Unless the program boasts a transcendent group of incoming sophomores and juniors, it would be hard to imagine 2021 being the year where the Packers rise above .500 and challenge for a top three seed in the Section 1-5A tournament.

Notably, this is the first Saturday afternoon regular season football game in Owatonna since Sept. 25, 2010 and just the third non-playoff matinee in the last eight seasons.

SERIES NOTES: In the last 16 seasons, the Huskies are 17-0 against Austin — including four postseason victories — and has averaged more points against the Packers than any single opponent in the span.

BOTTOM LINE: This is a team that Owatonna has consistently handled and will likely enter as the heavy favorites playing on its home field.

Week 5: @ Northfield, Friday, Oct. 1

DETAILS: Memorial Field (natural grass), Northfield High School, 7 p.m.

MATCHUP: Big Southeast District Red Division; Section 1-5A opponents

2020 Raiders: 1-6 overall, 0-5 Red Division

2020 RESULT: Owatonna won 42-0 in Week 6.

EARLY ANALYSIS: Ironically, it will be a former OHS assistant leading the new-look Raiders when they host Owatonna in this midseason matchup between district and section rivals.

Following two of the leanest years in program history, future Hall of Fame coach Bubba Sullivan announced his resignation in April after 32 years as Northfield’s head coach. Brent Yule, who also spent time on Medford’s staff before joining the Huskies in 2016, takes the reigns and inherits a program that is a combined 2-14 in its previous two seasons and retains zero all-district payers.

In an interesting scheduling quirk, this will be the third consecutive meeting between the Huskies and Raiders in Northfield, which hasn’t always been the easiest place to visit for even some of the best Owatonna teams. Memorial Field was the site of the Huskies’ only loss in the state championship year of 2017 and the backdrop of a 46-15 defeat in 2014. The Huskies, though, have won the previous two games at the Raiders’ home stadium by an average score of 53-0.

SERIES NOTES: Owatonna has played Northfield more than any opponent in the state since 2015 and is 7-2 against the Raiders in the timeframe.

BOTTOM LINE: This is the transition year of all transition years for the proud Northfield program and Owatonna will almost certainly have the physical advantage on both sides of the ball.

Week 6: vs. Rochester John Marshall, Friday, Oct. 8

DETAILS: OHS Football Stadium (natural grass), Owatonna High School, 7 p.m.

MATCHUP: Big Southeast District Red Division; Section 1-5A opponents

2020 ROCKETS: 2-4 overall, 1-3 Red Division

2020 RESULT: Owatonna won 40-0 in Week 2.

EARLY ANALYSIS: On paper, the Rockets’ returning talent pool levels off near the bottom of the district, but the program has the advantage of pulling athletes from the second-largest high school in Minnesota south of the metro area and has some good size up front expected to return, so it’s difficult to project where they will ultimately finish within the Red Division and Section 1-5A field.

SERIES NOTES: John Marshall has struggled against Owatonna over the last 15 years and has found just about every plausible way to lose to the Huskies in the span. In 2012, Owatonna won 30-19 in a battle between a pair of undefeated and state-ranked teams in Week 3 and went on to play in the Prep Bowl that year. Two seasons later, OHS pulled off an improbable 25-24 victory in a crazy finish that featured two onside kick recoveries and won 27-21 in double overtime the following season. However, since then, the Huskies have surrendered exactly three touchdowns in five combined games against JM and averaged nearly 40 points in those contests.      

BOTTOM LINE: Jeff Williams has found the magic formula against his alma mater and any time Owatonna has an opportunity to collect a win against a district and sectional opponent, it’s a big deal.

Week 7: @ New Prague, Friday, Oct. 15

DETAILS: Trojans Stadium (artificial grass), New Prague, 7 p.m.

MATCHUP: Big Southeast District Red Division; non-sectional opponents

2020 TROJANS: 2-3 overall, 2-1 Red Division

2020 RESULT: Did not play (COVID cancellation). Owatonna won 56-13 in the most recent meeting in Week 3 of 2019.

EARLY ANALYSIS: Since becoming an annual part of Owatonna’s schedule five years ago, New Prague has offered little resistance against the Huskies — and similar to the majority of the teams in the Big Southeast District — retains only a small handful of reigning all-league players. Of the group, Ethan Chromy and Matt Frieges headline the list and form one of the top returning receiver duos in the division. Outside of the senior pair, though, defensive end Cam Prochaska is the only other individual that made the all-district squad for a team that saw its 2020 schedule shredded due to the pandemic.

The Trojans started last season with a blowout loss to powerhouse Mankato West, but showed an admirable level of consistency during what was undoubtably a difficult couple of months. After nearly upsetting Kasson-Manorville on Oct. 23 to fall to 1-2, New Prague didn’t take the field again for another three weeks following a wave of positive COVID tests within the athletics program. In their return to the gridiron on Nov. 11, the Trojans beat Rochester Century, 21-14, and rolled directly into the Section 2-5A tournament where they fell to Waconia in the opener, 27-7.

SERIES NOTES: Owatonna is 5-0 against New Prague since the Big Southeast Red Division was formed in 2015 and has won the previous two meetings against the Trojans by an average score of 56-13. The Huskies are 2-0 at New Prague’s picturesque stadium and have not played there since 2017.

BOTTOM LINE: In the final Red Division game of the season, there is a decent chance that the outcome could have a significant impact in deciding the district championship.

Week 8: vs Kasson-Mantorville, Wednesday, Oct. 20

DETAILS: Big Southeast District crossover; non-sectional opponents

MATCHUP: OHS Football Stadium (natural grass), Owatonna High School, 7 p.m.

2020 KOMETS: 5-1 overall

2020 RESULT: Did not play.

EARLY ANALYSIS: It would be tempting to chalk this non-divisional, non-sectional game against a Class 4A program as a mere postseason tune-up, but that would be a big mistake.

Though still only approximately half the size of Owatonna High School, Kasson-Mantorville houses one of the fastest-growing non-metro school districts in the entire state and has gone from roughly 450 students in 2010 to more than 650 in 2021.

Since joining the district prior to the 2019 season, the Komets have defeated three Class 5A programs, nearly upset Mankato West two years ago, won five of their six total games last fall and produced the Red Division Defensive Player of the Year in Jackson Kennedy.

So, yeah, the Huskies will have their work cut out for them.

Though Kennedy has since graduated, Kasson-Mantorville still rolls back a bevy of accomplished players on both sides of the ball. In total, three individuals projected to rejoin the team earned all-district accolades last fall and another pair were given honorable mention consideration.

SERIES NOTES: This will be the first ever meeting in the “modern” era between the teams.

BOTTOM LINE: By a pure enrollment standpoint, this contest will represent the smallest opponent Owatonna have faced in a long, long time and the outcome could land anywhere on the spectrum.