It was a strong opening week for the newly ranked Messenger-area teams as they came up with big wins to start the season.

Humboldt (No. 4) and Webster City (No. 9) are ranked in Class 3A after wins over Spencer and Fort Dodge, respectively.

Southeast Valley (No. 6) returned to the rankings in Class 2A, two years after capturing a state championship.

Last season was tough for South Central Calhoun (1A), but after a Week 1 win, the eighth-ranked Titans will have a tough task against No. 6 Southwest Valley this Friday.

A week after ending a 10-year hex against perennial power Newell-Fonda, the ninth-ranked Wolverines beat the Mustangs for the first time since 2014.

After a week of correcting mistakes and figuring out formations to change or continue the pace, Messengerland teams get back on the field this evening.

No. 4 Humboldt (1-0) at Ballard (1-0)

Humboldt didn’t need a lot of offense to beat Spencer in their opener, as the Wildcats used every other aspect to turn back the Tigers.

Corey Dettmann returned an interception for a touchdown. Nolan Gustafson kicked two field goals with a long of 31 and Mason Van Pelt had a rushing touchdown.

Quarterback Coen Matson ran for 108 yards.

In their Week 1 win, Ballard edged Pella 20-17. Eli Rouse ran for 215 yards on 25 carries. Rouse had two touchdowns including an 84-yard scamper.

Mason Gatchell threw for 115 yards and a touchdown.

No. 9 Webster City (1-0) at Spencer (0-1)

The Lynx overcame five fumbles and used a last second touchdown to topple Fort Dodge (Class 4A) 35-28 in their opener.

Keegan Hisler hit Jesse Crutcher from 23 yards out in the final seconds to secure the victory.

Senior running back Jaxon Cherry ran for 266 yards and reached the end zone twice.

Spencer struggled offensively last week, running for 148 yards and throwing for 12.

Eagle Grove (0-1) at No. 6 Southeast Valley (1-0)

The Jaguars earned a 26-8 victory over Manson Northwest Webster, where three different running backs reached the end zone and quarterback Cale VanSickle hit Andrew Mitchell with a touchdown strike.

Logan Jaeschke, Brady Hanson and Drew Temple had rushing touchdowns.

The Eagles suffered a 49-6 defeat to Clarion-Goldfield/Dows on a Thursday opener.

Drake Canavan ran for 126 yards and a 66-yard touchdown.

This is the first meeting between the two since Southeast Valley won in 2020.

No. 8 South Central Calhoun (1-0) at No. 6 Southwest Valley (1-0)

South Central Calhoun cruised to a 34-14 victory over Pocahontas Area last Friday night.

The Titans ran for 237 yards and quarterback Gavin Batta threw for 127 yards and two touchdowns.

Four running backs ran for over 50 yards, while Batta and Brock Nattress reached paydirt.

Keegan Soard and Nattress each caught touchdown strikes.

Southwest Valley earned a 34-31 victory over Red Oak a week ago.

Quarterback Evan Timmerman did it all for the Wolves. Timmerman threw for a score and ran for three.

Timmerman was 4-for-12 for 110 yards and a touchdown pass to Wyatt Mendenhall.

On the ground Timmerman ran for 128 yards, three scores, with a long of 25.

Bishop Garrigan (0-1) at No. 9 West Bend-Mallard (1-0)

The Wolverines cruised to a victory over Newell-Fonda to end a 10-plus year hex, while the Golden Bears lost a tight contest with Bishop Garrigan.

West Bend-Mallard beat the Mustangs, 44-16.

Trayton Cink ran for 156 yards on 18 carries and reached paydirt three times. He had scoring runs of 69, 46 and six yards.

Landon Montag and Cole Fehr both ran for over 125 yards. Montag had 147 yards and three touchdowns. Fehr had 143 yards and two touchdowns. Logan Grimm also reached paydirt twice.

Other area games: Forest City (0-1) at Algona (0-1); Hampton-Dumont/CAL (1-0) at Clarion-Goldfield-Dows (1-0); Emmetsburg (0-1) at Estherville-Lincoln Central (0-1); Okoboji (0-1) at Pocahontas (0-1); Manson Northwest Webster (0-1) at Ogden (0-1); Perry (1-0) at Greene County (0-1); No. 3 OABCIG (1-0) at East Sac County (0-1); St. Ansgar (1-0) at North Union (1-0); Newell-Fonda (0-1) at West Harrison (0-1).