AUDUBON — The St. Edmond football team heads to the home of the world’s largest bull looking to bounce back this Friday night.

The Gaels (2-1 overall, 1-1 in district) take on Audubon here with kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m.

After reeling off back-to-back wins over Bishop Garrigan and Collins-Maxwell, St. Edmond was unable to hold off a second half rally by seventh-ranked Baxter, falling last Friday night inside Dodger Stadium, 36-34.

Dominic McClain, who was injured in the season opener, is expected to be back on the field this week.

“It’s great getting one of our playmakers back,” SEHS head coach Matt Dillon said. “Dominic had an incredible preseason and we were looking to see what he could do. We’ll take it slow and be cautious with him but he’s been good to go in practice this week.”

JT Laufersweiler ranks among the state’s leaders in eight-player in terms of passing yards, completing 29 of 56 for 747 yards with 10 touchdowns. The senior has also rushed for 169 yards and three scores while junior Klay Baker has over 400 yards of total offense and eight TDs.

Sophomore Grant Galles has helped fill the void left by McClain, catching seven passes for over 200 yards with two TDs. Senior Leo Ehn has 186 yards and two scores in the air while 10th-grader Kinnick Henning has three total TDs.

“We’ve had a good week of practice and we have a good plan set on both sides of the ball,” Dillon said. “I feel like we’re going to play well, I’m just concerned with how well Audubon plays at the same time.”

Another underclassmen, Koleman Hanson, has come on to anchor the defense with five sacks and eight tackles for loss. The SEHS unit has forced five turnovers with nine total sacks and 33 tackles behind the line of scrimmage.

St. Edmond will play back-to-back road games, as they travel to No. 6 GTRA next week. The teams were district rivals each of the past two seasons, with the Titans sweeping both games.

This will be the first matchup between the Gaels and Wheelers (2-1, 1-0), who went 4-6 a year ago. They have won two straight since a Week 1 loss to CAM, 42-12.

Audubon topped district foe Colo-Nesco two weeks ago, 28-24, before running past Exira-EHK last Friday, 62-34. Senior Evan Alt ran for 281 yards and found the end zone seven times as part of a 398-yard rushing performance by the team.

In the win vs. Colo-Nesco, it was Aaron Olsen carrying the offense as the junior quarterback ran for 207 yards with three TDs while completing 11 of 17 for 80 yards.

On the year, Olsen has thrown for 173 yards and ran for 319 with four touchdowns while Alt has 317 yards and seven scores. The Wheelers have rushed for 771 yards and 13 scores, averaging 6.5 yards per carry.

Olson is in his second season as the starter after racking up almost 1,200 yards rushing and 23 TDs as a sophomore with 641 yards passing and eight scores. He also saw the field as a ninth-grader, rushing for 127 yards and four TDs with three pass attempts.

The quarterback in the Audubon offensive system has rushed for at least 1,000 yards in each of the past six seasons.

From 2013 through 2021, the Wheelers had seven seasons with at least eight wins and three of at least 10, including a 12-2 run in 2019 that saw them reach the state finals.

“This is a very strong eight-player program that has been at the top of the standings the last 10-to-15 years,” Dillon said. “They know what they are doing and we’re still learning the game. They have excellent size, speed and athleticism, and we are going to have to play very well.”

Audubon is home to Albert the Bull, recognized as the world’s largest bull at 28 feet tall and 45 tons in weight. The statue, constructed in 1964, can be seen from US Highway 71.