By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
Topeka West football recorded a historic win Thursday night at Hummer Sports Park with a 58-40 romp over city rival Shawnee Heights.
Nas Williams-Brown rushed for 317 yards and five touchdowns in Topeka West's 58-40 UKC win over Shawnee Heights. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The win was the Chargers’ first over Shawnee Heights since 2005. It was also Topeka West’s first win over a United Kansas Conference opponent other than Turner since the Chargers joined the league in 2022.
The Chargers got the historic win behind a backup quarterback and the dazzling play of junior ball carrier Nas Williams-Brown.
A wild fourth period saw both teams score 20 points, but the home team made enough stops on defense to keep the T-Birds at arm’s length all night.
“We finally put the bad things away and did what we were supposed to do, and you see the result. We’re a good team when we do what we’re supposed to do,” said Trey Parker, whose first game as interim head coach of the Chargers back in 2022 was a 49-6 loss to the T-Birds. “It's a great feeling after you have that monkey on your back for so long. We were up 20 in the fourth and I’m still like, ‘No we got to finish. We’ve got to stay focused.’
"But we’re so happy. We put in the work, and we did what we were supposed to do. We came out and executed and it just happened.”
The recipe looked pretty simple for Parker and the Chargers: just give the ball to Williams-Brown and good things will happen. The junior rushed for 317 yards on 18 carries, with scoring runs of 94, 62 and 50 yards as well as touchdowns of seven and two yards. He also caught five passes for 39 yards.
“That kid works hard,” Parker said of Williams-Brown. “He’s a great kid in the classroom. And he’s a great athlete. I mean, he makes fast guys look slow.”
“I just felt good. Everything was coming together. The O-line play and everything… we just did our thing,” said Williams-Brown, who admitted it was sometimes hard for the Chargers to keep putting in the effort without victories to show for it. “We pushed through. You can get past any roadblock if you just do the work.”
Topeka West sophomore quarterback Eli Hernandez passed for 203 yards and three TDs in his first varsity start, a 58-40 win over Shawnee Heights. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The Chargers had to go with sophomore quarterback Eli Hernandez in place of starter Josiah Wilkie, who had completed 33 of 63 passes for 372 yards and two touchdowns in the Chargers’ first three games.
With Wilkie sidelined by injury, Hernandez stepped in and completed 14 of 26 passes for 203 yards and three scores without throwing an interception.
Parker said the team believed in Hernandez and didn’t change its offense after Wilkie went down.
“It’s a good situation to be in. Josiah Wilkie’s our guy, but Elijah’s been chomping at the bit to get his opportunity,” Parker said. “He’s been doing well on our JV team. This whole week, he’s been locked in. He’s been focused and he came in and executed what we saw on film.
“I think sometimes people tend to over-think things and try to adjust, but (Hernandez has) been running our system all year, all summer. He knows everything that Wilkie does. He was able to step in because he’s put in the work, put in the time, and we had confidence in him.”
Shawnee Heights senior Trone Purvis rushed for 156 yards and four touchdowns in Thursday's 58-40 loss to Topeka West. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Shawnee Heights fell to 1-3. The T-Birds leaned heavily on senior running back Trone Purvis to generate any offense. He carried 29 times for 156 yards and four second-half touchdowns.
TOPEKA WEST 58, SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 40
Shawnee Heights (1-3, 1-3) 6 6 8 20 -- 40
Topeka West (1-3, 1-3) 20 6 12 20 -- 58
Topeka West – Peeples 23 pass from Hernandez (Williams-Brown run)
Shawnee Heights – Mobley 15 pass from Kutscher (run failed)
Topeka West – Williams-Brown 7 run (pass failed)
Topeka West – Lassiter 77 pass from Hernandez (pass failed)
Topeka West – Williams-Brown 94 run (pass failed)
Shawnee Heights – Kutscher 1 run (pass failed)
Topeka West – Emerson 8 pass from Hernandez (pass failed)
Shawnee Heights – Purvis 1 run (Purvis run)
Topeka West – Williams-Brown 62 run (pass failed)
Topeka West – Williams-Brown 2 run (pass failed)
Shawnee Heights – Purvis 3 run (run failed)
Topeka West – Webb 1 run (Peeples pass from Hernandez)
Shawnee Heights – Purvis 1 run (pass failed)
Topeka West – Williams-Brown 50 run (pass failed)
Shawnee Heights – Purvis 1 run (Terrell pass from Kutscher)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing – Shawnee Heights: Purvis 29-156, Kutscher 2-(minus)4, Barksdale 7-79, Mobley 1-(minus)3. Topeka West: Williams-Brown 18-317, Webb 18-61, Hernandez 4-6, Stafford 3-33, Knight 1-7.
Passing – Shawnee Heights: Kutscher 7-16-1 90 yards. Topeka West: Hernandez 14-26-0 203 yards.
Receiving – Shawnee Heights: Mobley 1-15, Owens 2-22, Terrell 2-31, Purvis 1-12, Williams 1-10. Topeka West: Peeples 2-32, Emerson 3-17, Lassiter 3-106, Williams-Brown 5-39, Webb 1-9.
Punting – Shawnee Heights: Kutscher 1-45.0, Labrador 2-48.0. Topeka West: Munganga 3-37.3.
