By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
After posting a 6-4 record a year ago while wading through a brutal schedule, nothing gets any easier for Washburn Rural this fall.
Veteran Washburn Rural football coach Steve Buhler is starting his 14th season at Rural, with the Junior Blues coming off a 6-4 record last fall. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
The Junior Blues open the season Friday on the road against defending Class 4A state champion Kapaun Mt. Carmel, will face defending 6A champ Manhattan in the Centennial League as well as facing other traditional state powers and taking a road trip to Omaha, Neb.
But veteran Washburn Rural coach Steve Buhler is confident that his Junior Blues are up to the task ahead.
"We like that,'' Buhler said of Rural's slate. "We feel like we're in a spot with the program where it may not make our overall season record look glossy, but I think it benefits us at the end and we like the idea that our kids don't shy away from anybody and feel like that's just beneficial to us when we get to the playoffs.
"We've think we've got some really talented kids coming back and we've got some talented young guys but they're just going to have to learn how to play at the varsity level a little bit. And it's not that they can't physically do it, they just have to learn to play with the intensity it takes on a Friday night.''
Washburn Rural senior running back Jadyn Baum earned All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial League first-team honors last season. [File photo]
Washburn Rural's returning cast is led by senior running back Jadyn Baum, who earned TopSports.news All-Shawnee County and All-Centennial first-team recognition last fall before going on to win a Class 6A state wrestling title at 215 points.
Baum carried the ball 139 times for 1,262 yards and 10 touchdowns last fall while averaging 9.1 yards per attempt.
"If not the best, he is one of the top five running backs in the state of Kansas,'' Buhler said. "Everybody can say whatever, but 1,200 yards last year, 9 yards a carry against a really good schedule that we played and he's kind of the heart and soul right now of the offense.''
Senior Gavin Vantuyl takes over as the Junior Blues' starting quarterback this fall after seeing time backing up John Hoytal and playing wide receiver last season.
Vantuyl was also the All-Centennial League first-team punter last fall and received All-Shawnee County honorable mention.
A senior defensive end, Steven Cantrell earned first-team All-Centennial League recognition as a junior and also received All-Shawnee County honorable mention.
Amir Jones, a senior linebacker, received All-Shawnee County honorable mention last season while the Junior Blues also return senior Cade Danielson and junior Isaiah Whiteside at outside linebacker.
Whiteside, who earned All-Shawnee County honorable mention last fall, is also expected to play a key role on offense for the Junior Blues.
"Isaiah Whitehead has had a really good summer and he's going to be really good,'' Buhler said. "We're going to kind of move him around from H (back) to tight end and he's a big enough kid that we'll move him out to the wide receiver spot.''
Senior Brodie Schumacher is also expected to play a wide receiver spot while senior Ryan Austin was named the All-Centennial League first-team place-kicker last season and also received All-Shawnee County honorable mention as a junior.
Washburn Rural began the season with right at 150 players, which should bode well not only for this fall but in coming seasons.
"We've actually got more sophomores through seniors than I've had,'' Buhler said. "We've got like 40-some sophomores off of last year's freshman team that stayed out, so our numbers are actually top-heavy compared to what we've had.
"Freshman numbers are pretty normal but we've got probably 90 to 100 sophomore through seniors.''
Washburn Rural will open its season against Kapaun Mt. Carmel at Wichita's Stryker Stadium.
WASHBURN RURAL
2026 football schedule
September -- 4 at Kapaun Mt. Carmel, 11 Olathe South, 18 Bishop Carroll, 25 at Topeka High (Hummer).
October -- 2 Emporia, 9 at Millard West, Neb., 16 Junction City, 23 at Manhattan.
