Scott City visits Great Bend to open 2026 season
Scott City, Kan. (westernkansasnews.com)-There’s no doubt the 2026 schedule for Scott City is going to be a challenge, with three teams ranked in their respective classifications across Kansas and Colorado. The first team in front of them is Great Bend.
The Panthers came within two points of playing for a 5A State title in 2025, finishing 11-1 on the year. While they do lose a a good portion of that squad, the cupboard isn’t bare. Great Bend will be led by K-State commit Cooper Ohnmacht, who had 755 receiving yards and eight touchdowns. They also return their top tackler in Kale Kern, who finished with 137 tackles. A year ago, the Panthers were explosive on offense, averaging 44 points and 368 yards per game, while yielding 14 points and 250 yards per contest. This will be their first time competing as a Class 4A school since 2021. Erin Beck enters his 11th season as the Great Bend head coach. The Panthers enter the rankings in Class 4A at No. 4.
Scott City returns a handful of starts off a squad that started 3-0, and finished 5-3 in 2025, falling in the opening round of the playoffs. The Beavers do return a solid trio including all league lineman Easton Eisenhour and Reid Felker. Quarterback Drew Metzger returns after throwing for 1,150 yards and nine scores while rushing for three touchdowns a year ago. Eisenhour led the team with 75 tackles last season. The Beavers averaged 32 points and 373 yards per game while surrendering 225 yards and 24 points per contest last season. Jim Turner is entering year number 11 as the head coach of the program.
This is the third meeting all-time between the programs. The series is tied at one apiece, with Great Bend winning on this date at home 13-11 in 1998, and Scott City winning 14-7 at home the following year.
This is the first time Scott City will face an opponent from the Western Athletic Conference since 2017, when they won at Hays.
Kickoff will be at 7:30 pm from Memorial Stadium in Great Bend. Pregame coverage begins at 7 pm on KSKL, Mix 94.5.