Newton football drops 5A Indianola on Homecoming

The Newton football team’s formula for winning games this fall has been consistent.

The Cardinals showcased those things again on Friday night during a 48-21 win over Class 5A Indianola.

Newton used explosive plays on offense, an opportunistic defense and a big second half at H.A. Lynn Stadium.

“They played with great energy, really good effort and I’m really proud of how our kids came out,” Newton head football coach Andy Swedenhjelm said. “They’re a really good team who came into the week 3-0. We knew we’d be challenged physically, and our guys were up to the challenge.”

It was the tale of two halves again for the Cardinals. The game was tied at 7-all after one quarter and Newton led 21-14 at halftime.

But a 27-7 fourth quarter sent the Cardinals to a blowout win on Homecoming. It was the 600th victory in program history, too.

“If we had lost this game, that could have changed our entire season,” Nick Milburn said. “They’re 5A and bigger and folks think 5A is better than 4A, but that’s not true obviously. We dominated all four quarters.”

Milburn certainly dominated. He finished with 15 tackles, four tackles for loss and two sacks and snagged his first career varsity interception.

The Newton defense tallied two interceptions, two sacks and seven tackles for loss in the win.

The Cardinals already have seven picks this season after totaling 10 all of last year and nine in 2023.

Kyler Griffin and Colton Northcutt also had big games defensively. Griffin finished with a career-best 11.5 tackles and Northcutt chipped in a career-high 11 tackles.

Indianola ran the ball 38 times and averaged 5.7 yards per carry, but Newton totaled 303 rushing yards and averaged 8.7 yards per run.

The Cardinals were explosive offensively overall. Caden Klein threw for 180 yards on only six completions, Isaiah Hansen had 246 total yards on 15 touches and the Cardinals overcame nine penalties.

“The whole team had energy,” Hansen said. “They’re a high-level team and people say 5A is better than 4A, but we showed them what’s up. This was a great Homecoming dub.”

Indianola (3-1) took an early lead as Bo Blake scored on a 1-yard touchdown run midway through the first.

Hansen’s 4-yard touchdown run tied the game later in the quarter, and then Newton went up 21-7 following a 22-yard TD run by Klein and a 51-yard scoring run by Hansen.

The Indians got a late touchdown pass from Blake to close the gap at halftime, and Indianola moved the ball well out of intermission, but the Cardinals’ defense held up despite missing starter Josh Lampe in the secondary.

“We were down Josh Lampe so we had to change our structure to fit some new dudes in there, and they did a good job with that,” Swedenhjelm said. “Our guys were gap sound and Nick Milburn had another Nick Milburn night. I’m proud of their effort, and the coaches had them well prepared.”

Klein opened the fourth with a 1-yard TD run and then added a 3-yard TD run a little more than 2 minutes later.

Finn Martin’s 20-yard TD catch from Klein with 7:12 to play extended the lead to 42-14. Qhjuan Coley added a 16-yard TD run with 3 minutes to go.

The only blemish in the second half for the Newton defense came on a 57-yard TD run by Indianola’s Daxton Heimbaugh.

Newton outscored the Indians 27-7 in the second half and is outscoring opponents 90-21 in the second halves of its wins this fall.

“There’s the big myth of halftime adjustments,” Swedenhjelm said. “We just needed to relax and figure out the flow of the game. We made a few minor tweaks, but they understood what to do. We always talk about how life is hard, and if you get in a situation that’s not great, you have to flush it and move on. They continue to do that each week.”

The Cardinals (3-1) won the game despite a 22-18 disadvantage in first downs. Indianola also had the ball nearly 14 minutes more and had an 83-47 surplus in total plays despite both teams getting 12 possessions.

Newton out-gained Indianola 483-401. The Indians were 8-of-18 on third down and only 1-of-6 on fourth down.

Milburn’s 62.5 tackles rank first in 4A and second in Iowa. The next-best tackle producer in 4A has only 37 tackles.

Milburn’s eight tackles for loss also ranks tied for third in the class. He had 9.5 tackles for loss all of last season.

“It’s great and all, but the biggest thing is always going to be the wins we get because of those games,” Milburn said. “I love making plays, and I’m never going to stop doing that, but the end goal is to win the game.

“I think (the defense) played really well. It was a fun game for me because they ran the ball a lot. To be able to stuff the opponent and demoralize them, that feels amazing.”

Dawson Maki finished with 8.5 tackles, Zach Felten totaled seven tackles and Alameen Shanto chipped in five tackles. Zach Sheffield contributed two tackles for loss and Ali Yahia snagged his third interception of the season, which ranks tied for second in 4A.

One of the better special teams plays of the night came from Landry Rausch, who denied Indianola’s fake punt attempt with a tackle short of the sticks on fourth down.

It came in the fourth quarter when the Indians were still within two scores.

“Landry Rausch did a fantastic job on that play,” Swedenhjelm said. “He’s extremely smart and just does his job. That was a heads up play.”

Klein finished 6-of-11 through the air for 180 yards and one TD. He also ran for 76 yards and three touchdowns on 11 carries.

His 826 passing yards rank fourth in 4A, his nine passing TDs are tied for fourth and his 14 total touchdowns is currently tied for second.

Hansen gained 151 yards and scored two TDs on 13 carries and gained 95 yards on his two catches. His 596 rushing yards rank third in 4A and his six rushing TDs are tied for third.

Martin hauled in four passes for 85 yards and one TD, Coley rushed for 43 yards and one TD on six carries and Nick Thomason gained 30 yards on his three carries.

Martin’s 596 receiving yards rank third in 4A and his six receiving TDs are tied for second.

“We’ve been harping all year about how our team is going to be as good as we are selfless,” Swedenhjelm said. “That’s what we preach. You have to put your own personal things to the side and love what your teammates do, too. I think our guys embody that. We have players who want to be the dude and want to be alphas, but the goals we can accomplish as the sum of our parts are way better than anything we do individually.”

Heimbaugh led Indianola with 181 yards and one TD on 27 carries. Gabby King led the defense with nine tackles.

Notes: Swedenhjelm expects Lampe to return to the lineup soon. … Jackson Price had five touchbacks on his eight kickoffs. His 15 touchbacks this fall ranks third in 4A. … Newton is 3-1 for the second straight season.