The fourth-seeded Minneota football team hosts five-seed Yellow Medicine East in the first round of the section 5A tournament tonight at 7 p.m.

The Vikings and the Sting met in the second week of this season when Minneota took a 55-12 home win behind 185 rushing yards and three touchdowns from Ryan Meagher.

“We should have confidence going into the game, but we have to make sure we’re not too confident,” Minneota head coach Chad Johnston said. “It was a pretty lopsided win, but there were some things you can’t guarantee.”

This isn’t the same Yellow Medicine East team from week two, and certainly not the same Sting of previous years. Under head coach Lucas Damm, the Sting’s five wins this season match their win total from the previous five years combined.

Much of this can be attributed to the team’s next-man-up mentality. Brady Dahlager-a sophomore running back for the Sting-has missed time with an injury. He’s shown flashes, such as when he rushed for 169 yards and 3 touchdowns against New Ulm Cathedral. Had he been available deeper into the season, his presence could have been a game-changer for the Sting.

In his wake, Cody Dahlager has stepped up to fill the gap he left in the ground game. Cody took over as quarterback after the Sting played three different players at the position in the first three weeks. He’s taken the role and run with it-literally, as he is less of a pocket passer and more of a mobile signal-caller.

“They’re going to run him a lot. He’s a very physical runner, very athletic, very strong kid,” Johnston said. “Even though they’re, scheme-wise, doing a lot of the same things, it’s a different look with a different guy back there.”

Cody Dahlager’s passing abilities can cause problems for the team. In the Sting’s game against Russell-Tyler-Ruthton, he threw two passes for -5 yards and an interception. Yet, YME still won that game 32-0 due to his supreme athletic abilities. In the first two games before taking over behind center, Cody Dahlager played receiver. In YME’s previous matchup against Minneota, he caught three passes for 144 yards and a touchdown.

In the six games since taking over as quarterback, Dahlager has run for 640 yards and nine touchdowns, while throwing for another two.

“He’s stepped up and been our best offensive player by far,” YME head coach Lucas Damm said. “He’s playing quarterback, but he’s a workhorse.”

Despite the quality play from Cody Dahlager down the stretch, the Vikings are still considered by many the favorites in the game. A big part of this is the play of Zack Fier on offense for Minneota.

The senior running back makes plays both out of the backfield and as a receiver. He scored a pair of touchdowns in last week’s loss to second-seed Dawson-Boyd, including a 43-yard touchdown in the final minutes that gave Minneota the opportunity to tie the game with a two-point conversion. He now sits at 660 rushing yards, 295 receiving yards, and 19 total touchdowns on the season.

“[He] is a great player. He reads the field well, and his line does an amazing job, but our job is to disrupt the backfield as much as possible,” Damm said.

Nolan Hildahl is going to be essential for this part of YME’s game plan. Damm described Hildahl as the heart and soul of the defense, adding that it’s tough to stop opposing run games without the play of him and Cody Dahlager locking down the middle of the field.

In the secondary, Andrew Flaten will be faced with the task of slowing down the Vikings’ passing attack. The junior defensive back has been outstanding in coverage all season and came away with a pair of interceptions in the Sting’s last game against MACCRAY.

Sawyer DeSmet is going to be the primary disruptor on the defensive side for Minneota. The Vikings’ junior defensive end leads the team in sacks, with four. If he and Parker Bradley, who has amassed seven tackles for a loss this season, can consistently blow by the YME offensive line and get to Cody Dahlager quickly, it will be tough for the Sting to put points on the board.

The winner of Minneota (6-2) and Yellow Medicine East’s (5-3) Tuesday night game will face the winner of top-seeded B.O.L.D and Lac qui Parle Valley on Saturday at 3 p.m.