The road back to the dome starts up tonight for the Sigourney-Keota football team when they open the 2021 season with a trip to Durant.

The Cobras finished in the final four last year with a 10-1 record and their first trip to Cedar Falls since 2005. Like any team, they have a fair amount of returners sprinkled in with newcomers. While they lose all state position players in Sam Sieren and Brady Duwa, they bring back Cade Molyneux and Colten Clarahan in the backfield. Clarahan will transition to the spinner back role in the infamous single wing Cobra attack and Molyneux will slide over to tailback. Molyneux recorded 1,207 total yards of offense and contributed to 17 touchdowns while Clarahan completed nine passes for 227 yards and five scores. Much of the defense returns from a season where they allowed just 14 points a night. 

The recipe to slow down the Wildcats is no secret, as their team starts and stops with all state running back Nolan DeLong. As a sophomore, the 6’0’’ 190 pound workhorse ran for 1,589 yards and 22 touchdowns while accounting for 73% of their rushing attack. He led Durant to a 4-4 season and Cobra head coach Jared Jensen tells KCII Sports it will be a tough challenge in week one. “It will be a test and I like that right out of the gates. Defensively, how well can we shut down the run game? That is the key. This week we did some different things with how they run their offense and what they are trying to do.”

The week one matchup gets underway at 7 p.m. tonight in Durant.