Oakland-Craig loses at Ord in State Semifinals

 

The season came to and end for the Oakland-Craig football team on Friday, Nov. 13, as the Knights fell on the road to Ord 38-28 in the semifinals of the Class C2 playoffs in action aired on 107.9 the Bull.

Both teams punted on their first offensive possessions of the game.

Ord scored on its second drive, a two-yard run from Tommy Stevens. The PAT made it 7-0.

Oakland-Craig answered right back on their next possession, driving 80 yards and capping things off with a three-yard run from Caden Nelson. The PAT tied it at 7-7 with 3:41 in the first quarter.

The Chanticleers answered with a long drive of their own, going 84 yards, and finishing off with a three-yard run from QB Zach Smith. Ord now led 14-7.

The Knights responded, going 80 yards again, and ending the drive on a two-yard run from Coulter Thiele, tying the game 14-14 with 10:11 left in the second quarter.

Ord scored the last touchdown of the first half, a nine-yard run by Stevens, and the Chanticleers took a 21-14 lead into halftime.

After Oakland-Craig was forced to punt on the opening drive of the third quarter, Ord began with great field position, on the O-C 38. The Chants were able to take a two score lead following a one-yard run by Smith. The PAT made it 28-14 Ord with 8:09 in the third quarter.

But Oakland-Craig would score on their next two drives, a one-yard run by Nelson and a five-yard run by QB Grady Gatewood, and the game was tied 28-28 with 9:48 left in the fourth.

The Chanticleers drove down to the O-C 15 yard line, but had to settle for a 32-yard field goal from Nebraska walk-on commit Kelen Meyer, and Ord now led 31-28 with 7:17 left in the game.

The Knights got the ball for the potential go-ahead drive. A Gatewood pass was intercepted by Smith, giving Ord the ball on the O-C 14 yard line.

The Chanticleers added a touchdown on an eight-yard run by Smith, and after the PAT, now led 38-28 with 5:44 left in the game.

O-C was able to drive to the Ord 37, but were turned away on fourth down.

Ord had the ball with a chance to run out the remaining clock, but O-C got a stop on defense and forced a punt.

With one last chance with the ball, O-C threw their second interception of the game, and Ord was able to run out the remaining 2:04, sealing the game with a 38-28 win.

Gatewood was 13-20 passing for 159 yards and two interceptions. Gunnar Ray made 5 receptions for 60 yards while Carson Thomsen had 3 catches for 56 yards.

Nelson ran the ball 25 times for 113 yards and two touchdowns. Jack Pille had 63 yards rushing on 3 carries.

Mike Maline made 9 tackles while Thomsen had 7.

The Knights had 399 yards of total offense, including 240 on the ground.

The defense gave up 407 yards of total offense, including 356 rushing.

Heck of a ride for Oakland-Craig. Unfortunately, they couldn't get back to the State Championship for the second year in a row with the chance to repeat.

Oakland-Craig ends their season at 9-2 overall.    

It was another very strong season for the Knights.

I really think Jaron Meyer missing most of the season really affected Oakland-Craig though.

Who knows what would of happened had he been healthy the entire time.

Gatewood had 1,239 yards passing with 11 touchdowns and 6 interceptions for the season. Thiele was the team's leading rusher with 830 yards and 13 touchdowns.

The Knights say goodbye to Ray, Trey Deemer, Gavin Enstrom, Thiele, Meyer, Trent Arlt, Nelson, Pille, Brands, Jaden Harney, Alec Mockenhaupt, and Maline.

These seniors will be sorely missed no doubt.

Key returners include Thomsen, Gatewood, Dawson Rhoades, Aiden Jorgensen, Connor Guill, Tavis Uhing, Elliot Johnson, Trevor Weitzenkamp, and Jt Brands.

Oakland-Craig graduates a lot of talent, but a lot of guys are back as well.

I look for the Knights to reload and be strong and good once again next year.

Hopefully by the time next season rolls around the coronavirus pandemic will be a thing of the past and things are back to normal. 

Oakland-Craig stymies Hartington Cedar Catholic in Quarterfinal Playoff Win

 

The Oakland-Craig Football Team jumped out to a 12-0 lead, and went on to win 15-6 at Hartington Cedar Catholic in the State Quarterfinals Friday night in action aired on 107.9 the Bull.

Caden Nelson had 120 yards rushing on 18 carries, including a score.

Tavis Uhing made 7 tackles.

The Knights had 194 yards of total offense, all on the ground.

It wasn't a pretty win by any stretch of the imagination, but a win is a win this time of year.

Oakland-Craig is one win away from returning to the Class C2 State Championship game for the second straight season.

The last obstacle between the Knights and Lincoln are the undefeated Ord Chanticleers, who will host Oakland-Craig this Friday.

Ord finished the regular season unbeaten at 7-0, with two games cancelled due to COVID-19. Those games included vs a winless Twin River on October 9, and what would have been the regular season finale against 4-2 Gibbon on October 22. Ord did play Sutton in a make-up game on the 9th, winning 35-16, but the replacement game do not count for against the teams.

So far in the playoffs, the Chanticleers have beaten Bishop Neumann 38-14, and picked up a 24-12 quarterfinal win over Aquinas Catholic last Friday.

Oakland-Craig enters the semifinals at 9-1, with their only loss coming to unbeaten Fremont Bergan on October 16th.

The Knights have also been affected by Covid, as their September 18 game with Norfolk Catholic was cancelled. Instead, The Knights hosted Logan-Magnolia of Iowa in a replacement game, winning 38-0.

In the postseason, O-C has wins over Crofton 44-14, and they were able to escape Hartington Cedar Catholic with a 15-6 victory last week.

Head Coach Joe Anderson breaks down the game with the Trojans. "It started off really well. One of our goals was to get off to a fast start. And Caden Nelson was able to get a pick, and get us down in scoring position on the first play of the game. We were able to punch one in there. And defense did a great job of getting a stop and then getting another score. So bang bang it was 12-0 right away. But we knew Cedar's got a great football team, very well coached. And they were able to comeback and get a score. And after that our defense just really buckled down and played really well." 

Anderson says their offense didn't perform as well as they'd of liked, putting their defense in some bad positions by turning the ball over and bobbling a punt. 

Currently sitting at 9-0, Ord boasts an impressive balanced attack on offense, led by dual-threat quarterback Zach Smith, who has completed 62-98 passes for 1,055 yards and 16 touchdowns, compared to six interceptions. Smith has also carried the ball 117 times for 739 yards and 12 more scores.

Tommy Stevens is the leading rusher for the Chants, having carried 197 times for 1,337 yards and 25 touchdowns.

John Deriso is the favorite target whenever Ord throws the ball, hauling in 27 catches for 357 yards and four scores.

Defensively, Garret Kluthe has 64 tackles for the Chants, along with 63 from trey Warner.

As a team, Ord has record 50 tackles for loss, 15 sacks and have forced 26 turnovers: 15 interceptions and 11 fumbles. Kelen Meyer has seven of those picks.

Anderson says the Chanticleers are the real deal. "Yeah very good Football team. They are undefeated for a reason. All three phases of the game they're very strong. Offensively they have a lot of weapons, they got a Quarterback that's a dual threat guy that can throw it well. He can run it. They got an All-State type running back in the backfield that's really hard to tackle. And they got 2 or 3 guys out on the perimeter that really go up and catch the ball. And if you look at their scores they've put up a lot points."

Anderson feels the Chanticleers are even more talented defensively as they really fly around and have a lot of great athletes, Senior, Veteran guys who have been playing for a long time.

He adds Ord's kicking game is very good as well.

Anderson says the Knights will have to mix things up better offensively against the Chanticleers. 

The Chanticleers enter Friday night’s game averaging 46.6 points on offense, while allowing just over 10 points per game on defense.

For Oakland-Craig, the Knights average 42 points per game on offense, and allow 7.3 points per game on defense.

Offensively for the Knights, QB Grady Gatewood is 61-110 passing for 1,080 yards, 11 touchdowns and four interceptions.

Four different O-C players have double digit catches in the receiving category, with Nelson leading the way with 15 catches for 205 yards and a score.

Oakland-Craig uses multiple ball carriers in their running attack. Coulter Thiele has 47 carries for 781 yards and 12 touchdowns. Uhing has 101 carries for 502 yards and 7 scores. Nelson has 89 carries for 472 yards and 13 TDs, and Jaron Meyer had 49 carries for 439 yards and 9 scores.

Mike Brands leads the Knights on defense with 82 total tackles, 41 of them being solo.

Oakland-Craig has recorded 34 tackles for a loss, 11 sacks, 19 interceptions and five fumbles on defense.

Ord was the state runner-up in Class C1 in 2018, and is looking for just their second ever state finals appearance.

Oakland-Craig is trying to get back to the state finals for the second year in a row, after winning last year’s state championship in C2. The Knights were also champs in C2 in 1995, and runner-up in 1997 and 2015.

It’s Class C2 state semifinal football this Friday night, November 13th, with 9-1 Oakland-Craig at 9-0 Ord.

Kickoff is set for 6:00 pm.

The game will be broadcast on 107.9 The Bull with pregame coverage beginning at 5:30.

It should be a great game that I feel could truly go either way. 

I think offensive balance is the key to the game for the Knights. 

Stanton falls to Dundy County-Stratton in State Quarterfinals

 

The Stanton Football Team traveled down to Benkelman and left home empty handed on Friday, falling 50-24 to Dundy County-Stratton in the D-1 State Quarterfinals.

The Mustangs led 8-6 at the end of the 1st quarter before the Tigers blanked Stanton 20-0 in the 2nd quarter to take a 26-8 lead into the locker room.

Both teams scored 8 points in the 3rd quarter, and the score was 34-16 at the end of three in favor of DCS.

The Tigers doubled up the Mustangs 16-8 in the 4th quarter.

Sutton Pohlman had 113 yards rushing on 22 carries while Parker Krusemark was 6-12 passing for 83 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions. Pohlman hauled in 5 passes for 60 yards, including a touchdown. 

Pohlman made 11 tackles.

Stanton had 302 yards of total offense, including 219 on the ground.

Dundy County-Stratton totaled 369 yards of total offense, and had 273 rushing.

Definitely not what I expected in this one.

The Mustangs wrap up the season at 8-2.

It was a season filled with memories for Stanton.

The Mustangs picked up big wins over Howells-Dodge, Clarkson/Leigh, GACC, and Laurel-Concord-Coleridge on their way to winning a District Championship.

Stanton was also very dominant in their first two playoff games before losing to the Tigers.

Pohlman finished with 1,220 yards rushing with 16 touchdowns on the season while Gage Tighe had 776 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns on the year.

Pohlman made a team leading 93 tackles.

The Mustangs part ways with Pohlman, Matthew Reese, Brennan Wragge, Tighe, Nathan Wragge, Cody Kuester, Mason Bruggeman, Gunnar Davidson, Jordan Gartner, and Trey Elbert.

Lots of talent and lots of great seniors who did and meant so much to this program.

Key returners include Devyn Farrier, Adam Arens, Krusemark, Owen Vogel, Joe Butterfield, Parker Wiedeman, Jason Claussen, Brayan Acuna, Damien Erickson, Kamden Dusatko, Thomas Cunningham, Ben Butterfield, and Mitchell Hupp. 

A lot of these kids will be Seniors next year so Stanton figures to be poised to have another season like they did this year.

Pohlman and Tighe are huge losses at the I-back position though so the Mustangs will have to find someone to step up and fill those big shoes.

Stanton has to work as hard as possible this offseason and do what they can with the pandemic.

Hopefully the pandemic ends in a timely fashion so these kids can get back to normal and have a normal season next year.

That's what we're all hoping for anyways. 

Oakland-Craig handles Crofton in first round of Playoffs

 

The Oakland-Craig Football Team won 44-14 at home over Crofton in the 1st round of the Playoffs Friday night.

The Knights led 14-0 at the end of the 1st quarter, and outscored the Warriors 16-7 in the 2nd quarter to take a 30-7 lead into the locker room.

Oakland-Craig shutout Crofton 14-0 in the 3rd quarter to go up 44-7 at the end of three.

The Warriors put up 7 points in the 4th quarter to make up the final score.

Coulter Thiele ran the ball 4 times for 150 yards, and scored twice. Grady Gatewood was 6-8 passing for 183 yards with three touchdowns. Thiele also hauled in 2 passes for 65 yards, and scored once.

Caden Nelson made 11 tackles while Mike Brands had 10. Trey Deemer added 8.

The Knights racked up 405 yards of total offense, including 222 on the ground.

Great job by Oakland-Craig of winning and taking care of business against Crofton Friday night.

The Knights (8-1) battle Hartington Cedar Catholic (8-2) on the road Friday night in the State Quarterfinals in action that can be heard on 107.9 the Bull.

The Trojans shutout Bridgeport 21-0 on the road on Friday.

Oakland-Craig routed Cedar Catholic 52-14 at home on October 9th.

The Knights look to do much of the same Friday night.

I feel like Oakland-Craig will win this one, I just don't know by how much.

I think it could be like a 24-point game or something like that, being as it is the second time these two teams are meeting and often times the second meeting is closer if the first meeting is a blowout.

The Knights could thoroughly dominate once again though.

The game is in Hartington, however, so I think that helps the Trojan cause.

I still look for Oakland-Craig to win and face either David City Aquinas or Ord next Friday night in the Semifinals.

I think best case scenario for the Knights is win and host the Monarchs next week.

Not that going out to Ord and winning isn't doable, but I think Oakland-Craig would rather play at home against a familiar opponent than on the road in unchartered territory against an unknown team.

Ord would be at home if they beat 10th seeded Aquinas as they are the 2 seed in the playoffs and the Knights are the 3 seed.

Friday night's game is scheduled to kickoff at 7:00 with pregame getting underway at 6:30 on the Bull.

Stanton routs Arcadia/Loup City in 2nd Round of Playoffs

 

The Stanton Football Team routed Arcadia/Loup City 56-14 on the road Friday night in the 2nd round of the Playoffs.

The game was tied at 14 at the end of one before the Mustangs went up 22-14 at halftime.

Stanton exploded for 22 3rd quarter points, and led 44-14 at the end of three.

The Mustangs added 12 points in the 4th quarter to make up the final score.

Parker Krusemark ran the ball 19 times for 128 yards, and scored three times. Sutton Pohlman had 110 yards rushing on 8 carries, and scored twice. Gage Tighe had 8 carries for 66 yards while Krusemark was 4-7 passing for 74 yards with two touchdowns. Ben Butterfield hauled in a 56-yard TD Pass.

Tighe had 12 tackles while Pohlman made 11. Bruggeman added 10 while Kamden Dusatko notched 8. Krusemark and Trey Elbert added 7 apiece.

Stanton had 403 yards of total offense, including 329 on the ground.

Great and dominating win for the Mustangs.

Stanton (8-1) takes on Dundy County-Stratton (9-0) in Benkelman on Friday at 3:00 p.m. Central Time. in the State Quarterfinals.

The Tigers won 48-30 at Nebraska City Lourdes Friday night.

It's one end of the State to another on Friday as Benkelman is located way down in the Southwest Corner of the State near the Colorado Border.

It's definitely a matchup of Northeast Nebraska vs. Southwest Nebraska.

I look for Stanton to win this one and reach the State Semifinals.

I feel like the Mustangs are more battle tested and have played tougher competition.

That and some of the best Football is played in Northeast Nebraska.

Stanton won big over the Rebels, and I look for the Mustangs to win again as an encore on Friday.

I don't know if Stanton will win as big as they did over Arcadia/Loup City, but I think winning by a few touchdowns is doable.

It will be interesting to see what happens.

This Mustang team is definitely making a playoff push in hopes of getting to Memorial Stadium.

Howells-Dodge falls to Burwell in 2nd round of Playoffs

 

The Howells-Dodge Football Team saw their season come to an end Friday night as the Jaguars lost 50-14 at home to Burwell in the second round of the playoffs in action aired on 107.9 the Bull. 

Here is the scoring summary and game recap from the contest:

First Quarter

Howells-Dodge 04:05 #22 Levi Belina runs for 4 yards. Touchdown! (Two point conversion run by #22 Levi Belina is good.)

Burwell Senior 01:10 #22 Levi Belina runs for -3 yards. Safety! #3 Cash Gurney on the tackle.

Second Quarter

Burwell Senior 10:25 #16 Caleb Busch runs for 11 yards. Touchdown! (Point after kick by #82 Casimir Koskela is good.)

Burwell Senior 04:14 #16 Caleb Busch runs for 18 yards. Touchdown! (Point after kick by #82 Casimir Koskela is good.)

Burwell Senior 01:32 #6 Barak Birch pass complete to #1 Levi Bode for 18 yards. Touchdown! (Point after kick by #82 Casimir Koskela is good.)

Third Quarter

Burwell Senior 10:25 #16 Caleb Busch runs for 11 yards. Touchdown! (Point after kick by #82 Casimir Koskela is good.)

Burwell Senior 04:14 #16 Caleb Busch runs for 18 yards. Touchdown! (Point after kick by #82 Casimir Koskela is good.)

Burwell Senior 01:32 #6 Barak Birch pass complete to #1 Levi Bode for 18 yards. Touchdown! (Point after kick by #82 Casimir Koskela is good.)

Tomcak was 8-14 for 143 yards with a touchdown and an interception. R.J. Bayer made 4 catches for 75 yards and scored a touchdown. Tomcak made 12 tackles while Aandy Domginguez had 10. Belina, Bayer, and Jestin Bayer each made 9 while Lance Brester and Blake Sindelar each notched 8.

The Jaguars had 165 yards of total offense, including 143 through the air.

I have to admit I thought this game was going to be close. Hats off to Burwell for winning the way they did. I think a lack of a running game is what hurt the Jaguars in this one.

Howells-Dodge ends their year at 7-3.

Solid season for the Jaguars this year.

Howells-Dodge picked up nice wins over GACC twice and Clarkson/Leigh.

The other losses came to Cross County and Stanton, all teams still left in the playoffs.

Stat leaders for the Jaguars...Belina rushed for 1,351 yards and 21 touchdowns. Jestin Bayer led the way in tackles with 90 for the year. Dominguez added 82.

Howells-Dodge says goodbye to Tomcak and Landen Pieper.

Everyone else is back.

Key returners include Belina, Sindelar, Brittin Sindelar, Brester, Gavin Nelson, Aiden Meyer, R.J. Bayer, Jestin Bayer, Jacob Hegemann, and Brady Lund.

Lots of promise and potential for the Jaguars next season.

Tomcak and Pieper are two very solid seniors lost to graduation, but the majority of this team is back next year.

I'm sure Howells-Dodge is already looking ahead to 2021. It should be a great season for the Jaguars.

Logan View/Scribner-Snyder falls to Ashland-Greenwood in first round of playoffs

 

The Logan View/Scribner-Snyder Football Team lost 24-7 at Ashland-Greenwood Friday night in the first round of the Playoffs.

The Raiders had a great season and hung with the Bluejays for a while.

LVSS wraps up the campaign at 7-3.

Outside of the regular season ending loss to Fort Calhoun, the season was very good for the Raiders.

Logan View/Scribner-Snyder took care of business against just about everyone they were supposed to beat.

The Raiders were led by their very talented Senior Class this year.

LVSS says goodbye to Roberto Valdivia, Garrett Palmer, Riley Hoetfelker, Ty Miller, Hunter McNulty, Austin Muhsman, Dru Mueller, Keaton Bushlow, Jadin Beckwith, Jayden Korman, Brett Uhing, Preston Kotik, and Andrew Cone.

A very solid class for the Raiders lost to graduation.

Key returners for next year include Harrison Jordan, Alex Foust, Alex Hilbers, Aaron Fitzke, Gavin Ruwe, Jacob Purdy, Anthony Clements, Logan Booth, and Connor Licht.

So a lot of solid and great players lost to graduation, but a lot of key contributors back for Logan View/Scribner-Snyder as well.

The Raiders did great winning a District Title this year, and figure to have a chance to repeat that feat next year.

I look for LVSS to be solid once again next season, and have a quality team.

The Raiders have to work really hard in the offseason as the coronavirus pandemic allows.

The harder you work, the more successful you're going to be.

Let's hope this pandemic comes to a close before next season ends so we can all get back to normal.