In a CNC rivalry matchup, Columbus played host to Frontenac to open 2020 after a long offseason filled with coronavirus news. Frontenac had finished 10-1 and permitted just 7.7 points per game, third-best in 3A.
“Just an amazing atmosphere to be able to get back out on the field and be able to play,” Columbus coach Blake Burns said.
Throughout the week, Columbus’ 3-3 defense repped against Frontenac’s pass routes. The contest featured no first-half scoring and a 6-6 tie after three quarters.
Then, senior cornerback Landon Proffitt and junior cornerback Jaxson Haraughty both delivered pick-sixes in the fourth quarter. Haraughty’s went for 68 yards. Overall, the Titans’ pass defense picked off four passes for 128 yards and defended three others.
Columbus won, 25-6, and ended a four-game series losing streak. In the three previous meetings against the Raiders, Columbus had combined for just 22 points. It marked the most points Frontenac permitted in a regular season game since Week 4 of 2018.
“To make those plays in that game to kind of seal that for us was pretty special,” Burns said.
Since then, Columbus’ defense has continued to enjoy big plays, a key reason for the Titans’ 5-0 start. Columbus, which allowed 15.9 points a game in ’19, has permitted 8.8 points a contest, third-best in loaded 3A. They trail only No. 4-ranked Southeast of Saline and No. 1 Andale, the defending state champion.
Columbus, a rare 1-8 two years ago, is 13-2 under Burns, a Titan alum and longtime assistant coach at the school. Columbus is one of eight 5-0 teams left in the classification. This season, the Titans have already picked off 10 passes, forced 16 turnovers and is plus-12 in turnover margin.
Columbus is first in Kansas and No. 25 nationally with 222 interception return yards, according to MaxPreps lists. Remarkably, Columbus already has five non-offensive touchdowns, including four pick-sixes.
On Friday, Columbus travels to in-county rival Galena, the classification’s only 4-0 squad, in another key CNC matchup.
“All our kids know each other, and their kids just play extremely hard,” Burns said. “They are extremely well-prepared, and you’ve got to be ready for four quarters.”
Both teams lead District 1 at 2-0 and are just outside of the top-5 state rankings. Galena, which had its Week 2 game cancelled because of COVID-19 concerns, has allowed just 36 points.
“It will be a dogfight,” Galena coach Beau Sarwinski said. “And I hope our kids will respond, and I think they will. They are excited for the challenge, and it’s going to be a good high school football game.”
Sarwinski called 2020 “kind of a weird, weird year.” Sarwinski said around seven to nine players were in quarantine.
“It’s part of life,” Sarwinski said. “We all deal with adversity, and I think that’s what’s great about football is there’s times in our lives that we deal with adversity, and it’s how we respond. We tell our kids all the time, we can quit and leave and feel bad for ourself, or we can become good and learn and grow from these things – and hopefully those messages are passed on to those kids.”
Galena lists just 30 players, one of the smallest rosters under Sarwinski (110-37 in 14 years). Last fall, the Bulldogs started three freshmen on the offensive line: Tyler Little, Koby Meyers and Isaiah Dunaway. This season, Galena has again used freshmen and sophomores up front. The 6-foot-6, 230-pound Little was a guard and tackle in ’19 and moved to tight end.
Meyers hurt his hand and is not expected to return until closer to the end of the season. Overall, three linemen were hurt after the second week. Dunaway finished ‘19 at center and has played there this year.
“Very coachable kid and just always got a smile on his face,” Sarwinski said. “Just an overall great kid.”
Running back/linebackers A.J. Holmes and Deacon Henson are the only two senior returning starters. Junior Brett Sarwinski is back at quarterback. Henson has 386 rushing yards, and Holmes 362. They have combined for five rushing scores and each has at least one receiving TD.
Brett is 24 of 35 passing for 423 yards and four touchdowns against zero interceptions. Holmes paces with five sacks, along with 22 tackles and a pair of picks. Sarwinski has a team-high 29 tackles and an interception. Henson has 26 total tackles.
“Deacon, he plays extremely hard,” coach Sarwinski said. “Might be one of the hardest playing kids that we’ve had in the last several years. He’s going to play great defense, and he’s going to do great things on the offense, blocking, running the ball, and just a great team player, and A.J. Holmes has really stepped his game up this year.”
In the previous two seasons, Columbus was plus-3 and plus-9 in turnover margin and tallied one non-offensive score in each year.
Sophomore Cole Minor and senior Lynn Shallenburger, a captain, have recorded INTs for touchdowns, too.
“Lynn Shallenburger’s just been a phenomenal kid for us for four years,” Burns said. “He has really grown up.”
Minor didn’t start Week 1, but senior Gabe Parker suffered injury and has not played since Frontenac. Shallenburger, who played a lot at receiver as a junior, has returned a punt for a score. He has taken over at free safety.
“We don’t necessarily work on creating turnovers in practice,” Burns said. “We just focus on getting hats around the football, and making sure where we are supposed to be.”
In addition to the big defensive plays, Columbus, led by junior Gabe Martin, has continued to improve. Two years ago, Martin delivered 93 tackles as a freshman, by far the team’s highest, and rushed for 214 yards.
However, Columbus struggled in the kicking game with just 597 total yards (20 yards per attempt) on kickoffs and 975 yards on punts (26 yards a kick). Columbus had just three punt returns for eight yards and 475 special teams yards total.
“We just had a lot of bad breaks,” Burns said.
Last year, Columbus had 956 yards on kickoffs (27 yards per attempt) and 1,320 punt yards for 35 yards a kick. The Titans averaged 12.1 yards per special teams return after 9.5 in ’18.
Columbus enjoyed one of the state’s biggest turnarounds and went 8-2. That included a 21-0 win versus Galena after a 38-0 loss the year before.
“We felt like we could bounce back,” Burns said. “In 2018, to say we had a lot of things not go our way would be an understatement, but we tried to put more emphasis on that part of the game, and just really tried to shore up some things in the kicking game as far as just being able to get some return yardage in the punt return game, and just really work on the kicking game to try and work on field position.”
Martin, who led the team with 89 carries for 548 yards and 82 tackles as a sophomore, again paces with 83 carries and 562 yards this year. He has 26 tackles.
Junior middle linebacker Trent Smith leads with 38 stops, three ahead of Shallenburger and five in front of senior linebacker Sylas Stone. Burns has been highly pleased with Martin, Smith and Stone at linebacker.
“He’s made plays all over the field every time he’s been out there,” Burns said of Stone. “And unfortunately he kind of gets overshadowed a little bit.”
Offensively, Martin six rushing touchdowns, tied with Haraughty for the team high. Burns said Martin “works extremely hard” and leads by example.
“He’s very dedicated, and not just on the field, but off the field,” Burns said.
Haraughty was a reserve quarterback as a sophomore, and Columbus had a competition between him and sophomore Brett Hamilton. Hamilton suffered injury in the summer, and Haraughty became the starter.
“Does some special things for us,” Burns said.
On the offensive line, seniors Raef Gonzalez and Caleb Murillo, team captains, have impressed with seven pancake blocks. Gonzalez has previously played running back and receiver. Like Shallenburger, Burns said Murillo has “really grown up.”
Columbus is up to 215 rushing yards a game, 15.3 yards per special teams return. Minor has placed six of 18 punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line.
“Kind of grown up quite a bit for us,” Burns said of Minor. “We are hoping he continues to grow up for us throughout the course of this season, but he has done some good things for us at outside linebacker.”
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