Rossville found itself in a similar position last Friday, facing War on 24 rival Silver Lake in the Class 3A sub-state championship game. On the west side of the bracket, Scott City faced an unusual circumstance as it trailed for the first time all season. However, both teams delivered close victories. The Bulldogs defeated Silver Lake for the second time this fall and for the first time in school playoff annals.
Rossville had lost eight semifinals to Silver Lake in the previous 12 years but won 21-14. Rossville also beat Silver Lake in the regular season last year, but lost in sub-state.
“It was a big-time environment just like it’s been the prior three meetings that I had with them,” second-year coach Derick Hammes said. “You could play this thing Game 1 and probably have the same kind of atmosphere. There was a lot more on the line obviously.”
The Beavers came back in the final minute or regulation at Halstead, then senior Trey O’Neil intercepted a Dragon pass on the first overtime possession. O’Neil, also the quarterback, found senior Chantz Yager in the back of the end zone for a score and a 20-14 overtime victory.
“Kids were able to keep their poise and they had a sense of urgency at the end of the ballgame,” Scott City coach Glenn O’Neil said. “They were waiting for somebody and pushing each other to make a play that was going to kind of change momentum, because our backs were against the wall.”
On Saturday, Rossville and Scott City, both 13-0 and ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, will meet in Hutchinson for the Class 3A state championship. Game time is 1 p.m.
Scott City, 80-7 in the past seven years, has won titles in 1988, ’90, ’91 and ’12 with a runner-up showing in 1994.
“This year, maybe a surprise for most people that we are here with the type of record we are, but they’ve pulled together, they’ve played really well when they’ve had to against the really good teams on the schedule,” O’Neil said.
Rossville has never won a state title and finished runner-up in 1992.
“We want one bad,” Hammes said.
Both teams enjoy experienced squads. Rossville returned nine offensive and seven defensive starters, including standout junior quarterback Tucker Horak and his brother, senior Thatcher Horak.
Tucker Horak has completed 106 of 142 passes for 1,595 yards and 22 scores against eight interceptions. He has rushed 135 times for 1,878 yards and 24 rushing TDs; his 13.9 yards per carry easily leads the state. He broke his own school record of 1,807 rushing yards set last year.
Junior Paul Steinke, a foreign exchange student, is one of the state’s top kickers with 98 of 98 on extra points, two of two on field goals and five touchbacks.
“Paul definitely gives us an advantage,” Hammes said.
Thatcher Horak has 31 catches for 531 yards and eight scores. Defensively, the Horaks combine for seven interceptions. Rossville is No. 1 in offense with 656 points and has allowed just 145 points.
“I think our defense has held up,” Hammes said of a unit that has faced tradition-rich teams Silver Lake, Centralia and Colgan a combined five times this year.
Scott City has 10 seniors and starting junior running backs/linebackers Wyatt Kropp and Cooper Griffith. O’Neil, the youngest of coach O’Neil’s three kids, has completed 122 of 178 passes for 1,868 yards for 21 scores against two interceptions. Griffith and Kropp are each over 1,000 rushing yards.
“Even when we had some timeouts, it wasn’t the coaches that was urging everybody, ‘Keep calm, and relaxed and go,’” O’Neil said. “It was Trey and a couple of the other seniors (saying), ‘Hey, we are still in this thing. We’ve got time. Let’s get this settled down, let’s get a stop.’”
Halstead ran more plays, 60-55, and had the yardage edge, 291-288.
The Dragons’ triple-option, run-heavy attack gave the Beavers’ elite defense some problems. Halstead finished with 50 rushes for 281 yards, but didn’t score in the fourth quarter and overtime.
O’Neil said Scott City “didn’t have the sharpest week of practice” and was “misaligned a lot” during the contest. Scott City had issues when a defensive tackle was down one gap too far, which allowed the offensive tackle to come down on the inside linebacker.
The Beavers forced four turnovers and finished plus-four in turnover margin. Halstead junior quarterback Elijah McKee had all four fumbles, including two in the second half.
Scott City has forced 37 turnovers and allowed just 104 points this season. Its 443 interception return yards are close to the state mark of 493 set by Chanute in 2005.
“In the overtime period and the last four to five minutes of the game, we were able to finally see the adjustments from the side, and make a change,” O’Neil said. “Our guys were able to get to the ball a little bit quicker.
“I think on their first fumble ... it was kind of an unforced error, but I think on their last three fumbles, we had people chasing the quarterback down from behind or creating a collision with the quarterback and the back at the mesh point,” he added.
Use your Facebook account to add a comment or start a discussion. Posts are subject to Facebook's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your Facebook name, photo & other personal information you make public on Facebook will appear with your comment.
