Indians secure their first win of the season vs Eagles
BROKEN BOW - The fans in attendance at Mark Russel Field in Broken Bow on Sept. 25 were treated to a great high school football game between Broken Bow and O’Neill. A year after losing to the Eagles by six points at home, the Indians were able to secure a 41-33 overtime victory.
Making it even more memorable, were the trials and tribulation this team has gone through to get to this point, with two close losses to Ogallala and Gothenburg.
“It feels amazing, especially with being so close in previous games,” senior quarterback Blake Denson said. “It felt like we were use to those tight games and nobody was too worried when we had
to drive the length of the field with 30 seconds.”
To understand the situation Broken Bow was in, you have to start with O’Neill’s last drive of regulation.
The Eagles were trailing 27-25 and looking like they were going to give up another score that likely would have ended the game. A fumble by the Indians and a return past midfield by Keegan Moore for O’Neill put the away team back in business.
With 32.8 seconds left in the game, the Eagles Levi Drueke caught a pass from Mason Walsh for a 9-yard touchdown. Drueke also caught the two-point try, putting the Eagles ahead 33-27.
This did not faze Broken Bow, who has already been in this situation
a few different times throughout the season.
The team was led down the field by their quarterback Blake Denson. He started the drive with a completed pass to Skeeter Campbell for eight yards, then he hit Qwentin Coble with an 18-yard completion near the sidelines.
With 14.7 seconds left he threw a pass to Skeeter Campbell out of the backfield, that he was able to run down the sideline and inside the 15-yard line with 6.3 seconds left. His final completion was to Cyrus Wells who was taken down near the goal line.
“It was really nice because every play that coach called in I trusted and I knew where to go with it,” Denson said. “We were all confident with what we were doing.”
On the final play of regulation, the ball was given
to senior Frazier Kaelin out of the backfield. He got in behind the lineman and pushed into the end zone for the tying score.
“I have to give all the credit to my line, they did all the work, I just got in behind them,” Kaelin said. “It felt amazing.”
The Indians had a chance to walk off with the win if they made the extra point, but it was blocked by O’Neill who got a good push up front on the line.
In overtime, Broken Bow started with the football. Kaelin was once again given the ball on the goal and didn’t disappoint, rumbling in for the score with two defenders on him. On the two-point conversion, Blake Denson was able to find Coble in the back corner of the end zone to give the Indians an eight-point lead.
After struggling to stop
the Eagles all night, Broken Bow’s defense was finally able to secure one in overtime. On 4 and 6, O’Neill’s Walsh looked to complete a pass in the corner of the end zone, but it was broken up by Cyrus Wells.
With the victory, the Indians moved to 1-4 on the season. It was also the first win for coach Carlie Wells in his return to Broken Bow.
The seniors Denson and Kaelin are happy they were able to get this win for their coach, and like the direction that the Broken Bow football program is starting to move in.
“It has been a process for us, but I think its starting to pay off,” Kaelin said.
Leaders for Broken Bow offensively were Kaelin with 176 yards on the ground and three touchdowns. Cyrus Wells had
77 rushing yards, followed by Skeeter Campbell with 31 yards and a score, and Denson with nine yards and a touchdown.
Throwing the ball, Denson completed six of nine passes for 105 yards and one touchdown. Austin Harvey was able to snag two receptions on the night, for 40 yards and a touchdown, while Skeeter Campbell had 39 receiving yards and Coble had 18 and a crucial two-point conversion catch.
Defensively, Sawyer Bumgarner and Tyler Thomas both recorded a sack. Cyrus Wells led the team with ten tackles and Caleb Moninger had eight.
The team travels on the road, to play at C1 No.8 Kearney Catholic at 7 p.m. on Oct. 2. The Stars are coming off a 38-0 victory over Minden.