Football: Rogers fends off Delano 29-14 for third straight section crown

Kyle Williams broke through a hole for a six-yard touchdown. Among the blockers were Clay LeVasseur (56), Lucas Bellflower (54) and Jack McGuire (20). (Photo by Bill Jones)

 

by Bruce Strand, Sports editor

With equal parts of composure and combativeness, the Rogers Royals fended off the Delano Tigers 29-14 to capture their third straight section football crown Saturday.

The Royals’ ability to counter-punch was crucial as they answered each Delano touchdown with one of their own in the Section 5AAAA finals at St. Cloud State.

Mitch O'Neill charged toward the flag for the opening touchdown from six yards out. (Photo by Bill Jones)

The Royals’ deep, agile, aggressive offensive line made everything click as they piled up 350 yards, all on the ground.

“We asked the kids to be physical for four quarters and they responded,” said Royal coach Marc Franz. “Delano is a heckuva football team.They’ve got great balance and big-play guys. So I was real  happy with how we competed. Delano would score, and we would always answer.”

The Royals, state runners-up last year, face Rocori in the first round of state, Thursday at 7 p.m., back at SCSU. Both teams are 9-1.

“We’re always confident that if we play like we can, we can beat anybody in the state,” said Jack McGuire, who had an outstanding game carrying the ball.

Kyle Williams bucked for 167 yards on 20 carries, and McGuire slashed for 133 more on 14 carries plus a 70-yard kickoff return. Quarterback Matt Weber sneaked for two touchdowns. Williams and Mitch O’Neill each had a six-yard TD run.

Delano's Garrett Shelley made this end-zone catch while tightly covered by Andrew Smith. Shelley was ruled out of bounds on the play. (Photo by Bill Jones)

 

“Our line was blocking at their best all year,” said McGuire. “Everything was working, sweeps, traps, everything. Our line made it go.”

Franz affirmed: “Kyle and Jack had good games and the quarterback, too, so guess who gets credit for that: the offensive line.”

Clearing holes for the Royals were Jamal Brown at center;  Taylor McAlpine, Clay LeVasseur and David Miller at guard; Lucas Bellflower, Hayden Sebald, and Miller at tackle; and Austin Barbeln and Michael Schrieber at tight end.

Jack McGuire broke away for a 31-yard run in the second period. (Photo by Bill Jones)

“Those are the guys who make the ball move,” said Franz.

Delano quarterback Cody Mathisen hit 15 of 29 passes for 191 yards, and tossed  his 17th and 18th touchdowns of the season.

But the Royal defense kept the Tiger ground game in  check with 81 net yards on 31 carries, while sacking Mathisen four times. Austin Derouin got him twice, and Weber and Cyrus Biah one each. The Royals made one interception, by Austin Barbel, with three minutes left to clinch the win.

“We had a good team effort,” said linebacker Clay LeVassuer. “They (Delano)  had a good deep threat and they hit it once, down in the end zone, and we adjusted to that. They had a good running threat and we seemed to stuff that, too.”

Rogers opened the scoring on O’Neill’s six-yard jaunt around end  on their first offensive, capping a 47-yard drive after a Delano fumble. In the second quarter, McGuire’s 31-yard advance on a 4th-and-two play put the ball on the Tiger 12 and Weber sneaked in four plays later. Nate Roehl’s PAT run made it 15-0.

With a pesky wind whipping off the adjacent Mississippi, Delano didn’t throw much in the first quarter, but with the wind at their backs in the second, Mathison limbered up his arm.

Coach Marc Franz addressed his team after they captured their third consecutive section championship. (Photo by Bill Jones)

 

An apparent 30-yard TD pass to Garrett Shelley, covered by Rogers’ ace defensive back Andrew Smith, was waved off as officials said Shelley was beyond the back line of the end zone. No matter to Mathison, as he hit fullback Zach Checkal on the sideline for a 30-yard score two plays later.

Unfazed, the Royals were quickly back in business as McGuire bolted 70 yards with the ensuing kickoff to the Delano 12. “Our special team guys made a big hole for me and that’s how I was able to that one back,” said McGuire, who saw daylight on the right sideline and almost broke it all the way.

Williams scored from the six, and Rogers was up 22-7 at the half.

The Rogers Royals hoisted their latest section trophy. (Photo by Bill Jones)

Mathisen took the Tigers to pay dirt again in the third quarter, bolting 38 yards on a scramble and then threading a 15-yard TD to Reese Isenberg.

Again, the Royals countered, with a 60-yard march including a 22-yard run by Williams, a 15-yard run by Kent Hoover, and Weber’s second QB sneak for the score.

And now it’s on to state.

“This has been a great ride, and we’ve extended our season again,” said LeVasseur. “It’s all business now.”

While the No. 7 ranked Royals and No. 10 Rocori square off, the other pairings are No. 6 Spring Lake Park (9-1) vs. No. 3 Bemidji (10-0), No. 1 Mankato West (10-0) vs. No. 9 South St. Paul (9-1), and Faribault (7-3) vs. Hill-Murray (8-2). The Rogers-Rocori winner faces the Faribault-Hill-Murray winner in the semifinals Nov. 19 at the Dome.

Rocori ousted Sartell-St. Stephen 37-13 in their section final Saturday evening. Sartell-St. Stephen, whom Rogers beat 36-18, is their only common opponent.

 

Rogers 29, Delano 14

 

Delano ………… 0   7   7   0  –  14

Rogers ………… 7  15  7   0 – 29

 

Scoring plays

Rog–Mitch O’Neill 6 run (Mitch Grupa kick)

Rog–Matt Weber 1 run (Nate Roehl run)

Del–Zach Checkal 30 pass from Cody Mathisen (Checkal kick)

Rog–Kyle Williams 6 run (Grupa kick)

Del–Reese Isenberg 15 pass from Mathisen (Checkal kick)

Rog–Weber 1 run (Grupa kick)

 

Team statistics

Rushing –   Rogers 53-350, Delano 31-81

Passing – Rogers 0-3-0-0, Delano 15-30-191-1

Total yards – Rogers 350, Delano 272

Turnovers – Rogers 1 (fumble), Delano 2 (fumble, interception)

Penalties – Rogers 8-65, Delano 2-10

 

Delano statistics

Rushing – Bryan Sinkel 9-41,Checkal 7-21,  Mathisen 13-11

Passing – Mathisen 15-29-191-1

Receiving – Checkal 4-56, Eric Bergund 1-29, Isenberg 4-61, Christian Triplet 1-21, Ben Ditty 1-3, Toby Hanson 1-16, Garrett Shelly 2-21, Sinkel 1-4

Fumble recovery – Isenberg 1

Sacks – Aaron Klaers 2

Punts – Checkal 2-28.0

 

Rogers statistics

Rushing – Williams 20-167, McGuire 14-133, Weber 12-37, O’Neill 1-6,  Kent Hoover 3-12, Roehl 4-(-2)

Passing – Weber 0-3-0-0

Interception – Austin Barbeln

Fumble recovery – name not available

Sacks – Austin Derouin 2, Cyrus Biah 1, Weber 1

Punts – Josh Malin 3-32.0

Kyle Williams dashed for a 29-yard touchdown to open the scoring with two Knights in pursuit. (Photo by Erik Jacobson)

by Bruce Strand, Sports editor

Two blocked punts, a smothering defensive effort, and three Kyle Williams touchdowns boosted the Rogers Royals in a 31-7 playoff victory over the Monticello Magic on Saturday.

The Royals earned a shot at their third straight Section 5AAAA title. The  top-seeded Royals face No. 2 Delano next Saturday, 4 p.m., at St. Cloud State. Both teams are 8-1.

Cyrus Biah blocked a Monticello punt in the third quarter. (Photo by Erik Jacobson)

Austin Derouin blocked a Magic punt early in the game, after which Williams bolted 29 yards for a touchdown. The other blocked punt was by Cyrus Biah in the second half.

The Royal defense was unscathed. Monticello’s lone score was Sam Taufen’s intercepted of a Matt Weber pass and 52-yard return in the third quarter, pulling the Magic within 17-7.

“Our entire defense had a great game,” said Rogers coach Marc Franz. “We blocked two punts, and we gave up only 49 yards rushing. So we were real happy with our defense.”

Williams rolled up 127 yards on 22 carries, also scoring on eighth- and five-yard runs.

Meanwhile Nate Roehl amassed 101 yards on just four carries, including a 58-yard gainer and a 17-yard touchdown.

The Royals passed for only 27 yards but rushed for 277 yards.

Matt Bonk hit 12 of 24 passes for 126 yards for Monticello, which finished 6-4.

The outcome was almost the same as Rogers’ conference win over Monticello, 29-8 on Sept. 9.

Franz said he was just starting to gather information on Delano on Saturday night.

Nate Roehl makes a nifty cut on his way to a nice gainer. He had 104 yards in four carries. (Photo by Erik Jacobson)

“Historically they are a very physical team, and run-oriented,” he said, “and I’ve heard to pass more this year, but I haven’t looked at much film yet.”

 

Rogers 31, Monticello 7

 

Monticello ……. 0   0    7   0 –  7

Rogers ………..14   3   0  14 – 31

 

Scoring plays

Rog – Kyle Williams 29 run (Mitch Grupa kick)

Rog – Williams 8 run (Grupa kick)

Rog – Grupa 24 field goal

Mon – Sam Taufen 52 interception return (Alex Manning kick)

Rog – Nate Roehl 17 run (Grupa kick)

Rog – Williams 5 run (Grupa kick)

 

Team statistics

Rushing – Rogers 47-277, Monticello 24-49

Passing – Rogers  2-8-27-2, Monticello 13-26-137-1

Total yards – Rogers 304, Monticello 186

Penalties – Rogers 4-45, Monticello 4-30

Rogers teammates celebrated Nate Roehl's touchdown. (Photo by Erik Jacobson)

 

Monticello statistics

Rushing  – Ben Schacht 6-33, Birk Olson 9-20

Passing – Matt Bonk 12-24-127-1, Will Bauman 1-1-10-0

Receiving – name not available 4-64, Bauman 4-26, Taufen 3-23, Jack Fair 1-14, Bonk 1-10

Punts – Michael Fisette 7-22.4

 

 

 

Rogers statistics

Rushing – Williams 22-127, Roehl 4-101, Weber 8-27, Jack McGuire 9-17, Kent Hoover 1-7

Passing – Weber 2-7-27-2, Mitch O’Neill 0-1-0-0

Receiving – Andrew Smith 2-27

Blocked punts – Austin Derouin, Cyrus Biah

Fumble recovery — Smith

Interception – O’Neill

Punts – Max Mauren 3-20.3

Royals are champs alone after blanking Bluejackets 20-0

Rogers senior Jack McGuire cuts back after catching a pass. (Photo by Bruce Strand)

by Bruce Strand, Sports editor

Five days after losing an emotion-charged game that knocked them from their roost, the Rogers Royals wound up as sole conference champions after all Wednesday.

The Royals smothered Cambridge-Isanti 20-0 in their Mississippi 8 finale and finished 5-1 in conference for their third straight crown.

And they didn’t have to share the laurels, because Elk River got tumbled by St. Michael-Albertville 42-20. The Elks, who beat Rogers 17-14 last Friday, tied STMA for second place at 5-2. (Rogers had one less conference game.)

Mitch Grupa booted a 23-yard field goal, with Nate Roehl holding. (Photo by Erik Jacobson)

“It’s nice to win the conference title,” said coach Marc Franz.  “It shows who played the most consistent football throughout the season, so our kids should be proud of that.”

The primary quest, of course, is winning their section and reaching the Prep Bowl like the Royals did last year. With a 7-1 overall mark, the No. 10 ranked Royals have earned the No. 1 seed in Section 5AAAA and will have a bye Tuesday

Kyle Williams was the workhorse, carrying 24 times for 11 yards. Jack McGuire added 68 in 15 totes as the Royals totaled 296 yards rushing.

Mitch O’Neill had a five-yard TD run and McGuire and eight-yard TD run while Mitch Grupa kicked field goals of 23 and 27 yards, plus two extra points.

Defensively, the Royals gave the Bluejackets no chance, yielding only 28 net yards rushing and nine passing, and just two first downs.

“We came out very physical, very aggressive tonight, especially on the defensive side, ” said Franz.

Rogers 20, Cambridge-Isanti 0

Cambridge-Isanti …………. 0   0   0   0  –   0

Rogers ………………………. 10   0   3   7   – 20

Scoring plays

Rog–Mitch O’Neill 5 run (Mitch Grupa kick)

Rog–Grupa 23 field goal

Rog–Grupa 27 field goal

Rog–Jack McGuire 8 run (Grupa kick)

Mitch O'Neill fought his way over the goal line for a four-yard touchdown. (Photo by Erik Jacobson)

Team statistics

First downs – Rogers 23, Cambridge-Isanti 2

Rushing – Rogers 55-296, Cambridge-Isanti 27-19

Passing – Rogers 7-17-54-1, Cambridge-Isanti 1-9-9-2

Total yards – Rogers 350, Cambridge-Isanti 28

Penalties – Rogers 6-50, Cambridge-Isanti 4-25

Punts – Rogers 2-29.5, Cambridge-Isantil 5-33.4

Rogers statistics

Rushing – Kyle Williams 24-111, Jack McGuire 15-68, Nate Roehl 6-55, Matt Weber 8-38, Kent Hoover 1-19, Mitch O’Neill 1-5

Passing – Weber 7-17-54-1

Receiving – Andrew Smith 2-19, Chase Cleveland 2-10, McGuire 1-19, Austin Derouin 1-8, O’Neill 1-(-2)

Cambridge-Isanti statistics

Rushing – Cole Bakke 7-28, Trent Chromy 6-10

Passing – Clayton Jennissen 1-8-9-1, Bakke 0-1-0-1

Receiving – Bakke 1-9

Football: Elks topple Rogers on last-second field goal 17-14, tie for lead

Elk River kicker Austin Larson raised his arms in triumph during the celebration after he kicked the game-winning field goal. (Photo by Bruce Strand)

by Bruce Strand, Sports editor

This should be a game the kids will remember for the rest of their lives, the Elk River football coach predicted, as his team looked forward to hosting their unbeaten, high-flying neighbors, the Rogers Royals, on Friday night.

Elk fans could only hope the game would be as memorable as Steve Hamilton anticipated. But it turned out to be as dramatic a prep football game as you’ll ever see — and as a bonus, the Elks won on the final play, 17-14, on Austin Larson’s 37-yard field goal.

The high school football experience at its best, with a packed stadium watching two good teams battle to the final minute. Corey Collins calls he signals during the Elks drive to a game-winning field goal. (Photo by Bruce Strand)

“This is very emotional. We’ve had a long time waiting for a game like this, and it was great to come through,” said senior defensive end Matt Madsen amid delirious celebrating after the game at Jerry Schempf Field. “Unbelievable. Best memory of my high school career so far.”

The Elks rallied from a 14-0 halftime deficit and handed Rogers its first loss of 2011, leaving the two squads tied for first place in the Mississippi 8 with one week left. They snapped a 15-game conference win streak by the Royals that included a 55-0 whipping of the Elks last year.

“Man, this is big,” said Hamilton. “This is a great Rogers team and I am so proud of these kids. From where we were last year, to where we are now, it’s just awesome. But we’ve still got to finish this — on Wednesday.”

Rogers' dangerous quarterback Matt Weber slashes through the Elks for a 31-yard gain on a third-and-25 play, eluding Terry Hadden (right), who had an interception against Weber later. (Photo by Bruce Strand)

Both teams are 6-1 overall and 5-1 in the Mississippi 8, heading into next Wednesday’s finale’s when the  Elks play at St. Michael-Albertville (5-2) and Rogers hosts Cambridge Isanti (1-6).

“We had a long talk at halftime, that we’ve gotta get this together,” said Mattson, who had one of the Elks’ two sacks. “This is our last time playing Rogers and we had to get it done, and we came out and we did it.”

The Elks will return to their former conference, the Northwest Suburban, next year, after two years in the Mississippi 8, meaning there won’t  be an opportunity again for a dream matchup like this one which drew a massive crowd, grandstands on both sides packed with fans and hundreds more standing at the fence.

Michael Larkins of the Elks is clutched by Rogers' Andrew Smith. Larkins gained 14 yards on the play. (Photo by Bruce Strand)

“If this was Park Center, do you think there’d be a crowd like this?” asked former Elk coach Terry McLean, expressing regret that the series could not continue, while the thousands of fans were settling into place before the kickoff.

It was a crushing loss for Rogers, which helped out the Elks with three unsportsmanlike-conduct penalties, two botched kickoff returns that pinned them against their own goal line, and a crucial roughing-the-punter  penalty.

“Give all the credit to Elk River,” said Rogers coach Marc Franz. “They played a whale of a football game. They should be celebrating this victory. They earned it. They out-executed us over four quarters.”

There are consolations for the Royals –  they, too, got to play in a terrific football game that drew metro-wide attention, and they still share first place with a chance to be co- or outright champs, thanks to Elk River’s upset loss to Becker two weeks ago.

“We are going to learn from this. We are going to be better because of it,” said Franz. “You can learn a lot more from a loss than a win. Winning sugar-coats things. There’s a lot of football left to be played, and we will take a hard look at it tomorrow and we’ll get better because of it.”

The field goal by Larson came on his second chance to break the 14-14 tie. He had an attempt blocked with 3:30 left, by either Frank Tousignant or Kyle Williams, both of whom busted through.

The Elks defense held, forcing a punt, but the Elks had to punt it back with 45 seconds left. But Rogers, rushing hard for a block, was flagged for roughing Alex Hoffman.

This Ek field goal attempt by Austin Larson was blocked, either by Frank Tousignant (27) or Kyle Williams (26), with 3:30 left. (Photo by Bruce Strand)

But this game-winning attempt by Larson was successfully launched as Tousignant (27) was a split-second late. (Photo by Bruce Strand)

The Elks were back in business on the Royals’ 40 with 40 seconds left. They reached the 20 with :07 left when Corey Collins hit a diving Jordan Meyer for an 11-yard gain — the Elks first pass completion in three games.

That gave Larson the opportunity for his second last-second game-winner of the season; he got one to  beat Moorhead 31-29 on Sept. 16.

Kicking from the left hash mark, and bucking a brisk crosswind, the  6-foot, 180-pound sophomore launched a high, floating kick that stayed up for several seconds  before descending just barely over the crossbar.

“I was so nervous. Way more nervous that at Moorhead,” said Larson. “:When it went through, I was like “Wow. I can’t believe I just did that.”

What was he thinking?

“I was just hoping we could pick up the blitz from the side. I saw they were coming on, like the last time.  There was a  wind I was going against, so I was worried about that, too. I kicked it pretty hard.”

The Elks student gallery was delirious after the last-second victory. (Photo by Bruce Strand)

The field goal set off a thunderous ovation that lasted several minutes. The celebration culminated with students flooding the field after the post-game huddles, the kind of scene that hasn’t been witnessed in Elk River for many years.

It was a crowning  moment in this turnaround season, giving the Elks one more win than they had in the previous five seasons combined.

This marked the first time since  the Prep Bowl year of 1990 that Elk River has played in a game with conference championship implications.

And it didn’t start well for the Elks as Rogers led 14-0 at the half on a 25-yard touchdown run by quarterback Matt Weber and a 30-yard touchdown run by Nate Roehl, the latter of which came one play after the Elks went for it on 4th-and-three and got stopped.

Weber’s running — seven carries for 74 yards, except for two sacks that reduced him officially to 9-for-58 — was the Royals best weapon. The Elks contained the Royal running backs for the most part.

The second half had a disastrous start for Rogers, as they mishandled two kickoffs in the first five minutes, leading to 14 Elk points.

“With the wind, it was hard to judge the kicks,” said Elk special teams coach Chad Baldin. “We told Austin to drive it down there as deep as you can, and we were thinking we’d kick into the end zone. But he line-drived them, a little more like a knuckleball, and that was hard for them to handle. So we told him next time, do it the same! Keep going with what works.”

Michael Schrieber, Rogers' 6-foot-8 basketball center, gained 22 yards on this pass play. (Photo by Bruce Strand)

Rogers bobbled the opening kickoff of the half, and fell on the ball at the five. Four plays later, Elk River’s Alec Plaisted blocked a Rogers punt, perching the Elks on the three-yard line. Dylan Chambers scored from the one on third down.

Rogers stopped a PAT run but was right back in trouble when Larson’s kickoff glanced off Jack McGuire’s shin and out of bounds at the 10.

Elk River’s Terry Hadden intercepted a Weber pass on third down, giving the Elks the ball at the 30. Elk sophomore fullback Michael Larkins dashed 25 yards for a touchdown around right end, then added a two-point conversion run off tackle, tying the score at 14-14, with 5:15 left in the third quarter.

That’s how it stayed until the final play of the game.

Both defenses were superb, as Elk River had been averaging 38 points per game and Rogers 33 points per game. This game was largely a defensive tussle.

The Elks limited Rogers to 154 rushing yards and 45 passing, a total of 199 yards.

“The kids played hard. They kept fighting,” said Elk defensive coordinator Brad Olson. “We made sure they lined up right, and we put them in the right place, and they made their reads and stepped up and made the tackles .. .These are kids who bust their butts and do their work, and they do everything we ask them to do.”

Alex Plaisted, whose blocked punt sparked the Elks' 14-point rally in the third quarter, beamed after the game. (Photo by Bruce Strand)

Olson mentioned Weber, wide receiver Andrew Smith, and ballcarriers Jack McGuire and Kyle Williams as four “scary” players.

“Every team we’ve played has one or two players we need to be careful of, and try to contain, but Rogers had four guys we needed to contain,” said Olson.”They come at you from so many angles.”

The Elks kept them all in check, except for Weber on runs — including a 31-yard burst on 3rd-and-25 after he’d been sacked — and did pressure Weber on pass plays, limiting him to 4-for-12 with just one nice gainer, 22 yards to Michael Schrieber.

Elk thousand-yard fullback Moses Saygbe was not able to add to his season total of 14 touchdowns but rushed 18 times for 101 yards. The Elks totaled 210 ground yards, 137 below their average. Larkins had 63 in 11 carries.

Chambers, a veteran of last year’s 0-9 campaign, said the victory was exhilarating but not surprising.

“We were pretty confident. We knew we had a pretty good chance to win. I think we should win every game.”

Elk River 17, Rogers 14

Rogers …………. 0   14   0   0 — 14

Elk River ………. 0     0  14  3 — 17

Scoring plays

Rog – Matt Weber 25 run (Mitch Grupa kick)

Rog – Nate Roehl 30 run (Grupa kick)

ER – Dylan Chambers 1 run (run stopped)

ER – Michael Larkins 25 run (Larkin run)

ER – Austin Larson 37 field goal

Team statistics

Rushing – Rogers 34-154, Elk River 48-210

Passing – Rogers 4-12-45-1, Elk River 1-3-11-0

Penalties – Rogers 6-70, Elk River 6-50

Turnovers — Rogers 1, Elk River 0

Rogers statistics

Rushing – Weber 9-58, Roehl 6-41, Kyle Williams 9-25, Grupa 3-17, Jack McGuire 7-13

Passing – Weber  4-12-45-1

Receiving – Michael Schreiber 1-22, Andrew Smith 1-7, Roehl 2-16

Punting – Josh Malin 3-37.3

Elk River statistics

Rushing – Moses Saygbe 18-101, Larkins 11-63, Corey Collins 12-34, Chambers 6-8

Passing – Collins 1-3-