Staff photo by Ali Selvey Springfield’s Madden Lent jumps to catch a touchdown while being covered by Minneota’s Destin Fair during the Class A state football championship Friday at U.S. Bank Stadium.
MINNEAPOLIS — Springfield was able to stay in the game in the first half, but ultimately lost 70-20 to Minneota in the Class A state football championship game Friday at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Ryan Meagher led Minneota’s rushing attack with 503 total yards on the ground. Meagher set a Prep Bowl record with six rushing touchdowns in this game, good enough to break the school record for scoring in a career, and gained 290 yards on the ground, the most rushing touchdowns in a career. That was enough to break the school record for yards.
“If you ask him about it, he’ll turn around and praise his offensive line.” Minneota head coach Chad Johnston said. “We joked about it, but it would be great to have all those guys standing here with him. Just a phenomenal kid.”
Meagher has never focused on personal accomplishments and was hesitant to talk about his role in the victory that gave Minneota its third straight victory over Springfield, although he acknowledged that he was instrumental in the win.
“The offensive line is doing a really good job of listening to the coaches and their game plan.” Meagher said. “And I tell the coaches what they’re doing up front. That way I can make holes. It was a pretty big hole today, so being able to do that helps my job. It gets a lot easier…I wasn’t thinking about the record, I was thinking about winning the match. That’s a great accomplishment. I remember tying the Prep Bowl touchdown record last year, and I didn’t know there was a record. I didn’t think anything of it, but it happened.”
Staff photo by Ali Selvay Springfield’s Gavin VanderWerf stumbles into the end zone and scores a touchdown during the Class A state football championship game against Minneota on Friday at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Springfield head coach Adam Meyer also gave flowers to Meagher and the Minneota offense, calling Meagher one of the best running backs he has ever faced.
“He’s a physical runner.” Meyer said. “He’s agile, too. He does everything well. But that offensive side is as strong as I’ve seen in my time here in Class A. Give him some gaps to run through. When you give it to him, he’s a tough guy to beat.”
Meagher and the rest of Minneota’s seniors can finish their prep careers with three state championships.
In Springfield’s game, Parker Kuehn passed for 265 yards and two touchdowns, and Brayden Stam had 147 yards and a touchdown. Gavin VanderWerf added 82 yards and a score on the ground, and Isaac Fredin had 58 yards receiving. Madden Lent had 14 yards and one touchdown reception.
Springfield managed to score 20 points on the Vikings’ defense, something only two teams have done this season.
Staff photo by Ali Selvey Springfield’s Brayden Sturm reaches for a catch during the Class A state football championship game against Minneota on Friday at U.S. Bank Stadium.
“That’s a credit to Springfield.” Johnston said. “We knew they were going to attack our secondary. That’s what we knew going into this game, and they did a good job in the first half. We obviously made a few adjustments, I told the players before the game, “We need to do well offensively.” We control things up front the way we think we can and put points on the board, which changes their play calling a little bit and makes it easier on us with every RPO they make. ”
Meyer said the team did a good job of staying balanced early in the game, which helped it score three touchdowns in the first half.
“I thought we were able to put together some explosive plays with a bit of a mix of runs and passes.” he said. “Obviously Brayden made a big catch in the end zone that gave us some momentum on our side. We obviously didn’t get enough stops. They’re a physical football team. We didn’t get the start we wanted. But it was a challenge to maintain that, especially when they were leading by a few points and it was difficult to come back against a team like that.
Springfield was able to move the ball well in the first and second halves, but had turnover issues late in the game, leading to a second-half shutout.
“We are always looking for what the team can give us.” Meyer said. “He (Johnston) has made us play differently the last three years. And that’s where our kids have a very high soccer IQ and we’re able to adapt and play differently. You can see what you’re going to get. We knew they were going to slow down our passing game, but we still had some guys trying to get over the top. We made some mistakes, but that’s the nature of throwing the ball down the field.”
Minneota had all the success they wanted offensively, scoring on every offensive possession except at the end of the first half. Combined with Destin Fear’s defensive touchdown, Minneota tied the record for most points scored by a team in a Prep Bowl.
The Vikings opened the scoring with a 56-yard gain on their first possession, capped by Meagher’s 12-yard rush for a touchdown. Springfield responded with a 31-yard completion from Kuehn to Sturm, setting up a 9-yard rushing touchdown by VanderWerf.
Minneota regained the lead on Meagher’s 60-yard rushing touchdown, forcing a three-and-out from Springfield. Minneota extended its lead to 21-7 on Meagher’s 15-yard rushing touchdown, and Springfield answered again with a 37-yard touchdown from Kuehn to Sturm on a double, with Sturm making a one-handed catch to help Springfield’s It excited the audience. .
Fair turned the tide in the Vikings’ favor on Minneota’s next drive with a 52-yard reversal to the house, extending the lead to 28-14. After a sack of Eli Grunes forced Springfield into its second three-and-out, Meagher rushed for 57 yards and scored his fourth touchdown. Springfield kept the game on a 14-yard touchdown connection from Kuehn to Lent, but the extra point was blocked, keeping the score at 35-20.
Meagher completed five rushing touchdowns with a 2-yard score at the 1:49 mark of the second quarter, and Grunes intercepted Springfield as it moved into Minneota territory, making it 42-20 at halftime. kept the match.
The Vikings defense stepped up in the second half, and Meagher scored a record-breaking touchdown on a four-yard sweep to the right to make the game 49-20, but did not allow another point. Springfield had one more chance to score when they reached a fourth-and-goal situation, but VanderWerff was stuffed before reaching the end zone.
Meyer said if Springfield had been able to land some punches in that situation, the game might have had a different feel.
“At least he’s in the game and feels like he’s a few points away.” he said. “It changes the focus of the game. Late in the fourth quarter, the ball started rolling downhill for them and the ball was kind of running away from you.”
Minneota turned the ensuing drive into a 4-yard touchdown pass from Lukas Libinski to Brody Larson, followed by Fear’s 72-yard interception return for a touchdown, making the score 63-20. Minneota took a timeout at 8:04, brought in a substitute, and Caden Christensen scored the final touchdown to win 70-20.
Sturm received Springfield’s Teammate of the Year award and was grateful to receive it.
“It means a lot to me.” he said. “There are things I can do on the field, but at the end of the day, those things don’t matter to me. It’s influencing young players and making them understand what it takes to get to this game. . New players coming in, it’s huge for them to learn that. A lot of our staff only knows what this game is like, and we know it’s just a matter of a few days. I preach that it is not something like that.
“It takes effort every day. It goes on every day, every week, and all year long. My goal was to fill the shoes left behind by my predecessors. I wish I had, but it’s a sad farewell.”
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