Lower Brule defeated White River 60-8 in Vermillion on Friday night to win the 2024 ‘9B’ All-Nations Football Conference championship. This is the third straight title for the Sioux.
It was a dominating season overall for Lower Brule as well. Not only did they go undefeated, but throughout the year they only allowed eighteen combined points. While their offense gets a lot of attention, their defense has been a staple.
“Defensively we’ve got good players at all three levels. We have a really good defensive line, really good linebackers, we’ve got really good [defensive backs], and they work together,” explained Sioux head coach Charlie LaRoche. “And that’s the big thing about defense. When you get a group of guys that understand their assignments, they work together, that’s when you get a really really good defense. We’ve had a lot of guys step up throughout the year, and our defense really evolved as the year went on. This is kind of where we ended up, and we ended up being a pretty good defense.”
Coach LaRoche also mentioned how the success of his program is a full team effort that extends off the field.
“It's a community effort,” he said. “We couldn’t do it without the parents, we couldn’t do it without everyone who pitches in to help.”
Lower Brule’s Nate Middletent was named the Jim Thorpe MVP of the game. He recorded four rushing touchdowns on 58-yards on the ground, and also recorded a touchdown on a fumble recovery in the end zone.
“Just trying to get the seniors another championship, because we’ve got a lot of seniors on the team,” Middletent said. “We just wanted to end it on a good year. It feels really good, something that I’ve dreamed of. It feels amazing.”
The Tigers received to start the game, and while they were able to move into Sioux territory, the drive was halted as a result of a turnover on downs. Lower Brule quickly moved the ball downfield on their opening possession. Nate Middletent would score from 11-yards out to cap off the drive to give the Sioux an early 8-0 lead, after a successful two-point conversion as well.
On White River’s next possession, Kristian Antelope leapt in front of a Riley Bouman pass for an interception. Four plays later, Middletent scored again, this time from eight-yards out. The two-point attempt was no good, but Lower Brule led 14-0.
The Sioux defense continued to make things tough. Elliot LaRoche then picked off R. Bouman to get Lower Brule’s offense once again on the field.
With 4:26 to play in the first quarter, Ethan Thigh hit Nicolas Flute for a 25-yard touchdown. The two-point attempt failed, but this score made it 20-0.
A big-time sack by Leonard Traversie forced White River to punt on their next drive.
End of the 1st Quarter | Lower Brule 20 White River 0
Middletent got his third touchdown of the game near the eight-minute mark of the second quarter. He trucked through defenders from eight-yards out, stretching the ball over the goal line for the score. The two-point attempt was good, and it was a 28-0 lead for Lower Brule.
The Tigers continued to struggle on offense in the second quarter. It went from bad to worse on the punt attempt as R. Bouman’s punt was blocked by Payton Palmier. Bouman recovered the blocked punt, but the recovery happened in the end zone resulting in a safety.
On the kick following the safety, Isaiah Felicia returned the kick to the end zone. But a penalty negated the score. A few plays later, Thigh hit Rocco Estes for a 14-yard touchdown. The two-point conversion made it a 38-0 game.
Lower Brule would light up the scoreboard one more time before halftime, courtesy of a three-yard keeper by Thigh, which was fumbled into the end zone and recovered by Middletent.
Halftime | Lower Brule 46 White River 0
The second half began with the Sioux getting the ball first. Felicia would find the end zone on a five-yard run towards the left pylon. Lower Brule’s two-point attempt was no good, but it increased their lead 52-0.
White River’s offensive struggles continued on their first possession of the second half. Teagan Bouman fumbled a handoff, which was recovered by Middletent. Thigh then hit LaRoche for a 31-yard touchdown after the turnover to make it a 60-0 game near the midway point of the third quarter.
End of the 3rd Quarter | Lower Brule 60 White River 0
The Tigers finally found a spark on the defensive side during Lower Brule’s next offensive possession. Vincent Battese was strip sacked by Liam White Hat, which was recovered by Taten Krogman. They would find the end zone following the turnover as Teagan Bouman took it in from five-yards out. The two-point attempt was good.
White River would get the ball back one final time when Mekhi Krogman ran under a Battese underthrow for an interception. The Tigers were unable to score in the closing moments.
Final | Lower Brule 60 White River 8
Offensive Player of the Game | Ethan Thigh
Defensive Player of the Game | Elliot LaRoche
Jim Thorpe MVP | Nate Middletent
