In a game that saw plenty of big plays, it was Howard who held the edge to win the title. The Tigers defeated Wolsey-Wessington 38-30 at the Dakota Dome in Vermillion on Friday for the 9A championship.
This is Howard’s fifth state football championship, and their third in the 9A class.
Both teams showed a lot of heart in the contest. After the game, Howard coach Pat Ruml mentioned how tough of a team Wolsey-Wessington is.
“It’s exactly what we thought it would be. Those guys have no quit in them. We knew getting up even 14 or 16, whatever it was, we simply couldn’t get up any more than that, just simply because they’re so good on offense,” explained Ruml. “But we did enough on defense and our offense obviously we had to keep turning first downs and turning touchdowns. I kind of figured it would be something like that. Our guys in the end, had a little too much on offense and wore them down a little bit.”
Ruml also complimented the effort of the upper-classmen on this year’s Tiger squad.
“I just think we dug down. We have a lot of seniors and they dug deep when we needed some first downs at the end and we got those, and it just comes back to the heart of these guys and how hard they worked to get here,” he said.
Tigers senior Luke Koepsell was named the Joe Robbie Most Valuable Player for his performance. He mentioned how they came in this season with unfinished business after falling in the championship game last year.
“We were really motivated,” he mentioned. “That feeling of coming just short last year, it just motivated us. To win it now, it just makes it more special. We knew it was our last go-around. We knew the seniors last year, who made it here, and they finished on that loss, we did this for them. We knew we wanted to come out and win it for them, so it felt good.”
The Warbirds received to start the title game and ate up nearly five-minutes on their opening possession. Peyton Rainford capped off the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run. The two-point attempt was no good, but it gave Wolsey-Wessington an early 6-0 lead.
Howard wasted little time answering right back when Tate Miller broke free for a 43-yard score. The Tigers extra point attempt was blocked, which kept the game tied.
Wolsey-Wessington’s second drive of the game also showed efficiency, but a fourth down stop by the Tigers on the 2-yard line kept the Warbirds out of the end zone – forcing a turnover on downs.
End of the 1st Quarter – Howard 6 Wolsey-Wessington 6
Howard was unable to pick up a first down with their backs up against their own goal line, but a 57-yard punt by Carson Hinker flipped the field position.
The Tigers got the ball back a few plays later when Weston Remmers undercut a Caleb Richmond sideline pass for an interception. Hinker’s first pass of the game came on the drive following the turnover, and it was a good one. He found Luke Koepsell wide open for a 17-yard touchdown to put Howard in front 12-6 midway through the second quarter. The two-point conversion was unsuccessful.
A third down sack by Tate Miller sabotaged the Warbirds next possession, forcing a three-and-out. Howard answered it with a three-and-out of their own on offense, but a fake punt direct snap to Koepsell, that went for 21-yards, kept the Tigers drive alive. With 15-seconds to play in the half, Hinker found Lucas Feldhaus for a 2-yard touchdown connection. Howard took an 18-6 lead into the break.
Halftime | Howard 18 Wolsey-Wessington 6
Howard got the ball to start the second half. While they ate up four-and-a-half minutes of the clock, the drive stalled near midfield and the Tigers punted. Pinned deep in their own territory, the Warbirds went to work. On a third and then from their own eight-yard line, Richmond broke free up the middle and sprinted down the right sideline for a 92-yard quarterback keeper touchdown. The two-point conversion was good, which made it an 18-14 game near the midway point of the third quarter.
The Tigers answered back, however, to extend it to a ten-point lead, when Miller dove forward for a two-yard score. Howard then also recovered an onside kick attempt after the touchdown to put their offense back on the field with a chance to extend the margin.
End of the 3rd Quarter | Howard 24 Wolsey-Wessington 14
Less than a minute into the fourth quarter, Hinker found Koepsell for a 42-yard touchdown in stride. The two-point attempt was no good to keep it a two-possession game.
Badly needing an offensive spark, Wolsey-Wessington achieved the goal. Caleb Richmond found his brother Moshe Richmond for a 15-yard touchdown. The two-point conversion was also good, which made it a one-score game, 30-22, with 9:12 to play in the contest.
Howard kept the ball on the ground to work the clock and wear down the Warbirds defense. With 4:52 to go, Feldhaus broke free for a 32-yard touchdown. A tremendous catch by Koepsell on the two-point conversion made it a 38-22 lead for the Tigers.
This one wasn’t over yet. Wolsey-Wessington quickly drove down the field and got back into the end zone on a one-yard run by Rainford. The successful two-point attempt once again made it a one-score game with 1:54 to play.
Unfortunately for the Warbirds, they were unable to recover an onside kick attempt, and the Tigers ran out the clock.
Final | Howard 38 Wolsey-Wessington 30
Howard was led by a mighty cast, with big performances from a few key guys. Quarterback Carson Winker threw for 112-yards and three scores, Tate Miller scored twice on the ground with 105-yards rushing, and Luke Koepsell had 100-yards receiving, two receiving touchdowns, and seven tackles on defense.
Caleb Richmond led Wosley-Wessington with 211-yards through the air with a touchdown. He also ran for 115-yards and scored on the ground too.
Outstanding Lineman | Luke Koepsell (Howard)
Outstanding Back | Carson Hinker (Howard)
Joe Robbie MVP | Luke Koepsell (Howard)
