Photo Credit: David Smith/Special to PrepsKC 
With one monumental victory on Friday night, Oak Park achieved several meaningful milestones in one fell swoop.
The Northmen held off a second-half rally and finished strong during a 42-26 victory against rival Fort Osage, securing the Suburban Conference Red Division title in the process. Additionally, Oak Park (9-0) completed its first undefeated regular season since 1999 and ended a 12-game losing streak against the Indians that dated back to 2010.
Yet even in the midst of such a historic moment, Oak Park coach Ken Clemens kept his perspective and remained focused on the objectives ahead.
“We’re very thankful for it,” Clemens said. “There’s more football left, and we’re going to keep on having fun and try to earn all the great things that have happened for us.”
In a contest that featured plenty of conference and postseason stakes, it also proved to be a showcase for two of the top running backs in the metro area – Oak Park’s Travon Pankey and Ryver Peppers of Fort Osage, who are both juniors.
Each of them scored touchdowns on their team’s first drive of the game, but Oak Park soon took control. The Northmen rattled off three consecutive touchdown drives in the second quarter, including two from Pankey, to give them a 28-13 advantage at halftime.
But at the start of the second half, Fort Osage soon turned the entire tide of the game.
The Indians (5-4) got two huge defensive stops to begin the third quarter, and each time, Peppers found the end zone to pull his team within two points. His third touchdown of the game made it 28-26 midway through the third quarter, and Fort Osage coach Brock Bult said he was glad to see such a strong response from his team out of halftime.
“That’s Fort Osage football,” Bult said. “We didn’t feel like we played Fort Osage football in the first half. I felt we were on our heels, and they were more aggressive and more physical.
“We just had to play our style of football – quit thinking and fly around and play.”
The Indians got the ball right back after yet another defensive stop and had a chance to take the lead. But then Oak Park’s defense rose to the occasion when senior defensive back Mikey Davis snagged an interception that swung momentum back in the Northmen’s favor.
And after several crucial conversions, Oak Park senior quarterback Aiden Hinkle connected with Drew Clemens for a clutch, 10-yard touchdown that extended the lead and got the Northmen back on track.
“We just capitalized, working both sides as a team to really come together,” Hinkle said. “That’s why we’re 9-0.”
Oak Park forced a punt on the ensuing drive and increased its lead even further when Pankey bowled into the end zone for his fourth touchdown of the game. Senior Evan Braxton also made several huge plays for Oak Park throughout the contest, including a 69-yard touchdown during the first half.
After such a historic victory for the program, Hinkle reflected on all the team’s accomplishments and the hard work that made it all possible.
“It just feels great, all the hours we’ve put in during the summer,” Hinkle said. “Grinding every day, and it just feels great. We’re going to celebrate, get a week off, but we’ve got to be ready to grind next week.”
Oak Park had already clinched the Class 6 District 8 title the week before thanks to a dramatic victory against St. Joseph Central and will now receive a bye week before playing the winner between Staley and Park Hill South.
“We’ll enjoy this, and we get to enjoy it a little bit longer this time because we don’t know who the next one is,” Clemens said. “But we’re going to work to get better a little bit next week, take some time and get back (to it.)”
Fort Osage, meanwhile, will play Winnetonka during the first round of the Class 5 District 8 tournament next week and hopes to build on the resurgent effort that it displayed in its ferocious comeback effort.
“If we play like that the next three weeks, we’ll see where this goes,” Bult said. “But we’ve got to play like that in the first half and not wait.”
