Photo Credit: Jeff Stead/PrepsKCA ground-and-pound type of game is exactly what Kearney football thrives on.
Add its defense into the mix, good things typically happen.
The Bulldogs scored seven rushing touchdowns while holding Warrensburg scoreless in the second half, finding their way to a 49-14 Class 4 quarterfinal win Friday at the Warrensburg Activities Complex.
“It was our kind of ball game,” Kearney head coach Logan Minnick said. “We live and die in the weight room here at Kearney. We told them, the game is going to be in the 30s, and it starts getting colder in Missouri when you’re playing big-time football games. We came into the game with the mentality that we were going to try and be so much more physical than those guys were.”
Kearney (12-0) forced Warrensburg (11-2) to punt on the opening possession. The kick did not go too far, with the Bulldogs taking possession at the Warrensburg 32-yard line.
The Bulldogs proceeded to run the ball five times, ultimately ending the drive with an 11-yard touchdown run by sophomore quarterback Carter Temple.
The touchdown was one of three Temple had in the first half. The Bulldogs also had a rushing score from senior running back Tristan Williams before halftime.
“Those guys are super athletic on that side of the football,” Minnick said. “We didn’t really have a lot of interest in putting it in the air and letting their athletes go get it. We’ve been a run-heavy team all year, so we were kind of licking our chops. Our kids were fired up knowing we were going to be 80% run tonight. I think it probably ended up much more than that.”
Temple’s first touchdown was followed by a three-play Warrensburg possession that ended with a 77-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Kobe Westphal to sophomore wide receiver ZJ Graham.
The play gave the Tigers their initial first down of the contest. They did not pick up another until the second quarter.
About two minutes later, Warrensburg scored its second and final touchdown of the game on a 22-yard pass from Westphal to junior running back AJ Smith.
“That’s a great football team,” Minnick said. “That’s the best quarterback we’ve seen all year. That kid is an absolute player. I’m proud of our defense. They held in. He makes play after play, runs around, and makes you cover forever. I thought our defense did good. With our second-half adjustments, they were lights out.”
By the end of the first half, Kearney held a 28-14 lead. Even allowing the four first-half touchdowns, Warrensburg forced the Bulldogs to a pair of punts.
The first arrived after the Tigers’ initial score, while the second came within the final 1:30 before halftime.
Senior linebacker Jacob Dillon intercepted Westphal not too long after the early punt, leading to an eventual 11-yard touchdown run from Temple.
The second punt led the Tigers into Bulldogs territory, though a spike on what turned out to be a fourth-and-inches situation rather than a first-and-goal led to a turnover on downs.
“We had two big stops in the first half,” Warrensburg head coach Chris Cavanah said. “I would have liked to have a couple more than what we got. But we battled. We left it all on the field today.”
Kearney shut out Warrensburg in the second half. Minnick noted the difference came from getting to Westphal early instead of anticipating where he was going to move.
“It was more about going to get him rather than waiting for him and having him one on one in the space with kids that he’s more athletic than,” Minnick said. “We were going to heat some people up. We added a few more DBs where we can run some man coverage across the board with as much empty they were running.”
Along with the shoutout, the Bulldogs had a fourth rushing touchdown from Temple, along with two from junior running back Corbin Emmons to close out the win. Their final touchdown arrived with 9:35 remaining.
“I’m just so proud of our kids,” Minnick said. “It’s one of those games where if you get the lead and you can grind the clock, I told our defense ‘you guys play the best you played all year when you’re on the sideline and we’re eating the clock away.' Hats off to those guys up front.”
Kearney now awaits the winner of the Lutheran North vs Parkway North game, which will be played at noon Saturday at Parkway North High School.
No matter the result, the Bulldogs will host the state semifinal with the chance of advancing back to the state championship.
The Kearney vs Warrensburg quarterfinal was the lone Class 4 game played Friday, meaning the Bulldogs will have an extra day of rest than the remainder of the field come Nov. 30.
“I’m excited for our seniors,” Minnick said. “We told them they would have the opportunity to earn the right to have one more home game. You’re never guaranteed those. I’m really excited for those guys, whether it be Lutheran North or Parkway North. I’m also excited that we get an extra day to prep. I guarantee you as soon as we get on those buses we’ll have Hudl pulled up on our computers and phones going to work.”
