It was definately the game of what ifs as Harlan survived Heelan’s rally attempt and the Cyclones advanced in the Class 3A playoffs, winning 21-14 on Friday night at Merril Field in Harlan.
The difference in the game was a 99-yard kickoff return by Brian Kloewer on the opening kickoff of the second half. It was the first kickoff return for a touchdown of the season for Harlan and it turned out to be the only score of the second half by the Cyclones.
But, like I said, this was a game of what ifs.
What If . . . Preston Ives doesn’t fumble the football late in the second quarter. After Harlan tied the score at 7-7, Ives fumbled the ball on the kickoff giving Harlan excellent field position on the 24 yard line and the Cyclones drove the short field into the end zone, scoring on a 5-yard run by QB Michael Kaufmann to take a 14-7 lead at the half.
What if . . . The officials do not blow a call on a pass interference on that last drive of the second half. Kaufmann was throwing to the end zone and Nate Berger was flagged for the interference when it was clear he was nowhere near the receiver and it was a good defensive stop.
What if . . . .The officials ruled that Zach McCabe’s momentum was stopped at the goal line. In the third quarter, Heelan was on the one-yard line and McCabe tried to sneak it into the end zone. He ran into a pile of players who stopped him cold. His forward progress was stopped but the officials never blew the whistle and Harlan was able to strip the ball loose, recover the fumble and prevent Heelan from cutting the lead to one score.
What if . . . . McCabe’s final pass of the game was never thrown. Or maybe it should have been overthrown. After Heelan got the ball back with about a minute and a half left in the game, the Crusaders got huge pass plays to move to the Harlan 25 yard line. McCabe then threw to the end zone for Nick Berger but the ball was badly thrown and Harlan picked it off to end the the drive. There is no doubt that McCabe wants that pass back.
Heelan committed 4 turnovers in the game, 3 fumbles and 1 interception and spoiled a great performance by the Heelan defense, which held the Harlan offense scoreless in the second half — the only points coming on Kloewer’s kickoff return.
The running game for the Crusaders was a non-factor. As a matter of fact, Heelan did not call a running play in the entire second half. The only rushing yards for Heelan in the third and fourth quarters were on McCabe scrambles. When was the last time you saw that in a high school football game? Let alone any football game? Michael Malloy finished with 5 carries for 5 yards. Heelan had a net minus 26 yards rushing in the game.
McCabe finished — unofficially — 29 of 37 passing for 405 yards. Both Bergers were absolutely sensational for Heelan. Nate Berger caught 9 passes for 196 yards and 2 touchdowns (66 and 42 yards). Nick Berger caught 13 passes for 148 yards. Brady Van Dusen added 2 catches for 44 yards.
Ives simply disappeared in this game. The speedy wideout only caught 2 passes for 8 yards. For a player who publicly said that he circled this game on the calendar, it was a disappointment.
For Harlan, they had balance on the rush. Dylan Barrett had 22 carries for 63 yards; Matt Hoch had 14 carries for 66 yards and Kaufmann finished with 12 rushes for 54 yards. Kaufmann was 5 of 14 passing for 61 yards and 1 TD and 1 INT. Harlan had 183 yards rushing.
In the end, the game came down to special teams. Both coaches said so in our pre-game show. Harlan Head Coach Curt Bladt was concerned with the return game for Heelan. Instead, it was Kloewer’s 99 yard return that proved to be the difference.
Still, this was a game that Heelan will look back on and say — we should have won this football game. Ultimately, it was Heelan mistakes that ended the season. It was a good season nevertheless as the Crusaders finish up 10-2. But when Harlan celebrates a state title in a couple of weeks, Heelan will probably watch it on TV and say it could have been them.
Filed under: Bishop Heelan | Tagged: By Chris Varney | 1 Comment »