The public address announcer at Olathe District Activities Complex last Thursday bellowed out the nickname for Olathe South senior Jordan Allen countless times in the first half of the Falcons’ regional final against Olathe Northwest.

“‘Megatron’ with the touchdown,” rang out three times in the first 23 minutes of action.

But Olathe Northwest proved to have the perfect counter for Allen’s prime-time performance.

Olathe Northwest senior backfield tandem of Eric Butler and Max Keller powered the Ravens to a 35-21 victory over Olathe South. Olathe Northwest, playing under first-year head coach Lorne Clark, reached the state quarterfinals for the first time in program history.

Butler scored two rushing touchdowns while Keller scored one touchdown on the ground and one through the air.

“Our dynamic is kind of like Optimus Prime and Bumblebee,” Butler said. “They both rely on each other and when one of us is tired, one of us is hurt, the other one goes in and puts out the same effort.”

Butler, who went to Olathe South for his first two years of high school, said he forgot about Allen’s nickname when he picked the Transformers references.

“He definitely played like Megatron,” Butler said. “But if he’s Megatron, then I’m definitely Optimus Prime.”
 

Butler said it was emotional playing against his friends and former teammates like Allen. But it meant even more to Butler for him to celebrate a program-best season with his current teammates.

“It feels great doing something this school has never done before,” Butler said. “I’d like to thank my dogs up front, offense and defense. Both my quarterbacks, they play like dogs. They read the defense so good tonight. This is a great overall win for the whole school.”

Things did not look good for the Ravens early though. Olathe South’s Jackson Skeens recovered a fumble on the opening kickoff to set up the Falcons at the 9-yard line. Allen ran for a touchdown on the next play to go up 7-0.

Butler helped Olathe Northwest even things up quickly by scoring on the team’s first actual possession. Butler scored on a 1-yard rushing touchdown to tie the game at 7-all.

Olathe South responded with a 72-yard touchdown drive, capped with a 15-yard strike from Bryce Noernberg to Allen.

Staring at a third-and-long from the team’s own 12-yard line, the Ravens did not look like they’d be able to match the Falcons first two scores. But quarterback Merak Greinert found Micah Geary on a post route for an 88-yard touchdown reception.

Greinert said the play worked great, although it did not exactly go to plan.

“It was really a rollout play, but I didn’t do it right,” Greinert said. “I just chucked it up… for Micah.”
 

The Olathe South offense started driving the ball again, only for the Ravens to force a fumble that Keller scooped and ran to the Falcons 34-yard line. An Olathe South penalty on the play moved the ball another 19 yards. Butler scored on the next play with a 15-yard rushing touchdown to go up 21-14.

Both teams had a couple short drives before the Falcons offense got things going again before half. Noernberg finished off a 75-drive with a 30-yard pass to Allen, which he pulled down for the touchdown despite multiple defenders draped over him.

Instead of settling for the 21-all tie at halftime, Olathe Northwest used the final minute of the fourth quarter to take some shots downfield. Michael Hefley connected on one for 29 yards to Trystan Duckworth. 

Keller connected on the next one with a 43-yard touchdown pass to Hadyn Risley to go up 28-21 at the break.

Olathe South had a chance to even things up with a red-zone trip midway through the third quarter. But on third-and-goal from the 3-yard line, Noernberg rolled out to the left and threw back across his body into traffic. Greinert picked him off at the goal line and returned the ball to the 10-yard line.

After a couple failed series for both offenses, Keller broke off a 32-yard run to get the Ravens to the Falcons 29-yard line. The Ravens kept churning out first downs on the ground until Keller eventually punched it in for a score on a 1-yard rushing touchdown midway through the fourth quarter.

Olathe South finally started to move the chains as the Falcons needed two quick scores. With the ball on the 27-yard line, Noernberg tried to force the ball to Allen deep down the middle of the field. Greinert intercepted the ball again, returning it all the way back to the previous line of scrimmage.

Greinert gave everybody but himself credit for the two picks that stopped the Falcons in their tracks.

“My coaches and my teammates put me in the right positions to get those key picks to ice the game,” Greinert said. “It was just a great team effort. We had one goal and that was just to set the new school record at 7-3.”

Butler and Keller were able to churn out one more first down to run out the clock. Olathe Northwest (7-3) will face Olathe West (8-2) in the state quarterfinals at College Boulevard District Activities Center in Olathe.
 

CLASS 6A

• Blue Valley West upset the top seed in the East with a 28-14 win over Olathe North. Senior quarterback Zach Darche threw for three touchdowns in the first half to take a 21-6 lead into the locker room. Junior running back Sage Huffman punched in a goal-line rushing touchdown late in the game to ice the victory. Although Olathe North rushed for nearly 281 yards, the Jaguars defense limited the Eagles to just two touchdowns, one late in each half. Blue Valley West (5-5), which turned a .500 record last season into a run to the state semis, will head to Gardner-Edgerton (7-3) for the quarterfinals.
   
• Down goes the champs. Not technically an upset as No. 4 Gardner-Edgerton beat No. 5 Blue Valley Northwest 28-19 at home to end the reigning 6A champ Huskies season. Blue Valley Northwest went up early with a rushing touchdown from senior running back Grant Stubblefield, but Gardner-Edgerton scored the next two touchdowns with rushing scores from fullback Dawson Kindler to take a 15-7 halftime lead. Stubblefield scored again to open the third quarter, but a 95-yard kick return touchdown by Zaine Mayfield immediately erased the Huskies comeback efforts. Kindler scored another touchdown in the third quarter, allowing the Trailblazers to hold off the Huskies even after Stubblefield scored a third touchdown early in the fourth quarter. Gardner-Edgerton (7-3) will host Blue Valley West (5-5) next week.
   
• Olathe West continued its seven-game win streak with a dominant 42-20 victory over Blue Valley.Blue Valley quarterback Trevor Brush gave the Tigers an early 7-0 advantage with a red-zone touchdown pass to Gatlin Samuel. Olathe West responded with three touchdowns in the second quarter, including two from quarterback Mason McGavran. McGavran finished with three rushing touchdowns and one passing touchdown, which he threw to Micah McGavran to tie the game. The Owls scored two more touchdowns on the other side of the break to put the game out of reach. Olathe West (8-2), which will play in the state quarterfinals for the first time since reaching the Class 5A state semis during the program’s first full season in 2018, will face Olathe Northwest (7-3) at College Boulevard District Activities Center in Olathe.

CLASS 5A

• No. 1 seed Mill Valley delivered its second straight shutout victory in the playoffs with its 24-0 win over Shawnee Heights. Jaguars junior running back Tristan Baker broke off a 73-yard rushing touchdown in the opening minute of the game and his team never looked back. The Mill Valley defense, which refers to itself as the “Land Sharks,” held the Thunderbirds to just 60 yards of total offense. Mill Valley (9-1) will host Pittsburg (7-3) in the state quarterfinals.
   
• Pittsburg powered past another playoff opponent with a shutout victory, defeating Sumner Academy 28-0 on the road. Wyatt Rink and Stone Peery traded off rushing touchdowns with a pair for each. The Dragons defense almost never let the Sabres get out of the backfield, holding them to negative-32 yards on 23 carries. Pittsburg (7-3) will go on the road again to face Mill Valley (9-1) in the state quarterfinals.
   
• Timberwolves junior quarterback Dylan Dunn scored four touchdowns in the first half, including a 90-yard touchdown pass to Emmit Peters during a two-minute drill to give their team a 28-7 lead at halftime. Blue Valley Southwest turned to Parker Smith in the second half as he scored two rushing touchdowns in the third quarter and finished with 115 rushing yards. Blue Valley Southwest (5-5) will go on the road to face De Soto (9-1) in the state quarterfinals.

CLASS 4A

• Miege outlasted Eudora 33-26 in a tough road matchup for the Stags. Both teams traded touchdowns throughout the first half, only for Miege to score in the waning seconds of the second quarter. Armstrong connected with Isaiah Coppage for the duo’s second touchdown of the game, putting the Stags up 21-16 with 16 seconds left in the half. After a DeAndre Beasley 9-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter, Eudora pulled within one score two different times in the fourth, but were unable to close the gap. Miege (8-2) will host Piper (7-3) in the state quarterfinals.
   
• Atchison looked like they could keep pace with the two-time reigning Class 4A state champs as quarterback Trey Carter twice found wideout Deacon Stoute for touchdowns in a 21-17 first half that favored St. James Academy. But the Thunder rolled in the second half by scoring 21 unanswered points in a 42-17 road win over previously undefeated Atchison. St. James senior quarterback Blake Boydston threw for 232 passing yards and four touchdowns to go along with his 110 rushing yards and one rushing score. St. James (6-4) will go on the road against St. Thomas Aquinas (8-2) in the state quarterfinals.
   
• St. Thomas Aquinas hit the ground running and never slowed down in a 40-0 victory over Louisburg. Gianni Rizzi got the Saints on the board with a rushing touchdown in the first quarter before Sean Carroll scored the next three rushing touchdowns, including two in the second quarter. Jeremiah Penney got in on the action with a 20-yard touchdown pass from Aiden Skinner. Brogan Jaworski finished things off with a rushing touchdown late in the fourth quarter. Aquinas (8-2) will host two-time reigning 4A champ St. James Academy (6-4) in the state quarterfinals.

CLASS 3A

• Columbus pulled off the upset over the top seed in the district, winning 21-14 over Galena. Bret Hamilton scored a goal-line touchdown to put the Trojans up in the first quarter. Galena returned the favor in the second quarter, but Hamilton’s 56-yard strike to Cole Minor gave Columbus a 14-6 halftime advantage. Galena tied the game up with a score in the fourth quarter, only for Hamilton to score his third time on the night with a go-ahead 6-yard scamper. Columbus (5-5) will host Topeka Hayden (9-1) in the state quarterfinals.
   
• It took awhile for Girard to get going, but the Trojans never stopped once they did. Trojans running back Alex Coester scored on a rushing touchdown on the goal-line late in the second quarter. With just a 7-0 advantage over Frontenac retaking the field after halftime, Girard scored four touchdowns down the stretch to beat the Raiders 36-0. Coester would score again in the third quarter to get the second-half rout started. Adam Shireman matched him with two rushing scores in the fourth quarter. Girard (10-0) will host Holton (9-1) in the state quarterfinals, a rematch from last year when Holton beat a previously undefeated Trojans’ team.

CLASS 1A

• St. Mary’s Colgan scored three touchdowns in the first quarter as the Panthers controlled the action throughout a 40-8 victory over Jayhawk-Linn. Junior running back Cooper Simmons rushed for 92 yards and three rushing touchdowns while senior Keagan Fleming added another rushing score to go with his team-high 111 rushing yards. Colgan (9-1) will host St. Marys (8-2) in the state quarterfinals.