It takes pretty special circumstances for Nemaha Central coach Michael Glatczak to deviate from the offensive game plan that has fueled two straight Class 2A state championships for the Thunder.
 
Which seemingly presented itself in Friday’s Class 2A quarterfinal showdown with undefeated Osage City. Tied 27-27 with the Indians with 3:28 left in the game, Nemaha Central had the ball at its own 10-yard line after Osage City had eschewed a go-ahead field goal attempt and come up short on fourth down.
 
While not quite falling in the range of a two-minute drill, for the Thunder’s grind-it-out style, the clock and distance seemingly called for a modification to deviate from the traditional game plan.
 
But Glatczak stuck to his guns. Well, his gun – Nemaha Central’s top weapon, quarterback Carter Hajek.
 
“We were very confident,” Hajek said. “Our O-Line is great so I knew we were going to keep running the ball. We had all three timeouts so I was confident that we were going to go down and score.”
 
Hajek and the Thunder offense delivered on Glatczak’s faith in them, mixing chunk gains from Hajek on the ground with a couple quick-hit pass plays to Caleb Strathman and Caleb Hynek to march down the field. Hajek then capped the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run with 19.5 seconds left, giving Nemaha Central a thrilling 33-27 win.
 
Nemaha Central improved to 10-1, advancing to the 2A state semifinals for the third straight season. Standing in the way of a third straight championship game appearance is Council Grove (8-3), which knocked off another previous unbeaten with a 30-8 win over Humboldt.
 
Osage City, meanwhile, suffered its only loss of the season, a heartbreaking end to the best season in program history.
 
“Ever since last year, we knew this was going to be a dogfight,” Glatczak said. “I know these guys have had this game circled on the calendar. We did too, we just had to get there. They’re going to be back next year, too, because they’re full of juniors. Coach (Andrew) Gantenbein does a phenomenal job and they play extremely hard.
 
“We knew they were going to score on us but we got the stops at the right time and our offense turned it on when it had to.”
 
Osage City delivered an immediate uppercut blow to the Thunder, scoring on the second play of the game when junior quarterback Kasen Parsons hit Quenten Stark in stride for a 69-yard touchdown pass. 
 
But it wasn’t a knockout blow and though Nemaha stalled on its first offensive possession, the Thunder countered with a steady diet of Hajek shots right up the gut, hammering away at the Indians’ mid-section. Nemaha scored 14 straight points, converting a 4^th-and-2 at the Osage 8 with a reverse touchdown pass from Strathman to Mason Schultejans and then getting a 2-yard run from Hajek to go up 14-7.
 
No sooner had Nemaha seemingly taken the momentum than Osage City’s quick-strike ability sangged it right back. Dylan Theel took the ensuing kickoff at his own 13 and raced 87 yards to send the game to halftime tied 14-14.
 
“We talked about eliminating big plays on defense and special teams, but Osage City is just that good,” Glatczak said. “Two big plays for them in that first half and I thought the kick return they had was a big punch. Our heads were hanging a little bit.”
 
Hajek scored on a 3-yard run early in the third but Osage City struck back quickly as Parsons hit Theel on a 43-yard pass to set up his 2-yard touchdown run and after the Indians forced a Hajek fumble near midfield, they turned it into a touchdown with Parsons scoring from 4 yards out.
 
Nemaha had missed its PAT following its third quarter touchdown and after Parsons’ second score, the Indians went for two to try to go up nine, but couldn’t convert, leaving the margin at seven points. And when Hajek scored on a 6-yard run less than two minutes into the fourth quarter, it was all tied up at 27-27.
 
Osage City did its best impression of the Thunder and methodically drove into position to get the win, reaching the Thunder 12 with just under four minutes to play. After a pass on third and 11 fell incomplete, the Indians opted to go for it instead of kick a 29-yard field goal – having missed at 28-yarder earlier in the game – and a throwback pass from Theel to Parsons came up well short of the first down, giving the ball back to Nemaha with 3:28 left.
 
Glatczak then kept the ball in Hajek’s hands for the winning drive, and the junior capped a night where he ran for 302 yards and 4 touchdowns with the game-winning drive, using a 15-yard run to set the Thunder up at the 1. After being stopped short of the goal line on first down, Hajek found a massive pile up the middle on second down, but spun out of it and slipped into the end zone for the game-winner.
 
“I knew (Hajek) was going to bust one and on that last series, he wanted the ball in his hands,” Glatczak said. “He’s just a heck of a playmaker and obviously the line did a heck of a job blocking on that last drive.”
 
“Nothing was there, but I was going to see what I could get,” Hajek said of the game-winning touchdown. “Luckily, I got into the end zone.”
 
Parsons threw for 238 yards and a touchdown and ran for 86 yards and two scores for Osage City.
 
ROSSVILLE PULLS OFF UNFATHOMABLE COMEBACK TO UPSET UNDEFEATED JACKSON HEIGHTS
 
Rossville was already in a tough spot trailing undefeated Jackson Heights 31-21 midway through the fourth quarter of Friday’s Class 1A state quarterfinal.
 
So much so that Bulldawg coach Derick Hammes was already using timeouts to try and preserve some time for a potential comeback. But when Heights got a 4-yard touchdown run from Drake Mellies with 5:30 left to go up 38-21, Hammes minced no words about his team’s chances.
 
“We were in a dire situation,” Hammes said.
 
What happened over the next two and a half minutes can only be described as indescribable. Rossville hit Jackson Heights with a perfect storm series of events that completely flipped the game and allowed the Bulldawgs to pull of an improbable 42-38 comeback victory.
 
Rossville scored three touchdowns in a span of 1:27 with Tayson Horak’s 6-yard touchdown run with 3:07 left in the game the game-winner. Rossville held defensively late to win its eighth straight after an 0-3 start to the season.
 
Heights finished the season 10-1.
 
For three plus quarters, Heights was in complete control. Titus Eisenbarth and Mellies each had a pair of touchdown runs and Kade Holliday added one of his own, his coming in the third quarter to give the Cobras a 31-14 lead after three quarters.
 
Rossville gained some brief life when Horak hit Mahki Jackson with a 35-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth, but Heights ground out its next drive and Mellies cashed in with the short TD run that seemed to be the final nail in Rossville’s coffin.
 
The Bulldawgs, however, were far from dead. Horak answered right back with a 39-yard touchdown pass to Jack Donovan to make it a 38-28 game with 4:34 to go. And that’s when the madness began.
 
Rossville successfully executed Cameron Miller’s onside kick with Jackson recovering. Twenty seconds after Horak’s TD pass to Donovan, he hit Kameron Badura on a 17-yard score to pull the Bulldawgs within three.
 
Rossville tried another onside kick and again Jackson recovered for the Bulldawgs.
 
“In a strange way, we were using (Miller) as a scout player on an onside kick situation and found out he did it really well,” Hammes said. “So we inserted him as our onside kicker. He hit the ball well and it just tumbled and bounced and into our arms, if you will.”
 
Rossville cashed in just over a minute later with Horak scoring the game-winner with 3:07 left on a 6-yard TD run.
 
“It just started going our way and we were making plays,” Hammes said. “Situationally, we practice this stuff, but never do you think you’re going to see it all in a span of four or five minutes. But we executed every one of those situations the way we needed to do it and came out on top.
 
“The stars lined up for us for sure. But I don’t think (Heights) did anything wrong. We just executed what we had to and if we didn’t we weren’t going to win. … The kids never quit and never quit believing either and a lot of people would have because we were in dire straits.”
 
Horak threw for 277 yards and 4 touchdowns and ran for 69 yards and a TD. Donovan had 130 yards receiving and Jackson had 85 yards receiving and two scores, his other TD grab coming with 16 seconds left in the first half after Heights had taken a 28-7 lead with 1:59 left in the half.
 
Mellies ran for 118 yards and threw for 107 yards. Eisenbarth added 76 yards on the ground and Holliday added 64.
 
Rossville (8-3) will take on Centralia (10-1) in the Class 1A semifinals.
 
 
QUARTERFINAL STANDOUTS
 
CLASS 6A

• For the second time this season Manhattan took a 21-point win over Wichita Northwest, the Indians’ fifth win over the Grizzlies in the last three seasons and second in the last three postseasons. Carter Aslin had a monster game for the Indians, throwing for a career-high 327 yards and 4 touchdowns while also adding 112 yards rushing with a touchdown. Aslin also caught a touchdown pass Jaydin Hudley on a halfback pass. JJ Dunnigan had 4 catches for 145 yards and 2 touchdowns.

 
CLASS 3A

• Jensen Schrickel had a monster game in leading Hayden to its second win over Pery-Lecompton this season as the Wildcats rolled to a 56-6 victory. Schrickel caught three first-quarter touchdown passes from Jett Wahlmeier – 54, 65 and 24 yards – to start a night that saw him finish with seven touchdowns overall. Schrickel had 5 catches for 192 yards and 4 touchdowns and also ran for 124 yards on just five carries with three rushing TDs, including a 79-yarder. Wahlmeier threw for 263 yards and four touchdowns. Perry’s lone touchdown was a 78-yard pass from Garrett Metcalfe to Trsitan Gorden in the first quarter, but the Kaws only gained 165 yards outside of that play.
• After beating Prairie View in the regular season for the Pioneer League title, Wellsville denied the Buffaloes revenge in the quarterfinals, taking a 35-14 win to stay undefeated. For the second time this season, Wellsville gave up a huge touchdown run to Prairie View’s Parker Schwarz, who broke an 80-yard TD in the second quarter of a scoreless game. But Wellsville did what it did in the first meeting when it shut down Schwarz the rest of the way and let Armond Graves carry the Eagles to the win. Graves had TD runs of 52 and 18 yards around a 50-yard touchdown catch from Pete Dorsey, who had a hand in the Eagles’ first two scores, rushing for a 12-yard TD and throwing a 39-yard TD pass to Mason Lytle.

 
CLASS 2A

• After getting into the playoffs via a tiebreaker, Council Grove continued its best postseason run ever, securing its first-ever trip to the state semifinals by taking out undefeated and top-seeded Humboldt with a convincing 31-8 victory – its third straight playoff win on the road. Humboldt struck first before the Braves shut the Cubs out the rest of the way, scoring 31 unanswered points. Ace Monihen ran for two touchdowns and caught a TD pass from Luke Stewart, who threw for 131 yards. Council Grove gave up just 116 total yards to the Cubs, who came in averaging better than 52 points per game. 
• Southeast of Saline avenged a 49-42 quarterfinal loss to Hoisington a year ago, building a 30-0 lead through three quarters before settling for a 30-8 victory that leaves the Trojans as the last undefeated team in Class 2A. Grady Gebhardt ran for 189 yards and three touchdowns and Gannon Jacobson threw for 139 yards and a score to lead Southeast. Tucker Thaxton had 12 catches for 114 yards and a touchdown. 
• Beloit set up a rematch with North Central Activities Association rival Southeast of Saline with a 19-0 road win over Garden Plain, getting all its points in the first half. Joel Rexroat ran for all three Beloit touchdowns on runs of 2, 1 and 19 yards, finishing with 107 yards. The Trojans held Garden Plain to just 141 total yards.

 
CLASS 1A

• Renewing a rivalry that’s played out many times in the postseason, Centralia maintained its recent advantage in its series with St. Mary’s Colgan, rolling to a 46-14 win. Centralia has now won five of its last six meetings with Colgan after losing six straight games from 1999-2008. Up 8-7 at the end of the first quarter, Centralia hit Colgan with a 24-point second quarter as Jacob Flentie scored on runs of 22 and 1 yards and Quentin Alderfer added a 30-yard TD run with the Panthers adding two-point conversions to each score. Flentie finished with 259 yards rushing and 4 touchdowns and also ran in three two-point conversions and thew another. Alderfer added 124 yards and 2 TDs on the ground.
• After giving up an opening touchdown to Medicine Lodge, Valley Heights scored four straight touchdowns to take a commanding 24-8 halftime lead on its way to a 37-22 victory. Jayden DeWalt scored on first-quarter runs of 4 and 3 yards before Logan Gray busted TD runs of 22 and 53 yards in the second quarter. Gray added a 61-yard TD run in the second half and finished with 177 yards on the night while DeWalt added 116 yards and his two TDs, going over 1,500 yards for the season. The win avenged a 48-30 shootout loss to Medicine Lodge in the quarterfinals a year ago and the Mustangs earned their first semifinal berth in program history. 

 
EIGHT-PLAYER DIVISION I

• Clifton-Clyde held Madison to just 65 total yards and put the Bulldogs away by halftime with a dominating 46-0 victory, sending the Eagles to the state semifinals for the first time since 2013. Jack Skocny ran for 105 yards and 2 touchdowns and threw for a touchdown while Trextin Koch threw a pair of TD passes to Joseph Fahey and also ran for a score.

 
EIGHT-PLAYER DIVISION II

• Wes Anderson scored on a 2-yard run with 37 seconds left and then came up with a late interception to seal Frankfort’s 46-38 win over previously undefeated Burlingame. The Bearcats had tied the game 38-all on Dane Winters’ 10-yard run with 5:23 left but Frankfort stopped the two-point conversion. Anderson finished with 230 yards passing and two touchdowns and also ran for 48 yards and two scores while Lane Loiseau tallied 152 total yards with two touchdowns, one rushing and one receiving. Winters scored three touchdowns, two rushing and one receiving and finished with 165 total yards and JD Tyson threw for 179 yards and three touchdowns – two to Timmy Roberts -- and ran for a score. Ty Smith had two interceptions for Frankfort.
• Axtell had no trouble running its eight-player state-record winning streak 50 straight with a dominating 54-8 win over Osborne – the Eagles’ third straight year beating Osborne in the playoffs. The Bulldogs actually scored first on a 65-yard pass from Dalton Garman to Hunter Howell, but it was all Axtell after that as Osborne only managed 88 more yards the rest of the game. Axtell answered with 30 first-quarter points with Brandon Schmelzle hitting Wyatt Detweiler for a 47-yard touchdown pass to start the barrage. Schmelzle threw for 142 yards and 3 touchdowns, two going to Eli Broxterman, ad he also ran for two scores. Landon Schmitz had a 65-yard touchdown run.