Lions Face Grind-it-out Foes
MHS stands 2-2 in league play
by Keagan McCullick
October 08, 2009
In the last two weeks of the 2009 Minneapolis Lions football season, the 2-3 Lions have found themselves facing off against two smash-mouth football teams on the road. The first of the two teams was the 4A western Kansas home town of Bob Dole, the infamous Russell Broncos. The weather favored the Broncos grind-it-out wishbone offense. However, the Lions’ solid execution on the defensive side of the ball would prevent Russell from exploiting that advantage.
Offensively, the Lions had a mixed attack of running and passing that kept Russell from getting comfortable all night. Jake Eckert would be the workhorse of the offense with two rushes for TD’s and over 100 yards rushing.
In the fourth quarter of the game the score was tied 13-13 when Russell was forced to punt by the Lions defense. Because of the wet conditions, the Broncos’ long-snapper was unable to get a good grip on the ball and his snap went low and right between the punters legs. The ball rolled all the way into the Russell end zone; and in a misguided attempt to avoid a safety, the punter threw the ball out of the end zone. Consequently, linebacker Adam Klein intercepted the pass and fell across the goal line for a Minneapolis Lion touchdown and a 20-13 victory.
The second of the two teams were the Trojans from Beloit. In the first half, the Lions kept the game in a deadlocked 14-14 going into the locker room.
However, in the second half, the Trojans began to gain a lead on the Lions. By the end of the game, the score had widened to 58-29, in favor of the Trojans.
Throughout the game the Lions fought hard but couldn’t overcome some third quarter adversity that included a special teams’ turnover and a Beloit kick return for a touchdown.
