Bulldogs earn No. 1 seed in Class 5A playoffs, finish regular season undefeated
By Fred Kroner
Mahomet-Seymour football coach Jon Adkins likens the IHSA football playoff announcement on Saturday (Oct. 22) to the time several years back when his wife gave birth.
“When my son was born, I knew what we were having, but my wife didn’t want to know,” Adkins said. “I had to make sure not to say anything to spoil the surprise for her.
“It was me knowing and trying not to let it out. That’s what tonight (Saturday) felt like.”
Through research and listening to the state’s high school football experts, Adkins was convinced that M-S would open the Class 5A playoffs with a first-round home game against Ottawa.
The difference – unlike when his wife was in labor – was that Adkins’ feelings were just speculation until the official IHSA announcement was made.
The Bulldogs’ varsity football team gathered at the Adkins’ home on Saturday, where they enjoyed pizza and the IHSA playoff show.
Several of the players did their best to get Adkins to reveal what he thought would be the school’s first playoff matchup.
“A lot of them were trying to get it out of me,” said Adkins, who remained mum until the television made his belief official: M-S (9-0) will play host to Ottawa (5-4) on Friday (Oct. 28) in a 7 p.m. contest at Frank Dutton Field.
Bulldog Wyatt Bohm was one of the squad members who accurately predicted the matchup, but the coach didn’t give any advance hint that they were correct.
Adkins is pleased to have the home game played on a school night, just like the team’s first nine games of the year.
“We get to stay in our routine,” he said. “They (Ottawa) said they would take whatever we wanted (as far as date and time).”
Ottawa is returning to the postseason for the first time since 2012. Put in perspective, the school’s current senior class was in second grade the last time the Pirates played in a playoff contest.
M-S also earned the No. 1 seed for the bottom bracket of Class 5A.
“I’m really excited and happy for our kids,” Adkins said. “We like our bracket.”
The winner of the M-S/Ottawa game will play either eighth-seeded Metamora (6-3) or ninth-seeded Jacksonville (6-3) in the second round. Should both M-S and Metamora win, that game would also be played at Frank Dutton Field.
Of the 36 schools assigned to Class 5A, 25 have enrollments above M-S’ total of 943 students.
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The Bulldogs closed the regular season on Friday (Oct. 21) with a 47-20 win at Bloomington (3-6). The contest marked the fifth time in the last six weeks that M-S created a running clock for all – or most – of the second half.
It was the second straight 9-0 regular season for M-S, which has won 19 consecutive regular-season games. The two seasons were not identical.
“Last year, we surprised people and flew under the radar,” Adkins said. “This year (after reaching the state semifinals in 2021), we did it with a target on our backs.
“I don’t think the kids and fans truly realize what we just did.”
The last time M-S had back-to-back unbeaten regular seasons in football was 1961 and ’62, when the regular season consisted of eight games.
The Bulldogs set the tone against Bloomington, scoring less than 3 minutes into the non-conference contest.
The scoring drive was set up by an interception by Ethan Esker.
At the 9:39 mark, Valient Walsh gave M-S a lead it would never relinquish. When Kyle Walmer converted the extra-point kick, the Bulldogs’ lead was 7-0.
Getting the lead early has been one key to the M-S success this season.
“I believe teams have a game-plan against us of clock-management and keeping the ball out of our offense’s hands,” Adkins said, “but when we score early, that will change people’s game plan.
“If you’re down two or three scores, you can’t run continuously to get back into the game.”
Though the scoreboard showed a good start, the Bulldogs were already dealing with adversity.
Rushing leader Luke Johnson – who missed much of the 2021 season with an ankle injury – suffered a knee injury on his first carry of the game, a gain of 18 yards. For the season, Johnson has rushed for 976 yards.
Johnson did not return to the game, and his status for the playoffs has not yet been determined.
“On the third play of the game, Ryken Kirby, who had limited meaningful varsity reps, stepped in, and to have the production he had was incredible,” Adkins said.
Though Kirby was unknown on the varsity, he is well-known within the M-S program.
“He has dominated at the JV level and was coming off a six-TD game against Mattoon on Monday (Oct. 17),” Adkins said. “He got in, and we almost didn’t miss a beat.
“We’d feel confident moving forward with him, if we need to. Our coaching staff has done a fantastic job of getting kids prepared to be ready to go when it’s ‘next man up.’”
Kirby gained a team-high 45 yards rushing on nine carries at Bloomington.
Bohm orchestrated an offense which produced more than 420 yards of total offense for the sixth game this season.
He completed 20 of 32 passes for 292 yards and three touchdowns.
The game was the third in a row and the seventh for the season where Bohm did not throw an interception. In those seven games, he has attempted 149 passes.
Quenton Rogers secured his second 100-yard receiving game in a row, snaring a season-high eight passes for 111 yards. He scored two touchdowns.
Walsh hauled in five passes for 62 yards and one TD on an 8-yard pass from Brennan Houser. Trey Peters turned six catches into gains of 57 yards.
Bohm eclipsed the 2,000-yard passing mark for the season at Bloomington and has thrown for more than 5,249 yards in his two-year varsity career.
“He has followed up on a great junior year and has taken his leadership to a new level,” Adkins said. “He is smart and competitive. He stands in the pocket and delivers and made good throws.”
Bohm has improved his completion percentage from 58.8 percent as a junior to 66.3 percent as a senior.
Bloomington rebounded after falling behind to force a 7-7 deadlock, but the Bulldogs tacked on two more TDs in the first quarter to build a 19-7 lead.
The tie-breaking score came on a 38-yard pass play from Bohm to Adam Dyer. That was quickly followed by a second 1-yard scoring run by Walsh.
Bohm’s TD pass to Dyer was the 28th of the year for Bohm, breaking the single-season school record (27), he set as a junior. He has 57 career TD passes, and needs one more to tie the all-time mark, held by Joe Kenney since 2014.
The M-S lead grew to 39-7 at halftime. Rogers reached the end zone on an 8-yard run, Walsh caught the 8-yard TD pass from Houser and Rogers scampered 25 yards after catching a pass from Bohm.
The running clock came about when the 40-point margin was achieved early in the third period. A 13-yard Bohm-to-Rogers pass put M-S within reach of the running clock.
Then Dyer – who is the holder on extra-point attempts – took the snap on the conversion attempt and tossed a two-point conversion pass to Tyler Majeres.
The M-S lead was an insurmountable 47-7.
“The kids have been repping it (in practice) and we wanted to show it,” Adkins said. “Adam threw a great pass.”
Defensively, the Bulldogs’ first unit was up to the challenge.
“They (Bloomington) hit, and I loved how we matched their physicality,” Adkins said. “Their quarterback was coming off a school-record performance (in Week 8) and we held him to a 34 percent completion rate.
“We couldn’t have asked for better games out of our defensive backs. Bloomington is probably the best 3-6 team we’ve seen.”
Esker and Jake Waldinger each intercepted passes for the Bulldogs.
Adkins feels good about his team – and its overall health – entering the playoffs.
“Luke (Johnson) would be the only kid out,” Adkins said, “and we get Ben (Wagner) and Mateo (Casillas) back.”
Casillas has played sparingly – less than his choice – the last two weeks.
“He’s a competitor and wants to help the team win,” Adkins said. “He doesn’t want to not be on the field.”
In some regards, the 2022 M-S team is similar to its 2021 counterpart.
“Scheme-wise, it’s the same offense and the same defense,” Adkins said. “The major difference is the experience.
“These kids have been there before. Last year, it was new and everyone was still in the ‘honeymoon phase.’
“Last year set the standard. That’s what our expectation is and will be because of that class.”
In Ottawa, the Bulldogs will see a reflection of themselves.
“Formationally, they do things similar to us,” Adkins said. “They have nice athletes and size up front.
“They play in a tough conference (Interstate 8) and week-in and week-out, have had to battle. Football is special because you have to earn the right to be there n(in the postseason).
“Everybody in the playoffs has earned it, but I love our kids’ chances.”
