By Fred Kroner
In the final analysis, two factors were the key contributors to Mahomet-Seymour playing its final football game of a record-setting season on Saturday (Nov. 13) at Morton.
The Bulldogs’ offense did some good things.
But, just not enough.
The Bulldogs’ defense kept the turnover battle even and did some good things.
But, not nearly enough.
That combination resulted in Morton ousting an unbeaten team from the IHSA Class 5A playoffs for the second week in a row, topping M-S 40-28 at Carper Field.
M-S ends its best season in 16 years with an 11-1 overall record. Morton takes a 10-2 record into a state semifinal game against – you guessed it – their third undefeated opponent in a row, at Kankakee.
Saturday’s game, which kicked off in the early afternoon with temperatures in the upper 30s and winds about 15 mph, was billed as a showdown between the state’s No. 1 rusher in 2021 (Morton senior Seth Glatz) and the state’s No. 1 passer in 2021 (M-S junior Wyatt Bohm).
Though Bohm passed for 166 yards – his 12th consecutive game with at least 150 yards – his completion percentage was under 50 percent for the first time all season (15 of 34).
Glatz, meanwhile, was a one-person wrecking crew, running around and through the M-S defense for 392 yards and six touchdowns on 46 carries.
For comparison, only one of the first 11 teams the Bulldogs played this fall gained as many yards overall and that school ended with 395.
M-S coach Jon Adkins gave credit where credit was due.
“He is a special high school football player,” Adkins said. “I’m not sure I’ve seen a running back like him my entire career (15 years in coaching).
“He is their whole team. We game-planned for it, but he makes things happen, and broke tackles. To get the ball that many times and have the impact he had on both sides of the ball is impressive.”
With his performance, Glatz surged past the 3,000-yard mark for season rushing and raised his touchdown total to 45.
Adkins is proud of the players he took into battle.
“I absolutely think we are the better team,” he said. “They have one hero, and their hero showed up.
“I’d love to have another opportunity at them.”
Ironically, the Bulldogs will get another chance at Morton’s Potters. They just have to wait.
The schools will be first-game opponents when the 2022 football season kicks off on Aug. 26. The opener is listed as a home game on the M-S website.
“Our kids will want to get some revenge,” Adkins said.
Quenton Rogers supplied the Bulldogs with an offensive spark in the quarterfinals.
Morton scored the game’s first touchdown, but Rogers returned the ensuing kickoff 83 yards for a touchdown.
Early in the second period, Mitchell Gallier’s 11-yard scoring run – followed by his two-point conversion – lifted the Bulldogs into a 14-7 lead.
Morton tacked on two more TDs before halftime and took a 21-14 lead into the locker room for the break.
The Potters threatened to pull away, raising their lead to 27-14 in the third quarter.
Bohm then hooked up with Rogers on a 33-yard scoring strike, which was the quarterback’s 27th TD toss of the year.
Walmer’s placement trimmed the M-S deficit to 27-21.
Morton again built a two-TD advantage, surging into a 33-21 lead before Rogers stepped in once again.
For the fourth time this season – and the second time in the game – Rogers raced to the end zone with a kickoff, cutting the Morton lead to 33-28.
“Any time he gets the ball, he’ll make something happen,” Adkins said. “He is a great football player.”
Glatz scored his final TD with 6 minutes and 17 seconds left in the game, creating the final score.
Adkins said the weather conditions contributed to the Bulldogs’ inability to pull off the comeback, though he acknowledged, “Morton played very well on both sides of the ball.
“When you have a passing quarterback, and there is wind involved, it is never ideal. For a team like them, who throws one time (in the entire game), it is not as big of a factor.”
The Bulldogs forced one fumble (recovered by Jack Gallier) and kept their penalties to a minimum (two).
While it was a relatively clean game from those aspects, Adkins took note of other mistakes.
“It was more along the lines of assignment and responsibility mistakes,” he said. “They were little things, like a tackle in the backfield, but we let him slip out and gain 2 or 3 yards and a first down.
“We felt there were a couple of calls we didn’t get, but they didn’t necessarily determine the outcome. We didn’t execute as well as we could have or should have.”
Rather than the negatives, Adkins preferred to dwell on the positives.
“It has definitely been a fun ride,” he said. “What an incredible season we had. Our kids met expectations and continued to get better each and every week.
“In the time of COVID and the political climate and how people choose sides, these kids brought the community together and broke records left and right.
“It was a special season. Our seniors – all 11 of them – were incredible leaders. I’m sad to see them go. I can’t wait for these kids to get the opportunity to relive the history they made.”
Among the players who broke single-season school records or moved into prominent positions on the all-time leaders’ list are:
–Bohm set M-S records for passing yardage (3,171 yards), completions (184) and touchdown passes (27) as well as the most games in a season with 150, or more, passing yards (12) and also the best per-game passing average (264.3 yards per game);
–Rogers broke the record for receiving yards in a season (1,255) and kickoff returns for TDs in a season (four). He also ranks second for the number of receptions in a season (58) with teammate Dream Eagle claiming the third-best single-season total (54) this year;
–Rogers and Eagle established the school record for most combined receiving yards for two receivers in a season (2,088). The previous record of 2,032 yards was set in 2014 by Tom Kenney and Andy Livingston. Eagle’s 833 receiving yards is sixth on the one-season charts;
–Walmer ranks third for the most extra-point kicks in a season (48) and with 73 in his two-year varsity career is in line to be the second M-S athlete to eclipse the 100-point mark;
–The M-S team compiled a school-record 4,709 total yards along with the highest per-game yardage average of 392.4. Other team marks included points in a season (474), scoring average per game (39.5) and consecutive wins in a season (11, tied for first with 2004 and 2005 teams).
Bohm (single-season passing) and Rogers (single-season receiving) also rank among the all-time IHSA leaders. The IHSA charts the top 20 all-time. Both Bohm and Rogers are fewer than 200 yards behind the player listed as No. 20 and estimates are that they would be somewhere among the state’s top 40.
Rogers made a splash, however, in the IHSA record book as a return specialist.
His 530 yards for the season on kickoff returns will rank 14th all-time once it is submitted to the IHSA. The 195 yards he gained on kickoff returns in the season finale will place him 11th on the single-season list. The two kickoff returns for TDs against Morton put Rogers in a tie for third on the single-game list and his four scoring returns for the season on kickoffs will find him in a fifth-place tie.
In a separate listing for playoff games only, Rogers established two new marks in Class 5A. His 195 yards on kickoff returns against the Potters is the best ever postseason performance in 5A. His two returns for TDs in the game ties the all-time Class 5A playoff standard.
In the finale, the Bulldogs were held to their fewest total yards this year (221 yards). Nolan Nierenhauser (28 yards) and Mitch Gallier (19 yards) were the top rushers. Rogers (99 yards) and Eagle (38 yards) were the receiving leaders.
With Morton holding an edge on time of possession (29 minutes to 19 minutes for the Bulldogs), the M-S defense piled up huge tackling totals.
Three players reached double figures in tackling and two others were close behind. The leaders: Jack Gallier (12), Nick Golden (10), Logan Petro (10), Mitch Gallier (9) and Mateo Casillas (8). Braden Houchin had six stops and teammates Ashton Heiser and Hayden Marxmiller each finished with five tackles at Morton.
The defense will retain three of its top five season tackling leaders (Golden, Jack Gallier and Casillas) with the graduation losses Mitch Galllier and Heiser.
Offensively, Bohm returns along with two of the top three receivers (Rogers and Valient Walsh). Eagle is the senior among the leaders in the receiving corps.
Rushing leader Luke Johnson – who missed the final six games with an injury – headlines the group of top returning runners along with Rogers. Nierenhauser is the only one of the top three rushers who will graduate.
Adkins had a message for the underclassmen before they left the football field on Saturday afternoon.
“I challenged them,” he said. “I said, ‘Don’t forget this moment. Use this to fuel you to come back and get over the hump and to the semifinals.’”
