Huskies’ offense hums in 41-14 win

For the second consecutive week, Owatonna’s offense was firing on all cylinders to secure a 41-14 win over New Prague and play spoiler to the Trojans’ homecoming night.

The Huskies went to work immediately building a lead by opening the game with a three-and-out stop in New Prague territory that set up a quick 67-yard scoring drive.

Owatonna handed the ball off to Kade Hullopeter twice for four total yards to begin their opening possession before quarterback Aedan Tackmann and wide receiver Cooper Routh made magic happen on third down.

Routh lined up out wide against soft, single-high coverage and found the gap between the cornerback and free safety on a post route where Tackmann hit him in stride crossing the middle of the field for the 53-yard touchdown.

Owatonna opted for some trickery on the extra point attempt lining up in the swinging gate formation but failed to convert on an option rush play led by Nolan Rolloff and Hullopeter.

After another five-play stop on defense, Owatonna went back to work putting together a 63-yard scoring drive.

A couple of chunk plays in the passing game eventually set up a 27-yard passing touchdown from quarterback Aedan Tackmann to wide receiver Nolan Johnson on a quick, bubble-screen route.

Johnson caught the pass, made a move and found himself free down the Trojans’ sideline to give the Huskies their two-score lead.

This time Owatonna opted for the extra-point attempt and knocked it through to lead 13-0 in the first quarter.

The Huskies forced another quick stop on the Trojans’ next possession and threatened to score by getting the ball to the New Prague 21-yard line, but an errant snap over Tackmann’s head resulted in a fumble recovery turnover that gave the opposition possession on its own 36-yard line.

New Prague fed off of its momentum, and after being stopped for a two-yard gain on first down, the Trojans struck for a 62-yard rushing touchdown.

New Prague’s quarterback took a zone rush from shotgun and found space up the middle before breaking free into the secondary, bouncing the ball out to the Trojans’ sideline and running untouched into the endzone.

The Trojans tacked on the extra point to trail 13-7 with most of the second quarter left to play.

New Prague’s crowd was loud and rowdy during the ensuing kickoff, but Owatonna was not fazed staring at the Trojans’ endzone from 71 yards away.

In just eight plays, the Huskies moved the ball 66 yards downfield before earning a first-and-goal opportunity from the Trojans’ five-yard line.

The Huskies lined up in a power-I formation with Zach Roesner in at fullback and handed the ball off to the bruising back right up the middle for the touchdown.

Owatonna added the point after and held its 20-7 lead into halftime.

Both sides traded defensive stops to open the third quarter, but Owatonna broke through first again to open the scoring on their second possession of the second half.

An interception by Routh on a deep pass down the home sideline set up Owatonna up a the Trojans’ 48-yard line and nine plays later, Tackmann found Johnson again on an 11-yard passing touchdown.

This time, Johnson lined up in the slot and beat the man coverage on a corner route to collect a perfect throw from Tackmann into the back corner of the endzone.

Owatonna converted the extra point afterward to lead 27-7 halfway through the third.

Neither side scored again for the remainder of the quarter, but New Prague struck quickly to open the final 12 minutes.

Once again, it was an explosive play that did the Huskies’ defense in for points.

The Trojans had possession at their own 19-yard line when another quarterback keeper found the edge and went 81 yards for the opposition’s second score.

The touchdown breathed some life into the Trojans’ faithful, but the newfound momentum quickly died.

Owatonna successfully recovered the onside kick and flew down the short field thanks to a 37-yard passing play from Tackmann to wide receiver Lucas Ginskey that set the team up at New Prague’s two-yard line.

Hullopeter had his number called for the short-yardage opportunity and powered his way into the endzone for the touchdown to put Owatonna up 34-14.

The play effectively sealed Owatonna’s win, but the offensive fireworks weren’t finished for the Huskies’ offense.

Late in the fourth with some starters resting due to the blowout, backup quarterback Arik Tackmann made the best throw of his career to date on a fade route to Ginksey that went 74 yards down the Huskies’ sideline for the team’s final touchdown of the game.

The score put Owatonna up 41-14, where the game would eventually end.

The win pushed Williams’ team to 3-1 overall and 2-0 in conference play to tie the team with Northfield for the top spot in the Northstar – South-Maroon Division.

Up next for Owatonna is a home game against Rochester John Marshall on Friday, Oct. 2 at 7 p.m.

Player Stats

Owatonna

Passing

#7 Aedan Tackmann – 12/15 211 yards 3 TD; #13 Arik Tackmann – 1/1 74 yards 1 TD

Rushing

#21 Kade Hullopeter – 23 att. 109 yards 1 TD; #22 Carson Bock – 5 att. 25 yards; #26 Zach Roesner – 4 att. 23 yards 1 TD; #28 Will Frantesl – 1 att. 5 yards; #7 Aedan Tackmann – 1 att. 3 yards; #13 Arik Tackmann – 3 att. 0 yards; #20 Lance Wagner – 2 att. 1 yard

Receiving

#3 Lucas Ginskey – 2 rec. 109 yards 1 TD; #9 Nolan Johnson – 3 rec. 62 yards 2 TD; #1 Cooper Routh – 1 rec. 53 yards 1 TD; #8 Lee Smith – 4 rec. 42 yards; #88 Ashton Wilkemeyer – 1 rec. 13 yards; #84 Jordan Gleason – 1 rec. 4 yards; #21 Hullopeter – 1 rec. 2 yards