Burwell smothers Arcadia/Loup City in Class D-1 Quarterfinal.

Burwell All-State candidates Jase Williams (L/#20) and Weston Svoboda (R/#68) led the Longhorns to a 43-8 win over Arcadia/Loup City in a Class D-1 Quarterfinal game Tuesday night. *(photo by Jennifer Svoboda)

ARCADIA, NE-

There’s a reason why the Burwell Longhorns have played in two of the last three Class D-1 state championship games at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln. Well actually there is more than one, and Arcadia/Loup City found that out Tuesday night when the undefeated Longhorns came to town and waltzed away with a dominating 43-8 win.

Other than giving up a shortened field, 1st quarter touchdown to the Rebels, the Longhorns played like a Tom Osborne Husker championship team of the ‘80’s with their ground and pound offense and suffocating, demoralizing defensive game.

Trailing 8-0 after one stanza, Burwell super-coach Luke Gideon, who appears to have nearly every boy in school out for football, sent his troops into full search and destroy mode, sucking the life out of a fine Arcadia/Loup City squad, one quarter at a time.

The Longhorns, who did not ride the powerful legs of two-time, 1000 yard rusher Jase Williams at the beginning, really turned the punishing 185 pound junior loose in the 2nd half. Despite only running for 30 first half yards, Williams still managed to score two 2nd quarter, short blast touchdowns, led by the brutal blocking of All-State candidate Weston Svoboda and his front line compadres.

It seems strange to say that the turning point in this football game came on a defensive touchdown play that gave Burwell it’s initial lead of the contest at 15-8, with most of the 2nd quarter remaining. But you could feel the ever difficult to define term “momentum” shift, when solid-as-a-rock Longhorn defensive end Joshua Urbanovsky read the eyes of Rebel quarterback Jaden Jones, picked off his pass and raced 27 yards down the Arcadia/Loup City sidelines for a Pick 6.

When Jase Williams picked up his 2nd touchdown of the game with 49 seconds left in the 2nd quarter, you still felt like the Rebels were in the game, considering “Big Mo” can flip sides, especially when you have a coach like Mike Scott, a 1,682 yard running back in Caden Kusek, and a tackling machine like Arcadia/Loup City’s Tucker Quinn, who has administered a 171 Excedrin headache crunches, thus far in 2018.

Still trailing only 21-8 entering the third quarter, the Rebels thwarted Burwell’s opening drive of the 2nd half, but could get nothing going offensively on their initial possession.

It was after burly Rebels fullback Jared Larchick sent a booming punt down to the Longhorn 14 yard line, that Luke Gideon’s troops decided to apply the knockout punch. That punch came in the form of a five minute, 9 second, life draining,11-play drive that culminated with a 4 yard Jase Williams TD scamper, his third of the night.

Williams added his fourth tally of the night when he skipped in from the 4 yard line for the touchdown.

Now…...I will have to explain what occurred on the play prior to Mr. Williams 4 yard TD. Jase powered his way for a 6 yard gain and Luke Gideon must have liked what he saw because he called the same play on a 3rd and three from the Arcadia/Loup City 32 yard line.

Nifty Burwell quarterback Sage Konicek pitched the ball to Williams, the Longhorn O-Line sealed off the right side, and Jase then broke a nice run to the A/LC 5 yard line, scoring 2 plays later.

The ‘Horns added one more score in the game, setting the running clock in motion with 2:21 left when freshman speed merchant Caleb Busch flashed some blazing wheels, darting 23 yards for the final Burwell score. The 170 pound Busch had previously ripped of gains of 18 and 7 yards prior to the TD sprint.

Reserve quarterback Barak Birch found a wide-open, all by his lonesome, Mason Plock for the double PAT to make it 43-8.

Just an observation on my part. This Burwell team may be one of the most football intelligent teams I have seen in quite a while. I overheard Josh Urbanovsky telling Grand Island Independent sports writer extraordinaire Dale Miller, that he studied film all week on Arcadia/Loup City QB Jaden Jones and knew about the pass pattern he attempted to complete when Josh stepped in and pulled off the 27 yard Pick 6.

You just do not see that kind of thing consistently at the high school level and Burwell seems to possess that intelligence all the way across the offensive and defensive units. And…….they are also just plain, tough as nails football players.

You don’t graduate players like Tori Huffman, Victory Sikes or Cody Cassidy and just casually reload and plug in a Jase Williams. Doesn’t happen in a town the size of Burwell, but it does happen when you have a coach like Luke Gideon, that gets nearly every walking, talking male body in high school to not only play football, but to buy in to his philosophy.

The Longhorns, who improve to 11-0 on the year, advance to the D-1 semifinals and earn a home matchup with an aerial-minded North Central team, who advanced by defeating upstart Dundy County/Stratton, 50-14.

Jase Williams led the Longhorn rushing attack with 129 yards on 26 totes and 4 touchdowns. QB Sage Konicek added 64 yards on 16 carries after losing a minus 9 yards on his first three carries of the contest.

Konicek also reeled off 1st down runs of 11, 10 18 and 1 yard, in that key third quarter drive by the Longhorns.

Arcadia/Loup City was led by Caden Kusek, who ran for 59 yards on 21 touches and that lone Rebels score.

And, as for that Burwell “Killer Bees Defense”. They held Arcadia/Loup City to 135 yards rushing and just 6 of 13 passing for 35 yards on the night.

And incidentally, don’t worry too much about the Arcadia/Loup City as far as the 2019 season is concerned. They return players like RB Caden Kusek, QB Jaden Jones, FB Jared Larchick and some key linemen and should be rock solid for next year’s 2nd go-around in the 8-Man football circles.

................................................1…....2…....3......4..........F

(11-0) Burwell…………...........0…..21.......7.....15........43

(6-5) Arcadia/Loup City…......8.......0…....0..….0..........8

…………………………………………………………………………...Bur - A/LC

1st Qtr.

A/LC - Caden Kusek 5 run - (Jared Larchick run)............................0……..8...(3:24)

2nd Qtr.

Burw - Jase Williams 1 run - (Jase Williams run).............................8……..8…(8:33)

Burw - Joshua Urbanovsky 27 INT Return - (Baptiste Reuze kick).15…….8....(7:24)

Burw - Jase Williams 1 run - (kick blocked).....................................21….....8…(0:04)

3rd Qtr.

Burw - Jase Williams 5 run - (Reuze kick).......................................28….....8…(1:20)

4th Qtr.

Burw - Jase Williams 4 run - (Reuze kick).......................................35….....8…(9:32)

Burw - Caleb Busch 23 run - (Barack Birch pass to Mason Plock)..............................................................................................43….....8…(2:21)