TODD SOMMERFELDT
Coulee Sports Connection
One group of players started a slow and dejected walk to one end zone at Swanson Field, while the other ran the other direction in celebration.
Everyone on the football field was an MVC champion that night, but a big performance in a very important city game that most of those players circle on the schedule was the one they want to win the most.
Logan (7-2 overall, 5-2 MVC) was the happy side after a 27-19 victory over visiting Central (6-3, 5-2) in the final game of the regular season. The outcome was the final piece that forced a five-way tie for the conference championship and included memorable performances from Bradley Check and Jacob Hackbarth.
Check rushed for three touchdowns and completed a pass for a fourth as the Rangers won for the fourth time in five games and earned a third seed for the WIAA Division 3 playoffs and a first-round home game against sixth-seeded Waupaca.
The RiverHawks, who were tied with Holmen for first place before the final night, earned a fifth seed in Division 2 and a first-round game at Holmen (6-3).
“We called out our O-Line,” Logan coach Casey Knoble said. “We needed them to step up. We didn’t have our greatest game running the ball against Holmen (in Week 8), and they took to it.
“With the amazing defense that Central has that was important.”
Check carried the ball 37 times for 125 yards and the three scores. He also completed 6 of 10 passes for 149 yards and a 70-yard scoring strike to Hackbarth.
“Coach Knoble gave a great pregame speech about what this (game) means to not only him but the entire North side, and I think we all took that to heart.”
Check also tested his heart as Central lined up for an onside kick after Gavin Shepard’s 4-yard touchdown run with 2 minutes, 38 seconds left pulled the RiverHawks within the final margin. Check recovered the attempt and helped Logan run the clock out after taking possession.
“If you’ve been following the Logan Rangers, you know that I muffed (an onside kick) against Reedsburg, and it led to a loss,” Check said. “Internally, if it was coming to me, I was grabbing it and getting down.”
Check, who finished his regular season with 1,332 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns to go with 1,077 passing yards and 10 passing touchdowns, may have been the workhorse, but he shared star billing with Hackbarth, who made two big catches after a dislocated finger on his left hand had him on the sideline early in the game.
After determining that the finger wasn’t fractured, Hackbarth was back on the field and racing down the field during a second-and-10 snap as the Rangers faced a 13-7 deficit. Check dropped back and found Hackbarth in coverage before heaving a 39-yard pass toward him.
Hackbarth timed his jump perfectly and pulled the pass down with his right hand for a catch that produced a first down at the Central 17 and moved the ball significantly on a drive that resulted in a tying touchdown run by Check and go-ahead extra point by Hackbarth.
“We were able to patch (the finger) up and get back in,” Hackbarth said. “The coaches had trust in me. I didn’t want to use (the left hand), so I went up with the (right), came down with it and tried to take off.”
Hackbarth’s two catches covered 109 yards. The second was also on a catch in the middle of the field. He made the grab around the 50 and ran the rest of the way to give Logan a 20-13 lead in the third quarter.
Central opened the game with a 60-yard run by Shepard, who scored from the 2 on the next snap on his way to a 149-yard performance.
The RiverHawks knew that an opportunity had escaped them, and it was going to take some time for the championship – made reality by Reedsburg’s win over Holmen – to sink in.
“We just have to be tough,” Central coach Mitch Olson said of shifting focus to the postseason. “It’s easy to feel good and come to practice on Monday after a win.
“But the tough person, the tough team, responds. We will get better after this game, and I think that’s what you’ll see from us.”
