McCook coach Jeff Gross summed up how he and Aurora’s Randy Huebert coach football pretty well on Friday night after seventh-ranked Aurora beat the third-ranked Bison 20-19 in the final minute.
“He’s a riverboat gambler,” Gross said. “I play it pretty close to the vest. It’s worked out pretty good for both of us.”
Their two football teams treated fans to a whale of a fourth quarter on homecoming night in Aurora as the Huskies — down 19-12 — scored with 20 seconds left and then went for the game winning two-point conversion that saw quarterback Jake Kittle hit Trey Cox just over the goal line for the victory.
“What a great football game,” Huebert said. “There was no doubt if we scored that we wanted to go for two. Trey just did a heck of a job making that catch.”
The two teams almost lulled the crowd to sleep. McCook led 7-0 at the break, but Aurora had been deep in the Bison territory the whole first half with nothing to show for it. The Huskies were buoyed by a defense that forced three three-and-out’s in the third quarter and Kittle scored with 40 seconds left in third quarter.
But, the conversions. Oh, the conversions.
The Huskies went with the “water bucket” in the third quarter and a pass wide failed. 7-6, Bison. Kittle scored early in the fourth quarter for a 12-7 lead, but the same formation and pass play failed again. When McCook answered right back for a 13-12 advantage, the math said to go for two.
But, the run was stopped just short. When they scored what looked like the clincher with 2:45 left for a 19-12 lead, Gross did the right thing. After Bryce Lyons missed the extra point and was roughed, the Bison needed just over a yard or a 9-point lead. Caleb Sheets could not get it.
So, there were the Huskies. Down just seven with 2:39 left. 53 yards to pull within a point and then who knows what. Kittle ran six times in nine plays and at the Bison 2 with 22 seconds left, he hit big sophomore Austin Allen to cut the lead to one.
And, then the riverboat gambler got a stick out of his pocket and drew up a bunch set to the right, let Kittle sprint that way with multiple options and he found Cox for the win. I wonder if those kids from Aurora know who Turner Gill and Jeff Smith are?
“Coach drew that one up in the dirt,” said Kittle after passing for 227 yards and running for 160 on 32 carries. “We hadn’t worked on that play all week.”
It threw Class B into a tailspin. Blair 45, top-ranked Omaha Skutt 28. York 30, sixth-ranked Crete 28. It will be interesting to see what shakes out on Monday. But, maybe, just maybe B is a whole new ball game and Aurora and McCook might still have something to say about it.
Let’s Rewind
Omaha North is really, really, really good. Too many really’s? Nope.
Millard West wins third in a row, bounces Patriots
Westside holds off No. 3 Grand Island
Papio South runs past Lincoln Southwest
Norfolk Catholic keeps rolling
Dadgummit: Bowden a hit in Gibbon
Defense dominates HSC shutout of Doniphan-Trumbull
