Jonathan FernandezSioux Falls Argus Leader
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In the days leading up to the Dakota Bowl matchup between O’Gorman and Harrisburg, you could find pictures of last year's SDHSAA Class 11AAA state semifinal scoreboard in the Tigers' locker room.
“O’Gorman 49, Harrisburg 34,” the photo read, almost taunting the Tigers ahead of their season opener.
“We all took that game last year to heart,” Harrisburg senior quarterback Sam Knuth said. “This game right here, we marked on our calendars. This was a big one we kind of circled.”
With emotions and nerves at a high, the Tigers earned their redemption the hard way, blanking O’Gorman 14-0 in a defensive showdown Saturday night. Both sides came up with key stops at varying points of the game, including a goal-line stop by Harrisburg in the fourth quarter to keep the Knights off of the scoreboard.
“I was impressed, you know, three weeks of prep, not knowing what they're going to do because of the personnel they have … it was a feeling-out first half and we expected that,” Harrisburg football coach Brandon White said postgame.
Senior Braeden Feeldy led the Tigers on defense with 10 tackles while Aiden Costain pitched in with seven. Harrisburg also recorded two interceptions.
Here are some takeaways from Saturday’s Dakota Bowl.
Harrisburg football coach Brandon White’s 100th win
After the Tigers secured their first win of the season, the Harrisburg student section, all dressed in Tiger-print clothing for the game, cheered while each student held a white piece of paper with the number 100 on it in celebration of their team's win.
White’s wife was the mastermind behind the students holding the papers, which was their way of honoring him for reaching his 100th career win as head coach at Harrisburg.
“It's been fun. It doesn't feel like work,” White, who said he's been at Harrisburg for 15 years, said postgame. “You have a group of kids, year-in year-out that you kind of absorb as your family. Every year you get that new group, and you get those people that are able to really give you a lot of support on the sidelines.
“Sometimes we come to practice as coaches and we've had a bad day in the classroom, but when we have kids and football teams that we can come together and get to practice for a couple hours a day, it's pretty cool.”
Knuth played a significant role in securing the win for the Tigers Saturday night and has been a part of his fair share of White’s wins.
“It means everything,” Knuth said of being there for White's moment. “Day in, day out he gives everything for us, and it just means the world to get him his 100th win out here, and he deserves it more than any coach I've ever met in my life.”
Harrisburg has the potential to boast an explosive offense, even if they didn't show it in this game
The Tigers have all the key components to be extremely dangerous offensively. Knuth is a Division I caliber quarterback, junior running back Josiah Heinz is the top player in his class at his position in the state, and Braeden Feeldy is one of the top receivers in the state. It didn’t all click in game one, but we definitely saw flashes.
Knuth and Feeldy connected a few times for big gains, including on a 24-yard touchdown pass to give the Tigers their first touchdown of the game.
“‘They've got a good chemistry. They've played together for so long,” White said of the quarterback-wide receiver connection between Knuth and Feeldy. “They just know where each other's at on the field. Sam (Knuth) in the pocket, moving out of the pocket, and Braeden (Feeldy) can keep his eyes on him.”
Knuth completed seven of his 15 passes for 132 yards while Feeldy ended the game with a game-high 70 receiving yards on just five receptions.
Heinz was responsible for Harrisburg’s other touchdown, a 14-yard run into the end zone to double the Tigers’ lead. He broke free for a few bigruns throughout the game, including one for 25 yards, and ended the game with a game-high 122 rushing yards on 21 carries.
Once this Harrisburg team can be consistent in diversifying the run with the pass and Knuth gets more comfortable with all his weapons, this offense could be the best in the state.
“We have unlimited talent,” Heinz said of the offense postgame. “There’s no ceiling for what we can do this season.”
O’Gorman is going to have to rely on Sullivan Schlimgen … a lot
The O’Gorman senior was everywhere on Saturday night. Although Schlimgen has excelled on defense and is committed to play linebacker at South Dakota State next season, this Knights team will likely need him to do much more than deliver all-state performances on defense after the amount of offensive production they lost to graduation.
In addition to having four tackles, Schlimgen also rushed for 22 yards on six attempts and had 31 receiving yards on four receptions, including a 17-yard gain on one catch. He rankedsecond on the team in both rushing and receiving yards. The Knights willlikely have to continue to lean on the 6-foot-2, 220-pound two-way player more and more as their younger players acclimate to new roles.
What’s next
Harrisburg will host Sioux Falls Washington for the Tiger Bowl on Saturday, Sep. 7 at 6 p.m. O’Gorman will face reigning 11AAA state champions Lincoln at home on Friday, Sep. 6 at 6 p.m.
Jonathan Fernandez covers high school and college sports for the Argus Leader. Contact him atjfernandez1@argusleader.com. Follow him on Twitter at@JFERN31
