Blocked punts aren't commonplace for Devils Lake. But the first one of the high school football season was a big one for the Firebirds.
Chase Johnson's block led to the Firebirds' second touchdown Friday night. And that was the difference as Devils Lake beat Grand Forks Central 14-7 at Cushman Field.
"We probably get one or two a year,'' Devils Lake High School football coach Jay Schneider said. "It's not our forte. Obviously, it was a big part of this game.''
Devils Lake had taken a 6-0 lead on its first possession when Nathan Mertens hit Andrew Whalen for a 20-yard touchdown pass.
It stayed that way until late in the first half. With Central punting from its own 43, Johnson broke through for the block. Dwane Eckes recovered the ball on the 32 and returned it to the 19. Three plays later, Mertens scored on a 1-yard run for a 14-0 halftime lead.
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The block was also the first allowed by Central this season. "We gave them the short field,'' Central coach Bill Lorenz said. "That's deflating for a defense. And they took advantage of it.''
Central took advantage of a short-field situation in the third quarter. Chad Goering intercepted a tipped pass and returned it to the Firebirds' 35. Tyler Haug followed with two big runs, the first covering 20 yards and the second for a 15-yard touchdown to pull GFC within 14-7 with 10:44 left in the third quarter.
"We felt the momentum change right after that,'' Lorenz said. "But we could never get field position back.
"They ran the ball hard. And they came at us hard. They were big and physical and they flew around out there. That's one of the better defenses we've run into.''
The Knights could get no closer as Devils Lake's ground game took control. And it was sparked by sophomore reserve Austin Schall.
Austin Nelson had 87 yards rushing for the Firebirds before being sidelined in the third quarter with a shoulder injury. Schall, who had 18 yards on four carries in the first half, finished with 139 yards on 27 carries. His carries included six for first downs in the final quarter, when Devils Lake ran 21 offensive plays to the Knights' six.
"Schall has run well in junior-varsity games,'' Schneider said. "He's a wrestler -- a tough, strong kid with good balance. And he's a hard runner. He was huge for us. They knew we'd come out running, and he kept getting the yards.''
Devils Lake finished with a 326-249 advantage in total offense and had almost nine more minutes of possession time. Central's two big weapons were Haug (119 yards rushing) and the passing of Goering (7-of-18 for 103 yards).
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Devils Lake improved to 3-3 overall and 2-1 in the AAA East Region. Central dropped to 2-4 overall and 2-2 in the region.
