It was a bitter pill to swallow for Burnsville, but just what the doctor ordered for Eagan.
The Wildcats rolled to a 31-0 win over the Blaze on Friday night, providing a confidence boost for Eagan, but representing a big step in the wrong direction for Burnsville.
“This was a big disappointment,” Blaze coach Tyler Krebs said. “We've been getting better every day and every week, so to take a step back like this is sickening.”
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Eagan coach Rick Sutton said the game marked a first for his team.
“So far we hadn't put together all three phases on the same night, and tonight we did,” he said.
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Both coaches said there was room for improvement—a little for the Wildcats, a lot for the Blaze—in the play of their quarterbacks.
“We lost our quarterback last week, so we've got two guys who don't have a lot of experience and two guys who don't have a lot of time to learn,” Krebs said. “They've gotta grow up quick. This conference is tough, and no one is going to show any mercy on us.”
Junior Ben Baker's first pass attempt—on the second play of the second quarter—was intercepted, and he and sophomore Will Reger were a combined 0-for-7 on pass attempts.
High winds may have been a factor in the throwing difficulties of both teams Friday.
Eagan's Drew Bauer completed just one long pass, that on a blown coverage, with the bulk of his other completions coming on screen passes and check-downs.
“He struggled a little bit throwing the ball, but he has been effective making good reads in the running game,” Sutton said.
Bauer finished with 98 yards rushing and 163 yards passing.
He ran 18 yards for a score to cap Eagan's first possession. The Wildcats went 50 yards in seven plays after a Burnsville fumble gave them a short field.
The fumble started a first-half trend for the Blaze.
“We had three turnovers in the first half and you can't do that,” Krebs said. “We were down 21-0 at the half. I think we can compete with these guys, but not like that.”
The Blaze fumbled on their second possession as well, but the Wildcats failed to capitalize, missing a 28-yard field goal.
An interception ended Burnsville's next possession, and Eagan was again able to capitalize on the good field position. Bauer ran it in again, this time from 15 yards out, to make it 14-0 with 9:11 left in the first half.
The Wildcats tacked on another score less than five minutes later, this one covering 38 yards on a screen pass from Bauer to Michael Busch, and led 21-0 at the break.
After a scoreless third quarter, Colin Byers tacked on a 30-yard field goal at 5:09 of the fourth quarter.
The Wildcats defense got in on the act one play later, when Calvin Lamb disrupted a handoff attempt by Reger and returned it 25 yards for a score.
Eagan (3-4) entered the night tied for the fifth position in the Section 4AAAAA points standings, but with the possibility of a first-round home game still well within reach. Of the three teams just ahead of the Wildcats coming into the night, Hastings and Minneapolis South lost, and East Ridge won by just six points over winless Park, so when the complicated points system calculations are updated, the Wildcats may well find themselves sitting in the No. 3 spot heading into the final week.
Burnsville (2-5) came into Friday play in third place in the points standings in Section 3AAAAA, and the three teams within striking distance of the Blaze all lost as well Friday, so Burnsville will likely hold onto the third position for at least another week.
