Lions’ scare

LHS claims playoff spot after stifling furious FSHS rally

Nolan Kellerman said he anticipated a dogfight.

“We didn’t expect anything but a close game,” said Kellerman, a Lawrence High senior running back, “but it was a little closer than I wanted it to be.”

Lawrence High nearly frittered away a 20-point lead in the fourth quarter, but clung to a 33-28 victory over Free State in the ninth renewal of the intracity football rivalry Friday night at Memorial Stadium.

“They never stopped us,” Lawrence High coach Dirk Wedd said. “They still haven’t stopped us. We stopped ourselves.”

Lawrence High was whistled for eight penalties – five for holding – for 75 yards, but in the final analysis Free State stopped itself when it was in position to stage a stunning come-from-behind victory.

Free State was on the Lions’ 23-yard line when Ryan Murphy’s fourth-down pass sailed over the arms of leaping wide receiver Ben Bell with only 48 ticks remaining.

Two knees by Lawrence High quarterback Brian Heere ran out the clock, and the Lions escaped with their seventh victory in eight tries. The Firebirds slipped to 3-5.

More important were the Class 6A District Four implications. The victory, coupled with Washburn Rural’s 37-6 victory Friday night over Topeka High, clinched a home game for the Lions in the 6A playoffs in two weeks.

In effect, the Lions’ district finale against Topeka High will be moot because the Lions have defeated both Washburn Rural and Free State, and both have beaten Topeka High.

Free State, meanwhile, will have to knock off Rural next week to earn a playoff berth.

Lawrence High’s players, with memories of last year’s 14-12 loss to the Firebirds dancing in their heads, exploded out of the gate, scoring on their first three possessions to grab a 21-7 lead before the first quarter ended.

But then the Lions stagnated and settled for a 21-13 edge at the break.

After intermission, however, LHS put together a typical drive – a time-consuming 15-play march that culminated in a one-yard touchdown run by Kellerman and a 27-13 lead.

Then, when Free State quarterback Ryan Murphy lost the handle on a deep snap three plays after the kickoff and LHS end Brendan Halpin recovered, the Lions drove 38 yards, scoring on a one-yard plunge by Matt Stiles, for a 33-13 bulge.

Only two plays into the fourth quarter, the Firebirds appeared to be in a hopeless situation.

But then Ryan Murphy put on an aerial show – mainly homing in on wide receiver Nick Ayre, who finished with a career-high eight catches for 149 yards – the Firebirds recovered an onside kick, and momentum wore a green uniform for virtually the entire fourth quarter.

“We wanted to make sure they had to throw the ball,” Wedd said, “but I thought we’d do a better job of covering them than we did.”

The Lions entered with the Sunflower League’s best defense, but the Firebirds shredded it for 461 yards as Ryan Murphy completed 19 of 33 passes for 246 yards and two touchdowns.

But the Lions did keep Ryan and twin brother Brian Murphy in check on the ground. Brian’s longest gainer was an 18-yard run, while Ryan’s longest rush was for 15 yards.

Still, Ryan Murphy, the Sunflower League’s total offense leader, padded his stats. He rushed for 45 yards and finished the night with 291 yards of offense.

On the flip side, the Lions gained all but 10 of their 392 yards on the ground. Brandon Lassiter led the Lions with 126 yards on just five carries – all on end-arounds and all in the first half. Kellerman wound up with 125 yards on 18 carries.

For the most part, the Lions ground it out, but Lassiter had a 54-yard TD run, and Kellerman contributed a 27-yard scoring gallop.

“Give them credit,” Lawrence High senior linebacker Scott Penny said. “Free State played a heckuva game, and we shot ourselves in the foot with all those holding calls. And I had two of them.”

Free State was penalized twice for 15 yards, but was hurt by Ryan Murphy’s fumbled center snap. The Lions were turnover-free.