photo by: Kahner Sampson/Special to the Journal-World

Free State running back Maddon Brittingham stays in bounds for a first down during the Firebirds' playoff game against Olathe East on Friday, Oct. 31, 2025, at Free State High School in Lawrence.

Headline: Brittingham’s historic performance catapults Free State to shootout 61-47 win over Olathe East

Free State’s Maddon Brittingham was having too much fun with his teammates to recognize that he had put together a historic performance.

But the junior running back soon found out that his seven touchdowns had surpassed the Free State school record set in 1999, as the Firebirds defeated 11th-seeded Olathe East, 61-47, on Friday night.

“That’s awesome, to be able to put my name on something in the school is just bigger to me,” Brittingham said. “With all my family that’s come through Free State, it’s just special to me.”

Brittingham nearly set a second school record, rushing for 283 yards on 21 carries in the win.

“He just plays his butt off,” head coach Kevin Stewart said. “He works hard, he’s had a really good season, and it’s been a grind for him, so special to have him out there tonight, having a great game.”

Quarterback Finn Moore quietly put together an impressive game as well, rushing for 218 yards on his own and throwing for 119 yards, along with two touchdowns, one rushing and one throwing.

“Finn played awesome,” Stewart said. “We wanted to spread the ball out a little bit more and throw the ball, and he made some nice passes early and did what we wanted him to do.”

In total, the Firebirds tallied 620 yards on offense and scored on nine of their 10 drives, with the one empty possession coming on a Hail Mary attempt at the end of the first half.

Free State got out to a 21-0 lead early thanks to touchdowns of 19 and five yards by Brittingham, and a 35-yard completion on fourth-and-8 from Moore to Ethan Prescott.

The Hawks scored for the first time on their third drive after an 8-yard run by Milo Burton before the Firebirds quickly responded. Brittingham found open space and gained 50 yards on a run, then scored for the third time a few plays later from four yards away.

Burton scored for the second time on the first play of the Olathe East drive, as a facemask penalty on the kickoff resulted in a 42-yard scamper for a touchdown.

Burton finished the game with 357 total yards, including 147 rushing yards, and had a total of six touchdowns of his own.

“Just give him credit, he’s a good athlete,” Stewart said. “He was more athletic than everybody on our team, and you could see that. It was frustrating on defense, but, you know, kid made some good plays.”

Brittingham cashed in for the fourth time of the first half on a 55-yard carry after the drive started at the 17-yard line. The Hawks only needed three plays to get the points back, as Burton connected with Gavin Otto, who bobbled the ball and ultimately secured it, making a few shifty moves on his way for a 41-yard pitch-and-catch score.

With 2:20 remaining in the half, the Firebirds took 2:08 off the clock with a 65-yard scoring drive. Moore completed a pass to freshman Packson McDaniel for 30 yards, then the two paired up once again for an 8-yard play.

McDaniel, who has earned the confidence of his coaches over the past few weeks, finished the game with 52 yards on four catches, all coming in the first half.

“It’s crazy, he’s so confident in himself, and he’s just a really good athlete,” Moore said. “Anytime he touches the ball, good things are going to happen.”

Moore and Brittingham each ran for gains of 12 and 10 yards respectively, before a Moore touchdown run from the 2-yard line made it a 41-20 score at halftime.

The tandem of Moore and Brittingham rushed for 305 yards combined in the first half, with Brittingham recording 161 yards on 11 carries and Moore scrambling for 144 yards to go along with 105 yards on 7-for-10 passing.

Each team scored on its first two drives of the second half, as Brittingham notched touchdowns number five and six, with the latter being the record breaker to give the Firebirds a 54-34 lead with 9:12 remaining.

“My team is so great,” Brittingham said. “They’re just putting their heart out there blocking. I couldn’t do any of this without them, so they were just building the way for me, and it was amazing.”

Burton answered with a 62-yard touchdown run, breaking tackles and cutting across the field before diving into the end zone.

Brittingham scored his seventh and final touchdown of the night from four yards out before Olathe East capped off the scoring with 25 seconds remaining after a 30-yard heave from Burton to Desmond Washington.

The Firebirds will be on the road next week, visiting No. 3-seeded Shawnee Mission Northwest. The Cougars defeated Lawrence, 50-40, on Thursday night.

“A lot of the same on offense,” Moore said on what it’s going to take to get wins moving forward. “We’ve got a lot to clean up on defense from tonight. We’re going to see the same thing we saw tonight next week, so we just got to figure out what we did wrong and fix it.”

Box score

FS 21 20 6 14 – 61

OE 0 20 14 13 – 47

How they scored

First quarter

9:06 – Maddon Brittingham 19-yard run. Micah Jones PAT good. FS 7, OE 0

5:18 – Brittingham 5-yard run. Jones PAT good. FS 14, OE 0

0:04 – Ethan Prescott 35-yard pass from Finn Moore. Jones PAT good. FS 21, OE 0

Second quarter

8:45 – Milo Burton 8-yard run. Miles Smith PAT good. FS 21, OE 7

6:30 – Brittingham 4-yard run. Jones PAT good. FS 28, OE 14

6:13 – Burton 42-yard run. Smith PAT blocked. FS 28, OE 13

3:46 – Brittingham 55-yard run. Jones PAT good. FS 35, OE 13

2:20 – Gavin Otto 41-yard catch from Burton. Smith PAT good. FS 35, OE 20

0:13 – Moore 2-yard run. Jones PAT blocked. FS 41, OE 20

Third quarter

9:08 – Jaden Scott 24-yard run. Smith PAT good. FS 41, OE 27

8:47 – Brittingham 76-yard run. 2-Point conversion no good. FS 47, OE 27

5:26 – Desmond Washington 23-yard pass from Burton. Smith PAT good. FS 47, OE 34

Fourth quarter

9:12 – Brittingham 6-yard run. Jones PAT good. FS 54, OE 34

8:04 – Burton 62-yard run. Smith PAT no good. FS 54, OE 40

3:55 – Brittingham 4-yard run. Jones PAT good. FS 61, OE 40

0:25 – Washington 30-yard pass from Burton. FS 61, OE 47

photo by: Kahner Sampson/Special to the Journal-World

Free State receiver Packson McDaniel secures the ball before being hit by an Olathe East defender during the Firebirds’ playoff game on Friday, Oct. 31, 2025, at Free State High School in Lawrence.

photo by: Kahner Sampson/Special to the Journal-World

Free State receiver Packson McDaniel charges down the field for a big gain during the Firebirds’ playoff game against Olathe East on Friday, Oct. 31, 2025, at Free State High School in Lawrence.

photo by: Kahner Sampson/Special to the Journal-World

Free State running back Maddon Brittingham powers his way into the end zone for a touchdown during the Firebirds’ playoff game against Olathe East on Friday, Oct. 31, 2025, at Free State High School in Lawrence.

photo by: Kahner Sampson/Special to the Journal-World

Free State running back Maddon Brittingham (left) receives a timely pitch from quarterback Finn Moore during the Firebirds’ playoff game against Olathe East on Friday, Oct. 31, 2025, at Free State High School in Lawrence.

photo by: Kahner Sampson/Special to the Journal-World

Free State senior Ethan Prescott watches in a touchdown pass during the Firebirds’ playoff game against Olathe East on Friday, Oct. 31, 2025, at Free State High School in Lawrence.

photo by: Kahner Sampson/Special to the Journal-World

Free State linebacker Garrison Oatis celebrates after recording a sack against Olathe East during the Firebirds’ playoff game on Friday, Oct. 31, 2025, at Free State High School in Lawrence.

photo by: Kahner Sampson/Special to the Journal-World

The Firebirds storm out on to the field to take on Olathe East for their playoff game on Friday, Oct. 31, 2025, at Free State High School in Lawrence.