Both teams loaded the box with as many as nine defenders near the line of scrimmage trying to take away as many running lanes as possible.
It came down to which team executed better against the overloaded fronts and the host Ludlow Panthers did it in a 20-7 win over the Bishop Brossart Mustangs at James Rigney Memorial Stadium. The win puts the Panthers in first place in the four-team Class 1A, District 4 race after both won their district openers last week.
The Panthers (5-3) won their fourth straight, outrushing Bishop Brossart, 158-73.
Ludlow sophomore Dameyn Anness finished near his rushing average per game with 96 yards and a touchdown to go with three catches for 30 yards and a touchdown.
“We used a different formation in the second half,” said Woody McMillen, Ludlow head coach. “That allowed Dameyn to get in there and bounce outside. He was patient all night. But we also had other guys make big runs. It was a big game for us.”
The other side, Ludlow held Brossart (3-5) junior Cameron Mandel to just 50 yards on 14 carries after he came in averaging just under 75 yards per game. The Panthers also held junior quarterback Keegan Gulley to minus-7 yards rushing after Gulley ran for 78 yards and two touchdowns in the win over Holy Cross last week.
“He’s a hard runner,” Ludlow junior linebacker Matt Brock said of Mandel. “Everyone just flew to the ball. One guy would grab him and if he missed, there was another one right there to hit him and wrap him up. We were just all over him across the board.”
Both teams tried to make some things happen with passes in the flats, but while Ludlow broke some plays, the Panthers swarmed to the ball quickly on defense.
Jackson Mays got some things going in the passing game for Ludlow, completing 8-of-14 passes for 94 yards and two touchdowns while the Mustangs threw for just 23 yards.
The defenses dominated the first half, combining to allow just seven first downs. But the game’s lone turnover turned into a 7-0 halftime lead the Panthers did not relinquish. Junior defensive back Byron Conley picked off Gulley and returned the ball to the Brossart 36. Several plays later, Mays found Anness in the flat and he took it 29 yards for the touchdown with 10:57 left in the half.
“We never came out with physicality,” said Paul Wiggins, Bishop Brossart head coach. “We got our tails handed to us in the first half. They got too content with how we played last week, which we played well last week. But you have to carry it to the next week and we didn’t do that. Ludlow came in here like they wanted to win a district and for all intents and purposes, they put themselves on a path to do it.”
Both teams scored on their opening drives of the second half. Anness broke free down the left sideline on the third play of the possession for a 43-yard touchdown run and Brooklynn Huff added her second point-after touchdown kick to put Ludlow up 14-7 just 81 seconds into the half.
“I feel like it really comes down to effort and our pulling on the plays,” said Kaleb Durain, Ludlow lineman. “That’s a big strength for (Anness) and it’s a big strength for us because we have good pull set. He needs to read it better. But I always feel like he’s there and he gets those big yards that we need.”
Brossart responded with a long and sustained drive of its own as Gulley returned after going out with an injury in the first quarter and ultimately had to be helped off the field late in the game. Gulley found Alex Amin on the left side for a 17-yard touchdown to cut the lead to 14-7 with 6:19 left in the third quarter.
Miles Garrett returned the ensuing kickoff down to the Brossart 5. On fourth down, Ludlow decided to go for it as Mays faked the toss sweep and rolled to his right. Nolan Kruse sacked Mays giving the Mustangs the ball back at their own 15.
Brossart was unable to tie things up from there, Ludlow adding a late score with 1:38 left in the contest. Mays ran to his right then fired to Spencer Brandenburg on the right side for the 17-yard touchdown on a 4th-and-6. Brandenburg finished with two catches for 33 yards and a touchdown.
“I was just wide open. They bit on (Ludlow’s leading wide receiver) Ethan Powell,” Brandenburg said. “I had to make an adjustment for the play. But I caught it. Ethan helps get a lot of people open. He’s a big part of our team.”
Ludlow plays host to Holy Cross (5-3) on Friday at 7 p.m. trying to claim a district championship. Bishop Brossart travels to Trimble County (3-5) at 7:30 p.m. the same day.
PANTHERS 20, MUSTANGS 7
BISHOP BROSSART — 0-0-7-0 — 7
LUDLOW — 0-7-7-6 — 20
Scoring Plays
2nd Quarter
(L) Dameyn Anness 29-yard pass from Jackson Mays (10:57) Brooklynn Huff
3rd Quarter
(L) Anness 43-yard run (10:40) Huff kick
(B) Alex Amin 17-yard pass from Keegan Gulley (6:19) Tyler Smith kick
4th Quarter
(L) Spencer Brandenburg 27-yard pass from Mays (1:38) kick blocked
Game Stats
Passing Yards: Bishop Brossart 23 (Gulley 4/7, Holtz 4/6), Ludlow 94 (Mays 8/14)
Rushing Yards: Bishop Brossart 73 (Mandel 14-50, Schroeder 5-18, Kitt 1-6, Holtz 2-5, Geyer 2-1, Gulley 4-(-7), Ludlow 158 (Anness 16-96, Brandenburg 3-19, Garrett 5-17, Ralston 4-17, Smith-Baxley 3-15, Powell 2-4, Mays 3-(-10)
Receiving: Bishop Brossart 23 (Amin 1-17, Schroeder 1-6, Schuck 2-6, Geiman 1-(-1), Mandel 3-(-5), Ludlow 94 (Brandenburg 2-33, Powell 3-31, Anness 3-30)
Turnovers: Bishop Brossart 1, Ludlow 0
Penalties: Bishop Brossart 1-5, Ludlow 4-12
Records: Bishop Brossart 3-5, Ludlow 5-3
