Nuggets golden in MN 2A football state quarterfinal win over Gobblers

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

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The North’s No. 4-seeded Hawley Nuggets answered Aitkin’s opening-possession score and then sprinted to 483 yards of offense and held the No. 1-seeded and third-ranked Gobblers to just 68 rushing yards for a 36-6 upset victory in the Minnesota Class 2A football state quarterfinals Thursday, Nov. 12, at Brainerd High School.

Hawley’s Charles Steer led the Nuggets with 148 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries. Steer’s first score handed Hawley an 8-6 first-quarter lead as he added the two-point conversion after a 4-yard TD run.

The Nuggets’ third possession was a five-play, 47-yard drive starting with a Grant Slominski interception and finishing with an Anderson Brager 6-yard TD run.

“We hit some big plays on offense and picked off the ball,” Hawley head coach Nathan Brager said. “The thing about our offense is we have so many guys who can make plays. If you decide you’re going to take away a Charlie Steer, we have a Parker Stotts. If you’re going to take away Parker Stotts, then we’ve got a Linkoln Midthun. We just keep rolling out kids. We felt that our tempo wears teams out. Nobody does it around here anymore, so it’s to our advantage and it really works.”

Key: The Nuggets racked up 483 yards of offense and held Aitkin to 68 rushing yards Overall: A 9-1, H 9-2 Next: Hawley vs. Caledonia, in Class 2A State Semifinals, 4:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 20, at US Bank Stadium, Minneapolis.

Hawley recovered an onside kick and marched to the Aitkin 1. The Gobblers’ defense held and forced a turnover on downs, but the Nuggets then tackled Aitkin senior running back Parker Fulton in the end zone for a safety.

Steer then scored on a 1-yard run on Hawley’s next possession for a 22-6 halftime lead.

“Hawley was fast,” Aitkin head coach Alan Hills said. “They were athletic and physical. They are going to be a problem for whoever has them next. We get film and all of the things, but the speed doesn’t translate on film. They were extremely fast. Steer is a heck of a ball player, but they have ball players all over the field. They’re a really talented group. We thought we had a plan for them, but we weren’t fast enough.”

A 51-yard Bo Sanford pass to Nolan Dotzler was the Gobblers' first-half highlight. It opened the scoring at 8:54 of the first quarter. Hawley held Aitkin to 171 yards of offense on 46 plays. Hawley ran 70 plays thanks to the onside kick and two interceptions. It also held Aitkin to just three second-half first downs.

"To be honest, we didn’t know if teams brought the physicality against them like we knew we could,” Brager said. “We played teams like Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton, Barnesville, Perham and even Warroad. We felt like we were prepared to take on their offense. We’ve done it before.”

Hawley opened the second half with a two-play drive capped by Parker Stotts’ 42-yard touchdown catch from Hudson Midthun. The Nuggets quarterback finished 6 of 10 for 166 yards.

“We came out and felt like we had a pretty good game plan and you really have to tip your hat to Hawley,” Hills said. “They beat us pretty much in every facet of the game tonight. ... We started with a great start and then it snowballed on us.”

The Nuggets went into ball-control mode the rest of the second half. On their third possession, Colton Klages capped an 11-play drive with a 1-yard plunge and the final score.

Hawley will play South No. 1-seeded Caledonia in the Class 2A State Semifinals Friday, Nov. 20, at US Bank Stadium. Caledonia defeated Cannon Falls 63-12.

“Coming into this season, I told them I thought we were a state-caliber team,” Brager said. “The speech tonight was not just about getting to state, but making a run in state. Any team that walks in front of us, we’re going to try and go at them and try and win the football game.”

The Gobblers finish their first state-qualifying season since 1982 with a 9-1 record.

“I couldn’t be more proud of this crew,” Hills said. “They made history this year multiple times."

• Hawley 8 14 14 0—36
• Aitkin 6 0 0 0— 6
• A—Nolan Dotzler 51 pass from Bo Sanford (pass failed)
• H—Charles Steer 4 run (Steer run)
• H—Anderson Brager 6 run (run failed)
• H—Safety
• H—Steer 1 run (run failed)
• H—Parker Stotts 42 pass from Hudson Midthun (pass failed)
• H—Colton Klages 1 run (Steer)
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Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

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• Jeremy Millsop

Covering the Brainerd lakes area sports scene for the past 23 years.

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