Four Fremont County football players took the field as high school students one last time in the 50th Annual Shrine Bowl at Harry Geldien Stadium at Casper Kelly Walsh High School.
Pehton Truempler of Shoshoni, Braden Vincent of Riverton, and Lander’s Mattise Weaver and Gabe Harris played together on the North Squad.
The South took a hard-fought 27-24 win over their rivals from the North after jumping ahead 14-0 early in the contest on a pair of gadget plays.
On the first play from scrimmage, the South went deep into the playbook with a classic “flea flicker” play.
Star Valley’s Taft McClure threw to Garet Schlabs in the flat on a short pass with Schlabs laterally the ball back to McClure.
McClure set his feet and hit Jackson Hughes of Douglas near the 50-yard line. Hughes did the rest, breaking tackles and racing into the end zone on an 85-yard scoring play. Hughes split the uprights on the ensuing kick and the South led 7-0 with barely any time off the clock.
The North marched easily on their first drive but fumbled at the four-yard line, losing the ball and ending the threat.
A defensive mistake by the North led to the South’s second score when Schlabs dropped back to punt and saw no one on the North in contain at the line of scrimmage. On the fourth-and-18 from the 12 he raced around the right end for a 20-yard gain and a first down.
A little over a minute later, Schlabs caught a 30-yard touchdown pass from Keagan Bartlett of Cheyenne Central and the South led 14-0 midway through the opening period.
It was a wake-up call for the North.
The North squad rallied on 17 unanswered points to take a 17-14 lead late in the second period.
Notre Dame bound Luke Talich of Cody was only set to play defense, but after a change of plans, he took a direct snap at the 46-yard line and raced down the sideline for the North’s first score. Matisse Weaver of Lander added the conversion point.
An interception by Preston Nichols of Lovell gave the North great field position at the 24 but the drive stalled and Weaver stepped in to hit a 40-yard field goal early in the second quarter, cutting the South lead to 14-10.
The North defense forced a punt and set up their best drive of the game to take a 17-14 lead.
The 10-play drive ended with Blake Bell of Buffalo catching a 16-yard touchdown pass from Talich and Weaver’s point-after gave the North a three-point advantage.
With 3:41 remaining in the opening half, McClure found Braden Walker of Mountain View for a battering ram style 46-yard catch and run for the go-ahead score.
The South came close to breaking open the game in the final seconds of the half, but Breckin McClintock of Natrona County intercepted the ball near the eight-yard line to end the threat.
Defense moved the South into a double-digit lead after Worland’s Kade Weber fumbled after being sacked by Ethan Brinkman of Cheyenne East. The field position let the South score on a quick five-play drive capped by a six-yard pass from McClure to Logan Jones of Glenrock.
Weaver attempted a 41-yard field goal but Star Valley’s Derek Astle broke through for the block.
A late North drive capped by a two-yard plunge by Sheridan’s Colson Coon cut the score to 27-24 with 2:02 left in the game and that’s where it remained.
North 7 10 0 7 – 24
South 14 7 6 0 – 27
First Quarter
SOU – Jackson Hughes 85-pass from Taft McClure (Garet Schlabs kick)
SOU – Schlabs 30-pass from Keagan Bartlett (Schlabs kick)
NOR – Luke Talich 46-run (Matisse Weaver kick)
Second Quarter
NOR – Weaver 40-field goal
SOU – Braden Walker 46-pass from McClure (Schlabs kick)
Third Quarter
SOU – Logan Jones 6-pass from McClure (kick failed)
Fourth Quarter
NOR – Colson Coon 2-run (Weaver kick)