Down two scores to Mater Dei at halftime and 185 miles from home, the Macomb High football squad knew their path going forward in the final two quarters against the Knights would not be an easy one.
But the Bombers responded with five second half touchdowns and held off a final Mater Dei drive to escape Breese with a 41-35 victory Friday night.
Macomb improved to 5-0 overall, 4-0 on the road. Mater Dei, playing its long-awaited home opener, slipped to 1-4.
“I was really proud of our resilient effort and never quit attitude,” said MHS coach Tanner Horrell. “In the first half we had a lot of self-inflicted wounds, some poor play calling, execution and near misses that led to poor field position and put our defense in tough spots.”
But trailing 21-7 at the half, the Bombers scored twice in the third period to pull even.
Macomb opened the quarter with a 10-play, 81-yard drive capped by quarterback Kaden Knupp’s 19-yard touchdown run.
Drake May had a 26-yard run and Knupp connected with Nolan Hoge in converting a third-and-seven in keeping the scoring drive alive.
Hayden Katz added the point-after-touchdown kick that made it 21-14 at the 7:03 mark.
The Bomber defense allowed just one Mater Dei first down before forcing a punt.
Starting at its own 20, Macomb used 10 plays in covering 80 yards. The Bombers were slowed by a pair of holding penalties, but a 22-yard run by Knupp converted a key thirdand- 10, advancing the ball to the Knights 19.
May scored on the next play, running straight up the middle before making a cut to his left on the way to the endzone.
The PAT by Katz tied the score at 21-21 with 28.2 second left in the period.
Macomb ran 20 offensive plays in the quarter, compared to five for the Knights.
“At half time we talked about flushing the first half down the toilet and winning the next 24 minutes,” said Horrell. “We came out and did exactly that, getting a score on our first drive and then a stop on defense and then tying the game on our next drive.”
A furious final 12 minutes ensued that saw five touchdowns scored.
Mater Dei drove 68 yards in eight plays with QB Hunter Hochbaum’s two-yard run, followed by Donovan Blair’s PAT kick with 9:38 to go, giving the Knights a 28-21 lead.
It did not last long. On a second-and-12 from their own 18, Knupp connected with Hoge on a short pass to the outside. The Mater Dei defender slipped in an effort to react. That allowed Hoge to ramble upfield, reaching the Knights 24 for a gain of 58 yards.
The next play saw Watson take a shovel pass from Knupp. Watson raced around the left end, reaching the endzone for the 24-yard TD. The Katz kick squared the game at 28-all with 7:56 to go.
The Macomb defense then made its presence known.
Facing a second-and-12 from the Macomb 43, Hochbaum dropped back to pass and was hit by Drake Taber as he threw. Hoge cut in front of the intended receiver and ran 57 yards for the pick-six.
The Katz PAT gave the Bombers their first lead of the night at 35-28 with 6:40 left.
“Drake Taber did a great job of getting pressure on the QB to force a bad throw,” said Horrell.
Mater Dei responded with a nine-play, 46-yard drive, capped by Hochbaum’s oneyard run on fourth-and-goal with 3:14 remaining.
Blair’s PAT pulled the Knights even at 35-35.
But the Bombers had one more 10-play, 80-yard drive in them. May’s 17-yard TD run with 22.6 seconds to go, gave the visitors a 41-35 lead.
“Every time Mater Dei had a score our guys responded with one of our own,” said Horrell.
Pulling guard Sam Potter made a key block that gave May a clear running lane on his way to the endzone.
“On the game winning drive our offensive line did an outstanding job of creating running lanes for Drake, Kaden and Drew,” said Horrell. “Drake did an outstanding job getting behind his blockers and running through would be tacklers.”
The Knights still had one final chance.
Starting at their own 43, Hochbaum connected with Bentley Nicklin for a 14-yard gain, moving the ball into Bombers territory.
A nine-yard pass play to Reed Pingsterhaus followed before Hochbaum found Beckett Wade across the middle for a 22-yard gain. That gave the Knights the ball at the Bomber 11 with 3.6 ticks left.
After timeouts by both teams, the Knights final pass attempt was defended by Cameron Keene and fell incomplete, allowing the Bombers to hang on for the victory.
“On the final drive our defense did a great job of bending but not breaking, keeping them out of the endzone,” said Horrell. “On the final play, Will Thomas was able to get a finger on the pass and Cameron Keene did a great job staying in coverage and breaking up the would-be game tying catch.”
Mater Dei scored first, taking advantage of bad snap on a Macomb punt attempt.
Starting at the Bomber 32, the Knight scored seven plays later on an 11-yard pass from Hochbaum to Pingsterhaus.
Macomb responded on its next drive, covering 69 yards in five plays, capped by Knupp’s 46-yard TD run.
Mater Dei scored twice in the second period in taking the lead.
A one-yard run by Hochbaum on fourth-and-goal put the Knights up at the 11:09 mark.
The following Macomb possession ended up with a punt. The Bombers were then on the move the next it had the ball. However Knupp was intercepted by Nicklin in the endzone, denying the Bombers a chance to tie.
The Knights took advantage, driving 80 yards in 12 plays. Hochbaum and Pingsterhaus hooked up for a 46-yard scoring play with 23.2 seconds to go before the break that gave the hosts their two-score lead.
Macomb finished with 459 yards of total offense.
May ran for 197 yards on 26 carries, while Kupp added 86 yards on eight carries.
‘I really want to praise the outstanding job of our O-line Aiden (Reynolds), Sam (Potter), Eli (McClure), Charlie (Bodiford) and Will (Thomas),” said Horrell. “They really set the tone, especially in the second half.”
Knupp finished 9-of-16 passing for 170 yards with one TD and one INT.
Watson had four catches for 80 yards and a TD. He set a new record in career receiving yardage with 1,858 yards, breaking JT Jeter’s record of 1,843.
Hoge added three grabs for 79 yards.
On defense, May and Watson topped the taxkle charts with 20 and 10 total tackles respectively.
Mater Dei’s Hochbaum completed 16-of-29 passes for 239 yards.
Pingsterhaus had three catches for 78 yards and two scores, while Brett Hilmes added five catches for 75 yards.
The Knights also recorded 148 yards rushing on 36 carries, led by Hochbaum’s 67 yards on 16 carries.
Pingsterhaus and Liam Koetting topped the Knights defense with 10 tackles each.
The Bombers return to LincolnLand play this week hosting Farmington in a battle of unbeatens.
The Farmers are currently ranked No. 3 in Class 2A by the Associated Press. Farmington has averaged 47 points per game in its five wins.
Farmington has won the last two meetings, including last year’s 26-20 overtime victory at “The Farm.”
The game will mark homecoming for the Bombers who will play three of their final four regular season games at MHS Stadium.
