Eden Prairie football coach Mike Grant doesn’t rank this season’s Eagles team among the most talented in the program’s rich tradition of state champions.
Try convincing East Ridge of as much.
Explosive touchdowns from their top athletes helped the No. 1 ranked Eagles overcome a two-touchdown deficit. The three-time defending state champions defeated East Ridge 35-14 in the Class 6A state tournament quarterfinal Friday at Woodbury High School, and advanced to play Maple Grove.
East Ridge built a 14-0 second quarter lead as Oregon recruit Seth Green ran and threw for touchdowns.
Eden Prairie (11-0) responded with five unanswered scores. Four touchdowns covered between 52 and 80 yards, torching the Raptors’ chances and Grant’s notion of a talent-deprived team.
“We have a few kids,” Grant acknowledged. “Your great players have to make big plays in big games.”
First up: Junior J.D. Spielman. The son of Vikings general manager Rick Spielman has a college future in lacrosse. He’s no slouch on the football field, either.
He hauled in a 80-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Grantham Gillard as the Eagles cut East Ridge’s lead to 14-7 before halftime.
Spielman tied the score at 14 in the third quarter on a 52-yard run.
“J.D. really set the tempo for us with both of his long touchdowns,” Eagles running back Will Rains said.
Blake Cashman was next. His interception on the ensuing East Ridge drive gave Eden Prairie the ball at the Raptors’ 26.
“When I made the play … I was just hoping the offense would make their plays and we could get in there,” Cashman said.
Rains delivered his 31st touchdown of the season and Eden Prairie led 21-14. Touchdown No. 32 followed in the fourth quarter as Rains broke loose for a 69-yard scoring run.
“We gave up big plays in the second half,” East Ridge coach Mike Pendino said. “You have a 14-0 lead, you’ve got to find a way to win the football game and we didn’t do it.”
State tournament newcomer East Ridge (9-2) became the latest addition to Eden Prairie’s 28-game winning streak. The Raptors, in just their sixth year as a program, enjoyed a geographic edge, playing just a 4½-mile drive from its high school.
Aware it was playing in hostile territory and upset to be down at halftime, Eden Prairie regrouped and left no questions about its status as a state championship contender.
“We definitely know we’re not the most talented team Eden Prairie’s ever had,” Rains said. “But we come out fighting and we never give up.”
