Mankato West thought it had answered questions about its toughness in a semifinal victory over St. Michael-Albertville, but in Saturday’s Class 5A title game, the Scarlets had allowed upstart Simley to move the ball with ease for much of the first three quarters. Their lead was a slim 2 points.

So they did exactly what championship teams do. They took the ball and didn’t give it back. Known for its quick-strike capabilities, West’s second-half philosophy was nothing more than a simple game of keep away. The Scarlets controlled the ball for more than 15 minutes after halftime, scoring the first three times they had the ball en route to a 42-19 victory.

“We got some stops that we didn’t get in the first half and the guys captured that momentum and ran with it,” Scarlets’ coach Mark Esch said. “Once we went up by two scores, that was a big turning point for us in the belief-in-ourselves factor.”

The potent Scarlets got the offense they needed from a pair of familiar names, receiver Connor Watts and quarterback Ryan Schlichte. Watts caught nine passes for 108 yards and a touchdown and ran for two more scores on a pair of jet-sweeps. Schlichte finished 17-for-25 for 192 yards and two touchdowns.

“I always like to say that we complete each other,” Watts said.

The game began with both teams trading punches. Mankato West scored on its opening drive, going 64 yards in 10 plays and taking a 7-0 lead on Watts’ first TD run.

Undaunted, Simley answered immediately. Running back Michael Avwunuma went 55 yards up the middle on the Spartans’ first play from scrimmage, setting up a short touchdown run by quarterback Michael Busch.

West bumped its lead to 14-7 on a 5-yard Schlichte-to-Watts connection, but Simley responded again on a 35-yard burst by Avwunuma. The extra point was blocked, allowing Mankato West to maintain a 14-13 lead with barely a minute into the second quarter.

A 7-yard run by Van Neils, the fruit of a Simley fumble, made the score 21-13 just before halftime. Neils ran through three tackles on the play, more than making up for fumbling near the goal line a few minutes earlier. Mankato West held an 8-point lead at the break, but the total yards were nearly equal: 244 for West, 233 for Simley.

Simley scored in its opening possession of the second half, but failed to convert on the two-point conversion, making the score 21-19. That was as close as the Spartans, making their first Prep Bowl appearance, would get.

“I knew it was our game after they didn’t get it,” Watts said. “This is what I’ve dreamed about since I was a little kid.”

Mankato West got serious, turning close game into a rout by scoring on three straight second-half drives en route to a 42-19 victory over Simley in the Class 5A championship game.

Wide receiver Connor Watts scored three touchdowns – two on jet sweeps and another on a twisting catch in the end zone – and intercepted a pass to lead the Scarlets (12-1). Quarterback Ryan Schlichte directed a Mankato West offense that racked up 422 yards of total offense.

Simley (8-4), making its first Prep Bowl appearance, was within two points, 21-19, early in the second half before Mankato West embarked on it’s run of touchdowns.

The Scarlets won their fourth state championship, all since 1999.