There was a fumble on its first play from scrimmage. And again on the second, a sure touchdown suddenly becoming a turnover. A field-goal attempt doinked off an upright.

This was not the start Eden Prairie anticipated.

But it’s how you finish that matters and the Eagles, ranked No. 1 in Class 6A, remedied one quarter of absurdity with three quarters of inspired football to defeat No. 2, 6A Minnetonka 39-21.

“We were talking and we said that’s the worst start we’ve ever had,” Eden Prairie coach Mike Grant said. “But our kids, they’re resilient.”

Minnetonka went into the game 6-0, its best record this late in the season in coach Dave Nelson’s tenure. The Skippers turned Eden Prairie’s first mistake into an Aaron Syverson-to-Eric Douville touchdown pass and led 8-0 less than two minutes into the game.

One play later, D.J. Johnson hauled in a pass from Cole Kramer and appeared headed for a 73-yard touchdown. But Johnson fumbled while being tackled near the goal line and Minnetonka recovered at its own three, a 180-degree pivot of emotion on one play.

On Eden Prairie’s next possession, Antonio Montero, the Eagles’ fabulous linebacker/running back/kicker, had a 49-yard field goal bounce off an upright.

Was this the game where luck turns against the state’s most successful program?

“That thought creeps into your mind,” Montero said. “But you just have to keep thinking positively and keep pounding.”

Eden Prairie’s luck changed one play later, when Grant Harstad intercepted a pass at the Minnetonka 40. Four plays later, Solo Falaniko scored, tying the game 8-8.

“When we get down, we just come back even harder,” Harstad said. “If we make a mistake, the next person makes a big play.”

The two teams traded touchdowns before Eden Prairie took an 18-15 lead on a Montero field goal just before halftime.

“That was big psychologically,” Grant said. “Worst start ever, but we lead at half. You convince the kids everything is going to go our way in the second half.”

Which it did. Eden Prairie (7-0) picked off two more passes and scored three touchdowns after halftime and punctuated the victory with a game-clinching pick-six by linebacker Collin Penn for the final score.

For one quarter, Eden Prairie looked mortal.

The No. 1-ranked Eagles fumbled on their first two plays from scrimmage, trailed twice in the first half and even had a field goal clank off the upright.

But this is Eden Prairie. The Eagles refocused and took control, pulling away in the second half to defeat Minnetonka 39-21. They turned a three-point halftime lead  playing at home Friday into a comfortable victory by scoring three second-half touchdowns.

The game was the second time this season Eden Prairie, ranked No. 1 in Class 6A, had hosted the No. 2-ranked team in the state in a highly anticipated matchup. And the second time the Eagles let their opponent know who’s in charge of the large-school division.

It wasn’t the typical methodical Eden Prairie victory, however. Minnetonka quarterback Aaron Syverson found seams in the Eagles defense and routinely gashed them for big gains in the air. But the Skippers’ dependence on the passing attack came back to hurt them, with interceptions by Grant Harstad,  D.J. Johnson and Collin Penn – a game-clinching pick-six -- sapping Minnetonka momentum.

The drama began early and continued throughout the first half.
Eden Prairie fumbled on the game’s first play from scrimmage and Minnetonka recovered at the Eagles’ 26-yard-line.

The Skippers scored four plays later on a five-yard throwback pass from Syverson to Eric Douville. A two-point conversion gave Minnetonka an 8-0 lead less than two minutes into the game.

The next time Eden Prairie had the ball, it went from feast to famine on one play. Quarterback Cole Kramer threw to Johnson, streaking downfield behind Minnetonka defenders. Johnson nearly scored, but the Skippers forced a fumble at the 2-yard-line and recovered, a 70-yard pass play suddenly a turnover.

Eden Prairie later had a 49-yard field goal try by Antonio Montero hit the upright, then finally had a break go its way when Grant Harstad intercepted a Syverson pass. The Eagles tied the game 8-8 four plays later on a 14-yard, tackle-breaking run by Solo Falaniko, who also ran in the two-point conversion.

Minnetonka regained the lead 15-8 on a 1-yard run by Adam Livingston. But Eden Prairie answered with a 2-yard burst by Montero, who later kicked a 40-yard field goal just before halftime for an 18-15 lead.