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U recruit Leidner leads Cougars

By Brian Stensaas, Star Tribune, 09/02/11, 9:30PM CDT

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Quarterback shook off early butterflies to help Lakeville South over Eagan


Lakeville South quarterback Mitchell Leidner (7) cut back up field on a first half keeper. Marlin Levison, Star Tribune

Lakeville South senior quarterback Mitch Leidner admitted he had a strong case of butterflies before Friday’s season opener against Eagan.

To complicate matters, Leidner and his Cougars teammates had to break home game tradition by hopping on a bus to Lakeville North High School for the game because of poor field conditions across town.

A short ride, yes. But just more time to think.

The trek back was a little easier.

Leidner, who committed to the Gophers over the summer, at one point missed on six of seven passes.

He settled down to eventually complete 11 passes for 182 yards and a touchdown and ran for two other scores to lead a 35-21 Week 1 victory.

Facing third-and-8 from his own 37-yard line on the third play of the second half, Leidner hit Devon Bzoskie for a 48-yard strike. Five plays later Leidner plunged in from a yard out to break a 14-14 tie and give the Cougars their first lead since early in the first quarter.

“Good play calls,” Leidner grinned. “At halftime we just said we had to come out and run hard. And you know what? We put our pads down and ran and it opened up the passing game.”

Lakeville South’s defense shored up, too, after allowing the Wildcats to score twice in 27 seconds in the first half.

The Cougars took a 7-0 lead on a 35-yard touchdown pass
from Leidner to Matt Heller — capped when Heller caught the ball at the 5, stopped on a dime, spun around a defensive back and walked alone into the end zone.

Eagan answered, though, when Aaron Roundtree caught a 24-yard touchdown pass from Drew Bauer while lying on his back.

Mack Nelson then took advantage of a Lakeville South fumble on the ensuing possession when he hauled in a 22-yarder from Bauer, who finished with 136 yards passing and three TDs, for a 14-7 lead.

The celebration was short-lived as the Cougars scored the next 28 points of the game.

“We started a little slow — the first-game jitters,” Lakeville South coach Larry Thompson said. “But once we got the ball rolling, we really showed we’ve got a lot of guys who can make plays.”

Home away from home

 

Lakeville South activities director Neil Strader was able to get away for a little while for summer vacation. Already he’s earned it.
 
Strader has been hard at work, and the school year hasn’t even officially started. The Cougars welcome five new head coaches for the upcoming seasons, and Friday’s football game against Eagan marked Cougars event No. 6 this week put on at Lakeville North High School because of poor field conditions at Lakeville South.
 
“Things went OK,” Strader said Friday as he locked up the press box after the Cougars defeated the Wildcats 35-21. “But I wouldn’t want to do this all the time.”
 
The field at Lakeville South – which was pretty much reduced to sand a week ago, the aftermath of oppressive heat and torrential downpours earlier this summer – is expected to be ready by the Cougars’ next football home game Sept. 16 against Apple Valley. The team will then be back at Lakeville North on Oct. 7 to face the Panthers. When that happens, coach Larry Thompson will have another chance to increase his streak.
 
Since Thompson took over at Lakeville South eight years ago when the community added the second high school, he has not lost a game played on the Lakeville North campus.
This after guiding teams to five big school state championship games – winning three - while at the helm of Lakeville’s one-school program.
 
“This is like home to me,” Thompson said. “Except look at this beautiful [artificial] turf. We never had this when I was here.”
 
He hopes to like the speedy surface even more in five weeks. By then, Lakeville South should have the services of Trent Bertamus back. He missed Friday’s game with a hamstring injury.
 
“He’s not kind of fast,” Thompson said of the senior wide receiver and cornerback. "He’s really fast. If we get him back on the field, that will be a good threat.”
 
Thompson goofed around postgame with his grandsons on the field, and you got the feeling that win or lose he was happy to be in a familiar place.
 
“I love the Panthers; I’ll always be a Panther,” Thompson said. “And I hope they win every game but one. I had a lot of good memories here, but we’re creating some new ones now.”

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