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Second quarter offensive outburst catapults Champlin Park past Andover

By Drew Herron, SportsEngine, 10/19/16, 3:15PM CDT

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Ben Otto threw for two and ran for two touchdowns in the Rebels' trouncing of the Huskies.


Sophomore Rebel quarterback Ben Otto dives into the end zone. Otto accounted for four of Champlin Park's touchdowns. Photo by Kelly McGinley, SportsEngine

Through the air or on the ground, Champlin Park’s offense has no problem moving the ball once it starts rolling.

The Rebels turned into a boulder in the second quarter Wednesday night, flattening Andover with four touchdowns and effectively sewing things up by halftime in a 41-16 regular season finale win.

After a scoreless opening quarter, the No. 11-6A Rebels (5-3, 5-2) scored on the second play of the second quarter with a 1-yard quarterback keeper by Ben Otto.

“We had a lot of different plays working for us, and we kept going to them,” Otto said. “Once we got that momentum, things started working more easily for us. We have a lot of different targets we can go to. Knowing that we have more than one weapon makes things easier.”

Otto finished with 74 yards rushing on 11 carries (2 TDs) and passed for 169 yards on 12-of-21 attempts (2 TDs).   

Entering the game, Otto had thrown for 1,274 yards, 13 touchdowns, six interceptions, and a completion percentage at 60 percent. The 6-foot-3 sophomore and his passing arm is a big part of what makes the Rebels’ engine go, but Wednesday night he also utilized his legs, as Champlin Park worked its magic in the flats as well with an option attack that adds another dimension to the offense.

“He’s a sophomore that’s growing up,” Champlin Park coach Mike Korton says. “He continues to get better and better and tonight, he played just as we prepared him to. Ben takes to coaching, he listens, and he wants to improve on mistakes. Mistakes he made in the first quarter, he didn’t make in the second.”

The Rebels attempted to run the ball early on, but once they opted to throw it around a little more in the second quarter, drives started to come together, culminating in 28 points and capped off by a 20-yard touchdown pass to running back Ernest Worjloh.

Five different backs carried the ball 41 times for 237 yards, averaging nearly six yards per run, and four different receivers caught at least two passes.

“When we run the ball, we can be very good at it, but when that’s not working, we can pass too,” Otto says. “That’s just something we kind of figure out as the game moves along.”

After Andover (2-6, 2-5) threw an interception to start the second half, the Rebels again marched downfield and scored when Otto hit senior wideout Marcus Hill on a 5-yard fade, ostensibly putting the game on ice at 35-0 and enacting the continuous clock.

However, the Huskies’ offense finally showed a bit of life in the final quarter. Gavyn Walsh connected with Vince Clark on a 32-yard touchdown pass, followed by a successful two-point conversion. A short time later, Brandon Deitz scored on a 2-yard rush and then converted another two-point conversion with 4:34 left.

That’s when senior Romello Adkins put his foot down, breaking through the middle for a 41-yard touchdown run that restored the Rebels’ momentum. Adkins scored a pair rushing TD’s and amassed 120 yards rushing on 13 carries.

“I was waiting to break one, I was ready” Adkins says. “The coaches have been stressing all year long that we needed to finish. With that, we finished strong, and it was a good way to end our regular season.”

 


Champlin Park running back Romello Adkins uses a block to race downfield. Adkins scored one of the Rebels' four second quarter touchdowns. Photo by Kelly McGinley, SportsEngine

First Report

Champlin Park (5-3, 5-2) broke loose with four touchdowns in the second quarter to cruise past visiting Andover (2-6, 2-5) 41-16 Wednesday night at Champlin Park High School.

After a scoreless opening 12 minutes, the No. 11-6A Rebels struck on the second play of the second quarter when sophomore quarterback Ben Otto crossed on a 1-yard keeper, setting the stage for an onslaught that totaled 28 points by the break.  
 
With 21 seconds left before halftime, Otto connected with junior running back Ernest Worjloh on a 20-yard strike to bookend what might be the Rebels’ offense finest quarter this season. 

Following an interception on Andover's opening drive of the second half, the Rebels again marched downfield and scored when Otto hit senior wideout Marcus Hill on a 5-yard fade, effectively putting the game on ice.

Andover’s offense finally came to life a bit in the fourth quarter. Gavyn Walsh hit Vince Clark on a 32-yard touchdown pass, followed by a successful two-point conversion. A short time later, Brandon Deitz scored on a 2-yard rush and then converted another two-point conversion with 4:34 left.

However, it proved too little too late as the Rebels answered quickly with Romello Adkins' 41-yard-touchdown run. Adkins scored a pair rushing touchdown for the Rebels and amassed 120 yards rushing on 13 carries.

Otto finished with 74 yards rushing on 11 carries and passed for 169 yards on 12-of-21 attempts. He also scored four touchdowns (2 passing, 2 rushing).
 


Andover wide receiver Vince Clark scored the Huskies' first points of the game. Andover finally broke through Champlin Park's defense in the fourth quarter. Photo by Kelly McGinley, SportsEngine

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