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Orono defeats Big Lake in Class 4A, Section 6 championship

By Trevor Squire, SportsEngine, 11/04/16, 7:00AM CDT

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Nick Prentice, Jarvis Thomas, and the Spartans edged the Hornets 48-38 in an offensive battle.


Jarvis Thomas collects a 25 yard pass from Nick Prentice for Orono's first touchdown of the game. Photo by Trevor Rodriguez, SportsEngine


Orono players celebrate their section championship win. Photo by Trevor Rodriguez, SportsEngine

Orono’s Jarvis Thomas’ athletic career has largely been in flux throughout his high school experience.

Thomas, a 6-foot-8 junior wide receiver who’s also an elite basketball prospect, has played for Hill-Murray and Tartan. Most recently, he spent his summer out west anticipating a transfer to Las Vegas basketball powerhouse Bishop Gorman, a Catholic prep school program frequently ranked in the nation’s Top 10.

But after two deaths in his family, Thomas and his mother decided to return home to be closer to his grandmother in Orono.

The No. 3-seeded Spartans couldn’t have been happier for his return as Thomas caught two touchdown passes for 104 yards in a 48-38 win over No. 4 seed Big Lake Friday night in the Class 4A, Section 6 championship at Orono High School.

Thomas, who was held out until the Spartans’ regular-season finale due to eligibility concerns, caught both passes from sophomore quarterback Nick Prentice.

Prentice, who’s also basketball teammates with Thomas, said getting Thomas out on the game day turf was huge for the offense because the defense needs to respect him as a deep threat, which opens up the run game and short passing opportunities.

“Countless hours on the field, countless hours in the gym: It was huge to get (Jarvis) out here,” Prentice said. “Everything in the gym correlates out here on the field and trusting each other is the biggest part.”

After a three-play scoring drive by the Hornets (6-5) to open the game, Prentice and the offense countered with a four-play drive capped by a 25-yard pass to Jarvis, who made a textbook back-shoulder fade catch in the end zone.

“They told me the ball was coming to me and I did what I had to do,” Thomas said. “Went up, got it and got real hyped. After that we were going.”

Despite the score, the game was far from settled as both teams' offenses continuously traded blows throughout the third quarter before Prentice connected with Thomas for an 81-yard score.

Orono capitalized from there, forcing a three-and-out and scoring again on a 25-yard touchdown pass from Prentice to Caleb Olson to give the Spartans (7-4) a comfortable cushion the rest of the way.

“The kids all battled. That was a good high school football game with nobody giving up, they just had a little more than we did,” Big Lake coach Nick Keenan said.

Orono coach Jeff Weiland expressed how talented the Big Lake offense was.

“They’ve got a ton of talented offensive players. All 11 of our guys had to tackle and we didn’t do a good job of that, but fortunately our offense was ready to go,” Weiland added.

Weiland said he’s the type of guy who never wants the words sophomore and quarterback together, but Prentice’s development over the season has shown his signal caller’s prowess.

“He's not a sophomore anymore. He’s played enough games and has got that experience to be a big-time competitor,” Weiland said of Prentice, who completed 10 of 14 passes for 229 yards and 3 TDs. “He’s a hard runner, has a linebacker mentality at quarterback.”

Orono earned its first state tournament berth since 2008, and while this year’s team didn’t have the same success in the regular season that the 2008 team had, Weiland said he likes having developing studs on his team and that’ll they’ll have to learn to put teams away in the future.

“I like being in the position of being young and hungry and not knowing any better, and hopefully we play some carefree football and go after Rocori next week,” Weiland said.

The Spartans will face Rocori in the state quarterfinals on Friday at St. Cloud State University for a chance to play at U.S. Bank Stadium in the semifinals.

Thomas’ return helped spark Orono’s highest-scoring game of the season, but Weiland claims that Thomas' presence has already been with the team on the practice field.

“He’s a competitor and brings a happy smile to the team every practice,” Wield said. “The skill is there, but his personality is what’s infectious.”

Feeling the joy of his team moving onto state after three consecutive appearances in the section championship, Thomas has finally found his place in Orono.

“I was never out here for me,” he said. “I’ve told every senior and every kid, 'I’m out here for you and doing it for you.' ”

First Report

Sophomore Nick Prentice connected with Jarvis Thomas for two touchdowns through the air while Max Kahn cashed in three TDs to clinch No. 3-seeded Orono its first state tournament berth since 2008 in a 48-38 win over No. 4 Big Lake in the Class 4A, Section 6 championship Friday night.

Prentice led the Spartans, completing 10 of 14 passes for 229 yards and three TDs. For the Hornets, Tanner Teige totaled 91 yards and a TD on the ground while also completing a TD pass.

Orono advances to play Rocori at St. Cloud State next Friday in the state quarterfinals.

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