The cold wind blowing through Minneapolis Friday afternoon may actually have been winds of change.

Minneapolis North put itself in the driver's seat for the Minneapolis City Conference championship with a 41-0 pounding of Minneapolis Washburn. Washburn has won or shared the conference title the past 13 years. 

The last time North had a hand in the conference championship was 2002, when the Polars and Edison tied Washburn for the league crown.

“It means a lot to beat them my senior year,” North senior receiver Keyon Thomas said. “It’s a big thing for my team and my coaches, too. This says a lot. But, we’re going to let the pads talk. I think we got it this year, though.”

North’s hard-pounding defense stifled Washburn, while Polars junior quarterback Tyler Johnson ran around and threw over Millers’ defenders all day.

Johnson, who finished with 236 all-purpose yards, was 6-for-16 passing for 123 yards and three touchdowns and had 11 rushes for 113 yards in the game. 

The Polars forced six turnovers. North’s Martice Clark recovered a fumble for a touchdown and hauled down a Washburn running back in the end zone for a safety in the victory. 

Key of the game: Johnson had 111 yards passing, 76 yards rushing, three touchdowns and an interception on defense in the first half, alone, as the Polars built a 28-0 halftime lead on Washburn.

“I like making big plays,” Johnson said. “That opens things up for the rest of my teammates to make their own big plays.”

Quote: “I didn’t think it was going to be close. I knew our team could pullout a shutout.” - North junior quarterback Tyler Johnson

One thing to know: Keyon Thomas had the highlight of the night with his 75-yard punt return for a touchdown in the first quarter. 

“That felt good,” Thomas said. “I thought I was going to get caught at first, but my team just made some key blocks and I ran it in. They couldn’t catch me.”

PATRICK JOHNSON