Eden Prairie football players and coaches applied a full-court press to lure basketball specialist Jack Tuttle back to the gridiron.

Coach Mike Grant called Tuttle, a senior who last played football on the freshman B-team, to his office more than once. Players were dogged in their pursuit as well, making a pitch Tuttle could not resist.

“All my friends convinced me to come out for one last year and win a state championship,” Tuttle said.

Friday provided strong indication that dream is attainable. Host Eden Prairie, top-ranked in both the Associated Press and Star Tribune metro top-10 rankings, turned an anticipated battle with No. 2 Lakeville North into a 41-13 rout. Tuttle’s 61-yard touchdown catch put the game out of reach at 28-6.

A packed house, which included former Super Bowl coaches Bud Grant and Jon Gruden, saw the Eagles stake their claim to supremacy.

Down 21-0, Lakeville North drew from its bag of tricks. A halfback pass from Brian Curtis Jr. to Ryan Dalrymple covered 62 yards for a score and trimmed the deficit to 21-6.

Eden Prairie responded on its ensuing drive.

Quarterback Cole Kramer said the play “was called ‘Jailbreak Blue,’ and we’ve been running it well in practice so I knew we would run it at some point.”

Kramer faked to Daejon Wolfe, who already stung the Panthers for touchdowns of 57 and 20 yards, and went deep to a streaking Tuttle. The Panthers’ safety read the fake well but it did not matter.

“I just turned on my speed and Cole throws such a good ball I could just run under it,” Tuttle said.

Lakeville North coach Brian Vossen relished this game as a gauge for his team’s playoff chances. The lessons were hard-learned Friday.

“We’ve got to block better, we’ve got to tackle better,” he said. “We’ve got to play with the confidence that we practice with. Now they’ve been kicked and they understand what it’s going to take to compete at that level. It’s up to our kids to decide they want to do it. There’s some talent on this squad but it didn’t get showcased tonight.”

Eden Prairie’s star power shined. Wolfe’s two touchdown catches owed to his speed and ability to lose defenders with quick cuts. Running back Solo Falaniko ran with a burst, sparking the first scoring drive of the second half with his 38-yard run into Panther territory. And the defense left Panther quarterback Brennan Kuebler, a capable runner, with little time and space.

“We really played for each other,” said Eden Prairie linebacker Antonio Montero, who added a pair of rushing touchdowns. “Even when they scored that deep pass we were picking each other up and staying positive.”

First report

Before a packed house that included former Super Bowl coaches Bud Grant and Jon Gruden, top-ranked Eden Prairie crushed second-ranked Lakeville North 41-13 on Friday.

The host Eagles and the Panthers are the top two teams in both the Associated Press and Star Tribune metro top-10 rankings. Their lofty statuses made for a must-see game with postseason flavor.

A commanding victory confirmed Eden Prairie as an early Prep Bowl favorite. The Eagles took runner-up last season and appear driven to win this fall.

They didn’t look the part early, however. Miscues plagued both teams in the first half as each team committed two turnovers. Eden Prairie muffed a punt return and also had a ball stripped near the goal line for a touchback. The Panthers threw an interception and lost a fumble.

When not bobbling the ball in the first half, the Eagles struck twice. Quarterback Cole Kramer hit Daejon Wolfe with a short pass, and the junior receiver did the rest. He streaked down the Lakeville North sideline for a 57-yard score and a 7-0 first quarter lead.

The Eagles started drives twice in Lakeville North territory and cashed in the second time. Kramer rolled out and hit a wide open tight end Will Sather for a 6-yard touchdown and 13-0 halftime advantage.

Then the teams’ game-breakers traded the spotlight in the third quarter.

Kramer and Wolfe connected for their second touchdown pass, this one for 20 yards and a 21-0 lead. Wolfe slipped his defender with a great move and blazed into the end zone. Running back Solo Falaniko gave the drive a spark with his 38-yard run to the Panthers’ 22-yard line.

Desperate to keep pace, Lakeville North drew from its bag of tricks. A halfback pass from Brian Curtis Jr. to Ryan Dalrymple covered 61 yards for a score and trimmed the deficit to 21-6.

Unfazed, the Eagles aired it out. A 62-yard touchdown pass over the top from Kramer to Jack Tuttle for a commanding 28-6 lead.

Gruden, former Tampa Bay head coach and currently ESPN’s Monday Night Football analyst, joined Grant, former Vikings coach, in the stands. Gruden, in town for Monday night’s Saints/Vikings game, spoke with Eden Prairie coach Mike Grant, Bud’s son, on the sidelines and shook hands with a few Eagles’ players. Gruden left the field, walked over to an appreciative Eden Prairie student section and slapped hands with a few of the faithful.

The game Friday marked the first meeting of these powerful programs since 2013, when the Eagles defeated the Vossen-led Panthers in the state tournament quarterfinals. A year earlier, Eden Prairie beat Lakeville North in the Prep Bowl. Before Vossen took over as coach in 2010, they played in four regular-season games, from Lakeville North’s debut season in 2005 to 2008, with Eden Prairie winning all four.

ESPN's Gruden visits with the Grants


Former coaches Bud Grant and Jon Gruden sat together at the game.

ESPN's Monday Night Football analyst Jon Gruden joined former Vikings coach Bud Grant in the stands for Friday’s game between No. 1 Eden Prairie and No. 2 Lakeville North.

Gruden, in town for Monday night’s Saints/Vikings game, spoke with Eden Prairie coach Mike Grant, Bud’s son, on the sidelines and shook hands with a few Eagles’ players. The home student section serenaded the special guest with chants of “Gru-den” and drew a wave.

On his way off the field, Gruden walked over to a roaring student section and slapped hands with a few of the Eden Prairie faithful.

Gruden, who won a Super Bowl with the 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, sat with Grant, a four-time Super Bowl coach with the Vikings, in front of the press box.


Eden Prairie coach Mike Grant talked with Gruden before the game.