BY JIM MISUNAS
SALINA — The Great Bend Panthers trailed Salina Central 33-14 with one quarter left.
Was Great Bend done?
No way!
Great Bend's Comeback Kids never say die after five consecutive comeback victories. The Panthers' offense rallied with a trio of touchdowns with their 5A football playoff hopes on the line.
The Mustangs escaped the Panthers' 21-point fourth quarter burst with a hard-fought 40-35 second round 5A football playoff victory played in rain-chilled 40-degree weather at Salina Stadium.
Great Bend football coach Erin Beck has come to expect fourth-quarter heroics from quarterback Cayden Scheuerman, tailback Cody Miller and the offensive line of center Danny Nieto, guards Aiden Davidson and Matthew Johnson, tackles Mathew Moeder and Brantley Schaffer and tight end Colton Brack.
Tailback Cody Miller capped a 69-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown after Scheuerman's fourth-down conversion. Ian Premer recovered Alex Galindo's perfect onside kickoff to ignite a 33-yard scoring drive. Braylon Council converted a crucial third down on a stop-and-go pass pattern. Scheuerman scored on a 1-yard touchdown on fourth-and-goal for a 33-28 score with 5:31 left.
Great Bend received a break when Avery Richardson's 90-yard kickoff return was nullified on a blocking penalty. But the Mustangs' unstoppable tailback Kenyon McMillan scored his fourth touchdown on a 28-yard scoring run to cap a shocking 291-yard night for a 40-28 lead with 3:49 left.
The Panthers' offense rallied one last time.
Colton Brack rumbled upfield on a nifty 57-yard pass reception from Scheuerman. The 70-yard drive was capped by Scheuerman's 2-yard touchdown run with 2:44 left for a 40-35 score.
Had the Panthers recovered Galindo's unsuccessful onside kickoff, Beck had confidence they'd win the playoff game.
Central's McMillan dashed 22 yards and quarterback Gunnar Gross ran four consecutive plays for 28 yards to the Panther 5-yard line to run the final time off the clock.
"What a ballgame," said Beck. "Did you expect anything else? We've seen that all year. We got a touchdown and onside kick and punched another one in."
Miller gained 179 yards and Scheuerman 111 yards on a night when brisk wind and wintry temperatures slowed the passing game.
The Mustangs built a 33-14 lead behind a brisk north wind on 71, 45 and 40-yard third-quarter drives. Gross scored on a 13-yard run and McMillan sprinted 43 and 40 yards for a 33-14 lead.
The lightning-fast McMillan delivered highlight-reel plays all night. Gross converted time-after-time with the quarterback run game on critical third downs. The Panthers' defense yielded 573 yards. Gross rushed for 202 yards on 25 carries.
"Central had a dangerous offense and they proved that tonight," Beck said. "Their quarterback runs the zone read so well. We didn't have a defensive answer for it."
The Panthers (7-3) won seven consecutive games to earn the second-round showdown against the Mustangs.
"After we gained confidence, it was a great show for all of us," Beck said. "They put on a display every Friday night. It was a fun thing to see young men overcome adversity in the form of football. It's something I'll always remember. You can use it wherever you're going from here. The community, school, parents and coaches are proud."
Beck said the senior class will be cherished.
"It's hard to say good-bye after that fun of a ride," Beck said. "That's the tough part. I'm going to miss them."
Western Athletic Conference champion Hays High (9-1) meets the Mustangs (8-2) in the 5A quarterfinals.
Great Bend 7 7 0 21 — 35
Salina Central 7 13 13 7 — 40
GB—Cody Miller 11 run (Alex Galindo kick), 3:48; SC—Gunnar Gross 68 run (Abram Jennings kick), 3:33; SC—McMillan 12 run (Jennings kick), 9:40; GB— Miller 1 run (Galindo kick), 4:43; SC—Gross 13 run (kick fails), 3:33; SC—McMillan 43 run (Jennings kick), 2:27; SC—McMillan 40 run (Jennings kick), 0:27; GB— Miller 2 run (Colton Brack pass from Scheuerman), 9:02; GB—Scheuerman 1 run (pass fails), 5:31; SC—McMillan 28 run (Jennings kick), 3:49; GB—Scheuerman 2 run (Galindo kick), 2:44
RUSHING—GB—47-290; Miller 27-179; Scheuerman 20-111; SC—50-480; McMillan 22-291; Gross 25-202; team 3-(-13)
PASSING—GB—Scheuerman 7-16-1, 90; SC—Gross 8-15-0, 93
RECEIVING—GB—Brack 1-57; Braylon Council 5-34; Maddox Spray 1-(-1); SC—Hunter Mowery 2-44; McMillan 4-37; Talan Gary 2-12
