Photo by Cameron Carlson
DEVILS LAKE — The Firebirds continue to roll at Roller Field.
They won their third in a row Friday night, beating Fargo South (1-3) by a final of 39-23. Devils Lake, ranked No. 4 in Division AA football, finished its non-region schedule with a record of 3-1.
“I loved our energy,” Firebirds head coach Todd Lambrecht said. “We played as a whole unit. And mistakes are gonna happen, and us coaches hate to see it, but it’s gonna happen. And kids mess up. But I think as a whole, as a unit, our team played really solid.”
Mason Palmer threw for more than 200 yards in the first half alone. He ended up totaling 252 passing yards, with four touchdown passes to four different receivers. He also had a rushing touchdown.
“We’re complete at the wideout position,” Palmer said. “Everybody can catch the ball. Everybody can run routes. I trust every single one of our guys.”
His touchdown rush, a two-yard sneak to complete a 56-yard drive, opened the scoring in the first quarter. The Firebirds picked up the two-point conversion after an encroachment call on South got them closer to the goal line. It was the first of a whopping 12 penalties assessed to the Bruins.
A 68-yard touchdown reception by South’s Kobe Siemers tainted what was otherwise a strong defensive first half from Devils Lake. The Firebirds had gotten two big tackles to get a stop on South’s opening drive. Isaac Woodhull made a tackle for loss, and South turned it over on downs after a three-man sack led by Grady Quam.
At the end of one quarter, Devils Lake held a narrow 8-7 lead.
“Our defense had a few hiccups here and there. And [the Bruins] got some players,” Lambrecht said, emphasizing the final word.
The Firebirds failed to score on their next possession. But Jeffrey Sommer recovered a fumble after Devils Lake knocked the ball from quarterback Austin Morris’s hands.
Sommer is a senior who hadn’t played football since eighth grade. One of his friends convinced him to come out this year. He also had a sack later in the game.
“He’s been a huge help. And he just keeps getting better,” Lambrecht said. “And he wants to learn all the time. And as long as he keeps doing that, he’s gonna get better. It was great to see him make those type of plays.”
After getting the ball back, it took only one play for Devils Lake to get back in the end zone. Palmer unleashed a pass downfield to a wide-open Weston Nelson, who ran the rest of the way for a 58-yard touchdown.
“We don’t really run much long passes, but I’ve been practicing getting my touchdown a little better and finding those guys,” Palmer said.
On defense, Quam and Jaxon Strong combined for a tackle to force a punt on fourth and 18.
Devils Lake then put together a 75-yard touchdown drive on just four gains. Bryar Exner ran 32 yards over two plays, and Will Heilman had two receptions to find the end zone — plays of 26 and 17 yards.
After forcing another punt, the Firebirds squeezed in another score with 10.7 seconds left in the half. Palmer threw a 37-yard pass into the corner that was snatched by Rylan Samuelson — a lesser-used player who’d just gotten into the game. Samuelson was a state finalist in wrestling last winter.
“He does everything hard. Constantly hard,” Lambrecht said. “That’s why he was practice captain this week. … I was excited. I think I might have pulled a hamstring running down the field when he caught that.”
Samuelson stopped, stood, then roared while flexing his arms. The thrill of the moment was not lost on Samuelson.
“It was awesome,” Palmer said. “He doesn’t get in much at receiver. So for him to be open on that and make that crazy catch was absolutely insane.”
After the touchdown receptions by Nelson, Heilman and Samuelson, Devils Lake had a sizable 29-7 lead at halftime.
The Firebirds didn’t score in the third quarter. Exner was about a half-yard short of a first down, forcing Devils Lake to turn it over on downs. South went on for a 51-yard touchdown drive, capped by a 14-yard quarterback keeper. Morris got in for the two-point conversion as well, cutting the lead to 29-15.
But Palmer made a 19-yard pass to Coby Dronen Levitt before the end of the third quarter. It carried into the fourth — a 76-yard scoring drive ending in a 15-yard touchdown reception from Mason’s twin brother, Max. Mason had 51 passing yards on the drive alone. Exner accounted for 36 yards.
Nelson snatched his third interception of the season to get Devils Lake the ball back. It evaporated any final hopes for the Bruins.
“He’s amazing,” Lambrecht said. “He was in really good places to do a lot of great things. The picks, it’s great to see that, because he’s understanding it now a lot more. And I think he’s just gonna keep getting better.”
Exner kicked a field goal to extend the gap to 39-15.
South scored one last touchdown in the final five minutes of the game. It was a 59-yard drive, capped by a six-yard reception by Siemers.
Junior tight end Drew Kessel also had a 32-yard reception on that possession. But Devils Lake largely limited Kessel, a standout talent who’s received Division-I offers from schools like Michigan and North Dakota State.
He had three catches, all in the second half.
“Brandon Elfman, our defensive coordinator, he came up with a thought and a theory,” Lambrecht said. “We stuck to it, and we were able to handle that matchup with him.”
Devils Lake now rides a three-game winning streak into the start of region play. There are five games left on the schedule, and they’ll all count towards the Firebirds’ AA West record to determine the postseason outlook.
The first West opponent is Jamestown. Last year, competing in the East, Devils Lake had perhaps its most memorable win of the season against the Blue Jays.
“If we’re not improving, we’re out here just wasting time,” Lambrecht said. “And our guys understand that and know that. … I just told the guys out there in the huddle, ‘We go on to the next game.’ It’s a game, we have to go play it, and if we prepare, we can do well.”
The Firebirds host Jamestown next Friday with a 7 p.m. kickoff at Roller Field.
