LINCOLN — The zero on the scoreboard never budged.
It stayed for four quarters against the defending Class B champions in the semifinals and another four quarters Monday night in a long-awaited state championship game.
And the zero burned brightly through the Memorial Stadium celebration for the Class B victors, the York Dukes.
They held Omaha Skutt to 138 yards and kept the SkyHawks outside their 30 until the game’s final minute — even after the starters turned the game over to their backups, who preserved the zero in a 31-0 win with Jordan Grooms’ quarterback sack on the final play.
“They’ve been working hard all year just as much as the starters have, and it’s just awesome that everybody got to be a part of this,’’ York junior Garrett Snodgrass said.
The multi-position offensive talent and linebacker outgained the SkyHawks himself, rushing for 209 yards on 26 carries with two touchdowns. Simon Otte got over the century mark in the fourth quarter for 161 yards on 23 carries with a late score.
“Tonight was kind of the way things went all year,’’ York coach Glen Snodgrass said. “We just got stronger in the second half and our running game ground on teams to wear them down.”
York’s first-line defense was stellar and stifling in the postseason. Only Omaha Roncalli in the first round scored on it.
The No. 3 Dukes (12-1) got to their second final in four years — they lost 30-0 to Skutt in 2013, so it was total payback plus a point — by blanking 2016 titlist Elkhorn South 14-0 on the road.
“We wanted the shutout bad,’’ Otte said. “The offensive and defensive lines have been the heart of the team and the reason we’ve been so successful.”
If Skutt had last year’s offense, when it lost to Elkhorn South 34-32, this final would have been more interesting. But the No. 5 SkyHawks went the final eight quarters of their 10-3 season without an offensive touchdown. Their touchdown in a 10-9 semifinal win at Gretna was on a pick-six.
“I don’t know if we executed like we wanted to,’’ Skutt coach Matt Turman said, “but it’s hard to say anything negative about the team over there. They’re well-coached and a hard-playing group of young men.”
Skutt crossed midfield on half of its 10 possessions. But it punted five times, York’s Jeb Lucas and Brady Danielson had interceptions, it turned over the ball on downs twice and the last possession, which got to the York 26 on a pass-interference penalty, ended on Grooms’ sack.
“Once we were at the 50-yard line in the second half and I thought, ‘OK, we have to go make something happen,’ and we couldn’t,” Turman said. “We shank a punt and dropped a touchdown pass and threw some passes that were off-target and not to the right people that they intercepted.”
York’s 17-point second quarter stemmed from Jorre Luther’s 36-yard field goal, set up by Garrett Snodgrass’ 60-yard run; a quarterback sneak by Snodgrass; and Nick Weskamp’s 26-yard pass to Brady Danielson.
Two personal fouls penalties on York on the ensuing kickoff started Skutt at the Dukes’ 33, only for Lucas to intercept Skutt quarterback Ben Sievers’ pass to the end zone on first down.
“We have great players on all three levels,’’ coach Snodgrass said. “We got big defensive linemen who can really play, we have fast, tough linebackers and we have some DBs back there who are some of the most underrated kids in Nebraska that people don’t know about.
“It was a fantastic effort defensively.”
York’s insurance touchdowns were a 63-yard run by Snodgrass and a three-yarder by Otte set up by his 64-yard run.
“We got incredibly not aggressive in the second half,’’ coach Snodgrass said. “We didn’t want to turn the ball over. We thought 17 might be good enough. We weren’t going to run option; we weren’t even going to throw the ball. Just grind out clock and try to win it that way.”
With York being the first Class B champion since Grand Island Northwest to shut out its final two playoff opponents, the elder Snodgrass became the third coach to win state titles in eight- and 11-man football. He guided Overton to the Eight Man-1 title in 2006.
The other two are Brock Eichelberger (Ewing 2008, O’Neill 2016) and Randy Huebert (Coleridge 1987, Aurora 2008 and 2009). Snodgrass also played, as did York assistant Matt Kern, on North Loup-Scotia’s 1993 Eight Man-1 title team.
York may be back here in 2018. With Gretna, Elkhorn South and Elkhorn among those moving up into Class A next season, the Dukes appear to return enough to contend in a smaller Class B.
Could we see a York-Skutt rematch next year? It produced a coach’s chuckle.
“I have no idea,” he said. “I’m only worried about celebrating with these guys tonight, but we do have some pretty good players coming back. I do know that.”
Omaha Skutt (10-3)…….0 0 0 0—0
York (12-1)……………..0 17 7 7—31
Y: FG Jorre Luther 36
Y: Garrett Snodgrass 1 run (Luther kick)
Y: Brady Danielson 26 pass from Nick Weskamp (Luther kick)
Y: Snodgrass 63 run (Luther kick)
Y: Simon Otte 3 run (Luther kick)
A: 4,857
Officials: Kirk Lott, referee; Jeff Lomax, Jim Tibbels, Bill Finney, Jay Stoa
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing: OS, Jake Archer 10-31, Ben Zach 9-28, Ben Sievers 11-18, Jarod Epperson 1-1, Samuel Heffron 0-9, Ryan McCormick 1-minus 11. Y, Snodgrass 26-209, Otte 23-161, Danielson 1-11, team 1-minus 2.
Passing: OS, Sievers 8-27-2 62, McCormick 0-1-0 0. Y, Weskamp 2-4-0 32, Snodgrass 1-1-0 7.
Receiving: OS, JD Daro 4-32, Jackson Gordon 2-19, Luke Lewandowski 1-7, Tyler Skradski 1-5. Y, Danielson 3-39.
Tackles (solo-assisted-total): OS, Archer 5-6-11, Ryan Trout 6-2-8, Sean Wells 4-3-7, Epperson 3-4-7, Ben Altman 1-3-4, Tyson Gordon 1-3-4, Alex Van Dyke 3-0-3, Kyle Hruby 3-0-3, Jackson Gordon 1-1-2, Alex Stumpff 0-2-2, Skradski 1-0-1, Jacob O’Neill 1-0-1, Billy Higgins 0-1-1. Y, Dylan Rahder 3-6-9, Noah Stafursky 5-1-6, Snodgrass 4-1-5, Masry Mapieu 3-1-4, Ben Mohorn 2-2-4, Tyler Cast 2-2-4, Otte 1-3-4, Wyatt Cast 2-1-3, Bryce Danielson 2-0-2, Jacob Diaz 2-0-2, Jordon Grooms 2-0-2, Jeb Lucas 0-2-2, Gabe Miller 1-0-1, Sam Kohmetscher 1-0-1, Reid Hoffmann 1-0-1, Brady Danielson 1-0-1, Leon Linhart 0-1-1, Luther 0-1-1, Maxx Troester 0-1-1.
Fumble recoveries: OS, Archer.
Interceptions-yards: Y, Lucas 1-0, Brady Danielson 1-0.
