Northstars survive first big test

By JASON JUNO

sports@yourdailyglobe.com

Hurley — Hurley’s offense has looked strikingly different the last two weeks than the lethal rushing attack its 26-year playoff streak was built on.

In Friday night’s 26-12 win over Flambeau, the Northstars threw for 267 yards, which was more than the 238 yards they passed for in the last two seasons — combined.

And so far, it’s helped them win games.

When Prentice loaded up against the run last week, Hurley went to the air and discovered their passing game looked pretty dynamic in the new-to-them 8-player format. When Flambeau, one of the top teams in the Northwoods East, came to Hurley Friday night, the run game didn’t gain much traction early and the Northstars built their lead through the air.

Hurley coach Scott Erickson is happy to have an effective passing game. But he wants to get the run game fixed, and the fourth quarter gave him confidence that that will happen. The Northstars worked six minutes off the clock by running the football, helping them clinch the big win over the Falcons.

“We’re throwing the ball really well right now, which is a great complement, but if we can’t run, things could be very dicey come October,” Erickson said.

The passing can be a liability when the weather gets bad, and running is often a key to winning in the postseason whether the sun’s out or the snow is falling.

“Passing is fine, but you have to be able to run to win championships, I believe,” Erickson said. “You got to wear a team out. Running the football wears a team out. Don’t get me wrong, chasing quarterbacks wears a defensive lineman out big time, too. You got to have a little bit of both going here, probably a little more run than pass.

“We had 15 passes last week, but we had 30-some runs. It’s not like we’re overemphasizing the passing game. We’ve been able to use the passing game to get out of some down and distance issues so far.”

And to win their biggest game, and test, of the season so far.

Hurley scored 20 points in the second quarter Friday night for a 20-6 lead and held on from there to hand Flambeau its first loss. They didn’t score again until the game clock expired and Flambeau made it a one-possession game with 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter.

“They’re a good team, we knew that, and we found a way to get it done,” Erickson said. “That’s the sign of a good team, even though we finally had to fight through some adversity. I’m glad we were able to make enough plays to make it happen tonight.”

The Northstars had to punt on their first possession of the game, but they forced Flambeau to do so on their first three possessions.

Hurley got on the scoreboard less than a minute into the second quarter, on their second possession of the game. Wyatt Hall caught a 16-yard touchdown pass from Jack Rowe for a 6-0 lead.

After a Flambeau punt, Rowe found a wide-open Devin Soltis for a 42-yard touchdown pass. Soltis ran the conversion in for a 14-0 Hurley advantage.

Flambeau got on the board with 2:37 left, on a six-yard run by Chase Ludescher.

Hurley took over on its 34 and a penalty and a loss pushed them back to the 23 with 2:30 left in the half. Rowe completed three passes for 76 yards on the drive for nearly all of the distance needed. Soltis ran it in from a yard out as time expired to put Hurley ahead 20-6 going into halftime.

“It killed us,” Flambeau coach Aaron Frafjord said. “You take away that score and it’s a whole different ballgame.”

That touchdown proved to be a bigger one than usual at the end of the half. Hurley’s normal formula is to score late in the first half and then tack on another one right away in the second half. But Hurley was forced to punt on the first possession of the second half and they were in for a ballgame the rest of the way.

Flambeau turned a Hurley interception into another Ludescher touchdown, on a 46-yard run with 9:59 left in the game. Hurley got a big stop on the conversion run attempt and held onto a 20-12 lead.

The Hurley run game then made its stamp on the game, doing what the Northstars have done for so many years, killing a ton of clock.

They drove all the way down into the red zone, forcing the Falcons to use all of their timeouts along the way. They couldn’t punch it in, though, turning it over on downs on a five-yard pass on fourth and 6 at the Flambeau 7.

On the first play of the ensuing drive, Ty Hall picked off the underthrown ball with 3:10 left. Flambeau quarterback Cole Schley was off the field getting treated for a cramp on the warm night, and that was the one Flambeau pass he didn’t throw all night.

Hurley ran out the rest of the clock and scored on a 27-yard pass from Rowe to Soltis as time ran out. They didn’t attempt the conversion because the game was over.

The way Hurley iced the game in part with its running game in the fourth quarter gave them some hope they won’t have to be one dimensional with the passing game going forward.

“That fourth quarter showed us if we run it hard, block it hard, we can find some yardage,” Erickson said. “We made crucial first downs in a time they knew we were going to be running. For us to make first downs in those six minutes, I think that gives us a little more positivity going into this week.”

Rowe finished 7 of 9 for 168 yards and three touchdowns. Soltis was 5 of 6 for 99 yards. He caught two touchdown passes and ran for another.

Rowe has excelled at the QB position.

“Jack’s a great thrower of the ball,” Erickson said. “He spins a great ball and that helps. He put some right on the money last week. Our goal for him at the end of that game was to turn up the shoulder pads and get some first downs in the run game and he was able to do it. I think that’s going to really help going forward in the next few weeks.”

Soltis said the Northstars came into the game with some confidence after their 2-0 start.

“This game was a tough one,” Soltis said. “They have a lot of big kids on their team.”

Frafjord said his team defended the pass better in the second half after doing a really good job shutting down the run in the first half.

“We started backing our DBs off, we were up too tight. We were trying to press and we couldn’t stay with their speed,” he said. “It was just a matter of backing up and getting a little more pressure on the quarterback.”

Hurley goes on its longest road trip of the season this Friday night. They play at Athens, which is surprisingly seeking its first win.

They lost two road games to start the year, 24-8 at Thorp and 46-20 at Flambeau. They also dropped their home opener last week, 52-32 to Bruce.

They are led by Evin Passehl, who has rushed for 245 yards on 34 carries and four touchdowns.

“An under center team,” Erickson said. “I thought they’d be one of the favorites in the league to start the year, but here they sit at 0-3. But we’re not taking anything for granted. It’s a long trip, our longest of the year, and our boys are going to have to come ready to play in this one.”

It’s the first trip to Athens for Erickson. The only time they played was when Hurley shut them out 36-0 here in the 2013 run to the state semifinal.

This two-hour plus trip is shorter than the three-hour or more trips they made for conference games last year.

Flambeau 0 6 0 6 — 12

Hurley 0 20 0 6 — 26

First Quarter

No scoring

Second Quarter

Hur — Wyatt Hall 16 pass from Jack Rowe (run failed), 11:05

Hur — Devin Soltis 42 pass from Rowe (Soltis run), 7:44

Fla — Chase Ludescher 6 run (run failed), 2:37

Hur — Soltis 1 run (run failed), :00

Third Quarter

No scoring

Fourth Quarter

Fla — Ludescher 46 run (run failed), 9:59

Hur — Soltis 27 pass from Rowe (none attempted), :00

Fla Hur

First downs 6 13

Rushes-yards 26-196 38-81

Comp-Att-Int 2-11-1 12-15-1

Passing 36 267

Total yards 232 348

Penalties-yards 4-35 4-35

Fumbles-lost 2-0 2-0

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Flambeau, Cole Schley 19-117, Chanse Ludescher 5-76, Oliver Taylor 1-4, Ethan Johnson 1-minus 1. Hurley, Devin Soltis 19-47, Jack Rowe 12-1, Charlie Haanen 3-19, Wyatt Hall 4-14.

PASSING — Flambeau, Cole Schley 2-10-36-0. Chanse Ludescher 0-1-0-0. Hurley, Jack Rowe 7-9-168-0, Devin Soltis 5-6-99-1.

RECEIVING — Flambeau, Oliver Taylor 1-39, Chanse Ludescher 1-minus 3. Hurley, Devin Soltis 4-112, Ty Hall 4-84, Wyatt Hall, 3-66, Jack Rowe 1-5.