Bluffton coach Brent Kunkel held one finger aloft in the closing minute of Friday’s game at Adams Central, signaling one more play and kneel down to clinch the 36-28 victory in Monroe.
Normally, that signal would be received by Axton Beste, three-year starter at quarterback and one of the leaders of Kunkel’s undefeated Tigers.
Instead, it was sophomore Ethan Ribich taking the final snap after Beste was sidelined in the first half with an ankle injury.
That final play signified a lot – Bluffton’s ability to handle adversity, a backup quarterback and heir apparent to Beste coming through again, the end of a 17-game losing streak to the Flying Jets and, of course, the Tigers’ first ACAC championship in 37 years.
All wrapped up with one signal and one snap.
The first seven weeks of the season had presented little in the way of challenges for undefeated Bluffton. No game had been decided by less than 16 points, and in that game, Heritage didn’t score a point.
But Friday was different. To say Adams Central had dominated Bluffton for the better part of two decades was an understatement. Seventeen straight losses for the Tigers to their conference rival. Recent final scores were downright ugly – 47-17, 35-14, 49-24, 35-7. In fact, Bluffton had lost 12-consecutive games to the Flying Jets by double digits dating back to 2014.
So when Jamison Roach found the end zone on an 11-yard run late in the first quarter to put Adams Central up 14-7 on Friday, it could have felt as if the inevitable was happening again.
Was there panic on the Bluffton sideline?
When asked, Kunkel had a simple answer.
“Zero.”
And was there panic when Beste exited the game in the first half with an ankle injury, which thrusted Ribich into a high-pressure situation on the road with the league title on the line?
“Zero.”
Fueled by the losing streak, the title drought and a roster hell bent on ending both, Bluffton went to work. It scored three touchdowns in the second quarter, two by Cooper Craig, to gain control of the game. Craig added a third touchdown in the third quarter.
Then the defense went to work.
With the Flying Jets down by just eight entering the fourth quarter, Bluffton’s defense needed to come up big over the final 12 minutes to preserve the win.
After the Tigers missed a field goal early in the fourth, Adams Central put together a 10-play drive that moved into Bluffton territory. But on fourth-and-three, Xander Schwartz was stopped for no gain, ending the Flying Jets’ possession.
In the closing minutes of regulation, Adams Central had another drive into Bluffton territory, but on fourth-and-11, Gavin Grieser hauled down Roach for a sack that ended the final threat to the Tigers’ victory.
And Ribich? All he did was go 9-of-12 passing for 176 yards and two touchdowns in relief of Beste. We should have known the kid had it in him. After all, he nailed the winning field goal in his first-ever high school game as a freshman last season, a 29-27 win over Shenandoah in Week 1.
“It’s crazy man,” Kunkel said. “(Ribich) came in and didn’t miss a beat.”
Bluffton executed the way it had all season, and exercised the demons of so many lopsided losses to the Flying Jets, on Adams Central’s home field to boot, a place where the Tigers had not won since 1998. It was a fulfillment of so many ‘could have’ and ‘should have’ opportunities over the years.
Pulled off in the way the Tigers have won throughout the season.
“We have Cooper Craig and the best offensive line in the conference,” said Kunkel, whose star running back finished with 217 total yards.
The best part of Friday night for Blitz? This could be a precursor to a sectional showdown between the same two teams as soon as two weeks from now, with the sectional draw coming Sunday.
But for now, bragging rights belong to Bluffton.
It’s been a long time coming.
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