- By Mike Shaughnessy
- Oct 15, 2015
Things fell into place for Burnsville’s football team at the end of last week, on several fronts: The Blaze beat Eastview 39-22 last Friday to finish the regular season 7-1 and give itself a chance to share the East Metro White subdivision championship. Rosemount’s 35-27 victory over Lakeville North was the other result Burnsville needed. The Blaze tied for first in the subdistrict with Rosemount and North.Burnsville was treated favorably in the Section 3 seedings, earning the No. 2 spot and potentially two home playoff games.Early this week Burnsville rose to No. 2 in the Associated Press Class 6A football poll, trailing only four-time defending state large-school champion Eden Prairie. That’s something else for the Blaze to savor … some other time. For now, its attention is on its first Class 6A playoff game at 7 p.m. Friday, when it plays host to Forest Lake.Forest Lake, the seventh seed from Section 5, is 0-8 this season, but that doesn’t begin to tell the story of the Rangers’ recent woes. They have lost 39 consecutive varsity football games dating to the middle of the 2011 season.For Burnsville, it could mean one of two things – the opponent that shows up at Dick Hanson Field on Friday might be counting the hours before its season ends, or it could come in believing it has nothing more to lose and play inspired football.Burnsville coach Tyler Krebs said his team is preparing for the latter possibility.“ We have every game of theirs on film, and what we’ve seen is that they have a number of talented players,” Krebs said. “They have a lineman who’s committed to Wisconsin, a quarterback who throws the ball well, a good running back and some receivers. They’ve been in some of their games, but mistakes and penalties have hurt them.” Last week, Burnsville also faced an opponent going through a rough season. The Blaze scored the final three touchdowns of the game to seal a 39-22 victory over Eastview, which finished the regular season 0-8. The Lightning will play at Maple Grove in the first Class 6A playoff round Friday night. Eastview led 22-21 early in the third quarter largely behind the running of junior Mike Delich, who rushed for 156 yards and two scores. His 9-yard touchdown run in the third quarter put the Lightning in front.“ Eastview has been able to score some points, but they’ve also had a lot of turnovers and penalties,” said Krebs, who was Eastview’s defensive coordinator before becoming Burnsville head coach in 2011. “They have a good team. Defensively, it wasn’t one of our best games. We made some mistakes we haven’t seen for a while. Thankfully, our offense played a great game.” Burnsville rushed for 302 yards, with junior Steph Olson Jr. gaining 117 yards on 16 carries and scoring four touchdowns. Quarterback Kamal Martin scored in the first quarter on an 8-yard run, and Jackson Martens scored on a 6-yard run in the fourth. If the Blaze beats Forest Lake, it would play at home against Edina or Mounds View on Oct. 23. Two victories would send Burnsville to the state quarterfinals for the first time since 1995.The school has become invested in the football program’s revival, Krebs said. “When I came here five years ago, I thought if we could build something, the community and school would rally around it,” the coach said. “And that’s what has happened.”
