Longhorns fall in season opener, 28-13

Kimball overcame early mistakes to take a 7-6 lead into the fourth quarter before Gordon-Rushville came back to win 28-13 to spoil homecoming night at Keith Staehr Field last Friday.

"We didn't play clean," Kimball coach Nick Kuxhausen said. "We had a lot of turnovers (five) and penalties (20 for both teams) and we just didn't get the job done. There is going to be a lot of work this week.

"We didn't play as well as I know we could have and we will just have to try harder."

The first team to score was Gordon-Rushville. The Longhorns had the ball first and were driving when Kimball quarterback Tyler Magninie fumbled, which Gordon-Rushville recovered and Logan Belsky took it the other way for a touchdown. The following two-point conversion play, a run by Taylen Pieper, was no good as the Mustangs led 6-0 with 10:55 left in the opening quarter.

The Horns fumbled again on their next possession, but the defense held the Mustangs to a punt. A fumble on an option pitch on Kimball's third offensive possession of the game put the defense in a tough position once again, but the Longhorn defense once again held the Mustangs out of the end zone. Morgan Hurlburt's 12-yard run pushed the ball to the Kimball 14-yard line. A pair of penalties set the Mustangs back to the 27, before they moved back to the 14 on their next two plays. Magninie batted down a Hurlburt pass on fourth down as the Longhorn defense stood strong.

It did not take Kimball long to get onto the scoreboard in the second quarter. On the third play of the quarter, facing a third down needed five yards at their own 38-yard line, Magninie found Dakota Flores down the sideline, and Flores hauled in the tipped pass and raced down the field for a 62-yard score to tie the game. Magninie connected on the extra point as Kimball took a 7-6 lead with 10:30 left in the opening half.

The two teams traded punts for most of the rest of the quarter and the Longhorns went to the locker room with a 7-6 halftime advantage.

The clock moved swiftly in the third quarter as Gordon-Rushville managed two possessions, both of which were stopped by the Kimball defense, and the homestanding Longhorns had the ball twice, with the second possession starting with 1:52 left in the quarter.

The turnover bug came to bite Kimball again in the fourth quarter. Magninie fumbled while being sacked and Gordon-Rushville took over at the Kimball 36-yard line. The Mustangs needed just two plays and were aided by a Longhorn personal foul penalty as they retook the lead. Shane Child scored on a 12-yard run and a two-pointer conversion run by Pieper put the Mustangs up 14-7 with 7:34 left in the game.

The Mustangs tacked onto their lead with a run of 47 yards but missed on the conversion for a 20-7 advantage.

The Longhorns were not finished though, and drove down the field for a score. Magninie finished the drive with a 3-yard run to cut the deficit to 20-13. However, the Mustangs put the game away with a 31-yard scoring run and a two-point conversion to win 28-13.

Offensively, Jaden Withrow was the leading rusher with 22 carries for 72 yards. Logan Stahla added 11 carries for 57 yards.

Magninie was 13 of 26 passing for 164 yards. He threw a touchdown and had a pick. His top targets were Trent Rutledge with four catches for 43 yards, followed by Ethan Land with three receptions for 25 yards. Flores caught two passes for 74 yards with a touchdown, while Stahla caught two passes for 15 yards and Withrow caught two for seven yards.

The three leading defensive men for the Longhorns were Rutledge, Dalton Pruett and Creg Barker, with 5.5 tackles each. Flores, Withrow and Kyle Spicer each had three tackles.

The Longhorns' next game is Friday at Southern Valley. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. central time. Southern Valley is 0-1 on the season after opening with a 12-6 loss at Cambridge.