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November 20, 2004PREP FOOTBALL: Suttons Bay rockets into Division 6 title game, 22-14ByRecord-Eagle staff writer BIG RAPIDS - Their dreams never changed. Only their expectations. Seven years after Joe Trudeau took over the Suttons Bay football program -and five years after back-to-back 2-7 seasons - the Norsemen advanced to the Division 6 state finals for the first time in their history with a 22-14 semifinal victory over Reese on Saturday at Ferris State's Top Taggart Field. Suttons Bay (12-1) will play Constantine (12-1) for the title on Friday at 5 p.m. at the Pontiac Silverdome. "Seven years ago I didn't know if this was possible," Trudeau said. "There were a lot of times I just sat and wondered if it would ever happen. The first year we had 13 kids, and I thought if we won two games we'd be doing something. "That's how far we've come in seven years. It's unbelievable." Suttons Bay's players echoed their coach's sentiments. "This is something we've been dreaming about since we first started playing football," said senior quarterback Matt Schlueter, who was in elementary school when Trudeau became head coach. "It's just awesome." The Norsemen are 48-9 since 2000 and have qualified for the playoffs five consecutive seasons. Suttons Bay had never played in a state semifinal game before Saturday, however, but that fact didn't seem to play heavy on the players' minds. Defensively, they sacked Reese quarterback Corbin Oldenburg six times, intercepted him twice and limited him to 70 yards passing. The Norse also held Corbin to 25 net rushing yards on 15 carries. Junior Chris Send had a hand in four sacks - three solo - while junior Elliott Gallagher was in on two. Reese (9-4) had a chance to set the tone early by marching 73 yards in 7:49 on its second possession of the game, but the drive turned out to give Suttons Bay a mental boost. The Norse committed three penalties during the 18-play drive - two of which were worth first downs - but walked away unharmed after the Rockets' 25-yard field goal attempt sailed wide. Five minutes later, after an interception by senior Kyle Korson, Suttons Bay put together a 57-yard drive that took only 1:47 off the clock and was capped by a 3-yard touchdown run by junior Elliott Gallagher. The extra point kick failed. Following another sack and another Reese punt, the Norsemen needed only two plays and 10 seconds to score again when Schlueter found a wide-open Jimmie Stewart over the middle for a 51-yard TD pass. J.C. Guillen's two-point conversion run made it 14-0 at halftime. Reese head coach Bob Taylor, a former Frankfort assistant, had plenty to say to his team in the locker room. "We had to make adjustments both offensively and defensively," Taylor said. "I really thought we were going to come out and get things rolling in the second half. I felt good about it." Apparently, so did the Rockets. They scored on their first two drives, including a 13-play, 91-yarder on their first possession of the third quarter. A 20-yard touchdown pass from Oldenburg to Drew Saylor, the coach's son, put Reese on the board, then Jason Bierlein punched in a 1-yard TD four minutes later. Josh Wheeler kicked both extra points to make it 14-14. It was Trudeau's turn to search for answers. "I told them, 'You have to get off your heels and start taking it to them again,' " he said. "We had to get it going. We had to get moving." A familiar play sparked the Norse and pushed the ball into Reese territory as Stewart got behind the defense and hauled in a 37-yard pass from Schlueter. Nine plays later, Suttons Bay faced third-and-goal from the 9. Schlueter took the snap and faded back, looked right, then lofted a pass to the left side. For a moment it appeared Schlueter had put too much on it, but senior Jonathon Webster laid out to haul it in the ball just as he was hitting the ground. The touchdown, which came with 7:17 remaining, was the first of Webster's career. "I saw him wide open and I just wanted to get it to him," Schlueter said. "I was a little (worried that the pass was long), but I trusted that he was going to catch it." Said Webster: "I was afraid I couldn't catch up to it. I don't even know what I did, I just know I caught it. "I was a little nervous when he called (the play), but we practice it all the time. It was just the opportunity I needed." Webster didn't have to wait long for another opportunity. Trudeau opted for a two-point conversion, and Schlueter and Webster connected again - this time in the right corner of the end zone - to make it 22-14. Suttons Bay's defense did the rest by holding off the Rockets for the final 7:17, stopping them first with an interception by Stewart and finally with a sack as time wound down. "All the work you've done since Pop Warner, it all leads up to this point," Webster said. "Having the opportunity to win a state championship is just incredible." Suttons Bay finished with 257 total yards but was hurt by six penalties for 60 yards. The Norse gained 166 yards on the ground, with Guillen netting 69 on 13 carries and Stewart adding 58 on 12 carries. Stewart also had two catches for 88 yards. Reese had 175 total yards, with Bierlein picking up 65 yards on 19 carries.
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