BROOKINGS – The Brookings football team didn’t come away with a win on Friday night, but Brady Clark liked what he saw. The Bobcats’ head coach watched his team dig itself in a 21-point hole in a homecoming matchup with Yankton, but then it battled back to tie the game before ultimately falling 38-27. 

“It was just great for me to see that we can battle, because we haven’t really been battle tested yet,” Clark said. “We didn’t battle [in a loss] to Pierre. This was a battle tonight. We could have gone the other way when it was 21-0 real quick, but, our boys, they didn’t quit.”

The night got off to a rocky start for the Bobcats after a three-and-out on their first drive. After a miscommunication on fourth down, Yankton got the ball deep in Brookings territory and converted on a six-yard touchdown pass from Rugby Ryken to Cody Oswald. 

After another three-and-out, Ryken expanded the lead with a one-yard touchdown plunge before making it a 21-0 game on a touchdown pass to Tyler Sohler with 1:03 left in the first quarter.

“We kind of have always gotten off to a slow start and we knew that they had a lot of weapons coming in,” Clark said. “They were doing some things we saw on tape, but when it’s out on the field, it took a little time to adjust.”

Another troubling trend was the Bobcat’s efficiency on third down. With a mix of penalties, mental mistakes and a hot start by the Bucks defensively, Brookings didn’t convert their first third down until there were nine minutes left in the second quarter and went just 4-for-13 on the night.

“We never want to get behind the sticks and they were just beating us up front,” Clark said. “We can’t get pushed into the backfield when we’re trying to run the ball. We can’t get negative yards on first down. It’s basic football stuff.”

After a rocky start, the Bobcats began to find their footing in the second quarter. On 4th-and-4 deep in Yankton territory, Tyson Brandt scored on a 14-yard run to put Brookings on the board. A few minutes later, Justin Cofell chipped into the lead with a 12-yard touchdown run. He then tied the game up on the first drive of the second half with a three-yard touchdown run.

“We started believing in ourselves,” Clark said of his team’s comeback. “We started building confidence and that stuff started coming the other way around. We started getting stops on defense, and they’re so talented in that their quarterback is a magician out there. We started getting pressure from our guys and we started doing things that make us who we are.”

One of the players that led the charge defensively was defensive lineman Caleb Lohr. The senior was in the backfield constantly on Friday night, collecting two sacks and energizing his teammates to make the comeback possible.

“The kid is just a workhorse,” Clark said of Lohr. “He’s put in his time, he’s gotten his chance as a senior and he’s taken full advantage of it. The kid doesn’t miss lifting, he doesn’t miss practice, he works his tail off with whatever we’re doing and it’s showing out here. He’s got a motor like no other because he’s put in that work.”

Clark also mentioned that Lohr would be the first player to credit his teammates for his success.

“He would compliment his teammates saying ‘I don’t make that play unless you do your job,’” Clark said. “He’s just been a terror for other teams and I’ll know he’ll continue that.”

Although the momentum was tipped back toward the Bobcats in front of a homecoming crowd, Yankton was able to swing it back into their favor. Ryken gave the Bucks the lead with a nine-yard touchdown pass to Sohler and put Yankton back in the driver’s seat with a three-yard touchdown run.

With his fifth total touchdown of the night, Yankton had built a 35-21 lead. But the Bobcats didn’t quit with Cofell racking up 67 yards on back to back plays to set up a three-yard touchdown for Israel Caldron. Although the extra point was blocked, the Brookings had once again made it a game.

“The breath kind of got knocked out of us when they blocked the field goal,” Clark admitted. “But if we get the two-point conversion, there’s still a chance and our boys didn’t quit fighting.”

The Bobcats failed to recover an onside kick before Yankton tried to kill the clock with three straight runs. Brookings used all of their timeouts but they were able to get the stop, forcing a field goal with 1:21 to go. Although it was the final score of the game, Clark was impressed by his team’s fight in the final moments.

“Hats off to Yankton,” Clark said. “They’re a very athletic and skilled team, but I’m just super proud of our guys the way we battled. We haven’t been in that situation yet and it’s great for them to see that, especially our young guys.”

Brookings outgained Yankton 365-339. 233 of those yards came on the ground. 

Cofell had a big night for the Bobcats as he had 102 yards on 16 carries. Caldron had 61 yards and Brandt had 59.

Cofell was 6-for-16 with 132 yards and two interceptions. Brandt had four catches for 64 yards.

The loss was a tough one for the Bobcats, who entered the game ranked fourth in Class 11AA. They fell to 4-2, which is the same record as Yankton with three games to go. With a trip to Aberdeen Central next on the schedule, the Bobcats will have to rack up the wins as they head to the playoffs.