09/01/2023
BY JACK BULLOCK
BREESE – Teams and players don't always get second chances, be it in sports or life.

Friday night in the 39th Milk Bowl contest, Breese Central sophomore placekicker Bryce Wieter made the most of his second opportunity.

With the game against rival Breese Mater Dei tied at 14 with just :09.8 left on the clock and Central set up for a game-winning field goal on third down and goal from the Mater Dei 1-yard line, Wieter had his first opportunity not go as planned.

His field goal attempt was blocked by a surge of BMD defenders.

Fortunately for the Cougars and head coach Brian Short, the blocked kick landed out of bounds by the Central bench, giving Wieter and his team another shot at a game-winning field goal.

Undaunted by his previous attempt, Wieter got the blocking up front he needed on the second try.

The second kick went through the uprights which gave Central the lead 17-14 with just :04.6 remaining.

A subsequent kick off by the Cougars and a series of lateral passes failed for the Knights as Central broke a five-game losing streak to its cross-town nemesis.

“I've never seen it (the ending) before, either” said Coach Short when asked about the kick being blocked out of bounds and getting a second chance. “As for our emotions, this has never been higher. There are so many good things going on at this school and football program. We've been knocking on the door to take over. Tonight, even with a bunch of mistakes, our guy persevered and came up with a gutsy win.”

Mater Dei had multiple opportunities in the second half but couldn't move the ball against the Central defense as the host Cougars built momentum and eventually took home the Milk Bowl trophy in the 39th game in the series.

“They (Central) had a lot of second and short yardage, they did a really good job on first downs,” said Mater Dei head coach Jim Stiebel. “We need to clean up our offense in key situations and that really slowed our offense down.”

After the Knights scored on a long first quarter run by senior quarterback Trenton Zeeb and a blocked punt and return by senior Markus Kehrer in the second quarter for a 14-7 halftime margin, head coach Jim Stiebel's team couldn't score in the final two quarters.

BMD produced just two first downs in the second half and 32 total yards from scrimmage after intermission as the Central defense was dominant.

Offensively the Cougars got 122-yards rushing on 21-attempts from junior Kaden Rakers as Central was near 200-yards on the ground for the game.

Six-foot junior quarterback Preston Baker passed for 182-yards and a pair of touchdowns on 15-of-27 attempts.

Both scores went to junior wide receiver Carter Deien, one in the second quarter which covered 52-yards to tie the game at 7-7.

The second one also evened the score, this time the Baker/Deien combination accounted for a 21-yard TD.

After a Mater Dei punt on it's first possession, Central went on its first drive of the game (55-yards) that produced the game's first turnover.

On first and goal at the four, Central scored a touchdown on a Rakers' run up the middle.

However an illegal shift penalty against the Cougars nullified the score.

Subsequently the Central coughed up a fumble that the Knights recovered on their own 18.

Facing a third-and-six on their own 21, Zeeb took a snap and rolled out to his right.

The QB found a seam in the middle of the field, changed directions to his left before sprinting down the sideline for a 79-yard touchdown.

The PAT kick by senior Markus Kehrer gave Mater Dei a 7-0 lead with :45.5 remaining in the first frame.

Central evened the score in the second quarter with a touchdown pass where Baker rolled out and bought some time, which allowed Deien to work his way open.

Deien caught the Baker pass on the right sideline.

When the 5-8 junior wide out snagged the pass and turned up field, he saw nothing but daylight.

Deien sprinted the final yards into the end zone.

Wieter's PAT knotted the game at 7-7.

After stopping Mater Dei on its next possession, Central's next drive stalled.

The Cougars were forced to punt but Kehrer rushed up the middle untouched and blocked the kick.

Kehrer quickly scooped up the ball and went the final 24-yards untouched for a stunning turn of events with just :42.1 left in the second quarter.

His PAT put the Knights up 14-7 at the half.

Although his team trailed at the break, Coach Short and his teams' defense had begun to take charge.