Central holds off Millard North, wins Class A title

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BY RYLY JANE HAMBLETON / Lincoln Journal Star

Chris Griffin got Omaha Central off to a fast start Friday in the Class A championship game.

He also brought Millard North’s comeback to a screeching halt when he intercepted a pass with 1:22 left in the game.

That preserved Central’s 26-21 victory over the Mustangs, the first football title for the Eagles since 1984.

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Rob Pirnie (40) of Millard North is tackled by Chris Griffin (15) of Omaha Central during their Class A championship game at Memorial Stadium Friday night. (William Lauer)

Rob Pirnie (40) of Millard North is tackled by Chris Griffin (15) of Omaha Central during their Class A championship game at Memorial Stadium Friday night. (William Lauer)

On the third play of the game, Griffin hooked up with Ryan Steffan, who was wide open over the middle, for a 66-yard score.

“Ryan was so wide open. I thought somebody was hidden and had to be sneaking in,” said Griffin.

“The safety bit and I was alone. I kept thinking somebody was coming, but they came too late,” said Steffan.

Millard North fumbled on its first play, and two plays later Griffin hooked up with Shane Prater for a 24-yard score and a 12-0 lead less than three minutes into the game.

“We had playmakers making plays,” said Central coach Jay Ball. “Chris just made plays, and we expect that from him. That first touchdown pass isn’t designed to go to Steffan, but that’s Chris making plays. They left Ryan wide open, and Chris found him and hit him.”

Millard North answered with a score by Sean Fisher, who carried the ball 12 times in the 16-play drive. But the Eagles raced to a 26-7 halftime advantage when Ronnell Grixby capped a drive with a 1-yard run and then scored on a 49-yard pass from Griffin.

“It was very important that we get up early because they’re physical as heck,” said Ball. “We sure made some plays in the first and second quarters. In the third quarter, they stuffed us pretty good. We just hung in there.”

On the second score, Grixby did a flip into the end zone, drawing an unsportsmanlike penalty on the extra point attempt.

“I got two personal fouls and I apologized for that,” said Grixby. “I had my head in the clouds. We’re a good team and we didn’t need my flip.”

Millard North came out in the second half with a vengeance, jumping on Fisher’s back. The Husker recruit pounded away at Central’s defense, rushing 44 times for 198 yards.

He also scored on a 23-yard pass from Connor Thomas, dragging five defenders the final 10 yards into the end zone.

“In the second half, they leaned on us pretty good,” said Ball. “We didn’t get much going offensively. We did make a big play at the end with the pick and then got a couple of big first downs to milk the clock.”

The Mustangs ran off 45 plays in the second half, compared with just 14 for Central. Millard North had nearly triple the time of possession in the final two quarters, holding the ball for 17 minutes and 29 seconds, while Central had it for just six minutes and 31 seconds.

“Our defense was on the field all second half,” said Grixby. “We got tired. But I looked the guys in the eye and said it was up to us to stop them.”

After forcing a three-and out for the second time by Central, Millard North marched to the Eagles’ 11-yard line before a holding penalty backed them up. Facing fourth-and-13, a pass from Thomas to Fisher hit the turf with 4:01 remaining in the game.

Griffin picked up a first down on a keeper, but the Eagles had to punt again with 1:28 left. On Millard North’s first play, Fisher’s half-back pass to Nate Bence was picked off by Griffin.

“We just kept playing good defense, and I went up and got the interception that saved us the game,” said Griffin.

Millard North finished with 256 yards rushing and held the Eagles to just 48 yards on the ground. But Griffin connected on 7-of-12 passes in the first half for 206 yards.

“We helped them out a little, but they’re pretty good,” said Millard North coach Fred Petito. “Our kids battled. We came in short-handed and they battled their tails off.”

The Mustangs were without starting quarterback Nick Failla, who suffered a knee injury in the semifinals after rushing for 1,845 yards this year.

“We ground it out and did what we needed to do,” said Petito. “We got there in the red zone again. They weren’t slowing us down, but we got a penalty and we couldn’t overcome third-and-long.”

Ryly Jane Hambleton at 473-7314 or rhambleton@journalstar.com.