When Brookings took the lead in the third quarter, the Aberdeen Central football team had a decision to make Friday in Aberdeen.
The Golden Eagles chose wisely, and won 28-12.
"When Brookings came out in the second half, scored and went ahead, I told our guys they had two options," Aberdeen Central coach Mike Flakus said. "You can let things go south, start hanging your head and blaming everybody in sight for our problems. So you can make all these excuses, or you can get nasty and say 'Game on.' Our guys said, 'Game on,' and I am so proud of them. They showed what kind of character they have as individuals and as a team."
The Central special teams --- which had their problems in the season-opening loss to Sioux Falls Washington --- bounced back with a group of plays in the third quarter that led to Friday's win. After Brookings took a 12-7 lead of the Eastern South Dakota Conference game, Chase Severson of Central blocked the Brookings' point-after-touchdown kick.
Aberdeen Central sophomore Layne Tieszen, who made several special plays, then returned the Brookings kickoff 55 yards to the Bobcats' 31. That set up a six-play TD drive that ended in a five-yard scoring pass from Jacob Goehring to Issac Jones. It gave Central a lead they would not lose.
"That return was a huge play, and Layne did a great job running the ball back," Flakus said. "Plus our blocking was really good. It gave us great field position, and allowed us to answer right away. That was probably the turning point of the game."
On Anthony Bachmeier's kickoff, Brookings made a mental error by letting the ball roll free without downing it. Central senior Zach Russman took advantage of the opportunity by hustling down and recovering the ball for the Golden Eagles on the Brookings' 25-yard-line. That led to another Central touchdown on a 14-yard pass from Goehring to Curtis Paysen.
Brookings nearly repeated its mistake on the next kickoff, but recovered the ball on its own three. The Central defense held, and Central got the ball in good field position again. That led to the final touchdown of the night, a 16-yard pass from Goehring to Anthony Buechler.
It was the second touchdown of the night for the Goehring-Buechler duo as Aberdeen Central overcame five penalties in the first half to take a 7-6 halftime lead. On their first possession, Central went on an eight-play, 46-yard drive that took 2:18. The drive ended on a 20-yard touchdown from Goehring to Buechler.
Buechler, a senior who made plays all over the field, praised his teammates for their positive attitudes after Brookings got the lead. "My teammates stayed positive and pushed through for the win. I am really proud of each and every one of them right now."
The list of heroes was a long one for Central. The junior quarterback Goehring had 110 yards passing to go along with his four TDs. Central got 69 yards rushing from Logan Stubbe and 64 from Mitch Johnson, who also had 24 yard receiving. And Bachmeier got to show off his booming leg to the home crowd with his crushing kickoffs and four PAT kicks.
After winning its home opener, the Golden Eagles also are now 1-0 in the ESD. "Winning this first game at Swisher is an awesome feeling," Buechler said. "This team is very excited about our next game and the season."
Flakus agreed. "1-0 in the ESD. Hey, that is good stuff, really good stuff."
Game notes: This was the 11th annual Hub City Bowl . . . Recently retired American News sportswriter Deb Smith was honored at the game by Aberdeen Central . . . The Golden Eagles will play at Watertown Friday for the Arrows homecoming . . . Central is 5-6 in Hub City Bowls.
Brookings (1-1, 1-1 ESD)|0 6 6 0---12
Aberdeen Central (1-1, 1-0)|7 0 14 7---28
|First Quarter|
AC --- Anthony Buechler 20 pass from Jacob Goehring (Anthony Bachmeier kick), 8:45.
|Second Quarter|
B --- Dayton Bender 6 pass from Carter Gordon (missed PAT kick), 1:34.
|Third Quarter|
B --- Tyler Madler 26 pass from Gordon (PAT kick blocked), 7:46.
AC --- Issac Jones 5 pass from Goehring (Bachmeier kick), 4:45.
AC --- Curtis Paysen 14 pass from Goehring (Bachmeier kick), 2:53.
|Fourth Quarter|
AC --- Buechler 16 pass from Goehring (Bachmeier kick), 9:05.
|BHS AC
First downs|17 7
Rushes-yards|39-178 23-73
Passing|110 85
Comp-Att-Int|11-22-0 4-12-0
Fumbles-Lost|1-0 3-0
Penalties-Yards|7-56 2-7
Third Downs|1-9 6-15
Fumbles-Lost|1-2 2-2
|INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS|
RUSHING --- Brookings, Gerald Maxwell 5-33; Aberdeen Central, Logan Stubbe 12-69, Mitch Johnson 11-64, Jacob Goehring 11-30.
PASSING --- Brookings, Carter Gordon 4-12-0 for 85; Aberdeen Central, Jacob Goehring 11-22-0 for 110.
RECEIVING --- Brookings, Cody Shepardson 1-42, Tyler Madler 2-37; Aberdeen Central, Anthony Buechler 5-38, Mitch Johnson 2-24.
DEFENSE --- Brookings, Preston Tetzlaff; Aberdeen Central, Anthony Buechler, Greyson Neuharth.
Twitter: @jpapendick