Scotties make valiant effort despite loss

The football careers of 11 Freeman Scotties, seven of them regulars, came to an end with the heartbreaking State 1A quarterfinal loss.

The 35-14 loss to defending state champion Royal, three-touchdown margin of difference notwithstanding, wasn’t for lack of effort and was closer, said coach Jim Wood, than the score indicates.

And one senior in particular, Andrew Wilkerson, seemed to be in the middle of all facets of Freeman’s upset bid.

He caught three passes for 74 yards, including a game-opening 64-yard catch and run that set up Freeman’s game-opening touchdown.

He kicked two extra points, although coming up short on a 30-yard field goal with 10 minutes remaining in the game that could have pared the Knights’ lead to 21-17.

But it was on defense, in particular, where the 6-foot, 195-pound safety announced his presence. Five of Wilkerson’s tackles were absolute monster hits that flattened foes and made Royal take notice.

“No. 10,” opposing quarterback Ray Valle gushed, “was just an amazing player.”

The Scotties gave the Knights all they could handle and it was anybody’s game until a set of late unfortunate circumstances.

Freeman held Royal after the missed field goal, but a fluke punt mishap gave the team the ball back. The low-bouncing punt tipped off the lower leg of Freeman’s deep man and was recovered by the Knights.

With personal foul yardage tacked on, Royal scored from 12 yards out in four plays for a two-touchdown lead with 6:19 remaining.

“If we could have hit that field goal and put it in a four-point game, I thought we were right there,” said Wood. “We lost momentum when we missed the field goal.”

For three quarters, however, the Scotties used a big-play offense and solid run defense to give themselves a chance.

Quarterback Andrew Dresback had four first-half completions of over 21 yards, including the one to Wilkerson and a 56-yarder to Scott Ferguson. Two of his completions went to Chris Davis for scores as the home team led 7-0 and again 14-7 in the game’s first 7 minutes, 30 seconds. All are juniors.

In the second half junior fullback Chris Swanson gained 52 yards on a trap play before an interception killed the drive at the goal line.

But after one last scoring opportunity bogged down at Royal’s 12-yard line and set up the field goal try, the game got away.

“We knew going in we’d have to put pressure on them. We knew we had to do man coverage which we normally don’t do a lot. We’re pretty much a zone team,” said Wood. “I thought our front four played well today, but (Valle) was just elusive enough and we were short a few times getting there.”

The good news for Freeman is that four skilled position players aren’t the only ones coming back. Beau Davey, Ryan Horlen, Travis Hollen and K.C. Cross and linebackers Christian Casto and Max Riggs also were regulars and return.

Offensive coordinator Kelly Neely said the Scotties can be better even next year, even with starters like Wilkerson, Michael Wittwer and Nate Kjack among those graduating.

“You don’t like to lose, but I’m pleased with the way they played,” said Wood, who completed his first year as head coach.

You either win your last game of the season and don’t go to the playoffs or win the state title, he continued. There’s no in between.

“You have a choice of not going to the playoffs and winning that last game or (trying to) win it all. I’ll play for it every time,” he said. “Our kids got a taste of what it’s like to be in that situation.”

The Bjorklunds ‘Amazing Race’

When Jim Bjorklund took his daughter, University High junior Angie, on a trip back east in October to visit national women’s basketball powers Connecticut, Duke and Tennessee he likened it to reality television.

They flew into Hartford, Durham and Knoxville, rented cars, pulled out directions and saw what transpired.

“I told Angie it was like the show ‘Amazing Race’,” he said, of their flight to Hartford. “I’d never been there and tried to see if we could find the place. We did very well. We only got lost once.”

Angie Bjorklund has been set on playing for Tennessee since watching them on TV as a youngster. But before she could make a decision, her dad figured she needed to see what other championship caliber programs were like to make sure she was making the right decision.

“We left here Tuesday, spent Wednesday at U-Conn, flew out early Thursday and spent all day at Duke,” he recounted. “We flew out Friday and arrived at Knoxville and spent Friday and Saturday at Tennessee.”

The week was as much a revelation to him as to his daughter. They rubbed elbows with Blue Devil’s men’s coach Mike Krzyzewski and went to the Tennessee-South Carolina football game before flying home Sunday, Nov. 13.

Just like the “Amazing Race,” the whirlwind trip wasn’t without mishaps.

“It’s kind of an embarrassing deal for me,” said Jim. “I lost the keys to the rental car after the game.”

But with helpful Tennessee coaches and an obliging locksmith who arrived at 3 a.m., the pair made their flight on three hours sleep.

Angie, whose sister Jami Bjorklund is playing as a true freshman for Gonzaga University, made up her mind and gave an oral, but nonbinding, commitment to Tennessee by midweek.

“It was all very flattering for Angie,” said Jim Bjorklund of their trip and recruiting interest. “I know it was a difficult decision for her, but we supported any decision she decided to make. It’s great to have both our daughters get scholarships. They worked so hard, I’m glad they’re being rewarded for it.”