Photo by Jake McNeill: The MCC football team breaks down a huddle after their quarterfinal win. The Rebels head to US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis today to take on Breckenridge in the state semifinals, with the Rebels aiming for the first state championship appearance in program history.

MINNEAPOLIS — For the second time in program history, the Murray County Central football team is headed to the state semifinals. The Rebels are slated to take on Breckenridge at US Bank Stadium at 11:30 a.m. today with the opportunity to reach the state championship for the first time in program history.

Before today, the Rebels’ last state semifinal appearance came in 2000 when they lost to Sleepy Eye at the Metrodome.

Heading into today’s matchup against Breckenridge, the Rebels are on a nine-game winning streak since losing their first two games of the season to No. 9 Dawson-Boyd and No. 2 Springfield. MCC has since gotten revenge for one of those losses, defeating Springfield 31-20 in the Section 3A championship game to end the Tigers’ three-year reign as section champions en route to three straight state runner-up finishes.

Breckenridge, meanwhile, enters the game undefeated at 12-0. After earning the top seed in the North bracket, Breckenridge steamrolled Barnum 57-14 in the state quarterfinals in Morris last week, led by three touchdowns and 111 yards on the ground from David Erlandson, and Riley Kappes’ two total touchdowns with 117 rushing yards and 92 passing yards.

This season will mark the Cowboys’ 15th state tournament appearance, though the bulk of their success came before 2000. Breckenridge had four state championship matches in the 1980s and 90s, including a state title in 1988, but has made just three appearances in the last 20 years and two in the last 15.

Breckenridge’s last state appearance came in 2022, where they lost 35-7 to eventual state champion Minneota in the quarterfinal round. The Vikings ran for 252 yards in the game, led by 141 from Zack Fier.

For the Rebels, a win would mark their first-ever state semifinal victory. MCC has made four other appearances, with their lone other win in the tournament coming in the 2000 quarterfinals.

In this year’s quarterfinals, MCC upset the South’s second-seeded Fillmore Central by a final score of 29-26. The Rebels took a 21-0 lead late into the second quarter and held off a furious second-half comeback bid by the Falcons to hold on for a 29-26 win after recovering Fillmore Central’s onside kick attempt.

Quarterback Teague Meyer led the MCC offense in the game with a trio of touchdowns, including a 59-yarder in the first half and a 1-yarder in the fourth quarter to give the Rebels the 17-point cushion they needed to withstand Fillmore’s late rally.

Meyer ran for 200 yards in the game, while Jordan Sturges added another 83 and Lewis contributed another 67 with a touchdown.

The Rebels’ rushing attack is one that’s been hard for teams to stop all season long. Their physicality in the trenches has a tendency to wear opponents down and also gives the Rebels a strong shot at controlling the pace of the game.

Breckenridge is also a team that’s not afraid to run the rock. The Cowboys have amassed over 3,000 rushing yards to date this season, including 1,748 from David Erlandson on 12.2 yards per attempt. Erlandson has also found the end zone 21 times, while Kaapes has been a dangerous dual threat with 695 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground, and 1,338 passing yards with 19 touchdowns on one interception in the air.

In terms of the passing game, Cooper Roberts is the player to watch on the Cowboys. His 658 receiving yards are 400 more than the team’s next leading receiver, and his nine touchdowns are triple the amount of anyone else on the team.

Both the Rebels and Cowboys have dangerous secondaries. Over the course of the regular season, Brayden Gilb had four interceptions, including a pick 6, while Carter Hanson added another three picks for the Rebels. On the Cowboys’ side, Kaapes and Roberts have each come down with three picks, as well as a pair of forced fumbles for Kaapes. Kai McDonald and Jaxson Lopez also give Breckenridge a dangerous pass rush with seven sacks for McDonald and four for Lopez.

The winner of today’s game will take on either Minneota or Mahnomen/Waubun in the state championship at 10 a.m. The Vikings are in pursuit of their 11th overall and fourth consecutive state title. Minneota has gone to the state championship game every year since 2021.

Tickets for today’s quarterfinal matches are available on mshsl.org/tickets, adult tickets are available for $16 and student tickets for $10. The games will be streamed on NSPN.TV, which requires a $12 monthly subscription fee.