Photo by Jake McNeill: Murray County Central quarterback Teague Meyer (8) celebrates with teammate Jordan Sturges after Meyer ran in a long touchdown during the Rebels' Class A quarterfinal win over Fillmore Central in Rochester on Friday.

ROCHESTER — A trio of touchdowns from Teague Meyer and a lockdown defensive effort in the first half set the tone for the No. 3S Murray County Central football team as they defeated No. 2S Fillmore Central for their first state tournament win since 2000. The Rebels stormed out to a 21-0 lead and held off a furious comeback effort from the Falcons to advance through the Class A quarterfinals, 29-26.

“We did what we had to do. We listened to our assignments and just trusted our brothers on the line, executed and made it happen,” MCC offensive lineman Luke Iverson said. “It just doesn’t feel real. It’s a great opportunity. You just expect it, but you break the norm and you just make it happen.”

Trailing by 9 points with a few minutes left, the Falcons drove deep into MCC territory despite a pair of big sacks from Quintin Lewis.

A defensive pass interference call advanced Fillmore Central to the 24, and Bridon Bahl connected with Grant Daniels for a touchdown before finding Davis Penhollow on the 2-point conversion to cut the deficit to 3. Yet, MCC recovered the ensuing onside kick with 44 seconds remaining and kneeled out the remaining time on the clock.

“It’s just the greatest feeling. I can’t really compare it to anything else,” Meyer said. “It’s super special and I couldn’t imagine doing it with better teammates… it wasn’t until the final onside kick [that it felt real]. You’ve got to always wait until the final whistle, and it just feels awesome.”

“Our kids are resilient, and we just talk about, hey, our response matters,” MCC head coach Patrick Freeman said. “When something bad happens, we’ve got to be able to respond, and we did a really good job of that.”

After the final whistle, several of the players on the Fillmore Central team collapsed to the ground in defeat. Before going to celebrate with teammates, a handful of the MCC players walked over to pick up their opponents and shake their hands.

“We emphasize doing things the right way, and our guys understand empathy, understand that this game is special. It’s an emotional sport, but we show respect to every opponent,” Freeman said. “We beat a really good football team today, and to show that support to them and understand that we’re fortunate to move on, they could have moved on just like us. So I think that just showing empathy toward the other guys is a really important skill that our guys really embrace.”

Meyer got off to a hot start in the game, making a fourth-down stop on the Falcons’ opening possession and punching in a touchdown from the 1-yard line to cap off MCC’s first possession with 26 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

He kept that same momentum rolling into the second quarter. The Rebel defense forced a 3-and-out from Fillmore Central, and Meyer broke off a 60-yard touchdown to give MCC a 13-0 lead after the missed PAT.

Meyer finished the night with 23 carries for 201 yards for the Rebels, while Jordan Sturges contributed four for 83 and Carson Lewis added another 16 for 67.

“Teague’s a special athlete and he’s a captain for a reason,” Freeman said. “He runs our offense. We rely on him to make the correct call, the correct read, and you saw his explosiveness. He’s a fast kid, but he’s also a really humble and determined kid. I’m really proud of him.”

The Rebels’ lead reached its apex on its third possession. After Luke Iverson read the running back screen to stop the Falcons on fourth-and-21, Meyer flipped the field with a 37-yard run to the Fillmore 32.

A few plays later, Lewis ran the ball in from the 11-yard line and Sturges stopped on a dime to make a catch in traffic for the 2-point conversion and a 21-0 lead.

Fillmore broke the drought in the final minute of the first half. Bahl broke off a 43-yard run into Rebel territory, and followed it up with a cross-body pass to a wide-open Cody Serfling over the middle for a 23-yard touchdown with 76 seconds to play before the half.

Joseph Otto recovered a fumble to set the Falcons up at the Falcon 43-yard line in the third quarter and Quinci Kaase capitalized with a 43-yard touchdown, though Lewis came up with the stop on the 2-point attempt to keep the Rebels’ lead at two possessions.

MCC responded quickly with Gabe Tentinger leaping up over a defensive back to make a contested grab to get to the 14. Lewis ran the ball to the 1 and Meyer punched in the touchdown.

Still, the Falcons weren’t ready to give up hope yet. Kaase received the reverse, faked the double reverse and took it himself for a 37-yard gain along the sideline just past midfield. Shortly thereafter, he got wide open downfield and juked a defender before going into the end zone for a 49-yard touchdown. Still, Meyer stopped the flea-flicker attempt on the 2-point conversion to maintain a 9-point lead for the Rebels.

The Falcons stopped MCC on its first possession of the second half to take over at their own 31-yard line. Quinci Kaase juked his way across midfield for a 22-yard gain, but Jordan Sturges came up with an interception along the sideline to halt the drive.

MCC improves to 9-2 on the year after earning its ninth consecutive win and will take on the North’s top-seeded Breckenridge in the state semifinals at US Bank Stadium on Saturday at 11:30 a.m.

“We’re really excited and hopefully we can make it happen,” Iverson said. “Make it to that championship and maybe even win it.”

“To be honest, what I’m most excited about is that I get to see these guys at practice on Monday,” Freeman said of advancing to US Bank Stadium for the first time. “I love each and every one of them, and I understand just how unique an opportunity it is to spend time with these guys. I can’t say enough about how much I love being a part of this team and just fortunate to be here.”