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High-powered Wibaux has been waiting four years for Chinook

If any team was on a mission to win the Class C 8-man state football championship at the start of the 2014 season, it was the Wibaux Longhorns.

The Longhorns are an 8-man powerhouse. They have five state championships to their credit, but inexplicably, Wibaux has not taken home an 8-man title since 2001, despite six appearances in the championship game, including a loss last season to Ennis. And in 2010 Wibaux lost to the Chinook Sugarbeeters, the same team they will play this Saturday in the 2014 championship game.

The Longhorns also will be itching to win for head coach Jeff Bertlesen, who has been Wibaux’s head coach since 2004 and has posted a 71-9 record in eight seasons, his first state championship after an 0-5 record in the 8-man football’s biggest game.

All of Bertlesen’s teams have been good, but this Longhorn team, which has been the top-ranked team for most of the season is not just good, it has dominated the competition, on both sides of the ball.

The Longhorns offense revolves around a dominant running game that features six runners with at least 200 yards rushing this season. Yet, their leading rusher is sophomore Shawn Schaefferkoetter, who racked up 787 yards on 92 carries with an average of 8.5 per carry and a total of 18 touchdowns.

Colton Tousignant is the second half of Wibaux’s dynamic rushing duo. He finished the season with a total of 533 rushing yards, an average of a whopping 11.8 yards per carry to go along with a total of 18 touchdowns.

But as well as the Longhorns run it, they aren’t afraid to air it out. Wibaux alternates quarterbacks, but between Noah Schneider (13 touchdowns, four interceptions) and Jase Dschaak (18 touchdown) they have thrown 31 touchdown passes compared to just four interceptions. Schneider also has 264 yards on the ground to his credit.

Behind a powerful offense that averages just under 400 total yards and 282 rushing yards per game, the Longhorns went 11-0 this season. They also have two of the most impressive wins in 8-man football after easily defeating Fairview in the regular season and sneaking out a 22-20 win over Ennis in the state semifinals last weekend.

“Wibaux is a very talented football team,” Chinook head coach Scott Friede said. “They do a really great job of running the football. We are a very good running team, too, but the challenge for us is going to be getting some tackles for loss and getting them out of their running game a little bit. But, whoever runs the ball better might be the team that comes out on top.”

Yet, the Longhorns are more than just an offensive juggernaut, their defense is also among the best in the state. They finished the season with 16.5 sacks as well as an astounding 28 interceptions, but the single most impressive stat about the Longhorn’s defense is that through 11 games, including the playoffs, they have allowed just over nine points per game.

That number would be eye-popping at any level of high school football, but for an 8-man team, it is remarkable. Factor in the 65.1 points the Longhorns are averaging offensively, Wibaux is outscoring its opponents by 55 points per game. That kind of point differential doesn’t happen by accident and shows why the Longhorns won the Eastern C championship and are one win away from their first state championship in 13 years.

However, Wibaux may see Saturday against Chinook the best offensive team it has faced all season, so it will surely be a battle of wills and strengths when the Beeters and Longhorns play for the state championship.

The Longhorns will be looking for payback for the 68-point loss in the championship game in 2010 against Chinook, while the Beeters are looking to win their second title in five years. Either way, expect a memorable game as two 8-man powers get set to go head-to-head Saturday in Wibaux.

 

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