Limon excels, completes three-peat over Strasburg

A few big plays and dominant defense play were all that was needed for the Limon Badgers to claim their third consecutive state title over the Strasburg Indians in Class 1A. The Badgers won the title with a 28-0 victory, handing Strasburg its first shutout loss since 2009 in the process. Limon got the ball first and scored with [player_tooltip player_id="22618" first="Kory" last="Tacha"] breaking a big 77-yard run and having just enough speed to beat defensive back <strong>Collin Russell</strong> to get in the end zone. The defense followed up forcing a three-and-out with a big play on third down from [player_tooltip player_id="22738" first="Jeremiah" last="Leeper"] batting the ball down to force the punt. When the Badgers got the ball back, quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="22733" first="Trey" last="Hines"] broke a big run on the keeper for 25 yards to extend the lead. Both runs were set up by the blocking of <strong>Kaden Becker</strong> and <strong>Chance Cannon</strong> on the right side of the line. The defenses shined the rest of the half with stops and turnovers to keep it at 14-0 going into the break. Russell gave the team a spark when he stepped in front a Hines pass for an interception and the first turnover of the game. They would drive down the field but failed on a fourth-and-short in the red zone to give the ball back to Limon, who put together a lengthy drive but also turned it over on downs. Lengthy drives were the theme for both teams, but Limon was the one who finally put one together that ended in points when Leeper rushed for a touchdown to cap a 14-play touchdown drive that pushed the lead to 21-0 late in the third quarter. He would go on to catch a screen pass from Hines and take it 51 yards for the final score in the fourth quarter to put the finishing touches on the win. With the big lead late in the second half, the Limon defense was able to play aggressive and forced three turnovers down the stretch. Hines got two interceptions and <strong>Camden Smithburg</strong> got a third for the Badgers in the fourth quarter. Strasburg was able to hang around early thanks to the play of <strong>Blake Coombs</strong> and <strong>Jack Swanson</strong> flying to the ball and making stops. Coombs would later force a fumble to try and spark a comeback rally in the second half. Limon wins its third consecutive state title and 20th overall to extend their lead in the state for championships in football. Highlights from the game can be seen <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqGc5bpDVHI">here</a>.