Lisbon’s dominant second half produces a few more points than North Linn’s dominant first half

LISBON — When you look back at it and replay this Class A first-round playoff football game Friday night at Wallmer Field in your head, one thing kind of pops into your mind as being the difference.

North Linn’s great first half didn’t quite produce the same number of points Lisbon’s great second half did.

So the fifth-ranked Lions were able to rally for a 14-6 win over their county rival that moves them along to next week and the round of 16.

“Honestly, I think we got the toughest 4-seed,” said Lisbon quarterback-defensive back Dakota Clark. “They were a few scores away from being a ‘1’ seed over there in their district. They had a tough district. We knew it was going to be a dog fight. Our seniors, they really wanted it. One of our linemen went down (in the second half), but he came back because he really wanted it. He didn’t want to be done.”

As Clark mentioned, Lisbon (9-0) was a district champion, meaning it played a fourth-place finisher from another district. North Linn (6-3), however, was no ordinary 4-seed, more than holding its own in a brutal district that saw the Lynx, Starmont, Maquoketa Valley and East Buchanan knock each other off.

Thus it wasn’t a surprise when North Linn took a 6-0 halftime lead, courtesy of quarterback Jake Van Etten’s 31-yard touchdown run right and down the sideline in the second quarter. What was a bit surprising was that the Lynx were able to dominate as much as they did: running 34 offensive plays in the first half to Lisbon’s 15, rushing for 206 yards to Lisbon’s 11, having 228 yards totals to Lisbon’s 12.

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Photos: North Linn vs. Lisbon in Class A first round

But six points was all North Linn could muster, and that was important. They were stopped on a fourth-and-1 play at the Lisbon 2 late in the first quarter, were in Lisbon territory on four other first-half drives that either ended in a turnover or a turnover on downs.

North Linn Coach Jared Collum did not have top running back Breckyn Betenbender for the final quarter and a half of the first half because he got dinged in the head. He took an online concussion test and returned in the second half.

“Once he goes out, we’re kind of scrambling in other formations a little bit, so we had to stick in ‘Ace,’” Collum said. “Then the second half, we just got behind the chains. You get in a certain part of the field where you can’t call the plays you want to call, it’s tough. You’re stuck, and then they can pin their ears a little bit.”

The second half was as you’ve gathered a complete flip. Lisbon started running successfully between the tackles on offense and started getting after Van Etten, Betenbender and fellow running back Landen Helmrich on defense.

A blocked punt midway through the third quarter set Lisbon up at the North Linn 44. A bunch of inside runs by Henry Neymeyer moved the ball inside the 10, and Clark executed an RPO play perfectly, finding nothing on the ground and pulling up and hitting receiver Reid Fridley for a 4-yard TD pass.

Lisbon’s next drive also produced a touchdown: this one a 2-yard Clark option keeper off the left side. After both Lions TDs, Gage Holub hit the important extra point.

“We really settled down,” said Clark. “It was a little rushed out there in the first half. Our offensive coordinator had a great game plan. He just really wanted to pound it at them, and we did that. Our line, they got gritty, we got gritty. We put it together. That was a team win.”

North Linn had just 36 second-half yards to Lisbon’s 146. A flip.

“We had to run it down the center. That’s all we did,” said Lisbon linebacker Jonah Reiling. “Their backers were coming. We just had to make it simple. We came out a little tight. Didn’t come out as fast as we wanted to, felt the pressure a little bit. But we worked through it, and it’s all good.”

North Linn had one last gasp, taking over at its 20 with 3:22 to go. The ball got moved into Lisbon territory, the 39-yard line to be specific, but there was an incompletion on a second-and-5 pass, a quarterback sack on third down and a desperation pass on fourth-and-13 that harmlessly to the ground to end things.

“Offensively speaking, we just had to figure out what they were doing with their D-line,” said Lisbon Coach Dylan Hastings. “They were moving some guys around. We knew they were stacking the box, and we knew that we had to rely on our big dudes up front just to dig them out and do their jobs. That’s what they do best.”

“We had our chances,” Collum said. “They’re good. We’re the best 4-seed in the state.”

Lisbon 14, North Linn 6

(At Lisbon)

North Linn 0 6 0 0- 6

Lisbon 0 0 7 7-14

Team Statistics

First Downs - North Linn 11, Lisbon 8. Rushes-Yards - North Linn 41-205, Lisbon 35-140. Passing (Completions-Attempts-Interceptions-Yards) - North Linn 5-16-0-59, Lisbon 5-10-1-18. Punts-Average - North Linn 3-18.3, Lisbon 4-40.5. Fumbles-Lost - Lisbon 0-0, North Linn 1-1. Penalties - North Linn 7-45, Lisbon 6-45.

Individual Statistics

Rushing - North Linn: Jake Van Etten 20-104, Landen Helmrich 15-61, Breckyn Betenbender 5-33, Drew Ries 1-7. Lisbon: Henry Neymeyer 16-92, Dakota Clark 11-26, Tiernan Boots 6-24, Team 2-(minus) 1.

Passing - North Linn: Jake Van Etten 5-16-0-59. Lisbon: Dakota Clark 5-10-1-18.

Receiving - North Linn: Cael Benesh 2-36, Carter Holtz 1-19, Cole Griffith 1-3, Breckyn Betenbender 1-1. Lisbon: Tiernan Boots 1-13, Mason Lehmer 2-5, Reid Fridley 1-4, Henry Neymeyer 1-(minus) 4.

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