By Mike Ramczyk
Burlington junior defensive end Brian Konz made quite the first impression in his varsity debut Friday night.
The 6-foot-2, 200-pound two-way junior blocked a punt that was returned for a touchdown, and his late deflection led to the decisive interception, as the Demons escaped with a season-opening 28-21 victory over visiting South Milwaukee after squandering a 21-0 lead.
Konz finished with 3.5 tackles, and he came up clutch in the final minutes.
South Milwaukee had come all the way back after falling behind, 21-0, early in the second quarter to cut the lead to 28-21 with 2:13 left in the game thanks to a 13-yard touchdown pass from Joel Reyes to Mason Mocco.
After the Rockets recovered an onside kick, they were faced with a fourth and 10 on Burlington’s 20 with a minute remaining.
Konz read a pass to the flat, tipped the ball and it fell into the waiting arms of fellow junior Julian Luciano.
Konz, who played both offensive tackle and defensive end and missed only a handful of plays Friday night, was one of a core group of juniors to hit the weight room hard in the offseason.
The defensive heroics included two interceptions from safety Harrison George, and Burlington won the turnover battle, 4-0.
Luciano, another player making his first varsity start, said the Demons may have wore down in the second half since many guys played both ways, but he thinks it was good the team grinded out the victory.
Luciano said the defense buckled down late and executed for the final interception.
“We just had stopped them on a few run plays so we were expecting a pass,” he said. “We were playing cover-4 so I have hook-to-flat responsibility. I saw the wing stop at five yards, so I kept backpedaling to make sure there was nothing behind me. Their outside receiver ran a 10-yard curl and slipped a little, and I tried to bait the QB into throwing it.”
“Brian jumped and got a piece of it, and it fell right out of the sky to me like a gift from heaven.”
Konz blocked a South Milwaukee punt midway through the first quarter, and Josh Letkewicz scooped it up and ran 60 yards to give Burlington a 7-0 lead.
The Demon defense allowed 325 yards, but only 4.2 per play.
Offense shows balance
Burlington gained 318 yards on 37 plays, an average of more than 8 yards per play, and it started with senior quarterback Nick Klug.
Klug showed burst and elite speed on touchdown runs of 41 and 22 yards, and he also found Joe Tully for a 24-yard passing touchdown to give Burlington a 21-0 lead with seven minutes to go in the second quarter.
After an Alec Horn touchdown run cut the lead to 21-7 in the third quarter, Klug answered with the 22-yard score.
Klug’s 113 rushing yards led a 214-yard attack, which included 83 yards on 6.9 per carry from senior Grant Tully.
Through the air, Klug was efficient, connecting on 5-of-10 for 104 yards.
Klug ran for 9.4 yards per carry and displayed his explosiveness.
Joe Tully led the receiving corps with 49 yards on three catches.
Grant Tully added a catch for 36 yards, putting him at 119 total for the game.
Burlington’s stingy run defense held the Rockets to 3.7 yards per carry, and it forced a 14-for-34 passing performance from Reyes.
New Glarus/Monticello 47, Catholic Central 7
On Friday, the Hilltoppers proved it’s not easy to win without your best player.
Senior Chad Zirbel, the team’s leader at quarterback and linebacker, sat out with a knee injury, and New Glarus took advantage early and often in the nonconference season opener for both teams.
Senior running back Frank Koehnke was the Toppers’ bright spot, with a 70-yard touchdown run and 82 rushing yards in his first varsity game.
“Our kids never gave up and played hard for four quarters,” Catholic Central head coach Tom Aldrich said. “I was proud of their effort.”
New Glarus erupted with 23 points in the first quarter, thanks to three rushing scores and a safety of Catholic Central quarterback David Doerflinger, and the Glarner Knights took a commanding 37-0 lead at the half.
New Glarus added a 58-yard punt return just before the half.
Doerflinger finished 2-for-5 for 22 yards in his first varsity start.
Payton Meinholz and Cade Dirksmeyer each had a catch.
Catholic Central mustered 126 total yards and allowed 328, 272 on the ground.
Catholic Central will look to pick up the pieces Friday at Lake Country Lutheran.
Aldrich said Tuesday Zirbel is doubtful for Friday’s game.
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