Vikings come back from deficit to win first-round playoff game

The postseason is a time when good teams are separated from great teams, and on Saturday afternoon in a first-round game at home against Florence, the 2011 Vikings showed that they have what it takes to be a great team.

Since losing to Ronan in their season opener, the Vikings have coasted to sizeable victories this season. Things were not so simple on Saturday though, as Bigfork stared a 20-0 deficit in the face at halftime. However, a second half rally earned the boys in blue a 35-26 victory and the right to continue on in the Class B state football playoffs.

“We were doing a little sleepwalking, but a lot of that credit goes to Florence,” said Bigfork head football coach Todd Emslie. “They’re a pretty solid team with a good offensive attack. They play a quick passing game, and they don’t let their quarterback get hit much. Defensively they’re a bunch of scrappy athletes.”

The Falcons picked up a touchdown right off the bat and then repeated with another in the start of the second quarter with a second touchdown. The first was accompanied by successful extra-point kick, but the second was not. After passing for their first two touchdowns, the Falcons had a 54-yard interception return for a third touchdown in the final minute of the first half. The extra-point kick was good, which left the score at 20-0 at the half.

Bigfork used the break to reconvene.

“I just told them that we need to stick together, play as a team and take it one play at a time,” Emslie said. “I told them we were getting the ball kicked to us at the start of the third quarter and we needed to score. Then it was up to the offensive line, and they started pushing and they did that the rest of the game.”

The team responded with a now-or-never mentality in the second half, and that made all the difference.

“I think it hit us that it could be our last football game, and we didn’t want to go out like that,” said Bigfork senior running back Cody Dopps, the team’s leading scorer this year.

While the turnaround was seen across the team, it was Dopps who began to continuously find the end zone. He earned the Vikings their first points of the game midway through the third quarter with a 5-yard run.

“It all starts with our line. I think they weren’t doing so great in the first half, but in the second half they picked it up and that was the difference,” Dopps said.

That change allowed Dopps to make his way to the end zone again at the start of the fourth quarter with a 6-yard run.

Then junior Chris Landon made his first of two interceptions. Two plays later Dopps, playing at halfback, hit senior Ian Lorang with a long pass on a play that ultimately covered 79-yards, earned Bigfork a touchdown and, with senior kicker Dillon Charlebois being perfect for the afternoon with his extra-point kicks, gave the Vikings their first lead of the game.

“I was honestly scared that we were going to let it slip away,” said Bigfork’s starting quarterback, senior Colter Mahlum. “But we all found each other and we all pulled together. The the biggest thing though, when you’re in a situation like that, is that you can’t ever give up. You can’t ever think that you’re going to lose.”

With a little more than 5 minutes left on the clock, Landon snagged another interception. A few plays later, Dopps pulled away from Florence’s defense for a 65-yard touchdown.

“Team-wise, with the leadership, they just willed it to happen,” Emslie said. “Obviously coming out from that first half, Florence had all of the momentum.”

The Vikings led 28-20, but a series of penalties gave Florence hope of forcing the game into overtime. The Falcons found the end zone with 2:26 left on the clock. They would need to pull off a two-point conversion to tie up the game. Florence ran a pass play that left the ball out of reach and the Vikings still in the lead.

Florence attempted an onside kick, but Bigfork came up with the ball and Dopps capitalized with a 55-yard touchdown run to seal the win for his team.

“I think we showed a lot of heart for winning that game,” Dopps said. “We showed a lot of perseverance and hard work too. It showed that we are ready to keep going through the playoffs.”

Their coach is first in line to agree with Dopps on this one.

“At 20-0 it would have been easy to pack it in and start talking about when we were going to go hunting. But they didn’t,” Emslie said. “They pulled it off. You could see it in the seniors. They were not going to lose that football game.”

Lorang was the team’s leading receiver with 109 yards on four catches. Mahlum was nine-of-14 for the night for 52 yards. Overall, Bigfork had 447 yards of total offense while holding Florence to 281 yards.

Dopps rushed for 286 yards on 45 carries of his team’s 304 total rushing yards despite dealing with a cramped calf, which is something he hasn’t had trouble with in the past. During the past two games combined, Dopps has accumulated more than 500 rushing yards and has been involved in 10 touchdowns.

“Cody is performing well when he’s needed, and hopefully all of our seniors and our leaders can bring it again next week,” Emslie said. “Not hopefully either, they need to bring it again.”

Bigfork will host perennial playoff team Malta on Saturday in a 1 p.m. quarter-final game.

“Malta is very tough,” Emslie said. “They’re big and they’re physical. They are very well coached. Coach (Scott) King does an unbelievable job, and he’ll bring a team that will be fun to watch on and off of the field. They’ll be gentlemen, and they won’t make a lot of mistakes. I’m really looking forward to playing Malta. I think it’s great for Bigfork fans to get a look at a really good team from another part of the state. We need everyone we can out there supporting us.”

Emslie points to Malta’s size as one of the biggest challenges his team will face, noting that there are 12 players listed at over 200 pounds on their roster, with two more weighing in at 195.

Although the Vikings are aware of Malta’s reputation, they are ready to match up against them.

“From what I hear, they are a big and physical team, and that’s what we are, so it’s going to be a really physical game,” Dopps said.

This week’s game plan is simple for Emslie and his team — keep doing what they’re doing.

“We just want to build on what we’ve been talking about, and that’s playing with passion and desire,” Emslie said. “That helped us on Saturday. We’ll focus on just building on that and remembering that it’s a team thing and we need each other. I think this Saturday the team that comes out and has the least number of turnovers and mental mistakes will win.”

If cohesiveness is a key ingredient to minimal mistakes, then the Vikings should be good shape.

“The team really trusts in each other, and we all believe that we can do this,” Mahlum said. “We all truly believe in each other and believe that we can work hard and get it done and achieve the ultimate goal, which is of course to get the state championship. We really have a strong bond this year among all of the players.”