INDIANAPOLIS – The three-peat didn’t come with a whimper but with a roar for the Bishop Luers football team.
The Knights won their third straight Class 2A state championship with a dominating 41-17 win over Evansville Mater Dei on Friday at Lucas Oil Stadium.
It was Luers’ record-tying 10th state championship, and the game was the unofficial rubber match against the Wildcats. Mater Dei beat Luers in the 2000 2A state title game 56-10, and Luers won the 2001 title game 57-29.
Luers (13-1) broke open a close game by outscoring Mater Dei (13-2) 28-10 in the second and third quarters, running off 28 straight points at one point.
“I knew we could do that, but I also thought they could do that to us if we didn’t play well,” Luers coach Matt Lindsay said. “I am proud of our kids’ effort.”
The Knights ran up 463 yards of total offense, getting 130 rushing yards and two touchdowns from junior Jaylon Smith. Senior quarterback James Knapke threw for 190 yards and two touchdowns, both to junior Michael Rogers.
“I couldn’t ask for a better win,” said Knapke, the SAC’s all-time leading passer. “Going out on top feels great.
“Mater Dei is a great team, and we knew it was going to be a battle. We had a rivalry with them having played them 10 years ago. They never gave up, and it was a fun game. Playing for state, you couldn’t ask for anything else. To get the ‘W’ was icing on the cake.”
It’s the first time Luers has won three state football titles in a row.
“It’s real nice to make history,” Rogers said. “Our offensive line did a real good job of giving James enough time, and he made good throws, and the receivers made big plays. And our running backs did real good.”
The Luers defense held the high-flying spread offense of the Wildcats down, giving up only 323 yards. Mater Dei quarterback Dane Maurer had only 126 passing yards and a touchdown. He was sacked twice and pressured throughout the game.
Plenty of players contributed to Luers’ victory.
Junior Tyvel Jemison had a 33-yard touchdown run, a 27-yard punt return, a 53-yard kickoff return and finished things with a fourth-quarter interception.
“I just had a lot of motivation, and I wanted to give our team a good start,” Jemison said of the returns.
Matthew Williamson had seven catches for 65 yards, and Channing Williams had a 36-yard catch to help set up the Knights’ first score.
Mater Dei entered the game scoring 42 points per game and had not scored fewer than 24 this year.
Maurer ran for 83 yards and a TD. Running back Cody Hess had 106 rushing yards.
“We had to get pressure on him because we knew we couldn’t just let (Maurer) sit back in the pocket or he would have picked us apart,” Luers senior defensive end Jordan Starks said. “I didn’t expect it to be like this. I thought it would be closer.”
Mater Dei tied the game at seven in the second quarter before Luers pulled out to a 35-7 advantage in the third.
“Everybody did what they do to get the win,” Luers senior linebacker Montez Brooks said. “(When it was a close game) we had to gather ourselves mentally, and we know we are a good team. If we lose, we knew we could only beat ourselves. We had to play nasty Bishop Luers football.”
