The Hermon Hawks wasted little time making it interesting Friday as they started their playoff push with an onside kick on the very first play against Nokomis Regional High School of Newport.
The Hawks recovered the surprise kick, and never looked back on their way to a 30-6 win at Pottle Field in Hermon. The Class C quarterfinal win sends them to the semifinals next week, as they look to build on last year’s runner-up finish in the state championship game.
Almost immediately after the onside kick, Hermon star back Sam Hopkins scampered 38 yards for a touchdown. After two straight touchdown passes from junior quarterback Ethan Curtis to junior tight end Tyler Corson, the Hawks were quickly up 20-0.
The Warriors punched back with a long 47-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Gabe Leighton to senior running back Seth Bowden, getting the visitors on the board and making the score 20-6.
But that momentum was short-lived.
As he has done throughout the season for the Hawks, Hopkins was there to make a play and bring the Hermon faithful to their feet. He collected the ensuing kickoff, and though he was almost tripped up early in the return, he somehow managed to stay on his feet. Hopkins winded his way through the Nokomis kick coverage, and with one final juke, ended up in the endzone for a more than 80-yard touchdown return.
It was a fitting exclamation point on a night when special teams were particularly special for the Hawks. They took that 27-6 lead into halftime and would never relinquish it.
Hermon methodically moved down the field after receiving the first kick of the second half, ticking time off the clock and picking up several first downs. That drive drained the clock all the way down to the final 2 minutes and 32 seconds of the third quarter, but stalled on an acrobatic interception by Nokomis sophomore linebacker Kobey Almeida off a deflected ball near the sideline.
Nokomis then started moving the ball, with a big first down pass from Leighton to junior running back Stephone Ross. After an apparent first down run for the Warriors was called back due to a holding penalty, the third quarter ended quickly without either team scoring.
The Warriors started the fourth quarter with the ball but still down 27-6. A high snap on third and manageable led to a fourth-and-15 desperation attempt for Nokomis. They could not convert, and handed the ball back to Hermon at the Nokomis 39-yard line with just over 10 minutes left in the game.
A penalty moved the Hawks back 10 yards, and Hopkins uncorked another 30-yard run after first running into his own blocker and then reversing field for a big gain. Hopkins then made the smart play to slide in bounds to keep the clock running at the tail end of the run.
Freshman Ethan Garner then stepped up to knock down a field goal to stretch the Hermon lead to 30-6 and continue the Hawks’ strong night on special teams.
Senior defensive end Jacob Murzyn then provided one of the plays of the game by stripping the ball from a Nokomis runner and taking off for a 51-yard return all the way to the Warriors 12-yard line.
That allowed the Hawks to run the ball and eventually take a couple of knees to end the game at 30-6.
