BURLINGAME – It was inevitable that Burlingame was going to take a step back in 2019 after the graduation of a senior class that won 41 games and played in three Eight-Man Division I state semifinals. Throw in a slew of key injuries, and the Bearcats struggled through a 5-4 campaign, missing the playoffs for the first time in five years.
That didn’t sit well with the rising senior class of 2020 as it entered the offseason leading up to their final year in high school. The goal: Get back to the playoffs and get back to Burlingame football.
Consider that mission accomplished after Thursday night’s 44-26 win against Lincoln in the opening round of the postseason. The Bearcats (7-2) not only advanced to the playoffs for the fifth time in six years, but also won the school’s eighth playoff game since 2015 (the program won four playoff games from 1969 to 2014).
“I’m really happy for this group. They worked hard to get back here,” said Burlingame coach Jeff Slater, now 59-14 in seven seasons. “The goal was to get back to the playoffs, which we did, and we got a win. These kids deserve this.”
Winning wasn’t as easy as some might have anticipated. Though Burlingame is 5-1 at home in the playoff since 2015, the Bearcats struggled early against the pesky Leopards (5-4), who play in a loaded district with defending state champion Canton-Galva and fifth-ranked Little River.
Lincoln had only one play in the first quarter, but scored 18 points. The Leopards got a 70-yard touchdown run from Tyler Good on their lone play from scrimmage and returned two kickoffs for scores. The second return came on an onside kick that an up man grabbed before racing 40 yards into the end zone.
“This was this group’s first playoff game. They were on our teams a few years ago, but they really didn’t play, so this was this team’s first playoff game,” Slater said. “I thought that showed several times tonight. They scored on three kickoff returns and we turned the ball over. Those are things we have not done all season.”
Fortunately for Slater and the Bearcats, senior Wyatt Ledom and junior Kris Hovestadt made several big plays to help Burlingame find its footing. Ledom dominated the first half, rushing for 174 yards and three touchdowns. He finished with 231 yards and went over the 1,000-yard mark for the season early in the second half.
Ledom’s third score, a bruising 13-yard run in which he bowled over two defenders at the goal line, gave the Bearcats a 30-18 lead midway through the second quarter. Lincoln never seriously threatened the rest of the game.
“Wyatt Ledom had the best offseason of any player I’ve ever had at Burlingame,” Slater said. “He went into the offseason 140 pounds and worked his butt off. He came into the season at 155 pounds after killing it in the weight room and came back faster. He’s been our workhorse.”
As Ledom carried the water on offense, Hovestadt wreaked havoc on defense and special teams, picking off three passes, including two deep in Lincoln territory. Early in the fourth quarter, Hovestadt put the game away with a 55-yard kickoff return for a touchdown moments after Burlingame’s defense tackled the Leopards’ Logan Meier in the end zone for a safety.
“Kris is just a playmaker,” Slater said. “All season long, he’s made big plays when we needed them. He has a knack for making game-changing plays.”
Ledom opened the scoring with a 6-yard run five minutes into the first quarter, capping an eight-play, 69-yard drive. Lincoln answered immediately when Good took the ensuing kickoff and sprinted around Burlingame’s coverage for a 78-yard score.
The Leopards grabbed a 12-8 lead when Good broke a tackle in the backfield and rumbled 70 yards for a score late in the first quarter. Burlingame regained the lead on Ledom’s 16-yard run with 42 seconds in the opening frame, but the Leopards countered when Gabe Fenn picked up an onside kick and ran 40 yards to the end zone.
Burlingame took the lead for good less than three minutes into the second period on Colby Middleton’s 5-yard run up the middle. Ledom’s third touchdown capped the scoring in the first half.
After a scoreless third quarter that included two Burlingame fumbles inside of Lincoln’s 5-yard-line, the Bearcats scored 14 straight points on the safety, Hovestadt’s return and a 65-yard pick-six by Andrew Zeller. Lincoln’s final touchdown came on Good’s 75-yard kickoff return.
The Bearcats’ regional championship game will be at 7 p.m. Friday at Canton-Galva, which has won 22 straight games and ended Burlingame’s 2018 season with a 74-26 victory in a regional title game.
“We know the challenge we’re facing,” Slater said. “Galva is a special team. We’re going to have to bring our best game and probably hope they have an off night. Our goal is go out there and compete, like we did against Madison (a 48-24 loss to the third-ranked Bulldogs) earlier this season.”
BURLINGAME 44, LINCOLN 26
Lincoln 18 0 0 8 — 26
Burlingame 16 14 0 14 — 44
First Quarter
Burlingame – Wyatt Ledom 6 run (Garrett Robison pass from Evan Young)
Lincoln – Tyler Good 78 kickoff return (Pass failed)
Lincoln – Good 70 run (Run failed)
Burlingame – Ledom 15 run (Robison pass from Young)
Lincoln – Gabe Fenn 40 kickoff return (Run failed)
Second Quarter
Burlingame – Colby Middleton 5 run (Young run)
Burlingame – Ledom 13 run (Run failed)
Fourth Quarter
Burlingame – Safety, Logan Meier tackled in end zone
Burlingame – Kris Hovestadt 55 kickoff return (Pass failed)
Burlingame – Andrew Zeller 65 interception return (Run failed)
Lincoln – Good 75 kickoff return (Good run)
TEAM STATISTICS
Team Lincoln Burlingame
Rushes-Yds 29-121 40-229
Passing Yds 89 54
Passing 10-18-4 8-12-0
Total Yds 210 283
Fumbles-Lost 2-0 4-2
Penalties 10-62 5-50
Punts 2-22.5 3-30.7
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: Lincoln – Good 28-124, Caleb Dotterer 1-(-3). Burlingame – Ledom 27-231, Middleton 7-10, Chandler Davidson 1-(-2), Young 5-(-10).
RECEIVING: Lincoln – Landon O’hare 6-52, Dotterer 4-37. Burlingame – Robison 5-33, Austin Tyson 2-12, Ledom 1-9.
PASSING: Lincoln – Meier 10-16-3 89, Good 0-2-1. Burlingame – Young 8-12-0.