Platte County’s shape-shifting defensive unit overwhelmed its opponent, and hopefully, a week off won’t stifle the momentum.
Making a rare trip across state lines, the Pirates recorded a second straight football shutout in a dominant 27-0 rout of Lansing on Friday night, Oct. 23. They have not allowed a point since late in the fourth quarter of a Week 7 win over Winnetonka, and the scoreless streak will continue for at least another week.
Platte County will enjoy a bye after locking up the top seed in the Class 5 District 8 tournament, and the next opponent will encounter a defense that has allowed more than 20 points only once this season.
“Our defense was pretty solid last year,” Platte County coach Bill Utz said. “Obviously, we had a lot of seniors on that unit, but we had some playmakers coming back. I think they’re starting to gel. They’ve had a really good season.”
Platte County improved to 8-1 with a fifth straight win, and the suddenly impenetrable defense gives hope of another lengthy postseason run.
Lansing entered at 4-2 overall with a Division I tight end/defensive end recruit at quarterback in 6-foot-5 junior Caden Crawford, a multi-pronged rushing attack and dynamic wide receivers, but struggled to produce any consistent offense, accruing just 167 yards total. The Lions completed only two passes — one going 62 yards to senior Hunter Nelson — and Crawford had the longest run of the night on a 33-yard scramble in the second half.
“That’s a tough offense,” Utz said. “There’s so many moving parts to it, and when it’s run really well — and they do a pretty good job — it’s hard to defend; so for us to be able to stay that disciplined throughout the game is impressive.”
Crawford’s 62-yard completion down the home sideline in the second quarter eventually led to a goal-to-go situation for Lansing, but Platte County junior linebacker Trevor Scott made a key third-down stop. The Lions went for it inside the 5, and Crawford’s fourth-down pass fell incomplete.
However, Platte County senior quarterback Chris Ruhnke mishandled the very next snap, and Lansing took possession inside the 5. The Pirates then stopped four straight run plays, turning back a Crawford sneak attempt on fourth down for a dramatic series of eight plays.
“The goal line stand and being down on the goal line, that’s almost guaranteed points when you give the ball that close,” Utz said. “For us to be able to hold them, that shows just how much grit these guys have.”
The stops helped Platte County take a 7-0 lead into halftime, and Ruhnke led three-straight scoring drives in the second half to help the Pirates pull away. They appeared headed for a big offensive day when they drove 62 yards on the game’s opening possession capped with an easy walk-in touchdown for senior wide receiver Dayton Mitchell on a 7-yard pass from Ruhnke.
Instead, Platte County battled penalties and miscues for the better part of three quarters. Mitchell finally broke back through to cap a 36-yard touchdown drive, after taking the snap as a Wildcat quarterback, plowing into the end zone on a 1-yard run to put the Pirates ahead 14-0.
“Dayton’s a tremendous athlete,” Utz said of Mitchell, who finished with eight catches for 99 yards and added 15 yards on three rushing attempts. “Being able to take a snap and scoring off that, it just goes to show some of the things he can do for us. He’s a very solid kid.
“When he’s touching the ball, I always expect good things.”
Platte County then took the ball right back when senior defensive back Khaner Swanson jumped on junior Cole Rhoden’s perfectly placed pooch kickoff.
Ruhnke, who finished 16-for-28 for 188 yards, hit senior wide receiver Joey Schultz for a 13-yard touchdown five plays later to extend the lead to 21-0. The Pirates then sacked Crawford twice and harassed him twice more on a quick turnover on downs.
Platte County senior running back Cayden Davis added the third touchdown of the fourth quarter on a 1-yard run with 1 minute, 52 seconds left, and the extra point was no good. Davis finished with a team-high 70 yards rushing on 19 carries.
“I told them the first half, there were some things we could do better,” Utz said. “Second half, I thought they played pretty well.”
Platte County, which reached the Class 4 Show-Me Bowl last year before moving up to Class 5 for the first time in program history, will await its next opponent. North Kansas City (5-4) lost for the third time in five games and ended up with the No. 4 seed and will host Oak Park (3-6) this week — just two weeks after NKC won the first matchup between the two teams 28-27.
Incidentally, North Kansas City topped Platte County in Week 4 this season with a comeback from down 31-7 early in the third quarter. The Hornets’ 42-37 win came courtesy of a unique combination of four 70-plus-yard touchdown returns in the second half, and a possible rematch now looms for the first Friday in November.