Click the thumbnails to see photos, video highlights
ESCANABA---A great season came to an end for the Escanaba High School football team on Saturday as the Eskymos lost to the Big Rapids Cardinals, 48-18, in the MHSAA Division Four district championship game at the Escanaba Athletic Field.
The Eskymos trailed just 20-12 early in the third quarter, and had the ball after a defensive stop to start the second half. But Escanaba could manage just one first down and the Cardinals blew the game open with 28 straight points before the Eskymos scored a late touchdown against the Big Rapids back-up players.
Escanaba dug an early hole as Big Rapids (10-1) scored touchdowns on its first two possessions. The first was on a short run by quarterback Cole Haist, then after an Eskymo punt, Haist tossed a well-thrown pass to Owen Craven for a 28-yard score along the Eskymo sideline, sending the vocal BR crowd into hysterics.
The Eskymos finally got on the board on their next possession, as quarterback Nolan Bink threw a 16-yard pass to Brody Ison in the back of the end zone. Ison streteched out and made a nice catch, keeping his feet inbounds and holding onto the ball after he hit the ground. That made it 12-6 after one quarter after the PAT kick was blocked.
The Cardinals came right back downfield with a drive that ended in a five-yard touchdown run by Dan Langell, making it an 18-6 game, and a two-point run boosted the score to 20-6. The Eskymos, though, came back again, as Ison broke a couple of tackles and scored from seven yards out. The PAT kick was again no-good.
Big Rapids drove deep into Escanaba territory late in the second quarter, but senior defensive back A.J. Schroeder came through with the pass interception, sending the Eskymos into the locker room down just 20-12.
But the Eskymos could not stop the Cardinals in the second half. Haist scored on a short run with 5:33 left in the third quarter to make it 27-12, then after another stalled Eskymo possession, Langell punched home another touchdown on a fourth down run to make it 34-12 with 1:02 left in the third quarter. The icing on the cake for Big Rapids was a pick-six touchdown early in the fourth quarter that made it 41-12.
The running clock came into effect when Big Rapids scored again midway through the fourth quarter, before Bink closed out his Eskymo football career with a touchdown pass to fellow senior Ashton Rymkos. Escanaba, making its first playoff appearance since 2019, ends its season with a 9-2 record.
