Rivals Kindred, Central Cass set for state title clash at Dakota Bowl

Lexi Hills / The Forum By Ryan Spitza Today at 7:01 AM Listen Comments Share Share this article News Reporting News Reporting Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Trust Project What is this? CASSELTON, N.D. — Tommy Butler will quite literally lead his Central Cass football team to the state championship game at the Fargodome on Friday. That’s because the Squirrels head coach doubles as the team’s bus driver. ADVERTISEMENT “I’m driving to the dome, you better believe it,” Butler said with a laugh. When Central Cass arrives, it will be greeted on the opposite sideline by rival Kindred. The Squirrels (8-3) and Vikings (11-0) are set to clash for the Division 2A title at Dakota Bowl XXXIV. “We’re happy to be in this game regardless, but having them as the opponent makes it even a little sweeter,” Kindred head coach Eric Burgad said. “It’s going to be a ton of fun. Fun for our community, fun for our students and fun for our players, obviously. Two programs who are playing good football right now who earned their right into this game.” DAKOTA BOWL Games Friday at Fargodome Division A: Langdon Area-Munich vs. Harvey/Wells County, 9:10 a.m. 9-man: New Rockford-Sheyenne-Maddock vs. LaMoure-Litchville/Marion, 20 minutes after Division A Division 2A: Central Cass vs. Kindred, 20 minutes after 9-man Division 3A: West Fargo vs. Bismarck Legacy, 6:40 p.m. TV: WDAY Web Stream: InForum.com (WDAY+ web subscription required) If you’re the last one out of Casselton or Kindred on Friday, don’t forget to turn off the lights. “We have a ton of community support,” Butler said. “We brought a ton of fans up to (Minot North last week), so I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like in the Fargodome. It’s going to be a packed house and hopefully we put on a show for them.” The two teams certainly put on a show in their regular-season meeting on Oct. 23. The Vikings walked out of Casselton with a 14-10 victory and the Eastern Dakota Conference championship thanks to a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown by Fisher Johnson and two consecutive sacks by Luke Starcevic. The latter came with under a minute remaining with the Squirrels threatening inside the red zone. Lexi Hills / The Forum Kindred has now won five straight in the rivalry series. Central Cass last triumphed in the 2022 Class B state quarterfinals, also a 14-10 win. ADVERTISEMENT But as Butler put it, prior history doesn’t matter come Friday with a state title up for grabs. “Those other games don’t matter to this game,” Butler said. “It doesn’t matter what you did in the past. Obviously, there’s things that you can learn from them, but this is about who plays the cleaner, better game and I think our kids are ready for that matchup.” Kindred is going for its third state championship with the last coming in 2023. The Vikings haven’t lost a regular-season game since Aug. 27, 2021, a 26-20 home defeat against Hillsboro/Central Valley. The winning culture begins with players like Starcevic, a senior tight end and defensive lineman who will head to Division I Clemson next season. “It’s just a lot of buy-in from a lot of guys who want to be good at football and want to win football games,” said Starcevic, who has recorded eight sacks and 17 tackles-for-loss this season. “We’ve got a lot of coaches who get the best out of us and pour into us a bunch and a bunch of guys who are willing to do what it takes.” Lexi Hills / The Forum Central Cass last won it all in 1980 and will vie for its second state championship. The Squirrels’ three losses this season have come by a combined eight points, all against teams ranked in the top five of the Division 2A state media poll. “We’ve had a great season,” Central Cass senior receiver and defensive back Parker Wixo said. “I love being out here with my boys and it’s just amazing to have another week with them.” ADVERTISEMENT Wixo is the go-to pass catcher in the Squirrels’ spread offense led by quarterback Brody Kegley. The senior signal-caller has had a record-breaking season of his own, now sitting with 2,324 yards and 26 touchdowns through 11 games. “You just go out there every game knowing (Kegley) can make every play on the field,” said Wixo, who has hauled in 46 receptions for 674 yards and seven touchdowns this year. “He can make any throw and you can just expect the ball.” Lexi Hills / The Forum Minnesota commit Brooks Bakko has been Kindred’s top target in the pass game, but the Vikings may have to continue to lean on their run-heavy style as Burgad said the senior continues to battle a hamstring injury that’s kept him out for the last few weeks. Bakko has recorded 29 catches for 565 yards and eight touchdowns this season. The 6-foot-5 Bakko is also one of Kindred’s top defensive playmakers with four interceptions, three pass breakups and a forced fumble. “He’s day-to-day with us right now,” Burgad said. “It’s not great, but we’re staying positive with it.” Nonetheless, Butler said his team is game-planning for Bakko to play. “We hope he plays, he’s a great kid,” Butler said. “Our kids are always excited to play him. Any time you get to play against a four-star kid, there’s nothing better than playing against guys like that.” ADVERTISEMENT Brock Johnson has led the Vikings’ ground game with 1,513 yards and 17 touchdowns for an average of 137.5 yards per contest. The Squirrels held the senior to a season-low 68 yards in the regular-season matchup and kept him out of the end zone. Butler said stopping the run will be a focal point once again. “Same kind of game plan,” Butler said. “We’ve got to be physical and we’ve got to make sure we’re giving them different looks. It’s going to be about getting the right fits and when guys are in position to make a tackle, it’s getting (Johnson) on the ground. “He’s a great running back, (Myles) Thielges is a great running back. They’re going to get their chances. It’s when we get to those spots, we’ve got to be able to win those one-on-ones.” David Samson / The Forum Kindred’s defense has also been exceptional, allowing an average of just 9.5 points per game this season to go with three shutouts. The Vikings’ defensive unit has also combined for 26 sacks, 13 interceptions and eight fumble recoveries. They’ll look to hold Central Cass’ pass-heavy attack in check as best they can. “It’s just a really good mindset of, ‘Battle every single snap,’” Burgad said. “You never know which play is kind of going to be the turning point in the game." ADVERTISEMENT Lexi Hills / The Forum For seniors like Wixo and Starcevic, there would be no better way to cap their high school careers than by going out with a state championship and defeating their rival to do it. “Just play Central Cass football,” Wixo said. “We know we can beat them and we know if we play our brand of football, we can’t be stopped.” “I’m just super excited to have one more go at it this week with my guys,” Starcevic said. “Hopefully everything turns out the way we want it to, because it’s just a super cool opportunity and a great program to be a part of.” MORE PREP COVERAGE: Preps Plus: Region's athletes ink collegiate future on Signing Day 15h ago Prep highlights: Baylor Dinger's 8 aces lead Sheyenne in East Region quarterfinals win 1d ago Unfinished business fuels Oak Grove in Region 1 volleyball semifinals 1d ago Comments Share Share this article News Reporting News Reporting Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Trust Project What is this? Tags Tags FOOTBALL NDHSAA CENTRAL CASS SQUIRRELS KINDRED VIKINGS PREP SPORTS By Ryan Spitza Ryan Spitza joined The Forum in December 2021 as a sports reporter. He grew up in Marquette, Mich., a city of 20,000 on the southern shore of Lake Superior. He majored in multimed