De Smet Puts Down Eureka Threat, Gains Entry To State Quarterfinals

EUREKA – One of the oldest and most used clichés in all of sports, is the adage ‘big-time players, make big-time plays, in big-time games.’

And as trite as it might sound, standout wideout Durron Neal showed once again why he is considered one of the area’s best “big-time” players, as he scored three touchdowns Friday night, including a sensational 41-yarder late in the fourth quarter, that helped lift the visiting Spartans to a 35-28 win over Eureka High.

“I told the kids all week, ‘you’re about to play the best team you’ve played all year period,’” De Smet head football coach Pat Mahoney said. “And Eureka, since the day they laid the first brick here, is a competitive team that’s going to hit you, and just keep coming after you. And that’s what just happened.”

Indeed they did, as Eureka rallied back from 21-7 halftime and 27-14 third quarter deficits, to take the lead at 28-27, with just under five minutes left, on a touchdown pass from quarterback Seth Pratt to Aaron Schnurbusch.

Pratt finished the game with 357 passing yards and two touchdowns, and teammate Spencer Stein had 105 yards rushing and another 145 yards receiving for the Wildcats, but it wasn’t enough to hold off the Spartans, thanks to Neal and his quarterback.

“What a great high school football game,” Eureka head coach Farrell Shelton, who had to take a moment before talking to reporters, so he could console his wife and daughter, who were both visibly upset following Friday’s emotional game, said. “Boy, these kids really gave their heart and soul out there tonight.

“You have to give credit to De Smet though. They made the plays they had to make. They’ve got some great athletes that made some fantastic plays.”

The final one came from Neal, the University of Oklahoma recruit, considered one of the best wide receiver talents in the country, after he caught a quick slant pass from Harrison, and outran the entire Eureka defense to the endzone for what turned out to be the game-winning touchdown.

Eureka’s Pratt tried to answer back for the Wildcats, who got the ball back with just under 4 1/2 minutes left on the clock.

The senior signal-caller hit his favorite target, Schnurbusch on a quick slant, for a play that looked like it would gain big yardage.

Unfortunately for Eureka, two De Smet defenders slammed hard into Schnurbusch and knocked the ball loose, causing a fumble that the Spartans recovered, allowing them to drain the clock on the time-crunched Wildcats.

Eureka did get the ball back with about two minutes left, and drove it to the De Smet 30-yard line, but dropped passes on third and fourth down by the Wildcats, gave the ball back to the Spartans, who simply ran out the clock to end the game.

“Durron Neal showed up big,” Mahoney said. “Conner Harrison showed up big. We had all kinds of injuries, and we had all kinds of guys step up. That was a helluva win.”

Harrison was especially brilliant for the Spartans, passing for 357 passing yards and three touchdowns, while also rushing for another score.

The victory lifts De Smet to a 9-2 record, which it will put on the line next Friday night, against SLUH.

The Jr. Billikens are 8-3, after knocking off Oakville Friday night, and will get to host next week’s showdown because

“We get to travel down there this time,” Mahoney said. “And I expect it to be exactly what we saw last time.

“SLUH’s got a fine football team. They have a lot of playmakers, and we’ve got to do a whole lot better job of playing defense.”

 Kickoff next Friday night is 7 p.m.