Plainsmen return to action at Kimball

Plainsmen football coach Jonathan Hunt couldn’t have been any prouder of his team than he was after the Kimball game there Friday afternoon. 

Despite a 42-60 loss in the rainy, cold conditions, Hunt said his kids showed some real character. They can hold their heads high, he said this week. 

Just one week after the Plainsmen had to forfeit a game due to a roster riddled with injury, they took the field with just nine healthy players.

Hunt said they called on a number of younger players to step and that’s exactly what they did.

He also leaned heavily on upperclassmen Alex Patrick and Jaxon Livermore for their leadership. 

Despite being targeted by the Kimball defense, Patrick finished the game with five touchdowns and 298 yards rushing. 

He added 16 tackles on defense, followed by Livermore with nine. 

Quarterback Triston Hite left the game in the third quarter after taking a hit, forcing Patrick into the helm in the Wildcat formation, with Livermore at his side. 

Hunt said Hite passed concussion protocol on the sideline and had medical approval to return. However, he said they were down 24 going into the fourth quarter and he decided it was best to sit Hite.

Within a touchdown

The Plainsmen gave up a pair of first-quarter touchdowns to a big, athletic Kimball team before getting on the board on a 11-yard run by Hite.

But before the end of the first, Kimball had tacked on two more scores. 

Patrick answered with a score before Kimball added two more scores. 

Patrick scored another pair in the third while the defense limited Kimball to just one score.

Patrick scored on a 74-yard run early in the fourth for back-to-back scores to pull the Plainsmen back within 18. 

Each team added one more scored to keep the final margin at 18.

Sutherland this week

Hunt said Hite will be ready to play this week and Chase Johnson should return after being sick last week. 

Hunt said Emilio Perez could also return this week, which would give the Plainsmen some size again in the line. 

The Plainsmen travel to Sutherland Friday.

Hunt said Sutherland has been playing well and brings in  a 3-2 record. One of their losses came in the first week to 5-0 South Loup (Callaway/Arnold). Last week they fell to Hemingford 28-34. 

Kickoff is slated for 6:30 p.m. MT.