Nikko’s 36yd Field Goal Helps Rails To 16-14 Win

Wes Vork-NSO

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Oct 5, 2012

Wes Vork-NSO

PROCTOR – With the brutal weather that comes with fall in the Northland, field goals in high school football are rare, long field goals are rarer yet. Left footed kickers anywhere are just as rare; but all three came together and helped Proctor to a 16-14 win over Cloquet on Friday night.

Jack Nikko hit a 36 yard field goal to begin the fourth quarter, which put the Rails up 10-7 at the time and proved to be the difference in the two point Proctor win.

Nikko, who hit a 32 yarder earlier in the season but missed a 26 yarder in the first half thought the kick was good from the start only to have a little doubt creep in as the ball approached and just cleared the crossbar. “The snap was a bit high, but Brodie (Nordquist), our holder got it down perfect and I got it up in the air. It was high enough and straight so I was sure it was going through; but then when it came down it barely made it over,” stated Nikko.

With the switch in direction courtesy of the quarter break, Nikko did have a bit of wind at his back for the kick, which may have been the difference, the ball clearing the crossbar by just a yard. “That’s why we ran the ball on third down, (at the end of the third qtr.) so if we didn’t get in we would be switching ends and we would have the wind behind us for the kick,” Explained Proctor Head Coach Derek Parendo. “There’s a kid who’s worked hard all season long, he is kicking balls before and after practice and it has paid off for him tonight.”

Besides the cold and rain, Nikko had to contend with a fierce Cloquet rush which put resulted in Lumberjacks all around him as he let the kick go. “All of the people around the ball used to bother me; then I realized, if I get touched it’s a penalty, so after that I was able to just focus on the ball, worry about that, and get it through,” explained Nikko.

Proctor took a 7-0 lead into halftime courtesy of a Nordquist 13 yard touchdown run. Nordquist displayed a great understanding of the Rails new give-n-go option offense when he made the perfect read and pulled the ball back from the running back to go in for the score himself. “Every game he has gotten better, he is making more plays for us, and, he’s learning how to manage the game for us. He made a lot of nice plays for us tonight, stated Parendo.

Early in the third quarter it looked like the Jacks would take over the game when Nordquist was intercepted by Lineman Thomas Udenberg after chasing down a high snap in the backfield. After recovering the ball Nordquist threw what could be called in Brett Favre terms, an ill-advised pass in an attempt to get the ball back to the line of scrimmage.

With five minutes left in the third quarter, the Jacks cashed in and tied the game at seven all with an eight yard Marquez Evens touchdown run.

The Jacks again answered after Nikko’s field goal by going on a sustained drive which resulted in an Evans touchdown scamper on fourth and four from the Rails 37 yard line and the Jacks were up 14-10.

Needing one more fourth quarter score, Nordquist showed his understanding of the new offense by scoring from eight yards out after making several correct reads and marching the Rails down the field when it counted most. “Our motto is give it to the fast guys, we have a couple of pretty quick guys behind him so he looks to pitch the ball and if they are covered he keeps it. He is getting much more relaxed back there and making good choices, explained Parendo.

A missed extra point put Proctor up 16-14 and left the door open just a crack for Cloquet. That door was shut by the Proctor defense that stepped up and held the Jacks on the final drive to preserve the win.

“This win was big for our team, we have a junior quarterback who is learning the ropes a little bit and even though our defense gave up that late touchdown, it wasn’t a quick score. They had to work for it and then our offense went down and got a score. As disappointed as I was in that bad turnover, I was just as happy to see the team respond the way they did. Our defense has been a cornerstone for us all year,” mentioned Parendo.

Proctor is now 5-1 on the year, having lost to only Lake Superior Conference foe Hermantown in the second game of the season. They will face another tough test next Friday when they travel to Coleraine to take on defending Section 7AAA champion Greenway-Nashwauk-Keewatin.

The Jacks fall to 4-2 overall and will host the Hermantown Hawks next Friday at Bromberg Field in Cloquet.

Wes Vork can be sent to sports@northlandsportsonline.com