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BRAINERD — Brainerd head coach Jason Freed hopes to build off the momentum of last week’s fourth quarter.
The Warriors lost to Bemidji 28-22, but outscored the Lumberjacks 12-0 in the fourth quarter during their comeback attempt.
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Brainerd’s last test before the Section 8-5A playoffs is the St. Francis Fighting Saints Wednesday, Oct. 16, at Adamson Field.
“It’ll be senior night which is always exciting,” Freed said. “You get a chance to celebrate the seniors and that’s always a big night. We want to continue to play good football and I think we are coming around. We did not get the win last week, but after watching the film, I think we are starting to play with a little bit more of a sense of urgency.”
Wednesday will be the fifth all-time meeting between the Warriors and Fighting Saints. Last season, the Warriors won on the road 42-16.
St. Francis comes into the final week of the regular season 2-5. The Fighting Saints are coming off a 47-19 win against Irondale last week. Their other win came against Cambridge-Isanti in Week Five.
The only common opponent the two teams have is Elk River. St. Francis lost to the Elks 51-14 a week after the Elks knocked off the Warriors 50-14.
“I will say their record is not indicative of the football team that they are,” Freed said. “They are a good football team and I like what I’ve seen on film from them. They do some nice things on offense and have some playmakers out on the perimeter. They’ve got a really nice looking running back and they spread you out. The quarterback throws a nice ball and we are going to be stretched defensively. On defense, they look like they fly around and play hard. They’ve been in some games and have had some bad bounces.”
Brainerd’s offense has come alive the last two weeks totaling at least 400 yards in the last two games.
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The Warriors’ identity is a run-first offense led by Jayden Barnum, who has recorded 633 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on 108 carries for a 5.9 yards-per-carry average.
Quarterback Ty Nelson has run for 424 yards and five touchdowns on 80 carries for a 5.3 average.
Brainerd’s passing game has improved and last week’s 217 passing yards marked the most for the Warriors this season.
Wide receiver Izaac Vanek is a reason for the Warriors’ air attack ascension. Vanek caught four passes for 136 yards last week, including an 80-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage. For the season, Vanek has caught 24 passes for 487 yards and five touchdowns and has five rushes for 71 yards and a touchdown. Vanek has recorded a touchdown in each of the Warriors’ last five games.
“I think we are finding our identity on offense,” Freed said. “We are definitely a run-first offense that needs to stay ahead of schedule. When we have manageable second and third downs, it brings out the diversity of what we can do in our offense from the perimeter pass to the screen game to the misdirection game. I think our offensive line has done a really nice job and we’ve had a lot of turnover there this year with injuries. We need to continue to hang our hat on the running game and try to limit possessions in some of these games and keep them low scoring because that’s the kind of game we play.”
Brainerd’s defense has been hurt by big plays all season. Last week was no different. In the third quarter, the Warriors allowed 45- and 91-yard touchdown runs. For the season, the Warriors have allowed 13 touchdowns of over 40 yards or more.
“You get frustrated when you see those big plays happen and oftentimes those things stand out in the game and you dwell on those things,” Freed said. “I think defensively we’ve made some good strides and we’ve moved guys around a little bit which is helping us get in the right spots.”
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Freed also wants to see the defense force turnovers. The Warriors have forced six turnovers all season with three of them coming in Week Three against Sartell.
“We’re going to have to force some turnovers, that’s just what it is,” Freed said. “We’re going to have to create a little sense of urgency and try to force turnovers.”
Moorhead wrapped up the Northstar North District title with a 36-34 win over Alexandria last week.
Seedings for the Section 8-5A playoffs will be announced Thursday, Oct. 17.
“The time is here where the sand in the hourglass is ticking,” Freed said. “It’s playoff time and it’s time to play with a little more sense of urgency and a little more intensity and a little more focus. Coming into the last regular season game, I fully expect our team to be very focused and very ready to play on a short week.”
CONRAD ENGSTROM may be reached at 218-855-5861 or conrad.engstrom@brainerddispatch.com. Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/the_rad34.
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Brainerd hosts St. Francis
When: 7 p.m.
Where: at Brainerd High School
Series: Brd leads 3-1
Last result: Brainerd won 42-16 last season.
Twitter: @the_rad34
Radio: KLIZ-AM (1380)
Web Stream: www.kliz.com.
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