Playing takeaway

Jacob Brandt and some of his buddies are skipping Oak Grove’s homecoming festivities this weekend for a trip to Worlds of Fun.
After stripping the ball away from Grain Valley quarterback Austin Gouldsmith and returning it 81-yards for a game-clinching touchdown, he might want to reconsider.
“He might get a little attention at the homecoming dance,” Oak Grove coach Pete Carpino said Friday night after Brandt’s defensive gem helped the undefeated and fourth-ranked Panthers claim a 33-21 Missouri River Valley Conference West win over archrival Grain Valley in the battle for the Four-Mile War Trophy.
Oak Grove’s Trey Rigby carried the ball seven straight times, totaling 39 yards, to give the Panthers a 27-21 lead at 6:33 of the fourth quarter.
When the extra point was blocked, the Eagles had new life.
Gouldsmith, who completed 10 of 16 passes for 163 yards, drove the Eagles to the Panthers’ 21 with 3:36 to play.
“We were in a good position to win the game,” Eagles coach Forrest Rovello said. “We were passing well, Trace (Goade) and Robby (Sodano) were running hard – but we made a big mistake. And you can’t make a mistake late in the game against a well-coached team like Oak Grove.”
Gouldsmith turned to put the ball in Goade’s arms when Brandt knifed into the Grain Valley backfield and literally stripped the ball away from the Eagles quarterback.
“I think it kind of hit Trace’s arms and Austin didn’t have control of it, and I was at the right place at the right time,” said Brandt, who also starred in the Panthers backfield. “The ball never touched the ground. I just grabbed it. And when I did, all I saw was open field ahead of me. The main thing I wanted to do was run hard and not fumble it away.”
Suddenly, an eerily quiet Oak Grove homecoming crowd was on its feet screaming.
“It felt pretty cool to score that touchdown,” Brandt said. “But this was a total team victory. Our coaches had us so well prepared. We were ready for anything.
“Grain Valley played a great game, but I think the reason we won was because we were so well prepared.”
The Panthers, ranked No. 4 in the Class 3 state poll, improved to 6-0 overall and 3-0 in the MRVC West. Grain Valley, now in Class 4, dropped to 3-3 and 1-2.
“All losses are tough,” Rovello said as his team quietly walked to the buses. “But this one is tough because we put ourselves in the position to win the game at the end.
“You have to give them credit. Pete’s kids made the big plays at the end. They made them when the game was on the line, and we weren’t able to.”
Grain Valley’s Ben Call picked off Caleb Barnhill to set up the Eagles’ first score.
Goade pounded the ball into the end zone and it was 7-0 at the 6:17 mark of the first quarter.
But Brandt’s 37-yard run set up a 1-yard plunge by Rigby to tie it 7-7.
Brandt’s 20-yard touchdown run gave the Panthers a 14-7 lead in the second quarter, but the Eagles fought back to tie it 14-all on a slick 31-yard pass reception by David Richards.
“Goade is a load to stop and No. 1 and No. 2 (Gouldsmith and Richards) are a great passing combo,” Carpino said. “They seemed to have an answer anytime we scored.”
With 54 seconds left in the half, new offensive coordinator Jared Barge pulled off a little trickery, lining Brandt up at quarterback.
The ball was snapped to Brandt, who lateraled to Barnhill, who found kicker/wide receiver Jacob Horn alone in the end zone.
“I love that play,” said Barge, a longtime former assistant at Blue Springs High School. “Every guy did his job to perfection.”
When asked about the catch, Horn said, “I might be the team’s kicker, but I also play wide receiver. I felt real confident when they threw me the ball.”
His extra point made it 21-14 at halftime.
Grain Valley scored the lone touchdown of the third quarter on a 1-yard run by Goade, setting up the wild finish.
“This is a great win – the biggest win of the season – because we beat a great Grain Valley team and we did with a great homecoming crowd,” said Brandt, who finished with two touchdowns and 152 yards on 18 carries.
Goade finished the night with 128 yards on 25 carries and two scores and Richards had seven receptions for 126 yards. Call picked Barnhill off twice.