BEA quarterback Adam Schavey carries a would-be Fairmont tackler on his back and across the goal line, with a host of Cardinals in pursuit, in the Bucs’ 42-13 win in the battle for the Little Brown Jug. That’s rain, not snow, in this photo, by the way.

Lightning struck both literally and figuratively during the Oct. 20 football game between the Class AAA No. 2-ranked Fairmont Cardinals and the Class AA No. 8-ranked host Blue Earth Area Buccaneers last Wednesday.

The game was delayed for one hour and 15 minutes due to the flashes of lightning approaching Wilson field from the west.

When the game resumed with 9:40 remaining in the first half and the Cardinals holding a 7-0 lead, it was an electrified Bucs’ team that shocked the Cardinals by scoring 21 points before halftime on their way to a 42-13 triumph.

The game marked the renewal of one of the oldest rivalries in the state and the battle for the Little Brown Jug. The two teams had not met on the gridiron since 2018 when the Cards defeated the Bucs 41-12. The Minnesota State High School League altered the football schedules to move to district play and away from conference play so the I-90 rivals did not play in 2019. The Cards and Bucs were set to renew their rivalry last year but a delay in the start of the season, due to COVID-19, canceled that contest.

It was a sweet moment for Buc captain Kean Hicks when head coach Randy Kuechenmeister handed him the Little Brown Jug after the game.

He shared last year’s seniors were on his mind when he addressed his teammates before the game.

“I told them we were not only playing the game for ourselves tonight,” Hicks said after the game. “We are also playing for our teammates from last year who never had the opportunity to play for the jug.”

The Bucs received the opening kickoff and started their opening drive with good field position at the Fairmont 47-yard line following the return by Parker Meyers. BEA moved the ball down to the 30-yard line before being forced to punt the ball to the Cardinals.

Ashton Lloyd’s kick pinned Fairmont at their own 2-yard line. The Cards advanced to the Bucs’ 31-yard line before turning the ball over on downs.

BEA used seven runs by Schavey and one run by Douglas to reach the Cardinal 8-yard line. On second down and goal to go, Schavey’s pass attempt was tipped at the line of scrimmage and intercepted by the Cards’ Aden Welcome, who returned the ball to the BEA 23-yard line.

It only took three plays for Fairmont to reach the end zone with quarterback Zach Jorgensen covering the last yard for the touchdown to give the visitors a 6-0 lead. The extra-point kick was good to make the score 7-0 in favor of the Cards with 9:57 remaining in the opening half.

The Bucs received the ensuing kickoff and began their next drive at their 28-yard line. They managed to run one play before the weather halted the game.

When play resumed in the pouring rain, the Maroon and Gold seemed more determined than ever to march the ball down the field, and they did.

The Bucs’ drive consisted of eight rushes, all by quarterback Adam Schavey, and resulted in a BEA touchdown with 6:50 to go in the second quarter. Schavey then ran the ball in for the extra point to put the Bucs on top 8-7.

Fairmont ran only three plays on their next drive and had to punt the ball from their own 28-yard line. Jorgensen’s punt, which was not returned, traveled 27 yards to the BEA 45-yard line.

The Bucs continued to win the battle in the trenches and Schavey ran six times to advance the ball to the Fairmont 24-yard line. One play later, Schavey plowed through the Cardinals defense for a 24-yard touchdown run. He then ran for the two-point conversion to give BEA a 16-7 lead with one minute left in the half.

BEA’s Gabe Smith’s squib kickoff was fumbled twice by the Cardinals with the Bucs recovering on the Fairmont 22-yard line. Schavey ran for 12 yards and the Cards were flagged for a personal foul to give the Bucs the ball at the five-yard line.

Schavey took it in from there and then ran for the extra point to give BEA a 24-7 lead 42 seconds before the halftime intermission.

The Bucs kicked off to begin the second half. Three incomplete passes later the Cards were forced to punt the ball back to the Bucs.

BEA began their first drive of the second half on their own 47-yard line and continued the formula which worked in the first half – Schavey left, Schavey right, Schavey up the middle.

The Bucs’ quarterback had runs of 19, six and 28 yards to cross the goal line in three plays and give BEA a 30-7 lead with 10:12 to go in the third quarter. The two-point attempt failed.

Fairmont achieved one first down on their next drive before BEA stopped them on a fourth down play. The Cards needed three yards for a first down but were stopped two yards short of the mark.

The Bucs took over at midfield and the ‘Schavey Express’ went back to work. Six runs later, all by the BEA quarterback, resulted in another touchdown. The two-point conversion was no good but the Bucs had built their lead to 36-7 with 4:20 left in the third quarter.

Fairmont was able to put together a scoring drive on their next possession but failed on their two-point conversion. With 16 seconds remaining in the third quarter, the score was 36-13 in favor of BEA.

Fairmont executed a successful onside kick and began their next drive on their 47-yard line. They advanced the ball to the BEA 35-yard line before BEA’s Nick Nelson jarred the ball loose from a Fairmont runner and the Bucs recovered the ball at their 43-yard line.

Schavey carried the ball five times to move the ball into Fairmont territory at the 41-yard line. Following a BEA timeout, Schavey ran through the Fairmont defense for a 41-yard touchdown run. The PAT kick was no good but the Bucs had extended their lead to 42-13 with six minutes remaining in the game.

Both teams pulled their starters and the reserves got the opportunity to get their uniforms muddy.

“It was a great team effort,” BEA head coach Randy Kuechenmeister told his team after the game. “I’m proud of the job you did tonight.”

Then the veteran coach reminded his team the season is not over.

“Enjoy the win but it is a new season now,” he said, reminding his players of the upcoming playoffs.

BEA put up 401 yards of total offense compared to 204 for Fairmont. All of the Bucs’ yards came on the ground with Schavey accounting for 371 of the total output on 42 carries. Fairmont threw for 170 yards but only rushed for 34.

Both schools finished regular season play with 7-1 records.

Undefeated Blooming Prairie received the No. 1-seed for the playoffs, Maple River is seeded second. BEA received the third seed and will host Waterville-Elysian-Morristown on Tuesday, Oct. 26, at 7 p.m.

BEA 61, Central 20

Blue Earth Area exploded for 605 yards of offense and powered their way to a 61-20 victory over the Central Raiders on Friday night, Oct. 15, in Norwood Young America.

The Raiders opened the game with a 14-play drive which took them to the BEA nine-yard line.

However, a fumble by the Raiders was recovered by the Bucs inside of the 10-yard line.

BEA ran seven plays and moved the ball out to their 41-yard line before they were forced to punt the ball back to Central.

The Raiders needed only one play to reach the end zone. Quarterback Noah Strickfaden completed a pass good for 88 yards and a touchdown to Jacob Kalkes. The two-point conversion was no good but the Raiders led the Bucs 6-0 with 6:47 remaining in the first quarter.

Parker Meyers returned the ensuing kickoff 42 yards to put the Bucs in business at the Central 45-yard line.

Waylen Douglas took the handoff from Adam Schavey and scampered for a 15-yard gain. Schavey kept the ball himself on the next play and carried the ball into the end zone to tie the game at 6-6. Gabe Smith’s kick for the extra point was good to give the Bucs a 7-6 lead with 5:47 left in the first quarter.

The Raiders began their next drive at their 47-yard line and needed just five plays to score again with Strickfaden hitting Kalkes for a 22-yard touchdown. The extra-point kick was good and Central led BEA 13-7 with 4:22 to go in the first quarter.

The Bucs started their next drive in their own territory at the 20-yard line.

BEA kept the ball on the ground to go the 80 yards needed to score a touchdown. Schavey had three runs for 35 yards during the drive, Waylen Douglas had one run for 11 yards and Parker Meyers had two rushes for 34 yards, including an eight-yard run for the touchdown to momentarily tie the game at 13-13. Gabe Smith’s extra point kick split the uprights to break the tie and give the Bucs a 14-13 lead with 1:35 still showing on the clock in the opening quarter.

There was no more scoring in the remainder of the first quarter and BEA took control of the game in the second quarter, outscoring the Raiders 27-7 to take a 41-20 halftime lead.

Schavey scored on a three-yard run less than three minutes into the second quarter and Smith added the extra point to boost BEA’s lead to 21-13.

The Bucs’ next touchdown came on a 27-yard pass from Schavey to Ashton Lloyd with 5:33 to go until halftime. The extra point kick was no good so BEA’s lead stood at 27-13.

A 21-yard run by Schavey with 1:21 left in the half combined with Smith’s extra-point kick gave the Bucs a 34-13 lead with 1:21 showing on the scoreboard clock before the end of the first half.

Central needed just one play to cover 53 yards for their third touchdown of the night. After BEA was penalized for a horse-collar tackle on the ensuing kickoff, the Raiders started at their own 47-yard line.

A 53-yard pass from Strickfaden to Ben Hoernemann resulted in a touchdown. The PAT kick was good to cut BEA’s lead to 34-20 with 1:04 to go until halftime.

Following the kickoff, the Bucs began their next drive 79 yards away from a touchdown.

Runs of 27 yards by Meyers and 15 yards by Jack Norman advanced the ball into Raiders’ territory at the 37-yard line.

Lloyd’s 23-yard pass reception from Schavey put the Bucs 14 yards away from the end zone.

A 13-yard run by Douglas set up a one-yard plunge by Schavey for another touchdown with 17 seconds remaining in the first half. Smith’s kick was good and BEA went into halftime with a 41-20 lead.

The Bucs added 20 more points in the third quarter to make the final score 61-21.

BEA’s ground attack accounted for 537 of their 605 total yards and they averaged 13.8 yards per carry.

Central gained the majority of their 366 yards through the air. They finished with 321 passing yards and only 45 rushing yards.

The Bucs had 34 first downs during the game to only 17 for the Raiders.