Eagle faced two do-or-die plays for 5A SIC title. It converted both in walk-off win
Everyone in the stadium knew where the ball was going. But no one could stop it.
Eagle sophomore running Noah Burnham punched the ball into the end zone on a pair of do-or-die plays Friday night, lifting the No. 1-ranked Mustangs to a 22-21 win over No. 3 Meridian in the 5A SIC championship game.
The win clinched the Mustangs (9-0) home-field advantage in the state quarterfinals and semifinals, and it avenged a 35-0 loss to Meridian in last year’s league title game.
“Last year we got blown out,” Burnham said. “But this year we got it back in blood.”
[Related: Idaho football state playoff brackets]
Meridian opened the overtime period with Rylie Byington’s 4-yard touchdown catch and an extra point to take a seven-point lead. Burnham first extended Eagle’s hopes when he leaped into the end zone from 1 yard out on fourth-and-goal. He then plowed in for the game-winning two-point conversion.
But he had a little help.
Eagle quarterback Davis Harsin handed Burnham the ball, and then lined up behind him to help push Burnham and the pile the final 3 yards into the end zone.
“At first I thought I didn’t get in,” Burnham said. “But Davis Harsin, I don’t know what he’s on. But he picked me up and threw me in.”
Eagle coach James Cluphf said he never hesitated to go for two points and the win. He and his staff determined they’d do just that before the Mustangs even got the ball in overtime.
“I just believe in my guys,” Cluphf said. “I think we have the best O-line in the state.
“They knew what was coming. We ran pretty much the same play four straight plays. I trust our guys carrying the ball and the heart that’s in their souls. They were not going to be denied.”
Burnham finished the night with 186 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries. The sophomore has made those numbers a regular occurrence this fall, and he topped 1,000 yards rushing this season with his second carry of the night.
Meridian actually stuffed Burnham from inside the 1-yard line on third down in overtime. But the Mustangs never lost confidence in their workhorse, and he rewarded them with two scoring plays.
“His capabilities are unbelievable,” Eagle senior defensive back Tristan Walker said. “... I’ve been playing varsity for three, four years. And he’s a sophomore absolutely destroying me in practice. The confidence we all have in him is unbelievable.”
Eagle stormed the field after Burnham and Harsin powered into the end zone, a far cry from the scene a year ago. Meridian embarrassed the Mustangs to win last year’s league title, forcing five turnovers, scoring two defensive touchdowns and posting the first shutout against Eagle since 2006.
But those are distant memories now.
“It was real tough because Meridian talks a lot,” Burnham said. “I just got smashed over and over and over again last year in the district championship. I just walked off the field knowing that I’m gonna come back and get it back, and I will beat them in the district championship next year.”
The win clinched Eagle its first full Southern Idaho Conference title since 2011, before the league split into two divisions. The Mustangs also won a six-team pod title in 2016. The SIC didn’t start pitting its two division winners against each other until 2020.
The Mustangs will start the playoffs as the heavy favorite. Eagle is the last remaining undefeated team at the 5A level and has spent the past four weeks as the unanimous No. 1-ranked team in the state media poll. That streak will certainly grow to five weeks when the final poll is released Tuesday.
Those expectations can come with a lot of pressure. But Walker said the Mustangs don’t mind.
“We have a poster hanging up that says, ‘Eagle vs. the World,’” Walker said. “We know for a fact no one likes us. That doesn’t faze us.
“We’re here to just keep playing how we play, regardless of what the news says, regardless of what everyone else says, regardless of what these other teams say.
“We know what we’re capable of.”
MERIDIAN LEADERS
Quarterback Zeke Martinez finished 13-for-16 for 95 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for 58 yards and another score as the Warriors rallied from a 14-0 deficit in the fourth quarter.
Byington served as his top receiver, hauling in seven passes for 58 yards and the overtime touchdown. And Marco Del Rio ran for 42 yards and a score.
UP NEXT
Eagle: The Mustangs take a bye before hosting a quarterfinal game in two weeks. They will face the winner of Rigby vs. the sixth-place team from the Southern Idaho Conference. That will be either Middleton or Owyhee, but that won’t be determined until the final MaxPreps rankings come out Sunday.
Meridian: The Warriors also get a bye into the quarterfinals. They will host the winner of Post Falls vs. Mountain View in two weeks.
This story was originally published October 21, 2023 at 12:20 AM.
