For Goodhue, 2003 was the year gifts were exchanged on Thanksgiving

50 years in the making: Mistakes sunk the Wildcats' previously undefeated opponent in the 1A final.

By Ron Haggstrom Star Tribune

October 31, 2022 — 11:45pm

Year: 2003

"This is the ultimate reward." — Breck senior quarterback Liam O'Hagan

With the holiday season right around the corner, Goodhue found Medford to already be in a very giving mood.

Goodhue graciously accepted six turnovers and numerous other mistakes by the previously undefeated Tigers and won the Class 1A championship game 20-8. It was the first title in program history for Goodhue.

"That wasn't us," Medford coach Maurice McCabe said. "We haven't played like that all year."

Goodhue's aggressive play on both sides of the ball had plenty to do with that. The game was expected to be a battle of elite defenses, but a big play on offense set the tone. The Wildcats shocked Medford with a 77-yard touchdown pass from Brian Buck to Corey Ryan on their first play from scrimmage. The two-point conversion quickly made it 8-0.

"I think that put some question marks in their minds," Goodhue coach Clair Austin said. "They had only given up one touchdown pass all season, and then they gave up one in the first few minutes."

Medford's string of mistakes began soon after. The Tigers managed to tie the score on a 9-yard pass from Brent Yule to Joe Arnold early in the second quarter but wasted three opportunities to take the lead. Each time they took possession of the ball in Goodhue territory, but they lost two fumbles and threw an interception.

"Our defense is tough," Austin said. "They've been pretty salty all year long."

In other finals:

Throughout an autumn of perfection, Lakeville leaned heavily on three sterling seniors. The Panthers reached the final page of their championship script in the same fashion, with Brylee Callender, Josh Lucas and Vinny Flury, the three horsemen, starring one final time in a 34-9 victory over Hastings in the Class 5A final. Lucas threw two touchdown passes to Flury, and two rushing touchdowns by Callender gave him 40 in 2003. Callender finished with 26 carries for 226 yards.
In Class 3A, Glencoe-Silver Lake held Delano to 88 total yards and recorded four sacks, three by 6-4, 245-pound end Willie VanDeSteeg, in a 21-0 shutout. Delano had zero yards in the first quarter.

"Their defense really dictated what we tried to do," Delano coach Merrill Pavlovich said. "Give them credit, they executed very well."

In Class 2A, Breck unleashed two years' worth of state tournament frustration in the championship game. The Mustangs, who were upset in the state playoffs the previous two seasons, poured it on in a 51-14 victory over defending champion Kingsland. Kingsland had defeated Breck in overtime in the quarterfinals in 2004.

"This is the ultimate reward. We've been so close," said Breck senior quarterback Liam O'Hagan, a member of the varsity since his freshman season. "I don't know if it was revenge, but we weren't going to let anyone get in the way of our goal this year."

O'Hagan broke the state record for passing yards in a season — it was held by Minneota's Chris Meidt (3,643 yards in 1988) — on a 33-yard completion to Blake Wheeler in the second quarter. O'Hagan threw for 285 yards and five touchdowns and finished the season with 3,827 yards and 55 touchdowns, a state record.

"I don't really care about the records," O'Hagan said. "A state championship was our only goal."