Cougars see offense come to life to pull off district upset of Tigers

CENTER, Mo. — First-year Highland football coach Caleb Arnsman reminded the Cougars the records get washed away in the postseason and the season starts anew.

A fresh approach led to remarkable results.

Sixth-seeded Highland opened Class 1 District 6 play Friday night by upsetting third-seeded Mark Twain 32-16 to earn a shot at second-seeded South Shelby next week. The Cardinals beat seventh-seeded Scotland County 48-3.

“We didn’t have a great regular season,” said Arnsman, whose team went 1-8 in the regular season. “Everybody is on the same level playing field (in postseason). And I knew this is the team we should have been all season.”

Highland quarterback Brayden Logsdon threw for more than 230 yards with three touchdowns and also ran for a 27-yard touchdown. The junior felt the scouting report was spot on for the success the team had throwing the ball.

“We talked all week about the coverages they were gonna be in and what routes we liked,” Logsdon said.

Senior Devin Stutsman caught all three of Logsden’s touchdown passes — a 53-, 63- and 40-yarder.

Running back Alex Oenning added an 18-yard touchdown run with nine seconds to go in the first half. Oenning’s score capped a seven-play, 78-yard drive that took the Cougars just 1:42 to complete.

“Play with relentless effort and relentless heart,” Arnsman said. “You’ll be amazed what the scoreboard says at the end.”

Mark Twain finishes the season at 5-5, and senior all-purpose back Lakoda Preston had 90 yardfs rushing and more than 100 yards receiving.

Meanwhile, Logsdon is excited he gets another week of football.

“We’ve been hoping for this all year,” he said. “Now we just gotta keep this train rolling.”