Sometimes, football games are less like sprints, and more like marathons. Even with a poor start, Manhattan High found a way to beat Shawnee Heights 49-13 on Friday night.

MHS began the game with turnovers on its first two drives. The Indians fumbled the ball away near midfield on their first drive, before throwing an interception their next offensive play.

“It doesn’t necessarily have to be a given,” senior quarterback Ian Trapp said, “but it’s a given that in the first game, there will be some rough edges that you need to work out, and I kind of think that’s what it was.”

However, in a credit to the Manhattan defense, Shawnee Heights was unable to score off of either turnover. The defense went so far as to force a turnover of their own, ending a goal line stand after the first play.

“Early on it was great,” head coach Joe Schartz said. “We had three turnovers and they didn’t convert on any of them, so defense bailed us out.”

Unlike their counterparts, the Indians were able to capitalize on the fumble. In a ten-play drive, MHS marched down the field for the first of many touchdowns. Trapp hit senior Brady Woborny for a 26-yard touchdown pass to finish the drive.

Shawnee Heights quickly responded with a 5-play, 75-yard drive to tie the game up at 7-7. The drive was punctuated by senior quarterback Trey Brown’s spinning and dodging 29-yard touchdown run.

The game was only tied for 14 offensive plays before the Indians scored again. Trapp highlighted the drive by scoring his first rushing touchdown. He would finish the game with 162 yards rushing and 137 yards passing, while scoring four rushing and one passing touchdown.

Schartz said that Trapp could not have done it alone.

“I tell you what,” Schartz said, “[Trapp] is a beneficiary of a fantastic offensive line. They protected him all night long in the passing game, and blocked well for him in the running game.”

Trapp agreed that he shouldn’t get all of the credit.

“The O-line’s amazing,” Trapp said. “My receivers were really catching the balls [thrown to them]. And my running backs were working really hard. I got the glory, but it was my running backs just working…and then I’d pull it, and I’d have a wide open touchdown because they were keying in on the running backs.”

Trapp would add one more touchdown, courtesy of his hardworking teammates, before the first half ended.

The Indians exploded out of the gate in the second half. Senior cornerback John Haug took the opening kickoff to the house for a 95-yard kickoff return. Haug, much like Trapp, credited his teammates for helping his long run.

“Everybody got their blocks,” Haug said, “and I just ran through the hole and got a touchdown.”

As great as it is to score with the offense, Trapp said it was great for the team to score with out the offense being out there.

“It takes a lot of pressure off,” Trapp said. “[The] whole momentum just goes our way from the very start, scoring in 15 seconds like that. [Haug] did an amazing job. It just shows teams that we’re lethal, whether or not the offense is on the field.”

Manhattan still didn’t let up on the gas in the second half. The defense prevented Shawnee Heights from scoring until midway through the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, the offense continued to score touchdowns on every possession, with Trapp running in for two more scores.

Shawnee Heights did finally score in the fourth quarter. The Thunderbirds executed a 12-play, 80-yard drive, complete with a fourth down conversion and a blocked extra point courtesy of junior Camron Drake, to make it 42-13. It was too little, too late.

“[On their second touchdown,] we started hanging our heads and had our hands on our hips like we were tired,” Schartz said. “So we’re going to have to get in better shape.”

Even with all the things to work on, Schartz felt like the team played good in some areas.

“The way the offense can help the defense is by keeping the other offense off the field,” Schartz said. “We ate up the clock, so we limited their chances to score. So that’s another way to play great defense; keep the offense off the field.”

Running backs Iverson Robb, senior, and Kevontae McDonald, sophomore, added to Trapp’s productive night with big nights of their own. Robb ran for 113 yards on 14 attempts, with McDonald adding 20 yards and one touchdown at the end of the game. That touchdown was McDonald’s first career Varsity touchdown.

Because the Indians were up so big, the backups were able to play in the game late in the fourth quarter. Trapp said that would be beneficial to the team down the road.

“It helps us,” Trapp said. “We trust our backups, and then also we know if we go out, that we’ll have somebody capable and confident that we can know that they will get the job done.”

With the win, Manhattan moved to 1-0 (1-0) on the season. With their next game on the road at Washburn Rural, the Indians can expect a tough game on Friday.

“Washburn Rural has a huge offensive line,” Schartz said, “and a huge running back. They’re going to run right down the field on us, and it’s going to be difficult. Plus, it’s our first road game, so it’s going to be a heck of a test”