Wyatt Woods says as he watched his overtime pass float slowly toward Gunner Ellison in the end zone, “it felt like it was 30 years going by.” When Ellison caught the ball, it erased 30 years of frustration for Republic football fans.
Ellison’s catch on a two-point conversion delivered a 36-35 overtime victory against state-ranked Nixa (Class 6 #4). It’s the biggest win in a generation for Republic football, and the marquee win second-year coach Ryan Cornelsen has been talking about since he arrived.
“I couldn’t be more proud of them. I told the kids, it’s only a big win if we use that to carry ourselves to another level. That’s the goal — enjoying this tonight, but making this win take us to another level from a program standpoint, to where we feel like we can come into these places and play with the best teams in the conference.
“They’ve been waiting on this one, and so have I. Man, what an exciting night.”
The teams were tied 28-28 at the end of regulation. Nixa got the ball first in overtime and scored on its first play, a 25-yard romp by Ramone Green. The extra point put Nixa ahead 35-28.
Republic answered methodically, taking eight plays to go 25 yards before scoring on a one-yard run by Kanon Krol. It was Krol’s third touchdown of the night, and it set up a decision for Republic about whether to go for one point or two. It was a decision that had been made before overtime began.
“Even if we were offense first, we were going to go for two, so it worked out good that we were defense first,” Cornelsen said.
Republic played with the lead most of the first half. It played from behind in the second half, but it didn’t matter. The teams traded touchdowns through four quarters and one overtime period, and Republic never backed down from their undefeated opponent.
Republic gambled successfully throughout the game, looking for a break that would give it an edge. The Tigers were 7-for-7 on fourth downs, including three fourth-down conversions on a single scoring drive in the first half. (Editor’s note: I initially wrote 6-for-6, but have corrected that.)
Nixa moved the ball at will most of the night, but when they finally faced a fourth down, Republic’s defense made a game-changing play. As the Eagles drove the ball near the end of the fourth quarter, they seemed headed for a game-winning touchdown. But after Nixa moved inside the ten-yard line, Republic’s defense got the stop it needed. On fourth-and-goal, Aidan Gregory pressured quarterback Connor Knatcal, forcing an incomplete pass. Republic got the ball back. Although the Tigers didn’t score again in regulation, the defensive stop set up the overtime heroics.
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The offenses had the upper hand throughout the game. Neither team punted all night.
In the first half, each team scored on its first two possessions. Republic broke on top with a five-yard touchdown run by Connor Sandridge on its first possession. Gunner Ellison also had a big run on that drive, breaking loose for 52 yards to set up the score. Nixa answered quickly, driving 63 yards on seven plays and scoring on a TD run by Spencer Ward.
The next drive by Republic was a Ryan Cornelsen Special. The Tigers hung onto the ball for more than 10 minutes and took 19 plays to drive for a touchdown – this one a one-yard run by Kanon Krol. That put Republic ahead 14-7.
But Nixa scored quickly again on a 11-yard halfback pass from Rylan Michel to Ward, evening the score 14-14.
Republic had a chance to take the lead before halftime, but one of the only Republic mistakes of the night was an interception with time running out in the second quarter, ending the Tiger drive.
The second half was the same, except that Nixa took the lead for the first time, forcing Republic to play catch-up. Ramone Green’s five-yard touchdown run made it 21-14 Nixa, but Republic used six minutes of clock to even the score on a 16-yard TD pass from Woods to Ellison.
After Green scored again for Nixa, the Tigers tied the score on a one-yard run by Krol. That left the score 28-28, where it remained until the overtime.
“It was a battle. Every play was physical. For the first time all year, we were consistent in what we were doing,” Cornelsen said.
When Ellison caught the game-winning pass, it set off a long-overdue celebration on the field and on the Tiger sideline.
“Coach always preaches not to over-celebrate. But there’s no one other than our parents and our friends that expect us to come out here and beat this team,” Ellison said. “They’re a great team all around, so for us to go out there and to perform on all cylinders on offense and really be untouchable, it’s incredible. It’s what we put the work in for. It’s just a great time.”
Republic finished with 403 total yards to 372 for Nixa. The Tigers had 340 yards on the ground, led by Sandridge, with 134 on 26 carries. Woods carried the ball 28 times for 98 yards. Ellison had nine carries for 93 yards, and Krol had only 15 yards, but three touchdowns. Wood also threw for 63 passing yards and a touchdown. Ellison caught three passes for 41 yards, including the game-winning two-point conversion.
Nixa, which has wins over Carthage, Webb City, and Joplin this year, falls to 7-1. The Tigers improve to 5-3 and will host Carl Junction next week to wrap up the regular season.
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