Calhoun Stuns Defending State Champs With Last-Second Touchdown

HARDIN – It was the rematch.

The date circled on the calendar for every Calhoun football player, coach, and fan.

The defending IHSA Class 1A state champs Camp Point Central visited Hardin Friday night in a rematch of last season’s second-round playoff game between the Cougars and Warriors.

Camp Point won 32-14 back on Nov. 4, 2023, and later went on to win the state title over Lena-Winslow 14-0, completing a perfect, 13-0 season.

The Warriors had to suffer a loss on their home field last year. They were not going to let that happen again, by any means necessary.

Thanks to a two-yard rushing touchdown from senior linebacker Connor Longnecker with 2.4 seconds remaining, Calhoun miraculously came back to win 14-13, improving to 2-0 on the season after week one’s 37-19 win over Jacksonville Rout.

Friday’s game started with a bang when Camp Point scored 21 seconds in.

The Cougars received to start, and junior running back Curtis Rigg returned it all the way to Calhoun’s 45-yard line. From there, junior running back Zack Wear took it to the house for a 45-yard rushing TD. Senior fullback/linebacker/kicker Elijah Genenbacher made the extra point attempt to make it 7-0 early.

The Warriors had an immediate response on their opening drive.

It started with sophomore Will Lorton returning the kickoff to his own 44-yard line. After a couple of first downs, Drew Wallendorf scored from 23 yards out, diving to the pylon and getting the touchdown signal. The kick from senior quarterback/kicker Jake Snyders was good to tie the game at 7-7.

Camp Point’s next score was on the defensive side of the ball to kick off the second quarter.

After a Calhoun punt, the Cougars took over at midfield, but they proceeded to fumble the football, giving it back to Calhoun at the 50-yard line.

On Calhoun’s first snap, Genenbacher made a heads-up play and intercepted the ball, taking it to the goal line. The extra point was missed, and the score stood at 13-7.

That’s how the score would stay for what felt like an eternity.

The Warriors had a chance to take the lead to start the fourth quarter but were stopped one yard short on fourth and goal, setting up each team’s final possession.

Camp Point, pinned at its one-yard line, managed to keep the chains moving, getting all the way down to Calhoun’s 22-yard line where they were staring down a 4th-and-5 attempt. After a timeout, the kicking unit was brought on to try a 32-yard field goal. The effort came up short, giving the ball back to the Warriors on their 20-yard line with 3:38 remaining in the game.

Calhoun used a pitch-out and throw play to gain big yardage, setting up first and goal. That escalated into a 4th-and-2 situation with seven seconds remaining. After a Calhoun timeout, Longnecker held onto the ball and pushed his way barely over the goal line for the game-tying score.

Snyders converted the kick to take the lead with 2.4 seconds remaining. It was enough time for a Camp Point hail Mary, but to no success as the defending champs took their first loss in 14 games.

The last time Calhoun beat Camp Point was the 2017 season opener by a score of 16-14.

“We talked about it all offseason,” Calhoun head coach Aaron Elmore said after the game. “We knew we had to play these guys in week two and they’re tough. They’re the state champs. It’s an awesome program with really good football players.”

One of those really good football players is Genenbacher who rushed for 225 yards on 26 carries with two touchdowns in last season’s playoff meeting. In that game, the Warriors rushed for 173 yards total.

“He’s one of the best football players in this state,” Elmore said of Genenbacher. “He’s tough. There’s not many guys better than him. We knew we had to stop him if we were going to have a chance to win the game.”

And stop him they did. Longnecker on the other hand, wasn’t.

“I think Connor Longnecker just got going,” Elmore said. “We were running our option stuff and good things were happening. He was just running hard and breaking tackles.”

“There really wasn’t a lot of thinking involved. We just wanted to get Connor the ball,” Elmore said regarding his team’s final possession.

Longnecker had just one thought on his mind.

“Just get in.”

“Obviously, a lot of emotions. I didn’t want to let everyone down,” he said. “I just tried to pile my way through and make every last second count.”

While it’s Calhoun's biggest win in recent memory, Elmore doesn’t want to get too far ahead.

“I think you just keep improving,” he said. “We just want to keep getting better because it’s only week two. We’ve got a long season to go. I think the kids knew; win, lose, or draw we just got to keep getting better so we can play our best football in the playoffs.”

Also important to play your best football during conference play, which the Warriors begin next week on the road at White Hall-North Greene.

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