Alexandria kicks out Armstrong in Class 5A football state tournament

As brutal as Alexandria’s schedule was this season, it’s certain that not a single Cardinals coach or player would do anything different if they had the choice.

The Cardinals were battle-hardened and accustomed to playing quality opponents. That experience paid off handsomely Saturday in the form of a 17-14 victory over previously undefeated Robbinsdale Armstrong in the Class 5A quarterfinals at Monticello.

Alexandria’s Daniel Jackson, committed to the Gophers, nailed a 32-yard field goal with 3 minutes, 1 second left in the game, giving the Cardinals their first lead of the game.

With Armstrong trying to mount a comeback, Alexandria’s superb defensive back Evan Kludt stifled the Falcons’ hopes with an interception at midfield with 1:36 remaining.

Kludt said he’d had big interceptions before — he picked one off in a loss to St. Thomas Academy in the Class 5A semifinals in 2023 — but this one felt a little more special.

“Nothing bigger than that,” said Kludt, who is also one Alexandria’s top receivers. “Players just have to make plays, and that’s exactly what I did.”

Armstrong’s season has been defined by playmaking tailback Kevon Johnson, who went into the game with more than 2,000 rushing yards and 35 touchdowns. Alexandria was determined to shut down Johnson, who still ran for 144 yards, but it took 28 carries. Johnson never found the end zone Saturday.

“All week long, we hammered out, ‘You’ve got to get leverage on him,’ ” Alexandria coach Mike Empting said. “We can’t let him squeak free. We’ve got to get all 11 to the football and be good tacklers, because he’s a shifty running back.”

With Johnson finding his paths full of Cardinals, Armstrong leaned more on the arm of quarterback Dawson Franke, who threw two touchdown passes, both of which gave the Falcons a lead. He connected with Gideon Breker on a 25-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter for a 7-0 advantage and Farelle Deline for 48 yards in the third quarter to regain the lead, 14-7.

Alexandria quarterback Chase Thompson, a 6-foot-8 Clemson basketball commit, showed his athleticism when he avoided a sack on fourth down, scrambled left and connected with Mason Gorghuber for a 30-yard touchdown, tying the score 14-14.

Gorghuber said the play was designed to be a shallow crossing route, but he improvised when he saw Thompson in trouble.

“I saw him rolling out and just leaked out the back,” Gorghuber said. “Players make plays. That’s what our coach has been saying all week.”

Clearly, Empting’s message got through.

“All week long I talked about making your impact felt,” Empting said. “Good teams, great players, they find a way. And when there’s not a way, you make a way.”

Armstrong coach Jack Negen said his team came up a little short at the wrong time. Armstrong finished 10-1.

“It was a heck of a game,” he said. “We just couldn’t get our ground game going for the first time this year.”

Alexandria improved to 9-2 and will play Elk River in the state semifinals next week at U.S. Bank Stadium.