HERMANN —Despite another spirited, late comeback attempt, the Hermann Bearcats were knocked out of the playoffs Friday night, Nov. 15, after falling to the visiting Bowling Green Bobcats by the final score of 20-28 in the District championship game.

After being held to one score over the first three quarters, Hermann (8-3) scored two touchdowns in the fourth to twice make it a one-possession game, but Bowling Green (11-1) was able to fend off the Bearcats just enough to come away with the District title and advance to the State quarterfinals.

Hermann took second place in the Class 2 District 2 tournament with the loss in their first trip to the District championship game since 2016, when they also took second.

The Bearcats were prepared for the Bobcats’ powerful offense that racked up over 54 points on average against their opponents prior to Friday’s game, stifling a persistent run game that gave Hermann plenty of different looks on offense.

The game remained in a scoreless tie after the first quarter thanks to strong defensive stands on both sides, particularly against both teams’ rushing attack, that resulted in multiple turnovers-on-downs and punts for the first 12 minutes.

Bowling Green struck first a few minutes into the second quarter after they were able to slowly drive down into the red zone and convert on a fourth-and-four with a short pass down the right side line, setting up their first touchdown on another such pass shortly thereafter.

However, Hermann was quick to answer as they now looked to pass more frequently and were finding success moving the ball through the air against the Bobcats.

Senior quarterback Henry Allebach found fellow senior Nolan Mercier open downfield after escaping pressure and rolling out to his right for a 38-yard touchdown pass to tie the game at 6-6 with about seven minutes left in the second quarter. The score remained tied after they failed on the extra point attempt.

Unfortunately for Hermann, the rest of the second quarter was characterized by missed opportunities and Bowling Green capitalizing on their mistakes and penalties, with the Bobcats successfully drawing Hermann offsides on multiple occasions.

The Bobcats took a 12-6 lead with under two minutes on a fourth-down play deep in Hermann’s territory and, after forcing a turnover on downs on the Bearcats’ next drive, took over again with 36 seconds until halftime where they scored again as time expired on a flea flicker to take a 20-6 lead into the second half.

While Hermann’s defense got back on track and continued to keep the Bowling Green offense in check throughout the third quarter, their offense would not get another good scoring opportunity until the very end of the quarter into the fourth when, at the Bobcats’ 10-yard line, the Bearcats had a pass broken up in the endzone on fourth down, resulting in another turnover.

They were given a jolt a few minutes later when sophomore linebacker Tyler Woodle recovered a fumble near the 50-yard line and only 26 seconds later Allebach again connected with Mercier over the middle of the field for a 25-yard touchdown, making it a 12-20 game with just over seven minutes left to play.

Bowling Green went back to what they had done all game long though, and through a long, grinding drive not only took over five minutes off the clock, they found the endzone for the fourth time and after a successful two-point try made it 28-12.

With two minutes left, the Bearcats pushed the pace and attacked with efficiency, primarily through the air. Twice Allebach got the ball to senior Cole Traub for big gains, first on a second-and-long play to put them into the Bobcats’ field and then on fourth down to keep their drive alive with 1:11 left.

Their frantic effort ended with Allebach and Mercier combining for yet another touchdown, a diving catch by Mercier as he fell into the endzone for their third touchdown of the night. Allebach then found him again on their successful two-point attempt to make it 20-28 with the clock showing 1:00 left in the game.

They could not keep up the pressure, however, as Bowling Green was able to recover Hermann’s onside kick attempt and, despite a strong effort by the Bearcat defense to hold the Bobcats and force a punt, they picked up a first down on third-and-three after Hermann used their final timeout, taking a knee and ending the game.

Hermann’s scoring came exclusively through their passing game against Bowling Green, highlighted by Allebach’s 16-27 performance with 265 yards and three touchdowns and Mercier’s nine receptions for 164 yards and three touchdowns.

Traub’s 56 yards on three catches and senior running back Caden Humphrey’s 30 yards on two catches were other notable receiving performances.

The offense as a whole was mostly through the air as the entire team recorded only 57 rushing yards. Allebach led in that category with 30 yards on five rushes, followed by Humphrey with 15 yards on five rushes. No other player reached double digits in rushing yards.

Defensively, Woodle led the team with 10 total tackles in addition to his fumble recovery. Junior linebacker Aiden Eikermann, junior defensive lineman Kegin Sperry, and Mercier all had eight total tackles, followed by seniors Carter Epple and Chase Romig with seven. Sperry also had his team’s only sack of the evening.

The loss brings Hermann’s 2024 season to an end, one that, despite the final outcome, was one of the most successful seasons a Bearcat football team has enjoyed in the last several years.

They advanced to the District championship game for only the third time in the last 15 years and, in the two years under head coach Jed Leeper, have won 15 games which represents the program’s best two-year stretch since 2015-2016 when they last went to the District finals.