With one of the biggest games of the season looming in the near future, it was hard for the Maple Grove football team to concentrate 100 percent when it hosted Robbinsdale Armstrong last Friday. Crimson coach Matt Lombardi urged his team to focus on the Falcons but deep down the Crimson were looking ahead at their huge border battle at Wayzata next week.

“In the beginning we did but we definitely shouldn’t have because Armstrong is a great team,” Crimson senior captain and offensive tackle Ben Shoults said. “We were getting pounded a little bit in the first quarter but we came out strong in the second.”

Indeed the Falcons gave Maple Grove fits in the first quarter and early in the second. Crimson quarterback Brad Davison threw first quarter touchdown passes to Adam Brant and Sam Renner but Falcon quarterback Collis Barber matched Davison with two touchdown passes of his own. The Falcons trailed 14-13 to open the second quarter and had the football.

“Give Armstrong credits. They came out and got us on our heels and took it to our D,” Lombardi said. “I think it’s great for our kids because they learned a lesson. They learned that our intensity needs to be high all the time.”

But the Maple Grove defense turned on the intensity in the second quarter as it sacked Barber for a big loss and then forced a fumble that the Crimson recovered deep inside Armstrong territory.

The Crimson cashed in as Clark Wieneke scored on a short touchdown run to make it 21-13. That was the start of a 26-0 Maple Grove run that turned a close game into a 40-13 score at halftime.

After Wieneke’s touchdown, Crimson linebacker Chris Fondakowski intercepted a pass and ran it back 35 yards for a TD. Wieneke added another TD and Fondakowski intercepted another pass to set up Wieneke’s third TD of the half and it was 40-13 at halftime. Wieneke scored his fourth touchdown in the second half to account for the final score.

The Crimson offense was firing on all cylinders. Wieneke and Isaac Collins had huge kickoff and punt returns to give MG great field positions and they ran wild from the backfield behind a strong effort from the line.

“It was the best blocking for them,” Shoults said of Wieneke and Collins. “They find holes when there aren’t any holes.”

And Davison played like a seasoned veteran in his first varsity start at quarterback, passing with accuracy and running the offense effectively.

“I was pleased with our offense, I thought our offense moved the ball well and did some good things,” Lombardi said. “Brad did a nice job as QB. We didn’t have that many plays on offense but did a better job finishing drive. That was our problem last week against Edina. We moved the ball but kind of stalled inside the 10. We did a better job finishing and that was good.”

Davison completed four of six passes for 40 yards and two touchdowns. Wieneke had 10 carries for 112 yards and three touchdowns. Collins had 85 yards on eight rushes.

Fondakowski led the defense with seven tackles, two Interceptions and a touchdown that started the momentum we built in the second quarter. Christian Ujhelyi had eight tackles and two tackles for loss and Carson Ayres had nine tackles, a blocked punt and a long fumble return. Kyle Anderson had a big sack along with six tackles, Grant Hemze had eight tackles and Sam Franta was able to get two pass break ups.

Defensively, Lombardi said the Crimson need to be ready from the get-go and not wait until the second quarter to turn on the intensity. But it’s hard to find any faults with the play of Fondakowski, who had two interception and scored the key touchdown that turned the tide of the game.

“Chris is having an unbelievable year right now,” Lombardi said of the 5-10, 160 Fondakowski. “In his first two games, he had two, three interceptions, a touchdown and three sacks. He is a tiny outside back that goes full speed. He is playing out of his mind and is fun to watch.”

The Crimson visit Wayzata Friday, Sept. 12. Next to Osseo, the Trojans are the Crimson’s biggest rival.

Lombardi hopes his team has learned a lesson from the Armstrong game.

“I think they learned a good lesson,” Lombardi said. “I think they learned how important preparation each week is and that they have to come ready to play. We have to get better.”