Roseville Raiders Lose Heartbreaking Homecoming Game

Despite putting up a valiant effort, the Roseville Raiders fell to the Hopkins Royals 17-14 in front of a large, enthusiastic homecoming crowd on Friday night. The Raiders battled all game long against a talented Royals team and even soared to an early fourth-quarter lead.

But a tired defense and a talented Hopkins duo proved to be Roseville's undoing. However, Raiders fans enjoyed a seesaw battle on a beautiful Friday night in a contest that wasn't decided until the final minutes.

Raiders Defense Hangs Tough

The Royals' offense came out aggressively to start the game, but the Raiders, employing a "bend but don't break" defense, did a great job keeping their opponent off the scoreboard. Early in the game, both teams traded punches but could not get the ball into the end zone. The game remained scoreless until early in the second quarter when Hopkins placekicker Liam Dalle kicked a 30-yard field goal to put the visitors up 3-0.

The teams traded possessions several times until late in the second quarter, when the Raiders went to the air to score their first points of the game. With the ball at the Royals' ten-yard line, Raiders quarterback Chase Browning lofted a ball to the back right of the end zone, where wide receiver Colt Winkler made a leaping grab for a touchdown. Roseville failed to convert its two-point conversion, but maintained a 6-3 lead over Hopkins as both teams ran to their locker rooms at halftime.

Battle Continues in the Second Half

The teams continued their back-and-forth match with the Raiders defense surrendering yards but not points to the hard-charging Royals offense. Finally, midway through the third quarter, Hopkins' talented quarterback Tre Moore plunged in from two yards out for the touchdown. Dalle added the extra point to give his team a 10-6 lead. 

All night, the Roseville offense struggled to consistently gain yardage on a determined Royals defense. But early in the final quarter, running back Brady Bell took a handoff and broke through the middle of his opponent's line, suddenly veering left and streaking down the sideline for a Raiders touchdown. Then, on a trick play, Roseville quarterback Browning handed the ball to wide receiver Amos Hanson, who threw a pass to a wide-open Ashton House in the end zone for two points and a 14-10 Raiders lead.

Exciting Finish…But

And it looked like Roseville might prevail and take home an exciting, well-earned homecoming win. But the Royals mounted a late-game rally, highlighted by the scrambling of the elusive Moore, as they moved the ball down to the Raiders' 18-yard line. Next, they culminated the drive with a pass from Moore to his brother Jayden Moore for a touchdown. 

Dalle would add the extra point, and suddenly Hopkins was in the lead 17-14. Roseville tried to mount a late comeback, but the Royals' defense put up stiff resistance, and unfortunately, the Raiders ran out of time and downs, and took the loss despite a gallant effort.

Post-Game Interview with Raiders Head Coach Andy Stephenson

Raiders head coach Andy Stepheson agreed to a postgame interview with the Roseville Reader. Here are excerpts from that interview.

The Roseville Reader: "Hard loss coach. What did you tell your team after the game?"

Andy Stephenson: "Believing in the work they are putting in, and they are putting in the right work. There's a way to win, and we figured out how to compete in all four quarters in the last two games. Had a fourth-quarter comeback; hadn't had that yet. 

And so the guys are figuring that out. But it becomes really hard when you beat that team two years in a row, and the way in which they walked off the field.  We're not that type of team. I'm proud of the work these guys keep putting in every single week, and they keep showing up. So gotta stick with that. The wins will come; they will. But the work's gotta be there."

TRR: "Did you feel that your defense was out there on the field too long towards the end of the game? Did you feel like they were getting tired?"

AS: "Yes, but I knew that was gonna happen. They're a team that goes for it on fourth down. They base everything on Jaden Moore and his brother Tre. Great athletes, right? So that was our game plan. And we were able to take some of those things away, but they were able to execute and get the ball to number Tre with some of those runs towards the end of the game.

And then we started playing it tougher, and they beat us over the middle. But we were out there. I was super proud. Not a lot of teams hold them to 17 points. I think our defense did a good job, especially for three quarters."

TRR: "So what do you take from this? What do you work on next week?"

AS: "Well, we show up tomorrow and we watch film, and then we're gonna lift weights right after that. And JV will be on the bus over to Hopkins. So hopefully they get their first win for us. And then we play a heck of an opponent with Centennial. I know his scheme well. A good friend of mine is the offensive coordinator up there. We'll play as tough as we can versus a great opponent. And then come back versus Park in Coon Rapids, back in the maroon jerseys.

"Keep taking those steps forward like they have been each week. I'm an impatient guy, my wife tells me all the time. But there are some new guys out for football, you know, that played. It's probably their second year ever playing football. And some guys are in their first year playing football. So they're learning on the fly what it means to compete on a Friday night and how you do that for four quarters. So we're coming along. We're making progress. It's just not as fast as I  want it to be. It would have been nice to get that victory tonight."

TRR: "Thanks for your time coach. Good luck moving forward." 

Summary

The Raiders rolled for 194 yards of total offense. Individually, Browning was 7-13 for 105 yards and one touchdown pass. Bell ran for 107 yards on 20 carries and scored a touchdown. Wayne McGriff led all receivers with three receptions for 39 yards. And Cameron Finney, Malik Wilson, and Grant Jakaboski led all Roseville defenders in tackles with five.

The 0-5 Raiders next play at 4-1 Centennial on Friday, October 3. Game time is scheduled for 7 pm.

Greg Simbeck is a freelance writer who lives in Roseville, Minnesota. He has had 200 articles published on national sites including Yardbarker, WhoWhatWhy, and New Leaf News. He and his wife Mary Jo have lived in Roseville for over 17 years. He was previously a commissioner on the Roseville Parks and Recreation Commission and a board member of the Rice-Larpenteur Alliance.