De Soto tops Pittsburg 28-14, clinches 4th undefeated regular season in school history

Adversity can be hard to come by in the midst of an undefeated season. De Soto had seen some in its first seven games of the year, and it saw a little more Friday.

Rival Pittsburg made its way north intent on spoiling both De Soto’s perfect season and senior night when it took the lead midway through the second quarter.

The Wildcats responded with fire, ripping off three straight touchdowns and eventually cruising to a 28-14 victory to polish off just the fourth undefeated regular season in school history.

A student brought De Soto coach Brian King some old yearbooks this week, helping him brush up on his school’s history.

The last Wildcats team to go undefeated in the regular season before this one was in 1987. The perfect seasons before that: 1979 and 1963.

All that seemed a little in doubt when Pittsburg struck first on a 49-yard touchdown.

“We’ve trailed earlier in the year, but we’re used to it. We battle through adversity. That’s what coaches teach us,” De Soto junior running back Tyson Priddy said.

De Soto (8-0) needed only two plays to respond. Priddy hauled in the first of his three touchdown catches — a fingertip grab that he turned into a 52-yard score.

Two plays later, senior defensive back Shane Watt stepped in front of a pass and returned it to the Pittsburg 21-yard line, putting the Wildcats in business again.

It wasn’t long until senior Jake Rosen scampered in from 2 yards to give De Soto a lead it wouldn’t relinquish.

Priddy struck again just before halftime, running across the middle for a 25-yard touchdown catch. De Soto wouldn’t look back.

“(Their score) kind of got us going, but we’re ready for this. We’re battle-tested. We’re ready,” Priddy said.

Priddy finished the night with 98 yards and three touchdowns on his three catches. Quarterback Jackson Miller threw for 136 yards and ran for 99 more.

The seeds for this historic season were planted about a year ago. King recalled traveling to Pittsburg last season and playing eight sophomores. That experience, along with cutting their teeth and competing against standout teams like Lawrence High and Lawrence Free State over the summer, set the stage for a special campaign.

“We started off strong last year, we had some young players who were contributing big last year. We brought most everybody back, and we’re ready. This is our time,” Priddy said.

Friday night was one of the few times De Soto has been tested this season.

The Wildcats gave up a few big plays but were stingy inside the red zone. They forced a fumble at the goal line on Pittsburg’s opening drive and forced the Dragons to run three plays from inside the 1 to score on another drive.

The Wildcats’ defense also forced three turnovers.

De Soto’s toughest tests no doubt lie ahead as the team prepares for the Class 5A playoffs. Members of the rough-and-tumble Eastern Kansas League will likely stand between the Wildcats and an opportunity at a state title.

Whatever the test, Priddy and his teammates are ready.

“An undefeated season is something that we wanted to accomplish, but there’s much more out there that we need to accomplish,” he said. “The playoffs is what we’ve been working for since June. We’re ready for that.”

This story was originally published October 25, 2019 at 10:24 PM.