GRAND ISLAND — Big plays haunted Grand Island as Lincoln Southeast spoiled the debut of first-year head coach Creighton Reed with a 35-20 season-opening victory Friday night at Memorial Stadium.
It started on the Knights second play from scrimmage when running back Cash Buettenback dashed 65 yards for a touchdown run. Quarterback Tre Bollen had a hand in three more touchdowns — two passing and one rushing — as Southeast amassed 538 yards of total offense against the Islanders, including 362 yards on the ground.
Grand Island managed plenty of offensive production of its own. The Islanders finished with 511 total yards that included 343 yards passing.
Running back Nelsyn Wheeler rushed 19 times for 172 yards and two TDs. He also caught six passes out of the backfield for 35 yards.
Jalen Warren enjoyed a big day in his first game as an Islander. The senior transfer from Odessa, Texas, had seven receptions for 170 yards and a TD and also had a 38-yard completion on a double-pass to Kobyn Bolton.
Grand Island sophomore quarterback Gavin Semm was 23 of 39 passing for 281 yards with a TD and an interception. Semm connected with Warren for a 71-yard scoring pass on the Islanders’ first possession, cutting Southeast’s lead to 7-6 as a two-point conversion pass attempt failed.
Southeast broke the game open late in the first half. After Nate Appleget hauled in a 27-yard TD pass from Bollen with 2:49 left in the second quarter, Zayvion Campbell’s 37-yard pick-six gave the Knights a 21-6 lead with 16 seconds remaining before the intermission.
Charlie Thorne’s 45-yard reception from Bollen extended Southeast’s lead to 28-6 with 9:24 to play. Grand Island responded with a pair of TD runs by Wheeler of 59 and 2 yards, cutting the Islanders’ deficit to 28-20 with 1:05 to play.
The Islanders attempted an onside kick, but it was recovered by the Knights. Bollen added the exclamation point, breaking free on a 56-yard quarterback keeper for a TD with 41 seconds to play.
Bollen completed 11 of 18 pass attempts for 156 yards and two scores. He also rushed twice for 62 yards and a TD.
Buettenback led Southeast, rushing 16 times for 127 yards. Teammate Beckham Rice had 87 yards rushing on 19 attempts.
The Knights prevailed despite committing four turnovers. Defensive back Roman DeVault had a pair of interceptions, while Aldo Martinez and Gavin Kuhlman both recovered fumbles for Grand Island.’
