By TYLER HENRY
Little Apple Post contributor
The Wamego Red Raiders fought valiantly in their first-ever 4A state championship game but ultimately fell short to Bishop Miege on Saturday by a final score of 35-14.
Both sides came to play defensively in a scoreless first quarter, and at the half, the Raiders trailed one of the classes’ greatest dynasties by just a touchdown.
Out of the intermission, Wamego drove the length of the field but came up empty, and on the ensuing play, the Stags connected on a 93-yard touchdown pass to go up 28-14.
The Raider defense would only allow one more score through the end of the contest but the damage had already been done as Miege won their 11th state title 35-14.
“I was proud of our guys,” Wamego head coach Weston Moody said. “Everybody counted them out but they played hard until the final whistle and left it all on the field. We knew we were going to have to score some points and we squandered some opportunities to do that but we held them well until the half.”
While this finish is certainly bittersweet for the Boom Town faithful, what this year’s Raiders accomplished was nothing short of astounding, as Wamego posted their first-ever 12-win season and punched a ticket to their first state championship game in program history.
“There are so many things we can be proud of these guys for,” Moody said. “They battled through injuries at so many positions, they were counted out, our defense had a record-breaking season and put up numbers we may never see again and all of this was a testament to the work that these guys put in. We handled every test that was put in front of us and earned the right to face the ultimate test yesterday.”
Beyond a historic 2022 campaign, this year's Raiders have also changed the culture of high school football in Wamego, and the impact that this team has had both on their program, and on their community will continue to be felt for years to come.
“These guys have changed generations of football players here in this town,” he said. “The kids put in so much work and they showed everyone the kind of grind it takes to do this. Our town has come together around this team and they showed out big time yesterday.”
Much of that work was done on the backs of 15 seniors who changed not only the narrative surrounding Wamego football but the way things are done from the weight room to the locker room.
“We have a lot of special players in this senior group,” he said. “All of these kids bought in and they didn’t get press every week but every one of our seniors put the work in and played their role on this team. They built the culture and raised the standard of how we play football here at Wamego. Now we get to begin a new journey.”
This offseason, the Raiders will say goodbye to Hayden Oviatt, Colin Donahue, Chase Cottam, Hagan Johnson, Tayke Weber, Dawson Tajchman, Andrew Hildebrand, Gage Woodward, Noah Ficke, Austin Meyer, Blake Hamic, Lane Jeanneret, Grant Larson, Ariston Gamino, and Eli Bergmeier, but despite these heavy losses will return a great deal of talent for the upcoming season, eager to reload and run it back in 2023.
“I feel pretty good about the group we’re bringing back,” Moody said. “We have a big group of juniors and some great talent in our backfield returning. Those guys are going to be hungry and they know that they have big shoes to fill but they’re willing to do it and that work will begin on Monday.”
The Little Apple Post would like to thank everyone who followed along throughout our coverage of Wamego’s historic 2022 campaign and playoff run.
For continuing coverage of Wamego athletics, including coverage of Red Raider and Lady Raider basketball, stay tuned to the Little Apple Post.