Rebels repeat in Class A football

CEDAR FALLS – Matt Johannsen’s first career touchdown will also likely be his most memorable.
  The Gladbrook-Reinbeck junior caught a 24-yard pass from Hunter Lott midway through the fourth quarter and took it to the end zone, scoring the eventual game-winner for the Rebels as they won their second-consecutive Class A football title, holding off Bishop Garrigan of Algona for a 20-19 win at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls last Thursday.
  Lott was named the most valuable player of the championship game, completing 11 of 14 passes for 139 yards and a touchdown and also running for 38 rushing yards and a touchdown.
  In a team full of offensive weapons, it was the unassuming Johannsen who ran his route to perfection on a gutsy 4th-and-8 pass play and ended up being the game’s most unlikely hero.
  "I didn’t think I’d get a pass thrown to me in a state final," Johannsen said. "But I saw that ball and I thought, I’ve got to catch this ball. I had to make a play.”
  Check out the Nov. 24 Grundy Register for a special commemorative section for the state champion Rebels and more coverage of Thursday’s championship game.