ST. LOUIS, Mo. — For the second time this school year, Grant Allen will be playing for a state championship.
The Platte County senior will handle kicking duties during the Class 4 football championship game on Friday, Dec. 6 at Faurot Field at the University of Missouri.
That distinction will make him only the second player in MSHSAA history to play for two championships in the same season. On Nov. 23, Allen started for the Pirates soccer team in a 2-1 loss in double overtime against Webster Groves in Fenton.
Now, thanks to him booting a game-winning field goal in a 15-14 win against St. Mary’s, the left-footed kicker will have a chance to take part in the finals against Webb City on the football field.
He joins Cameron Cody of Monett as the only player to accomplish such a feat. Cody was the goalkeeper for Monett in soccer, finishing second, while the football team beat Monett for a state title.
“It is crazy,” Allen said when asked about the dual championship seasons. “It is nice. My family is here and they came come watch it next week. It is fun.”
Allen went 1-for-4 in field goal attempts in the semifinal victory, but his only make turned a 14-12 deficit into a one-point lead.
“I felt like a weight was off my chest,” Allen said of the final make. “I had missed three before. I had a bad day but at the end, I put it through.”
Allen also missed a point after attempt after a low snap. Allen picked up the loose ball and threw it into the end zone. He took a shot from a Dragons defender that temporarily had Allen on the ground.
“I got rocked there … that hit hurt,” Allen said.
How did coach Bill Utz react to his kicker getting hit? He asked Allen if the Pirates needed quarterback Chris Ruhnke to handle the kickoff.
Allen shook him off and said he was ‘good.’
He later delivered his second game-winning kick this year — the other in the district game against Smithville.
“Him coming over has really helped us a lot,” senior offensive lineman Max Renner said. “He is a big piece to the puzzle and getting us out of tough situations and flipping the field with big kicks.”