As he addressed his team in the end zone of Blaine High School’s football field Friday night, Moorhead coach Kevin Feeney got the loudest response when he gave a shoutout to his team’s ability to play rough when needed.

“How ’bout that five-minute drive at the end?” Feeney barked following his team’s 38-21 win over the Bengals in the opening round of the Class 6A state playoffs.

His players whooped with approval.

Moorhead has developed a well-earned reputation as a program intent on throwing the ball all over the field. The Spuds did that Friday night, too, but when they needed to overpower Blaine, they showed they have that ability in their repertoire as well.

“Everybody thinks that we just throw the football all over the place, and certainly we play a lot of spread [offense],” Feeney said. “Tonight, in my pregame speech, I asked our team to be the more physical team. And tonight we were, especially at the point of attack.”

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After building a game-long lead that ballooned to as much as 17 points on the strength of its vaunted passing attack, Moorhead only led 31-21 in the fourth quarter. Feeney then leaned on his big boys up front, driving 52 yards in five minutes, all on the ground. Running back Taye Reich was the workhorse, carrying the ball nine times on the drive, capping it with a 2-yard run for a game-clinching touchdown with barely four minutes left in the game.

“Our motto this year is grit,” junior center Andy Arntson said. “We want to be the toughest guys on the field on every play.”

Arntson admitted that while the offensive line loves to block for the Spuds’ talented quarterback, Feeney’s son Jett, star receiver David Mack and the rest of their loaded receiving corps, the game’s final drive was special.

“That was smashmouth football,” he said. “That’s what we love.”

Don’t misunderstand. Moorhead, with Jett Feeney back after missing five games with a shoulder injury, stayed true to its offense, showing quick-strike ability and rolling up point-a-minute scores.

Jett Feeney passed for more than 200 yards with four touchdowns Friday.

“We feel like we’ve got all our bullets back in the chamber,” Kevin Feeney said of his son’s return.

To Mack, having Jett healthy and happy means success isn’t far behind.

“It’s awesome. We’ve built so much chemistry over our two years playing together,” Mack said. “He’s my best friend. We do everything together. And, on the football field, it feels like like we’ll never lose a game with him.”