Maple Grove didn’t hide its lofty goal entering the 2025 season of winning the program’s third Class 6A football state title in four years.

The defending champion Crimson lost 14 starters from last season’s champion team. Still, you could argue they are just as talented as a year ago in several positions, especially with eight players committed to play college football.

Stillwater proved to be a formidable first opponent for the No. 1 team in the Minnesota Top 25 for most of the game Thursday, but the Crimson pulled away late for a 37-17 victory at Pony Stadium.

The Crimson haven’t lost since the Class 6A state tournament’s second round against Edina in 2023.

Senior quarterback Kaden Harney capped the night with an 11-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter, but the game was far closer than the final score indicated.

Harney was one of only two returning starters on offense after leading his team to a 13-0 record in 2024. The South Dakota State recruit helped the Crimson take a 24-7 lead in the third quarter on a touchdown pass to Henry Knutson, but the game was far from over.

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“I was impressed with Stillwater,” Maple Grove coach Adam Spurrell said. “They played hard and made some plays. I was happy with how our guys responded to adversity with some big-time plays.”

The biggest play for the Ponies came on a 31-yard touchdown catch by Carter Zollar on a flea-flicker from Jaylen Rosalez to Jack Runk that made it 24-17 with 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter.

Senior fullback Jeffrey Nordvold’s 26-yard TD run before Harney’s final scoring scamper gave Maple Grove the cushion it needed to end the night much more comfortably than it started.

Runk, a junior baseball standout, started under center for the first time, replacing Nick Kinsey, who transferred to a school in Ohio.

Maple Grove gave up the first score of the game on a 10-yard touchdown pass by Runk, who had 61 of his 140 yards passing on the first drive.

The game turned when the Crimson got an interception from Beaux Thyen to set up their first score to tie the game.

“The last thing you want to do is give a team like Maple Grove short fields, and we did that a lot,” Stillwater coach Beau LaBore said. “It would’ve been really easy to get rolled, but we responded with 10 straight points and got it to a one-score game. We played some meaningful football down the stretch.”

Probably the biggest preseason buzz from Maple Grove’s fall camp came from senior James Engle Jr., who played in the backfield behind current North Dakota freshman Charles Langama last year.

Engle, committed to Minnesota State Mankato, was probably the offensive MVP Thursday. His two rushing touchdowns in the first half came when Maple Grove used 17 unanswered points to take control.

Engle had 15 carries for 83 yards in the first half and finished with 24 carries for 123 yards and the two scores.

“We walked out 1-0, which was the ultimate goal,” said Spurrell, who will see Maple Grove host Eden Prairie next Friday for the home opener. “We do need to keep getting better each week here, though.”