Ogallala High School Varsity American Football falls to Hershey on Friday, September 25th, 2026

(Photo credit: Riley McCullough. Search "American Football". Images in Unsplash on Wix.com)

By: Evan Troxel

The Ogallala Indians High School Varsity Boys' American Football team fell to the Hershey Panthers on Friday night, September 25th, 2026, by a final score of 26 to 14 at the Ogallala High School football field in Ogallala, Nebraska.

The Indians played their best home game of the season by far in terms of the final score at least, but it wasn't enough to win with critical mistakes at key points of the game.

Cole Murdock scored two rushing touchdowns for Hershey. Murdock scored from three yards out in the second quarter and from 35 yards in the fourth quarter.

Korbyn Herrick also scored a three-yard touchdown for the Panthers.

Murdock and Herrick each had a two-point conversion score.

Ryan Murphy made a 30-yard field goal at the end of the second quarter and an extra point near the end of the fourth quarter for Hershey.

For Ogallala, Kolby Nowak scored a four-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter and Daniel Dowdy had a touchdown reception in the third quarter from eight yards out.

Richard Handy made two extra points for the Indians.

Hershey (now 3-2) will host Valentine next Friday, October 2nd, 2026. Ogallala (now 0-5) will travel to Sidney next Friday.

To start the game, Ogallala scored a touchdown on their first offensive drive of the game.

Kolby Nowak had a four-yard rushing touchdown by going left and forward into the west end zone. Richard Handy tacked on the extra point and Ogallala led 7 to 0.

Hershey got the football and fumbled on fourth down on their first offensive possession and Ogallala recovered the fumble.

Ogallala then went three-and-out.

Hershey then got the football and scored a touchdown on the first play of the second quarter. Cole Murdock scored from three yards out and Hershey trailed Ogallala at that point 7 to 6.

Murdock then faked a handoff and ran left and forward for the two-point conversion and Hershey led 8 to 7 right after the second quarter started.

Ogallala punted. Then Hershey punted. Ogallala then punted again.

Hershey made a field goal from Ryan Murphy from 30 yards out and the Panthers led 11 to 7 with 1.9 seconds left in the first half.

Cole Murdock was 1 for 1 throwing the football for Hershey in the first half for 13 yards.

Jacoby Bauer was 8 for 10 throwing the football in the first half for Ogallala for 62 yards.

To start the second half, Hershey turned the ball over on downs.

Ogallala then got the football at their own 39 and marched down the field and scored a touchdown on second down I believe, an eight-yard touchdown catch and run from Daniel Dowdy, with 1:59 remaining in the third quarter.

Richard Handy then made the extra point and Ogallala led 14 to 11.

Ogallala then kicked off and they hit a squibb kick that Hershey couldn't control and Ogallala recovered it at the Hershey 33-yard line!

Ogallala then had perhaps their worst drive of the game with three penalties that pushed them back.

Kolby Nowak had a carry to the Hershey 13.

Then, things got worse for Ogallala. A carry to the Hershey two-yard line by Nowak set Ogallala in good position but a penalty on the play pushed Ogallala back to the Hershey 23.

Then, an incompletion on the right side to Joshua Franklin happened and Ogallala went back 15 more yards due to an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.

Nowak then caught a pass from the Hershey 37 to the Hershey 29 yard line.

On the next play, Nowak couldn't catch a backward pass from Bauer and then Nowak recovered the fumble at the Hershey 42.

On fourth down, Ogallala punted from their own 49 to the Hershey 22.

A penalty (on Ogallala I guess) forced the Indians to re-punt.

Ogallala let 20.1 seconds expire from the game clock to end the third quarter before the re-punt and Ogallala led Hershey 14 to 11.

Ogallala then punted from the 45 yard line (where the football actually left the punter's foot I guess) to the Hershey 13 yard line.

Hershey's second play was a run to the Hershey 21 by Korbyn Herrick I guess.

Two plays later, Hershey then ran to the right with Kale DaMoude and got to their own 40 but a flag pushed them back to their own 17.

Cole Murdock then ran to the right to the Hershey 18.

Hershey then punted and Ogallala got the football at their own 43 with 9:58 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Nowak then ran to the Ogallala 44 for one yard on first down.

Then, incompletions to the right to Rhys Gilmore and to the left to Beckan Cain resulted in Ogallala having to punt.

The snap went over the head of the punter Richard Handy and then Handy ran the football down and landed on the football at the Ogallala 18 instead of trying to do something with it and it was a turnover on downs.

On first down with 8:49 left in the fourth quarter, Hershey's Cole Murdock ran left for no gain.

Then on second down, Murdock ran forward for half a yard making it 3rd down and 9 1/2 yards.

Murdock then ran right and got to the Ogallala 10-yard line on third down.

On fourth down, Ogallala jumped offsides and Hershey got a first down as a result!

The football was placed at the four-yard line and Murdock ran right and got to the Ogallala 3.

Hershey then called timeout with 5:54 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Korbyn Herrick then got the football and ran right for three yards and Hershey scored a touchdown!

The Panthers took a 17 to 14 lead.

Then, Herrick ran right again from three yards out for the two-point conversion and Hershey led 19 to 14!

Ogallala then got the football on their own 40 yard line after Hershey kicked the ball out of bounds (which is a penalty) at the Ogallala 34.

Nowak ran left and got no gain on the play.

Then, Jacoby Bauer fumbled the football and Caden Rhoades recovered for Ogallala at their own 34.

Ogallala called timeout with 4:26 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Nowak caught a pass for 13 yards to the right side to the Ogallala 47.

Fourth down.

Bauer then threw a pass to Rhys Gilmore on fourth down and he only gained a yard to the Ogallala 48.

Ogallala turned the ball over on downs again with 4:10 remaining in the game.

Kale DaMoude then ran to the right to the Ogallala 33 for a first down. Cole Murdock then ran left to the Ogallala 30.

Hershey then got pushed back five yards after a false start penalty.

Murdock then ran to the left for no gain.

On third down, Murdock ran left and forward and then he angled his way to the right and forward and ran into the end zone from 35 yards out!

Touchdown Hershey.

After the extra point make by Ryan Murphy, Hershey led 26 to 14 with 2:04 left in the fourth quarter.

Ogallala then got the football at their own 31-yard line.

Daniel Dowdy caught a pass on the left side and ran out of bounds at the Ogallala 48. Then, Kolby Nowak caught a pass and lost a yard to the Ogallala 47.

Jacoby Bauer then got sacked on the next play to the Ogallala 36.

Bauer then got a completion to Nowak at the Ogallala 39.

Bauer then threw right incomplete on fourth down.

Hershey got the football at the Ogallala 40 with more than 42 seconds left and did a couple of kneel downs from Hershey quarterback Cole Murdock and that was the end of the game.

Hershey 26, Ogallala 14.

Cole Murdock threw just one pass in the entire game I believe for 13 yards for Hershey.

Ogallala's quarterback Jacoby Bauer was 17/24 for 146 yards I believe for Ogallala.

Bauer was 9 for 14 for 84 yards in the second half I believe.