BUTTE — For the third straight season, Team Blue prevailed in the Bob Cleverley 8-Man All-Star Game.
Culbertson graduate and Montana football commit Bridger Salvevold scored a go-ahead touchdown on a quarterback keeper with 25 seconds remaining as Team Blue rallied out of an early double-digit deficit to prevail 28-23 in the 41st edition of "The Clev" on a toasty Saturday evening at Bob Green Field. It was Team Blue's third straight win in the series.
Less than a minute earlier, Team Blue had scored on a red-zone touchdown pass from Valley Christian's Daniel Stoltzfus to Fairview's Wyatt McPherson to cut the Red team's lead to 23-22 with 1:08 remaining but its two-point attempt failed.
The Blue Team then forced a three-and-out, setting the stage for a dramatic finish in the annual all-star game that's been played in Butte since 1989.
Team Red opened the scoring in the first quarter on an 8-yard quarterback keeper from Belt's Declan Bergstrom to take a 7-0 lead and then Chinook's Landen Beck scored off a blocked punt to push the Red Team to a 14-0 advantage.
The Blue Team got on the board early in the second quarter off a 7-yard run from Fairview's Tyler Loag to trim the lead to 14-8 before the Red Team tacked on a 37-yard field goal from Sheridan's Kyler Theis to give Team Red a 17-8 lead at halftime.
McPherson scored on a 10-yard run in the third quarter to pull Team Blue within 17-16 before Team Red responded early in the fourth quarter with a 23-yard touchdown pass from Cascade's Ian McKamey to Choteau's Nathan Gunderson to give the Red Team a 23-16 lead with 11:48 remaining, setting the stage for a dramatic finish.
McKamey was named the Red Team's Offensive MVP and Beck was Defensive MVP.
McPherson was selected the Blue Team Offensive MVP while Culbertson's Salvevold was selected as the Defensive MVP.
