If you want to have success in the MAC Red Division, you need to have tough football players.

Dakota senior Brady Hamby is tough football player and he proved once again on Friday night, gaining 147 yards on 16 carries and one score, leading the No. 3-ranked Cougars to a hard-fought 24-7 win over host Stevenson.

“He’s our horse and he’ll do whatever we need him to do to win,” Dakota coach Greg Baur said. “I think he’s a Player of the Year candidate in Michigan, and if you want to win a football game you want Brady Hamby on your team.”

As tough as Hamby was on offense, the Cougar defense was equally physical against the Titans, limiting the home team to just three field goals in the contest.

“You have to contain (Stevenson quarterback Andrew) Knight because he’s electric,” Baur said. “Our defensive line and front seven are our strength and we feel if we had to contain him, and it’s a chore because he’s so electric. I’m really happy with our defense.”

Both teams’ defenses were solid through a scoreless first quarter, before Dakota marched 95 yards in 15 plays in the second quarter, capping the drive with an 8-yard scoring run by Hamby, who had 85 yards on eight rushes in the drive.

“Hamby is a amazing football player, getting yards there in the wildcat and all over,” Stevenson coach Justin Newcomb said. “Hats off to our defense. I think they stood tall tonight. They were on the field a lot and this was a physical MAC Red football game tonight. The kids are going to be sore in the morning when they wake up from both teams.”

Stevenson closed the gap to 7-3 in the final minute of the first half on a 21-yard field goal by Pawel Surowiec.

Dakota extended its lead to 14-3 early in the third quarter when quarterback Jadon Ford connected with Elijah Goins on a quick pass and run covering 32 yards.

A 29-yard field goal by Surowiec closed the gap to 14-6 with 11:55 to play in the game, before Dakota answered with a 43-yard field goal by Austin Aranowski.

The Titans countered again with a 47-yard field goal by Surowiec, staying within striking distance at 17-9 with 2:42 left.

However, on the ensuing onside kick, the Cougars’ Jacob Bajis scooped up the ball and raced 50 yards down the sideline, capping the victory.

“Anytime you can come here to Stevenson and win a MAC Red game, it’s a big win for us,” Baur said. “They were 3-0 and 1-0 in the MAC. We have three more MAC Red games, but this was a big one for us.”

Besides Hamby, Ford finished the night completing 13-of-21 passes for 91 yards. The win improved Dakota’s record to 4-0 overall, 2-0 league. The Cougars return home next week to face rival Chippewa Valley in another MAC Red showdown.

“We have to limit the penalties, and we shot ourselves in the foot a little bit in the first half,” Baur said. “We have to clean up the little things. I think we can be a lot better and that’s the good thing about it.”

Stevenson was paced by Knight, who completed 11-of 29 passes for 120 yards, and rushed for another 34 yards. The loss dropped the Titans’ record to 3-1 overall, 1-1 league. Stevenson will celebrate its homecoming next week against Utica Community Schools rival Eisenhower.

“Both teams played well, and I think we have a good chance to see each other again in the playoffs,” Newcomb said. “We’re tough, physical and scrappy. This one is going to hurt tonight, but we’ll come back and be ready for another tough one next week against Eisenhower. We just have to make sure one loss doesn’t turn into two and we’ll be just fine.”