CENTRALIA, Mo. - The Blair Oaks Falcons had the Centralia Panthers right where they wanted them.
At the end of the third quarter in Saturday afternoon's Class 3 quarterfinals, the scoreboard said Blair Oaks held a 22-20 advantage.
During the break before the start of the final period, the Falcons took the opportunity for a team huddle.
"We said we have 12 minutes until we go home or 12 minutes until we have another week of practice," Blair Oaks quarterback Jordan Hair said. "It kind of fired a few guys up and got some motors running."
Hair scored on an 8-yard run just 11 seconds into the fourth quarter, the first of three Blair Oaks touchdowns in the opening 4:46 of the final period as the Falcons posted a 51-26 victory against the Panthers.
With the win, second-ranked Blair Oaks (13-0) advances to next Saturday's semifinal game against third-ranked John Burroughs (12-1) in St. Louis. John Burroughs advanced with a 42-7 win Saturday against Park Hills Central.
"We work hard during the week and all season," said Hair, who had a hand in all seven Blair Oaks touchdowns. "From June 1 until now, we've put in a lot of work and this means a lot to us."
After Hair's run made it 28-20, the Blair Oaks defense forced Centralia to punt in its next series. Three plays later, Hair threw a ball down the right side that Owen Luebbering tipped before C.J. Closser caught it and sprinted for a 77-yard score.
"I've watched the kids make plenty of plays like that in practice," Blair Oaks coach Terry Walker said. "C.J. was going hard to the ball and he made the play."
A 2-point pass from Hair to Cody Alexander made it 36-20 with 9:17 remaining.
"I thought it would be a dogfight," Hair said. "But we're known as a second-half team and when we got that two-score lead, I figured we might pull away."
Blair Oaks stopped Centralia on downs on the ensuing series and four plays later, Hair connected with Closser from 22 yards out. Closser then caught a 2-point pass from Hair and the two-point advantage had ballooned to a 24-point bulge.
"If I could bottle it, I would and open it up in the first quarter," Walker said. "The kids take pride in finishing games strong, they've done it all year."
The Falcons got their final touchdown with 1:21 remaining on a 40-yard pass from Hair to Adam Schell.
"We kept fighting, it's kind of what we're known for," Hair said.
Hair finished 20-of-35 passing for 395 yards and four touchdowns. He also ran for three scores.
"Jordan's a tough kid," Walker said. "He's got a ton of confidence in the guys he's throwing to. He just makes plays."
Centralia got on the board on the first possession of the game, going 65 yards on 11 plays, all on the ground. Klayton Marty did most of the heavy lifting on the series, carrying the ball seven times for 39 yards, including an 11-yard touchdown.
Centralia had 33 plays on offense in the first half, 32 of which were runs.
"When you get to a game like this, as a coach, you are going to rely on your strengths and that's what Centralia did," Walker said. "They had some success."
Blair Oaks took the lead in the final minute of the first quarter on an 11-yard run by Hair and a 2-point pass from Hair to Closser that made it 8-7.
The Panthers regained the lead with 9:17 to go before halftime when quarterback Nick Romine broke away for a 56-yard touchdown. The 2-point try failed and it was 13-8.
Hair scored on another 11-yard run late in the second quarter, then hit Schell for the 2-point conversion pass to give the Falcons a 16-13 halftime advantage.
Blair Oaks stretched its lead in the first minute of the third quarter on a 41-yard pass from Hair to Alexander. The 2-point try failed and it was 22-13.
Romine ran for a 31-yard touchdown on Centralia's next series and the PAT made it 22-20.
With the exception of another Romine touchdown run - this one from 25 yards midway through the fourth quarter - the Falcons did a good job of stopping the Panthers the rest of the way.
"We got just enough stops and caused them just enough problems that they couldn't get into a good groove offensively," Walker said. "I figured if we could jump out by a couple of scores and get them out of their rhythm, we would have the opportunity to make even more plays."
In addition to 50 yards rushing, Closser finished with seven receptions for 198 yards. Alexander paced the Falcons with 74 rushing yards, all but one coming in the second half.
"We have this trust and this bond and that is what has gotten us this far," Hair said.
Fourth-ranked Odessa (12-1) will play at unranked Aurora (9-4) in the other Class 3 semifinal next Saturday.
The state title game is scheduled for 11 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 28, at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis.