RED WING — The Packers were willing to go the extra mile to beat Red Wing, and that’s exactly what they did in a 21-14 win at Red Wing Friday.

Austin junior running back Brandon Edgar carried the ball 40 times for a career-high 241 yards and three TDs and Austin lineman Logan Hotek played through an injury to help out the Packers on both sides of the ball in the second half.

Hotek hadn’t practiced all week and he was in pain before the game began. He had decided he was going to just play defense on Friday, but that changed at halftime when the Packers (2-4 overall, 2-4 Big Nine) trailed 14-7 at the break.

“At halftime I told [Austin head coach Brett] Vesel I needed to be on the field all of the time for defense and offense,” Hotek said. “It wasn’t just me, but I needed to be on the field with my brothers.”

Hotek’s presence on the offensive line paid dividends immediately as the Packers used their first drive of the second half to go 59 yards on 10 plays before Edgar scored from three yards out with to make it 14-14 9:45 left in the second quarter. Austin took the lead for good when Edgar used a 37-yard scamper to set up his own one-yard TD to make it 21-14 with 9:05 left in the game.

“Logan Hotek is such a key player for us,” Vesel said. “He was playing at about fifty percent for us [tonight] and he did a good job. He’s a real big player for us and when he wasn’t in there, it was tough.”

Edgar was experiencing cramps throughout the fourth quarter, but he wasn’t going to let anything keep him from getting back on the field. Edgar finished the game strong as he had an 18-yard run to help the Packers run out clock at the end of the game.

“It was just motivation for me because our team was doing so well,” Edgar said. “That motivated me to want run more and more. The line was blocking great. ”

After allowing at least 40 points in their first five games of the season, the Packer defense came to play on Friday. Austin didn’t allow a first down to the Wingers (1-5 overall, 1-5 Big Nine) on each of their last five possessions of the game. Austin’s pass defense was especially effective after it allowed RW quarterback Tait Kelly to complete four of his first five passes on a 98-yard TD drive that made it 7-6 Austin late in the first quarter.

After that early success, the Packers held Kelly to 3-of-15 passing for just 11 yards. Zach Coffey, Seth Clasen, Elijah Anderson and Connor Sheehan all made big plays in coverage.

“We let a few things go early on and then we started seeing things,” Vesel said of the secondary. “They’re getting better and it was good.”

Austin had a chance to tie the game right before the halftime, but Nate Conner’s pass on fourth and five from the RW 10 sailed Jason Stoulil’s head with just three seconds left in the half. The Packers didn’t complete a pass on three attempts in the win, but Conner added to the offense by rushing for 108 yards on 21 carries.

Hotek said the offensive line takes a special pride in being able to run the ball.

“It’s a little joke for the offensive linemen where we call Nate and Brandon our babies because we like to protect them,” Hotek said. “We like to see them do well and it energizes us. It’s really fun to watch them run.”

The Packers will host Winona in their homecoming game at Art Hass Stadium Friday at 7 p.m.

SCORING SUMMARY

Austin 7 0 7 7 — 21

Red Wing 6 8 0 0 — 14

First quarter

(A) Brandon Edgar 26 run (Riley Grinstead kick) (6 plays, 55 yards) 8:12

(RW) Jakob Meyer 2 run (kick failed0 (10 plays, 98 yards) 3:23

Second quarter

(RW) Tait Kelly 1 run (Kelly run) (5 plays, 24 yards) 3:23

Third quarter

(A) Edgar 3 run (Grinstead kick) (10 plays, 59 yards) 9:45

Fourth quarter

(A) Edgar 1 run (Grinstead kick) (6 plays, 54 yards) 9:05

AUSTIN STATS

Rushing: Brandon Edgar, 40-for-241, 3 TDs; Nate Conner, 21-for-108; passing: Conner, 0-for-3, 0, INT; penalties: 3-for-40

RED WING STATS

Rushing: 146; passing: 112; penalties: 3-for-15