MOUNT PROSPECT — In the year of the quarterback in the NIC-10, Hononegah remained old school. And old school seldom looked as good as it did Saturday night, when the Indians ran for 381 yards in a 42-31 Class 7A first-round win over Mount Prospect.
Hononegah (8-2) didn’t even attempt a pass in the second half in winning its first playoff game since 1996.
“My line made the game for us,” halfback Brian Bean (116 yards on 14 carries) said after his first career 100-yard game. “We just had to go to the hole and our line took care of those blocks all day.”
Brett McWilliams had 156 yards on 17 carries.
“I can’t describe the feeling,” McWilliams said. “The line blocks well all the time, but tonight was especially great.”
Linemen Zach Johnson, Nick Casey, Mike Surges, Stephen Carrick and LJ Jones were at their best after Mount Prospect (7-3) pulled to within 21-19. Seven straight runs later, Hononegah led 28-19 on McWilliams’ 35-yard run. Then, after forcing a punt, Hononegah ran 14 straight times for 70 yards, capped by Collin Rohs’ 12-yard TD.
“They expect this from us,” Carrick, the left guard, said. “We’re known for being a smash-mouth football team. That’s how we love it. We want to get down and dirty and kick some butt. We want to drive the ball. We don’t want to pass it.”
The Indians did this with an all-new line. All five linemen graduated last year. The line does not have great size either.
“We’re not huge, but they believe and they work hard,” offensive line coach Brian Zimmerman said. “There’s nothing magical about it.”
It sure felt magical. Hononegah overpowered a team that had won three state titles in the previous seven seasons.
“It is a feeling that I can’t explain,” Carrick said. “You’ve got to get out there and do it. That’s what our school is known for. We run the football up and down. It’s expected of us.
“I wish we got more.”
No, 381 yards was more than enough for the Indians, who will now host Geneva (10-0) next week.
“This is our biggest win, bar none, since 1996,” coach Tim Sughroue said after the Indians snapped a string of five consecutive first-round playoff losses.
- Matt Trowbridge, rrstar.com
