It came as little surprise that Naperville Central had the scoreboard operator on his toes in Friday night’s opener against Marian Catholic. The No. 3 Redhawks returned tailback Kyle Griffith and quarterback Phil Horvath from last year’s 11-1 team.
It was a defensive play, however, that broke the game open late in the first half to spark a 42-3 rout by Naperville.
Bob Siciliano’s 56-yard return of a Donald Busse pass with just a little over a minute left set up the touchdown that helped the Redhawks to a 22-3 halftime lead.
Central scored two touchdowns in the final 2 minutes 33 seconds of the first half to turn the tide.
On the first play after the interception, Jason Paquette scored on an 18-yard run. The extra point by Chris Szatko gave Cental the halftime margin. Paquette, who scored three touchdowns on the night, gave the Redhawks a 15-3 lead with an 8-yard touchdown reception from Horvath with 2:33 to go in the half.
Griffith and Marian’s Travis Bushnell ran well on a field that was soaked with rain.
Griffin had 190 yards in 14 carries and two touchdowns. Bushnell was a workhorse for Marian, carrying 36 times for 196 yards.
While Marian relied almost exclusively on Bushnell, Horvath had several weapons. Paquette gained 55 yards in just four carries with touchdown runs of 28 and 18 yards.
Griffith, who Naperville Central coach Joe Bunge calls “as good a running back as we ever had,” was strong from start to finish. The 5-foot-11-inch, 189-pounder scored on a 41-yard run on the third play of the game. He had run for 14 and 10 yards on the first two plays.
He scored on a 60-yard run in the third quarter, giving the Redhawks a 28-3 lead, ending any Marian hopes of getting back in the game.
Reid Hanley.
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Up next: Friday at Stevenson.
4. Naperville North
Running back Steve Sarm scored four touchdowns, including three on the ground, as the Huskies (1-0) rolled to a 49-7 victory at Palatine. Sarm finished with 167 yards in 10 carries, while teammate Mike Constantino ran for 126 yards and a touchdown in 10 attempts. Naperville North scored four touchdowns off four Palatine turnovers in the first half.
Up next: Friday at home vs. St. Charles East.
7. Wheaton Warrenville South
Luka Ulicevic kicked three field goals and Dan Brauer fired a 13-yard touchdown pass to Brett Adamson as the host Tigers (1-0) downed Glenbard West 16-0. Ulicevic’s field goals were from 27, 40 and 36 yards. Wheaton Warrenville South’s defense held Glenbard West to 84 total yards and allowed the Hilltoppers to cross midfield just once.
“Those were some big kicks [from Ulicevic],” Wheaton Warrenville South coach John Thorne said. “We were real happy with the defense.”
Up next: Friday at Waubonsie Valley.
8. New Trier
Ryan Spellman ran for two long fourth-quarter touchdowns to lift the host Trevians (1-0) over Libertyville 27-6 to snap a four-year losing streak against the Wildcats.
Up next: Sept. 1 at Loyola.
10. Lincoln-Way Central
Anthony Bagnara touched the ball just seven times but scored five touchdowns as the No. 10 Knights (1-0) romped past Gary Wirt 60-0. Bagnara opened the scoring with an 8-yard run in the first quarter and then broke the game open with four TDs in the second.
Up next: Friday at Andrew.
11. Richards
Duran Johnson returned an interception 95 yards for a touchdown and Jason Orozco scored on a 32-yard run to help host Richards (1-0) escape with a 14-8 victory over Andrew.
Up next: Friday at Morgan Park.
12. Plainfield
Morris Barber rushed for just 66 yards in 11 carries, but his 56-yard touchdown run in the third quarter propelled West Chicago (1-0) to a 20-12 upset of visiting Plainfield. Barber’s TD came one play after Plainfield was penalized for roughing the punter and put West Chicago ahead 20-6 with 11 seconds left in the third quarter.
Corey Coleman scored on a 7-yard run and Jared Hall (111 yards passing) added a 3-yard TD pass to Wyatt Schuyler to lift West Chicago to a 13-0 halftime lead.
Ryan Westra had a 15-yard touchdown run and Jerome Randle added a 15-yard TD reception from Justin Quatrano for Plainfield (0-1). Quatrano finished with 76 yards in 14 carries.
Up next: Friday at home vs. Neuqua Valley.
13. Sandburg
Hubbard stopped a two-point conversion in double overtime as the host Eagles fell 30-28. Dan Anthony’s 1-yard touchdown run had pulled Sandburg within two points.
Up next: Sept. 1 at Evanston.
14. Bolingbrook
Running back A.J. Johnson scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to give the Raiders a 13-6 victory over host Minooka.
Minooka took a 6-0 lead on a 36-yard keeper by quarterback Matt Wehrle on a fourth-down play with 10:17 left in the game. Bolingbrook block the extra-point attempt. Bolingbrook came right back, going 82 yards on 11 plays with Johnson scoring on a 4-yard run at 5:22.
On the following kickoff Bolingbrook recovered a fumble at the Minooka 39-yard line. Bolingbrook then scored in 10 plays with Johnson capping it on a 1-yard run with 1:04 left.
Minooka failed to advance on its final possession. Johnson finished with 77 yards in 23 carries. Minooka running back Scott Moss left the game in the third quarter with an ankle injury and did not return. He carried 10 times for 45 yards.
Up next: Sept. 1 vs. No. 6 Providence.
15. Downers Grove South
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Steve Walker threw two touchdown passes and Joe Zebel scored on a 4-yard run as visiting Lockport (1-0) rallied for a 17-0 victory over Downers Grove South. Jake Dean blocked two Downers South punts setting up a touchdown and a field goal.
Kent Hughes ran for 126 yards in 22 carries to lead Downers.
Up next: Sept. 1 at Proviso West.
16. Downers Grove North
Quarterback George Smith had 80 yards rushing and completed 9-of-16 passes for 223 yards as host Prospect (1-0) upset Downers Grove North 21-13.
The Knights were the beneficiaries of Downers North’s sloppiness. The Trojans turned the ball over eight times, seven of which were fumbles. Downers North fumbled the ball away in each of their four fourth-quarter possessions
With the Knights leading 14-13, Scott Sprague recovered a fumble at his own 21 with 3:32 remaining. Two plays later George Smith hit Josh Flickinger with a 79-yard TD pass to put Prospect up by eight.
Jim Sharwarko scored on a 6-yard run and returned an interception 99 yards for a score to account for both of Downers North’s touchdowns.
Up next: Friday vs. Hinsdale South.
18. Hubbard
Linebacker Reggie Cribbs stuffed Sandburg’s final two-point conversion attempt as the Greyhounds, a Class 5A semifinalist last year, outlasted Sandburg 30-28 in double overtime. Antoine Doby ran for 129 yards in 22 attempts to lead Hubbard.
Up next: Friday vs. Harlan at Gately.
20. Libertyville
Jimmy Lewis and Kristen Kuceyeski each kicked field goals as the Wildcats (0-1) fell to New Trier 27-6.
Up next: Friday at Moline.