Sam Brodner’s touchdown runs of 5 and 22 yards in the first half Saturday paled in comparison to what he did in the second half.
Glenbard West’s junior running back added three more scores (69, 38, 93 yards) in the third quarter as the Hilltoppers defeated Palatine 41-7 in a second-round Class 8A playoff game in Palatine.
Second-ranked Glenbard West (11-0) will host Barrington next weekend in a quarterfinal.
“It’s tiring, but it’s what’s got to happen,” Brodner said of his career-high 296 yards rushing and five touchdowns.
Palatine (8-3) surprised the Hilltoppers with a 46-yard touchdown run by quarterback Nick Orlando on the fifth play of the game for a 7-0 lead.
“Our defense on that first series, I don’t know what that was all about, but we woke up and started to play,” Glenbard West coach Chad Hetlet said.
The Hilltoppers marched 90 yards, capped by a 5-yard scoring run by Brodner to tie it midway through the second. They took the lead for good after recovering a Palatine fumble at the Pirates’ 33. Brodner ran in from 22 yards for a 14-7 lead 35 seconds before halftime.
“Coach Hetlet said we have got to get it done, that’s not how we start out, and we finished the second half the way we wanted to,” Brodner said. “The offensive line did their job and helped shift the momentum of the game.”
Brodner credited linemen Jack Campo, Jack Kane, Jack Leahy, Chris Minnec and Darien Kaufmann, and tight end Adam Zybko.
“You have to block some very physical Palatine players on the edge,” Hetlet said. That’s a physical football team.”
Player of the game: Sam Brodner, Glenbard West, 24 carries, 296 yards, 5 TDs.
Key performers: Glenbard West — Aidan Gould, 6 catches, 56 yards. Palatine — Nick Orlando, 6 carries, 69 yards, TD.