After his first two offensive series on Friday, Aug. 28, Vernon Hills senior quarterback Connor McNamara looked as if he was in for a long night.
He threw three straight incomplete passes on the Cougars’ first drive and then ended the next possession by throwing an interception in the Grayslake Central end zone.
But it was the Grayslake Central defense that had the long night, as McNamara finished the game 29-for-45 for 310 yards and four touchdowns. To top things off, McNamara added a 12-yard scoring run as the Cougars (1-0) beat Grayslake Central (0-1) 41-14.
“You saw a senior leader,” Vernon Hills coach Bill Bellecomo said. “He really settled down after those first two drives and led us on two important ones.”
McNamara threw a 25-yard scoring pass to senior slot back Andres Salazar and a 7-yard strike to junior wide receiver Chris Mariella for a 13-0 lead after the first quarter.
The Cougars had only 14 rushing attempts for the game, as they used a spread offense with five wide receivers to pass the ball all over the field.
“It’s so much fun to go out there and be in practically every play,” McNamara said. “The offensive line was amazing and the wide receivers were always getting open.”
Junior Kyle Hull had two touchdown catches, while Salazar added an 11-yard burst into the end zone. Salazar finished the game with 11 catches for 134 yards.
“Connor reads defenses so well,” Salazar said. “He eyes the defense and knows where to get you the ball.”
Other than two long scoring passes by Rams senior quarterback Luke Shepherd to wideout Noah Comerford, the Grayslake offense was stymied. Vernon Hills recorded seven quarterback sacks. Junior defensive end Vincent McNemon had two of the quarterback takedowns, recording 14 tackles in all. Junior linebacker Jeffrey Rosenstock had an interception for Vernon Hills.
McNamara had two final thoughts. “I definitely like throwing every down. But, I can’t have any turnovers.”
Mark Perlman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter: @markdavidperlma
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