The Redhawks were going for it, and AJ Deinhart was getting the ball.
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The twist was what the Naperville Central junior did with it.
Deinhart’s halfback pass to Joshua Ruiz on the two-point conversion in the second overtime was a dramatic capper to Central’s 43-42 DuPage Valley Conference win Friday at Wheaton Warrenville South.
“We always mess around with it in practice,” Deinhart said. “We finally called it in a game and it worked.”
Central coach Mike Stine called the decision to go for two “a no-brainer.” He cited advice he got from his dad, Everett, who coached at Byron for 37 years.
“At the end of the game, you have to think about the kids,” Stine said. “If a kicker missed there, he carries it with him the rest of his life. If a team misses a two-point conversion, you go down as a team. The other thing is, in a tough situation, get the ball in your best player’s hands.”
That’s Deinhart, whose first option on the play was to run it in.
“As soon as I got the ball I knew there was no chance — I saw three guys coming at me,” Deinhart said. “I looked into the end zone and Josh was locked up with a defender and I had no idea what I was going to do. A second later, he was wide open. Probably the craziest ending to a game I’ve ever been a part of.”
Deinhart is a big part of Central’s rebound from an 0-2 record.
Big expectations were held of the 5-foot-9, 175-pound Minnesota transplant, the nephew of a Buffalo Bills scout.
Central (3-2, 3-2) managed a combined 100 rushing yards the two first weeks, but Deinhart broke out for 164 against Metea Valley and went for 176 vs. Waubonsie Valley.
“We found out that we can physically impose our will on teams,” Deinhart said.
Central’s third straight win was critical in its playoff push. The Redhawks travel to Ohio this week to face two-time defending state champion Lakewood St. Edward, then get unbeaten Naperville North.
“The chase is to five wins,” Stine said.
Getting defensive: Something will have to give Friday when Neuqua Valley (5-0, 4-0) and Naperville North (5-0, 4-0) — both two games ahead of the nearest DuPage Valley Conference pursuer — meet.
It probably won’t be either’s run defenses. Neuqua is giving up just 79.2 rushing yards per game, North 82.0.
North’s all-senior line — tackles Malik Wells and Isaac Velasco and ends Cole Jacobs and Alex Iaccino — all started at some point as juniors, and hit the weight room hard.
The Huskies also beefed up their coaching staff. John Jackson, a former North assistant under Larry McKeon and head coach at Collinsville and Plainfield Central, came aboard as a defensive assistant.
“We’re pretty big up front, and our guys have just got after it,” North coach Sean Drendel said.
Little big man: Nicholas Keyes may be just 5-8, but he’s made a big impact for Benet.
The junior receiver’s 80-yard TD catch against St. Viator in Week 4 opened the floodgates to Benet’s big second half.
He didn’t score against Nazareth on Friday, but Keyes may have made the game’s biggest catch. On third-and-19 in the third quarter, with Benet clinging to a one-score lead, Keyes ran a vertical route to haul in the first down
It led to a Jack Sznajder 1-yard TD run. Benet went on to win 26-21.
Keyes had five catches for 92 yards. Sznajder threw for TD passes of 22 yards to Michael Challenger and 32 yards to CJ Birck.
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“The home run plays definitely helped us,” Benet coach Pat New said. “Nazareth’s defense is too good to drive on.”
Joshua Welge is a freelance writer for the Naperville Sun.