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player ready...There was a familiar sight on Oak Park-River Forest’s first two scoring drives against Downers Grove North on Friday, Sept. 23.
The Huskies scored two rushing touchdowns in the first half, and on both scoring plays, Jacob Hale pulled from his right guard spot to open a big hole for the ball carrier to run through. It was a formula that worked, as OPRF rushed for three touchdowns in all to claim a 26-0 West Suburban Silver victory in Downers Grove.
While Hale led the way on the trap play in the first half, Sharmore Clarke supplied key blocks at left tackle in the second half.
“We just see what the defense gives us,” said Hale, who is a senior and lives in Oak Park. “I guess in the first half it seemed like it was opened up for me to pull. In the second half, it opened up more for Sharmore to pull. It is whatever Coach (John) Hoerster calls, and we execute to the best of our abilities.”
Against Downers Grove North (1-4, 0-3), the Huskies’ offensive line made it look almost easy, opening holes for running backs Terrance Roundy and Michael Houston and quarterback Jeremy Hunt. That trio combined to rush for 249 yards on 35 carries.
“We work on pulling all the time, just like we work on everything else,” Hale said. “Everything we do in the game, we make sure we rep it out (in practice). We make sure we are 100 percent in the game so there is no confusion or anything.”
Roundy scored on a 1-yard run against the Trojans, and he said he appreciates the effort of the entire offensive line. In addition to Hale and Clarke, the rest of the line includes Ethan Lemons, Phil Saleh and Amir Tillis.
“They work hard, they are the reason I get every yard I get,” Roundy said. “It is pretty much all them. When it is working, it is working. When they get in the groove, a rhythm, our team, we put up points. It is pretty good.”
Hale and Clarke are both interested in playing football in college but do not have specific schools on their lists yet. Clarke is a two-year starter, while Hale has played guard on varsity since his sophomore year.
They know their most important role as linemen is to protect the quarterback and make holes for the running backs.
“We take so much pride in it (blocking),” said Clarke, who lives in Oak Park. “That is the one thing that we can actually take pride in to our full capabilities. We love doing it because we love seeing those guys get touchdowns every night.
“It is just an amazing feeling that we helped the quarterback and running backs get a touchdown, even though we do not get that much credit.”
Game notes
Hunt was difficult for the Downers North defense to contain, as he rushed for 138 yards on 14 carries. He also tossed a 9-yard scoring strike to Jared Scott (six catches, 46 yards) with just five seconds left in the first half. It was a perfect pass put in a spot where only the 6-foot-6 senior could grab it.
The Huskies (5-0, 2-0) forced three turnovers, including a fumble recovery by Tariq Thurman and an interception by Wesley Cheatham.
Patrick Kelly is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter @Pioneer_Press