On an overcast day with sustained wind gusts of over 30 mph, it was pretty clear how the St. Charles North football team was going to attack Hoffman Estates on offense.
It was going to be a whole lot of Drew Surges.
“Drew knew he was going to have to shoulder the load,” North Stars coach Rob Pomazak said of Surges. “We talk about seniors being seniors and dudes being the dude.
“Drew never shies away from that. He’s just an absolute animal.”
Surges was absolutely unstoppable Saturday in a Class 7A second-round playoff game.
The senior running back/linebacker rushed for 147 yards and a touchdown on 34 carries for visiting St. Charles North and also had two catches for 101 yards in a 25-9 victory.
“I’m always ready for whatever is to come,” said Surges, who had a 90-yard TD catch and added a 25-yard return of an interception. “It’s just the way I’ve been raised and the way I know what I have to do to win this game. I assumed I was going to get a lot of touches.
“I just do what I do — survive and advance.”
The North Stars (11-1), who advanced to next week’s quarterfinals against St. Rita (9-2), took an 8-3 lead after a quarter. Surges had a 5-yard TD run and the two-point conversion.
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Surges and senior quarterback Will Vaske then connected on the game’s biggest offensive play in the second quarter to push the lead to 15-3 and handcuff Hoffman Estates (10-2).
North got a good look at the defense on a second-down incompletion. On third-and-13, Vaske hit Surges up the seam and he did the rest, racing 90 yards untouched for the TD.
“Coach went right back to another route that got me wide open over the middle,” Surges said. “(Vaske) saw it and the rest was there. It was fun running down that sideline.”
The North Stars led 18-3 at halftime, but with the wind howling to one end, getting a TD against the wind was a second-half priority for Pomazak.
Alex Valenzuela came through in the third quarter, picking off a pass on the first play of the half and returning it 36 yards to the Hoffman Estates 9.
Two plays later, Vaske hit Jake Furtney for a 9-yard TD to push the lead to 25-3. Vaske completed 7 of 13 passes for 179 yards and two TDs.
“We made the adjustment at the half, and we were going to sit on the curl if we saw it again,” Pomazak said. “It takes a player being able to make an adjustment on the fly. He saw it, sat on the curl and got the pick.
“For me, that was the play of the game. That was the icing on the cake. If we didn’t get that, it’s a different ballgame.”
Now, the North Stars will return to the quarterfinals for the third time in program history and first since finishing second in 7A in 2018. They will host St. Rita.
“The obstacles are there for those who are willing to do the work and go through them,” Pomazak said. “St. Rita is certainly big and they’ll present a big brick wall.
“But I’ll put our kids against anybody because our heart is the size of this stadium.”
Surges, meanwhile, is ready to get back up and running again and do what he does best.
“It’s going to be a great opportunity for us to go show what we can do against one of the best teams in the state,” Surges said. “It’s awesome. We’ll see what this week has for us.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.