NORMAL – Normal Community West High School’s Wildcats football squad, seeded second in Class 6A, did not take lightly the challenge seventh seed Rock Island presented for them in the opening round of the Illinois High School Association playoffs.
Normal West (10-0) opened the contest quickly, scoring on their first drive of the game on a 4 yard pass from junior quarterback Alex Jefferson to senior wide receiver Michael Beasley-Hart at 10:16 in the first quarter. The point-after by sophomore kicker Zach Breen gave the Wildcats a quick 7-0 lead.
The Wildcats went up, 14-0 at 4:53 in the first on a five yard touchdown pass from Jefferson to senior receiver Austin Stewart, followed by another successful Breen point-after.
On their next series of downs, Rock Island (5-5) marched 58 yards on eight plays, ending in junior running back Markel Richardson’s 14 yard dash into the end zone with 44.5 seconds left in the quarter. The extra point try by senior kicker and quarterback Lucas Rusk was good, cutting West’s lead, 14-7.
West pushed their lead to 20-7 as Jefferson connected with Stewart again, this time on an 80 yard passing touchdown with 37.9 seconds left in the first quarter. But Breen’s extra point try was broken up by Rock Island defenders.
Rock Island cut the Wildcats’ lead to 20-13 when sophomore running back Brandon Richardson dashed past Wildcats defenders during a 63 yard touchdown run. West’s defense blocked the Rocks’ point-after, allowing West to hold onto a 20-13 advantage.
Jefferson connected for a second time with Beasley-Hart for the Wildcats’ next score, this time on a 40-yard completion, sending the crowd into a frenzy as Beasley-Hart crossed the goal line with 6:40 in the second quarter. Breen’s extra point gave West a two-score advantage, 27-13.
West’s defense halted any forward movement during the Rocks’ next series of downs, but Rock Island opted to try a fake punt, but West saw through the rouse and wound up with the ball on the Rocks’ 41 yard line. Two plays later, Jefferson and Beasley-Hart connected for the third time on the night, on a 28-yard touchdown pass with 4:51 until halftime. Breen’s successful point-after gave West a 34-13 lead.
West’s defense got in on the act of scoring as the night went on as well. Rock Island’s very next series was interrupted when Richardson fumbled at his own 49 yard line after being hit by West’s Beasley-Hart. Wildcats defensive back Johnathon Maebane alertly scooped up the loose ball and dodged Rock Island players as he went into the end zone. That defensive maneuver, followed by another Breen extra point increased West’s lead, 41-13, a margin they would hold going into halftime.
Rock Island scored quickly soon after the second half started, as Richardson took the ball into the end zone from one yard out, capping a 4 play, 76 yard march. Richardson attempted to add a two-point conversion to that, but was met at the goal line by Wildcats defenders. But West’s lead was shaved to 41-21.
Rock Island gambled on using the onside kick to try to gain the ball back quickly after that score. It worked on the ensuing kickoff, forcing West to stay on defense. Richardson scored from four yards out at 6:32 in the third quarter, capping a 7 play, 46 yard drive, followed by a successful extra point by their senior quarterback and kicker, Lucas Rusk. That cut West’s lead further at 41-28, the score the game kept going into the fourth quarter.
Jefferson helped West put some additional distance between his team and Rock Island with 9:43 left in the game when he ran 75 yards for another Wildcats touchdown. Breen followed up with another extra point, increasing West’s lead, 48-28.
Sophomore running back Dominique Stevenson scored the last points of the game for West late in the fourth quarter, but the extra point try was no good, leading to the final score.
“This game was everything and more,” said Jefferson after the contest. “It was a great experience. We tried to treat it like just another game. We couldn’t afford to get ahead of ourselves.
“They threw a little bit extra at us,” Jefferson added. “But that’s what happens in the playoffs. You don’t know what exactly you’re going to see. You just have to keep trying to make adjustments.
“Rock Island tried to get into a position to defend the pass a little more,” Jefferson said of Rock Island’s stance in the first half. “So we had to go to our run game a little bit more.”
Of his receivers, Jefferson said, “They came out tonight and made plays and got it done when we needed it.”
“We did not bend and we didn’t break, and we came up some turnovers when we needed them,” said West head coach Darren Hess. “I thought our offense did a great job tonight. It was another great effort on special teams, and we need to shore up our PATs.
“But, you know, to get that first round win against a great football team is a big step for our program,” Hess said.
“You always practice for onside kicks,” Hess added. “You knew because of the score that they might be running that. Sometimes, it’s tough to get that ball. It’s wet and slippery out here, but we definitely knew that that might be happening.”
The game against West was the last game for Rock Island head coach Vic Boblett after 36 years in coaching, 21 of those as head coach of the Rocks. “I’m very proud of this group,” he said. “No one gave us a chance of being in the playoffs at the start of the season. We put a little bit of a scare in Normal West at times during the game.
“I’m very proud of their effort,” Boblett said. “Normal West is such an explosive offensive team. We knew, coming in, this would probably be one of those games where we were going to score just about every time we had the ball.
“Offensively, Normal West just has so many weapons,” Boblett said. “Beasley-Hart made some unbelievable catches, and Jefferson is so quick and fast. They just make you defend the entire field.”
West will host a Class 6A second round playoff game against Danville on Saturday, starting at 7p.m. at Wildcat Stadium.