Nice beginning for Mundelein before Stevenson pulls away
Yes, the world would probably stop turning if winless Mundelein toppled unbeaten Stevenson in football.
That didn't happen, but that 14-play drive with which Mundelein opened up this NSC Lake Division battle was a thing of beauty.
"That first drive felt great,'' said Mundelein quarterback Colten Fisher. "I felt like, let's play and see what happens. I think it stunned them a little."
The heavily underdog Mustangs marched nearly 70 yards in a seven-minute span.
"I was surprised,'' said Stevenson receiver Cameron Green. "I couldn't believe it took about all of the first quarter. Hey, that's props to them."
Green scored a pair of touchdowns. The second one was clearly spectacular in nature. Both teams substituted freely in the second half as the Patriots (8-0) held serve 42-6 on Friday night in Lincolnshire.
Can anyone safely describe that Green touchdown that traveled 54 yards early in the second quarter? Did the entire Mustangs defense whiff while trying to track down Green on his way to the end zone?
"I saw that,'' Fisher said. "That's why he's playing at Northwestern."
Stevenson backup running back Ben Hirschman scored his first touchdown of the season in the second half. He, too witnessed Green's dazzling scoring play.
"That was unbelievable,'' Hirschman said. "That's why he's one of the best players in the state."
Green was all about giving credit to his teammates and blockers along the way. But he clearly had fun on this play.
"I was just trying to make them miss,'' Green said. "It was like playing tag or something."
While the Mustangs (0-8) were eating up the clock, Stevenson quarterbackWillie Bourbon and his pals on offense weren't taking much time to put up points. The first scoring play, a 51-yard pass play to Tyler Vincent, came on the sixth play of the drive. And with a second to go in the first quarter, Bourbon found Green open for a 38-yard TD pass.
By the second quarter, the outcome was essentially settled. In addition to the Green heroics, the Pats scored on defense. Linebacker Jimmy Marchese swiped a Fisher pass and dashed 17 yards for the score.
Stevenson's final score before halftime completed an 11-play drive. This march included two pass interference calls on the Mustangs, or Green would have had another score. Jack Joseph scored from 2 yards out.
The second half belonged to the second and third string players. Before departing the action, Fisher and speedy Robert Hamilton put the Mustangs on the board with a 22-yard scoring pass.
The fourth quarter marked Hirschman's first appearance. He raced untouched 63 yards for the game's final score.
"That was exciting,'' Hirschman said. "Our offensive line did well. It was good to see the second string block well."