Fremd lines up a decisive victory over Buffalo Grove
The Fremd defensive line set the tone, and the rest of the team followed in a Mid-Suburban League divisional crossover game against Buffalo Grove that began Friday and ended Saturday after being postponed by lightning.
It was a defensive battle early on, but Fremd excelled on both sides of the ball and got a record-breaking field goal from JT Kolderup on the second day of the game for a 59-20 victory.
Buffalo Grove (1-3) entered the game with one of the top passing attacks in the area led by quarterback Trey Cervantes. The senior QB, however, was under pressure throughout the entire game, getting sacked five times and intercepted three times.
"Our whole line felt like we could take their O-line," Fremd defensive end Matt McCabe said. "They were doing a lot of three-step drops trying to get the ball out fast. I think we affected it that way, letting the DBs jump routes and kind of disrupt them."
Fremd (4-0) scored one touchdown o nFriday before the game was postponed with 3:04 left in the first quarter, and it was the defensive line that made it happen.
McCabe tipped a pass, and defensive tackle Alex Jacobs intercepted it and ran it back 75 yards for a touchdown.
"I was coming up the field, I saw screen and stopped," McCabe said. "He released it and I just put my hands up, like my coaches told me to, and tipped it and Alex Jacobs took care of the rest."
McCabe also had a sack and another tipped pass in the game.
Cervantes never had time to sit in the pocket as McCabe, Jacobs, Kyle Saxon, Riley Carlson, Tommy Vannieuwenhoven and Will Pankratz brought constant pressure in the first half. Pankratz had a sack in the first quarter.
Fremd also brought a handful of blitzes, including one from Jake Haas that led to an interception by Cordell Finley. Finley also recovered a fumble.
When Fremd put in its backups in the second half with a 45-6 lead, the pressure continued.
Tom Keane didn't play at all on Friday, and Ryan Hanks was limited to just special teams, but both made the most of their opportunities.
"I was really glad to be able to get in," Hanks said. "I just wanted to prove to the coaches, the rest of the team and everyone else I can play football."
Keane and Hanks each had a solo sack and combined for another one in the second half.
"We just used our speed rush technique to beat them off the edge," Keane said. "He kept trying to rollout and we stopped him."
On the other side of the ball, Fremd didn't have a single first down and only 7 yards of total offense on Friday. But the Vikings were ready for the Saturday sequel.
Kenny Lyke had touchdown runs of 56, 4 and 40 yards while rushing for 120 yards. Charlie Kaye had touchdown runs of 16 and 32 yards, while Alec Honickel chipped in 79 yards and a touchdown.
"We got in their faces pretty good last night and challenged them, and they responded," Fremd coach Lou Sponsel said. "There were no speeches today, no firing them up. They just came out and we put it on the boys to show up and play physical and fast football."
Tom Josten also found Austin Schwantz for a 10-yard touchdown. But the offensive highlight was Kolderup's 52-yard field goal in the second quarter to break the school record for distance.
"I have been waiting for an opportunity for a while now and I was just really glad coach gave me a chance," Kolderup said.
Brent Goodwin, who hit a 51-yarder against Conant in 1988, held the previous record.
Cervantes threw touchdowns to Jimmy Trieb and Kelly Thomas for Buffalo Grove. Chase Marsh also scored on a 25-yard run.
Neither of Cervantes' touchdown throws were easy. He squeezed the ball in between two defenders to hook up with Trieb. Cervantes was flushed out of the pocket on the second score, but managed to find Thomas open on the other side of the field after avoiding the pressure.