Warren rushes past Mundelein for win No. 4
In high school football, teams strive for 5 wins, as that is the number for qualifying to become at least playoff eligible.
The Warren Blue Devils are no stranger to the playoff picture, having only missed the postseason dance three times since 1999, including a rare absence a year ago.
Well, the Devils took one step closer to regaining their playoff presence after easily handling host Mundelein 48-7 in North Suburban Conference action on Thursday evening.
The Devils, who improved to 4-2 overall and 3-1 in the league, came out firing on all cylinders.
On its first possession, Warren drove 61 yards on 7 plays. The drive was finished by an 18-yard dash to the end zone by junior tailback Martin Walker Jr., who had himself a sparkling evening as Warren avenged a heart-breaking double-overtime loss to conference leader Lake Zurich in Week 5.
"We were able to work really hard in practice this week and work out any problems," said Walker, who in three quarters rumbled for 156 yards on 19 carries and 4 touchdowns. "This was a great night after last week. We played hard and ran the ball really well. And you can't say enough about our defense."
Warren pounded the ball, rushing to the tune of 233 yards. Walker scored his touchdowns on runs of 18, 14, 37 and 1 yard to give him 7 scores this season.
And when the Devils weren't pounding the ball on the ground, senior quarterback Ian Schilling was taking care of business through the air.
He wound up completing 17-of-23 passes for 233 yards and 3 touchdowns.
After Walker's first score, Schilling hit senior tight end Ryan Short on a beautiful slant route that went for 15 yards to the house.
In the second quarter, Schilling then found Notre Dame commit Micah Jones (4 catches, 68 yards) for a 22-yard scoring strike, and the Devils were well in control. Walker's fourth score came with 1:26 left in the half and put the Devils ahead 42-7 heading to the locker room.
Schilling's third scoring pass came when hit hit Jones again from 19 yards out, rounding out the scoring at 48-7 with 8:43 left in the third.
Mundelein still has slim playoff hopes alive but fell to 2-4 overall and 1-3 in the NSC.
After Warren scored twice to open the game, Mundelein's lone touchdown came when sophomore running back Jack Dorfler raced in from 25 yards to cut the deficit to 14-7 with 1:58 left in the first.
Dorfler led the Mustang rushing attack with 73 yards on 14 carries and the touchdown.
Junior linebacker Dane Weinberg, junior cornerback Sam Granatelli, and sophomore Torris Childs all recovered fumbles.
The Warren offense outgained Mundelein 447-197 on the evening.