Williams' 5 TDs help Larkin improve to 3-1
Larkin senior running back Jalen Williams refused to let recent history repeat itself.
Eight days after the Royals surrendered an 18-7 third-quarter lead in an eventual 27-18 loss to Lake Park, the Royals saw their 27-6 third-quarter lead at Lake Forest Academy whittled to 27-21 early in the fourth quarter Saturday.
However, a determined Williams would not let his team lose. He rushed for 2 fourth quarter touchdowns - giving him 5 for the afternoon - to lead Larkin to a 40-21 nonconference victory.
Williams' final totals were gaudy: 33 carries for 364 yards, tying him for the 49th-highest single-game rushing total in state history, according to reported IHSA records. He fell just shy of the all-time Larkin High School record of 388 yards, which was set by Vince Webber on 27 carries against Rich East on Sept. 27, 1996.
"This is the part of the season where teams rise up and teams fall," said Williams, whose Royals improved to 3-1. "I was like, we're not going to be the team to fall. I just got everybody calm in the huddle and said, 'We're not going to do what we did last week. We're just going to take charge, get intensity and get the offense and the defense going.'"
Lake Forest Academy (1-3) had possession and a chance to take the lead with 8:25 left in the fourth quarter, but the Larkin defense heeded their teammate's call and forced the Caxys to punt from their own 20-yard line. Williams and his blocking entourage did the rest.
On Larkin's ensuing possession, the elusive 5-foot-7, 160-pound running back carried the ball 4 straight times, traversing 59 yards in two minutes. Williams capped the drive with a 23-yard touchdown run, thanks to a key block from sophomore Sylvester Smith, and the extra point by David Munoz put the Royals ahead 34-21 with 4:43 to play.
Larkin squibbed the subsequent kickoff and alert junior Matt Harris jumped into a pile to recover the ball, which had been bobbled by an up-man at the Lake Forest Academy 40-yard line.
Williams and his blockers went right back to work. He carried 3 more times for 18, 8 and 14 yards to give the Royals a comfortable 40-21 lead with 3:22 to play.
"We've played some really good teams - Mt. Carmel, Bishop McNamara - and he's as good a running back as we've seen this year," Lake Forest Academy coach Ted Stewart said. "We were there the entire time, but we just had trouble tackling him."
That's because Williams' legs never stopped pumping. He picked up the majority of his yards after first contact, negating his only blemishes of the day: 2 lost fumbles.
"What I was really impressed with by him was so many second, third and fourth efforts, breaking arm tackles and when guys had his jersey," said Larkin coach Matt Gehrig, who also made a point of crediting the blocking of slot receiver Reid Ellis. "A lot of heart and determination and just trying to outwork the opponent there. That's a lot of what we try to do with the team in practice."
Larkin fell behind 6-0 when Don Carter scored untouched on a sweep with 5:31 left in the first quarter. But the Royals rallied for 27 straight points on touchdown runs by Williams of 24, 20 and 78 yards and Ellis' 9-yard scamper.
The Caxys used big plays to get back in the game: a 61-yard touchdown pass from Cole Moore to Myron Ford and Moore's 79-yard interception return. Graham Wick's 24-yard field goal cut the deficit to 27-21 with 9:27 left in the fourth quarter.