Palatine looking real good in 35-0 shutout
For those wondering just how good Palatine can be this season, wonder no more.
The Pirates were completely dominant on both sides of the ball Friday night against visiting Barrington, turning in an ultra-impressive performance in a 35-0 Mid-Suburban West victory over the Broncos at Chic Anderson Field.
Backup quarterback Jimmy Smearman, subbing for the injured Cody Bobbit, threw for 127 yards while senior defensive back Joe Campe grabbed 2 interceptions, one in the end zone to preserve the shutout that just eluded Palatine last week in a win over Hoffman Estates.
"This was a big win against a very tough team," Campe said. "They've got a couple of playmakers in No. 6 (quarterback Terrance Terry) and No. 18 (running back Chase Murdock) and we came out tonight wanting to shut them down - and I think we did that."
Terry finished 9-of-14 for 66 yards and rushed for 58 on 10 carries, but the Broncos were absolutely killed by turnovers and penalties.
Barrington lost 3 fumbles, threw 4 interceptions and were flagged 12 times for 80 yards.
"We just had very poor execution tonight," said Barrington coach Joe Sanchez. after a seven-year run of winning seasons ended. "And too many penalties hurt us, especially at critical times."
A fourth-down gamble early in the game staked Palatine to a quick 7-0 lead and set the tone for the rest of the game.
Facing fourth down at the Barrington 11, the Pirates eschewed the field goal attempt and the gamble paid off when Smearman connected with senior receiver Mike Luschen on a touchdown strike.
Joe Pelnar (25 rushes for 127 yards) scored from 16 yards and Smearman plunged in from 1 yard to stake the Pirates to a 21-0 halftime lead. Then the quarterback threw second-half TD passes to Dan Haze and Luschen to put the icing on the cake.
Barrington (2-5, 1-2) was able to drive deep into Palatine territory 4 times, but each time came away empty as the result of a turnover.
"This was a great win," said 6-foot-2, 265 senior offensive lineman Adam Schroeder, who along with linemates Tyler Farris, Joe Landeck, Adam Dreger and Connor Gannon opened some huge holes for the running game while not letting a Barrington defender get anywhere close to Smearman.
"It gives us a lot of confidence for the rest of the season," Smearman said, "and I know the defense was happy to get that shutout."
Jesse Bobbit and Tom Johlie had the other interceptions for Palatine (6-1, 2-1), while Smearman rushed for 75 yards in addition to tossing three touchdown passes.
"Cody will be back next week," said Palatine coach Tyler Donnelly, "but having Jimmy back there gives us a lot of options. We're not going to do anything fancy or tricky with him, but he executes extremely well on both sides of the ball. He's a winner.
"I thought we played well in all phases of the game tonight. and we're excited becase now we know for sure that we qualify for the playoffs, which is our number one goal every year."