Kent, Wauconda bounce back to best Huntley
After falling behind 14-0 just 6:39 into the contest, host Wauconda turned the tables quickly on Huntley on Friday night in the season opener for both squads.
The Bulldogs answered Huntley's early surge with 30 unanswered points to end the first half in this shootout as the Red Raiders could not contain standout Wauconda senior quarterback Brian Kent.
Huntley (0-1) did make matters interesting by cutting the gap to 30-28 with 2:12 left in the third quarter. But Wauconda (1-0) answered those two scoring drives with a 67-yard TD run by Kent helping to carry the Bulldogs to a 44-34 nonconference victory.
A 34-yard TD pass from Huntley senior Tim Lycos to James Davis opened the scoring 3:46 into the contest before Lycos (96 yards rushing) scored on a 1-yard keeper for a quick 14-0 lead with 5:21 left in the first quarter.
The Bulldogs began their impressive comeback when Kent (167 yards on 18 carries) scored on a 2-yard keeper before Kent (12-for-19, 229 yards passing) got the Wauconda passing game going.
Kent lofted a high pass to Jake Ziolkowski near the left corner pylon for a 27-yard TD pass over Huntley defender Devan Kennedy before Kevin Carpentier's second extra point made the score 14-14 with 7:23 left in the second quarter.
The Bulldogs scored on their next possession when Calvin Weeder took a screen pass from Kent, broke a tackle and went 35 yards for the TD and a 21-14 lead 5:45 before halftime.
Wauconda's Shawn Sundquist caught a pass in the flat on the next possession, broke two tackles, and went 20 yards for the TD for a 27-14 lead before Carpentier's 29-yard field goal as time expired gave the Bulldogs a 30-14 lead at the intermission.
"It was a spectacular game, and all of the training we did all summer paid off," said Kent. "I was very happy with our ability to score because last year we struggled with putting points on the board."
Lycos (7-for-11, 143 yards passing) hit teammate Nicholas Kostalek with a 24-yard TD pass 2:22 into the second pass in the right corner of the end zone before he hit Kostalek with an almost identical 24-yard TD pass in the right corner in double coverage before Danny Nottolini's extra point cut the gap to 30-28 with 2:12 left in the third quarter.
But on the ensuing possession, Kent went up the middle before breaking down the left sideline for a 67-yard TD run and a 37-28 lead with 1:39 left in the third quarter.
"These kids showed they want to play football and they bounced back after falling behind 14-0," said Wauconda coach Dave Mills. "Brian (Kent) has made a commitment to learning the shotgun offense and we're blessed because he is a great runner and he has a great arm."
A 2-yard TD run by Wauconda's Janar Nevski closed out the Wauconda scoring for a 44-28 lead with 59 seconds left. A 5-yard keeper for a TD by Lycos as the final buzzer expired accounted for the final score.
"We have to have more discipline and improve on some things fundamentally," said first-year Huntley coach Matt Gehrig, whose team was outscored 23-0 in the second quarter. "Their quarterback (Kent) is obviously a really good football player, and he did a good job executing the plays and taking what we gave him."
Christian Cervantes had 41 yards rushing on 14 carries for the Red Raiders while Tim Martin had 27 yards on 7 attempts rushing for the Bulldogs. Wide receiver Brandon Dorsey also had a huge game for Wauconda with 5 catches for 106 yards to help carry the aerial attack.