Making memories last a lifetime
Not all football players celebrate a big victory the right way.
The Adams Atoms went stair diving, but also accidentally burned down their frat house.
Ricky, Big John and Quint bogarted Ronald Miller's pizza.
West Canaan's Charlie Tweeder stole a squad car and drove around wearing nothing but a cowboy hat.
There are some who didn't get to celebrate at all.
Rockbridge's Dennis Guilder came within one centimeter of being paralyzed and spent Thanksgiving in the hospital reading "5,000 Dirty Limericks."
Polk High's Al Bundy scored 4 touchdowns in one game to clinch the city championship in 1966. But, his life went downhill from there. Bundy married a lazy, Oprah-worshipping and bon bon-eating wife and raised two disrespectful children. If that wasn't bad enough, he sold women's shoes for a living.
And then some did it the right way.
Ridgemont High's Charles Jefferson single-handedly beat Lincoln, 42-0, and then celebrated with his little brother at an Earth, Wind and Fire concert.
Lucas didn't win a game, but received a slow clap, a varsity jacket and won over Charlie Sheen as a friend well before Sheen the Machine was "Winning" in his own special way.
These are just some of the ways Hollywood celebrated big football victories, but what about the realities closer to home? Here's a look back at another exciting football season and how some players commemorated some of their finest moments.
Name: Dennis Piron, Batavia
Date: Week 1, August 26
You'd be hard pressed to find someone who has been on-hand to witness as many Batavia football victories as Dennis Piron. The 1983 Batavia graduate became a sophomore coach in 1989, served as defensive coordinator on the varsity from 1992 until 2010 and replaced longtime coach Mike Gaspari this fall while wasting no time in getting career victory No. 1 when the Bulldogs trounced Marmion, 36-7, in Week 1. The Bulldogs avenged a 14-7 loss last season to the Cadets.
"The kids and the coaching staff put a lot of energy into the game and after the game we were very excited and also surprised with the ease of it," Piron said. "I guess if there's anything we took away from it, it was very clear what town Batavia supports, and while Marmion does sit on the border of the community, this is Bulldog country."
There was no special post-game dinner or celebration for victory No. 1 for Piron. Instead, he was up until the wee hours of the morning watching game film.
"We stayed up until 5 a.m. watching the film a bunch of times," Piron said. "Technology has made it so convenient now but you're still spending a lot of time watching film."
One could safely bet that he at least was able to watch with a big smile on his face.
Name: Kyle Clechenko, Aurora Central Catholic
Date: Week 2, Sept. 3 and 5
Aurora Central jumped ahead of Marengo on Saturday afternoon before lightning postponed the game until Monday with the Chargers leading 6-0. Marengo appeared to have the contest in hand soon after it resumed. The Indians took a 25-14 lead into the final quarter, but Kyle Clechenko and Luke Dickerson connected on back-to-back touchdown strikes in a 22-second span to help the Chargers stun Marengo, 26-25, in Aurora. The Chargers improved to 2-0 for the first time since 2002.
Having a game postponed definitely made for a busy weekend for Clechenko as he had to return to Aurora Central on Monday. He spent Saturday night back in St. Charles hanging out with friends, but capped off the victory on Monday with about a dozen teammates at Buffalo Wild Wings. "Pretty much all the seniors were there and some juniors," Clechenko said. "We had a good time talking about the game."
Name: Bobby Hess, Geneva
Date: Week 3, Sept. 9
Geneva found itself trailing winless St. Charles East, 17-14, at halftime. No reason to panic though. The Vikings soared into the third quarter as Bobby Hess scored on a 63-yard run at the beginning of the third quarter and the Vikings went on to a 35-17 victory. Hess, who had battled injuries in the early going, scored the go-ahead touchdown and finished with 85 rushing yards on only 5 carries.
"We had a bunch of Subways (sandwiches) outside the buses after the game," Hess said. The Vikings certainly had to refuel after a hard-fought victory. Despite the short trip back to Geneva, the festive Vikings tried their best to outperform one another on the bus ride. "There was talk about doing crazy stuff on the ride back," Hess said. "I think our bus wasn't as wild as the other one." After getting back into Geneva, Hess spent a relatively quiet night hanging out at home with his girlfriend.
Name: Garret Becker, Marmion
Date: Week 5, Sept. 23
Marmion had to play without senior Garret Becker for most of the fourth quarter in its game against Immaculate Conception, but the Cadets were able to hold on for a thrilling 28-20 victory.
Becker suffered what proved to be a hamstring tear with 11:49 remaining in the game. By the 9:06 mark he was supporting himself with crutches. An hour or so later, he was enjoying a heaping plate of food with his teammates at Buffalo Wild Wings. "I thought it was my best running game of the season and then I get hurt and I can't help the team," Becker said. "It's so frustrating when you can't help the team and all you can do is watch."
Becker didn't stay out too late with his teammates as he had an early morning doctor's appointment on Saturday to determine the severity of the injury. "It wasn't very comfortable at Buffalo Wild Wings," he said. "I put a lot of ice on it and then was keeping hopeful that it wasn't a deep tear of the muscle."
Name: Austin Lewis, Batavia
Date: Week 6, Sept. 30
It goes without saying that Batavia and Geneva love beating each other. Batavia senior linebacker Austin Lewis was especially hungry to beat the Vikings, because it's something he hadn't experienced in his high school years until now. Lewis scored his first career touchdown when he recovered a fumble in the end zone that put the Bulldogs ahead 17-14. He added a sack, a quarterback pressure and 7 tackles as the Bulldogs pulled away for a wild 46-34 victory.
Lewis will never forget scoring his first touchdown. He'll also never forget celebrating a victory over Geneva with his teammates and fans. "They defied the rules by rushing on the field," he said. "It was one of the craziest moments of my life at the 50-yard line."
After the celebrating finally subsided on the field and Lewis returned to Batavia, he ultimately retreated to teammate Sean Oroni's house where he hung out with several teammates and dove in to all the leftovers from the Quarterback Club. "The o-line usually goes to Taco Bell," Lewis said. "We just hung out afterward, talking about the game and eating a bunch of leftovers." After combining for 80 points on the field, there certainly wasn't anything left over on Burgess Field in Geneva.
Name: Carter Reading, St. Charles East
Date: Week 6, Sept. 30
The efforts in the weight room and during practice finally paid off in a victory for St. Charles East as the Saints picked up their first victory of the season with a 49-34 win over Streamwood, a team which entered the contest with a perfect 5-0 record. Senior tailback Carter Reading had 105 rushing yards in the second half, including a 39-yard touchdown.
While Reading was one of the key players for the Saints, he wasn't thinking of himself afterward, but of a good friend who missed the game because of an illness. "We usually go to Wendy's for Frosties after the game so Charlie Fisher and some of my other teammates went for Frosties and I took one for a friend who was really sick," Reading said. "Then I spent most of Saturday just hanging out. Sitting around all day watching college football." It was a well-earned retreat for Reading and his teammates who finally experienced a victory.
Name: George Edlund, St. Charles North
Date: Week 6, Sept. 30
St. Charles North junior George Edlund was willing to do whatever it took to get the North Stars their first victory of the season. So, he went out and had an unforgettable, record-breaking effort. Edlund set a school record, rushing 39 times for 286 yards. He scored on touchdown runs of 3, 39 and 42 to lead the North Stars to a 37-13 victory over Elgin.
Apparently seeing a winless team wasn't on the top of the must-see list of most St. Charles North students. While the crowd wasn't very big, they missed the biggest rushing performance in school history by Edlund. "The funny thing is that no one really came to that game," he said. "We'd been struggling so that must've kept them away. I was just happy to keep getting the ball to help the team come out on top."
Edlund celebrated the victory and finally gave his legs a rest inside Buffalo Wild Wings. "Everyone was in a very good mood," he said. "I had some wings and stuff but the linemen, those guys ate a lot." Of course, those guys had to earn an appetite creating holes for Edlund, who also earned an appetite but didn't eat nearly as many wings as he had carries (39).
Name: Chris Gustafson, Mooseheart
Date: Week 7, Oct. 8
High school teams are known for scheduling at least one cupcake per year for Homecoming. Class 1A Mooseheart went against the norm, inviting Class 5A CCIS Longwood to Mooseheart where the Red Ramblers improved to 7-0 for the first time since 1996 with a 23-14 victory. Chris Gustafson, one of the team's leading tacklers all season, once again was part of a great collective team effort.
"It was a dogfight of a game and we knew it would be," Gustafson said. "It was a very busy weekend with all of the Homecoming stuff." The Red Ramblers had a lot to do on Saturday. After taking care of business on the football team, Gustafson and his teammates headed off to a party where they were able to refuel, which they'd certainly needed after trading in their football cleats for their dancing shoes. "It was quite a day with Homecoming and then we finished it off with a dance at the school." With a perfect 7-0 record, the Red Ramblers certainly had plenty to celebrate.
Name: Cory Windle, Aurora Christian
Date: Week 7, Oct. 7
Aurora Christian trailed Immaculate Conception, 28-27, but had the ball and 2 minutes and 38 seconds to work with. The Eagles needed all but six of those seconds to score the game-winning touchdown, a 36-yard pass from Anthony Maddie to Cory Windle. The Eagles beat their Suburban Christian Gold foe, 35-28 and Windle enjoyed a sack from McDonald's.
"Coach will usually take the bus somewhere that's open late," Windle said. "We had about 45 minutes to an hour to get home so getting something from McDonald's or anywhere else would've been good." Since road games don't draw as many classmates as home ones, Windle (8 catches, 155 yards in the win) never grew tired of recreating the game-winning touchdown in school the following week. "It was such an intense game and I was so excited that we won, but I really didn't think we won until the ref signaled touchdown," Windle said. "I had a lot of people congratulate me and everyone wanted to talk about, even the non-football ones. So that was a lot of fun. It got brought up a lot which was cool."
Name: Booker Ross, West Aurora
Date: Week 8, Oct. 14
Injuries plagued West Aurora's Booker Ross this season. He certainly was healthy enough to lead the Blackhawks past West Chicago, 41-0. Ross, a 5-foot-11, 195-pounder, only rushed 12 times but still collected 193 yards. His biggest play was a dazzling 94-yard touchdown run.
There wasn't any big-time celebration for Ross and his teammates after snapping a five-game losing streak. It was an especially long and tiring day for Ross after making the trip to West Chicago. "I went straight home," he said. "It was about 11:30 when we got back in town and I just went to sleep." There was time to enjoy the victory on Saturday though. After an early morning practice, Ross joined his teammates at McDonald's for a couple hours of eating and simply hanging out. "That was probably my biggest game of the year," he said. "It's become a team tradition to hang out on Saturdays at McDonald's as a team." Once Monday rolled around Ross was thinking ahead to the Blackhawks next game, but that didn't stop his fellow students and faculty from congratulating him on his breakout game. "They were all congratulating me," he said. "Yep, that was pretty nice."
Name: Charlie Fisher, St. Charles East
Date: Week 9, Oct. 21
The annual clash between the two St. Charles high schools also would mark the end of the season for both squads, which entered the final week with 2-6 records. The great thing about a good cross-town rivalry is you can throw those records right out of the Norris Stadium press box window. St. Charles East senior quarterback Charlie Fisher had an unforgettable final game as he rushed for three touchdowns to lead the Saints to a 23-21 victory.
The Fab Four sang "Strawberry Fields Forever," while Fisher's Fab Four of himself and teammates/best friends Kyle Lanthier, Tim Leibforth and Carter Reading knew playing at Norris Stadium wouldn't last forever. After the victory, Fisher (18 carries, 178 yards) spent some time on the field, soaking in his career and taking pictures with friends and family, including his grandmother. "We had never lost to North since I've been here so I didn't want that last burden to carry," Fisher said. "It was a bittersweet end, but with the season being done it was also a high point." Fisher and the rest of his gang, like they did so often throughout the year, spent most of the evening hanging out, reminiscing about the season as well as what lies ahead next fall in college.
Name: Jacob Razo, Kaneland
Date: Week 9, Oct. 21
Kaneland jumped all over host Morris, leading 24-0 at halftime, in a clash of undefeated Northern Illinois Big 12 East teams. Then, the Knights had to hang on for dear life, including Jacob Razo, who hung on to an interception with 3.7 seconds left to secure Kaneland's second straight perfect 9-0 regular season with a 31-28 win.
As a senior, Razo was able to experience a perfect regular season last fall. Still, the veterans recognized the magnitude of the accomplishment and as a team leader, worked on sharing such with his teammates, which included 40 players who are juniors and underclassmen. "The bus ride back home was really loud and everyone was excited," Razo said. "I was really proud of our team and to represent the coaches. We have a lot of young kids and I tried to pass the message to them that this is a huge deal to go 9-0, so enjoy it, but also don't take it for granted because we have more to play for in the playoffs."
The nice drive back on Route 47 didn't get the Knights back to school until around midnight, but it still was enough time for Razo to retreat to Buffalo Wild Wings, easily the most popular post-game hangout for high school football players. "We knew our focus would turn to the playoffs and finding out who were going to play," Razo said. "Still I went out for some food and hung out with some of the defensive players."
Name: Cole Gardner, Batavia
Date: Week 10, Oct. 28
Batavia finished the regular season with a perfect 9-0 record. That meant very little once they started the post-season and found itself trailing Notre Dame, 28-7, at halftime in the first round of the Class 6A playoffs. Cole Gardner had 3 second-half touchdown catches to lead the Bulldogs to a thrilling, 35-28, come-from-behind victory. Gardner scored the game-tying touchdown, as well as the game-winner with 6:14 remaining.
Thanks to Gardner, the Bulldogs survived a scare from Notre Dame. Later that night, Gardner and some of his teammates and friends got some scares while watching Paranormal Activity 2 at Kevin Schroeder's house. "There were probably 12 to 15 of us at Kevin's," Gardner said. "We hung out, ate some pizza and watched a movie." It was the perfect ending to a wild day for Gardner and the Bulldogs who celebrated earlier while loud music blared in the Bulldogs locker room following the victory. "Kevin's parents had some friends over that were talking about the game a lot so that was cool," Gardner said. "Everyone kept talking about the one play where I dragged the kid." The night definitely wasn't a drag thanks to the heroic performance of Gardner and his fellow Bulldogs.
Name: Drew David, Kaneland
Date: Week 11, Nov. 5
More than 35 years ago, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach threw a game-winning pass to Drew Pearson to beat the Minnesota Vikings in the playoffs. Allegedly, Staubach closed his eyes and said a Hail Mary. Boston College quarterback Doug Flutie arguably has the most notable Hail Mary in college football history, when his pass to Gerard Phelan lifted Boston College past Miami.
As for high school, St. Francis nearly used the Hail Mary to beat Kaneland in a Class 5A second-round playoff game in Maple Park. The Spartans' first attempt went to receiver Jeff Rutkowski who looked to have shocked the Knights only to be flagged for illegal participation. The Spartans second attempt went to James Ferguson who was stopped at the 6-yard line. Game over. Knights win.
Oh, and while on the subject of long, big-time passing plays, Kaneland sophomore quarterback Drew David threw for 354 yards and 4 touchdowns. Perhaps his effort was a bit overlooked due to all the last-second nailbiting?
"You trust your teammates but it's the worst feeling when there's nothing you can do," David said. "It's a helpless feeling but you have to trust your teammates."
It was an exhausting victory for the Knights and David didn't feel like doing much afterward, other than getting back to the comforts of home to relax. "I was exhausted," he said. "I got home, watched the end of some football and just tried to relax and recover a bit." It's been a similar routine throughout the season for David. "I'll usually go out and have fun with friends and teammates on Saturday, but this was an especially weird week because we were out of school on Thursday and Friday and didn't play until Saturday night."
Name: Julian Sosa, Aurora Christian
Date: Week 13, Nov. 19
Aurora Christian trailed 14-7 at halftime of its Class 3A semifinal game against Tolono Unity, but scored 43 points in the second half to win, 50-26. The Eagles only led 29-26 but made it a two-possession game after kicker Julian Sosa sent a kickoff into a gusting wind and then pounced on it to give the Eagles possession on what truly proved to be an unintentional, yet successful, onside kick. The Eagles would score on the extra possession on a 4-yard run from Brandon Mayes to put the game away.
Sosa and his Aurora Christian teammates were the only team celebrating a trip downstate as previously undefeated Batavia lost in 6A on Saturday afternoon while shortly after the Eagles won, Montini rallied past Kaneland in 5A.
As for Sosa, he took the party to Buffalo Wild Wings where he pounced on a big plate of food.
"(The recovered kick) was a momentum changer and then we just got more and more pumped," Sosa said. "It was an exciting time. We were going to state for the first time since 2008 and went out with teammates and my parents and friends. Everyone was really proud of me."
For dessert, Sosa didn't have a Snickers bar, his favorite, because of team rules, but had a few buddies stay over night where they likely all dreamt of what would lie ahead the following week in Champaign.
Name: Brandon Mayes, Aurora Christian
Date: Week 14, Nov. 25
Food and drink have long been associated with sports champions. Large orange coolers of Gatorade drench unsuspecting coaches and post-season MVPs grace boxes of Wheaties. Then, there are thousands who suck down strawberries and cream at Wimbledon while the winner of the Masters selects the menu for Tuesday's winner's-only dinner.
For Aurora Christian, winners of the Class 3A state title with a 34-7 victory over downstate Mt. Carmel, the choice was a simple one: chocolate and pop.
Aurora Christian's players were forbidden from indulging in chocolate and pop during the regular season, even during the sugar-friendly, candy craziness of Halloween, but after winning a state title, there was enough chocolate and pop for the Eagles that it probably would've made a dentist lose sleep.
"We had a lot and it was just a great time," Aurora Christian junior Brandon Mayes said. Mayes led the Eagles with 12 tackles while also contributing 64 rushing yards on 6 carries as he played on both sides of the ball.
The Eagles weren't up into the wee hours of the morning eating candy bars and chugging 2 liters, but they stayed overnight in Champaign before returning home where the celebration continued with a parade and then a pep assembly at their school.
"It was such a great experience," Mayes said. "Although we won we also realized that it was the end for the seniors so we tried to enjoy every moment. There were a lot of people at the school and it was unique because we had some worship time too."
And perhaps a bit of a sugar hangover.