St. Francis rolls past Grayslake North in Class 5A playoff opener

One word adorned the front of St. Francis football coach Bob McMillen's royal-blue hoodie Friday night.

BATTLE.

His Spartans didn't waste much time answering the call.

The reigning Class 5A state champions scored three touchdowns in the game's first 3 minutes, 42 seconds, capitalized on two Grayslake North special-teams miscues, and cruised to a 61-6 victory over the host Knights in a Class 5A opening-round playoff game.

The weather was mild.

St. Francis’ offense?

Scorching.

St. Francis led 20-0 before Grayslake North could catch its breath.

And 55-6 by halftime.

"We came out and tried to do our best," McMillen said. "We didn't want to show too much."

The 18th-seeded Spartans (5-5), who won three of their final four regular-season games, advance to face second-seeded Kaneland next weekend.

Fifteenth-seeded Grayslake North finished 5-5, having reached the postseason for the third time in five seasons under coach Brian Johnson.

"We played hard," Johnson said. "We're very, very young, with only two senior starters. We made a big leap from last year, getting over .500 in the regular season.

“We kept battling."

The Knights opened with an onside kick, hoping to steal a possession from the defending champions, but St. Francis recovered at its 46-yard line.

Two plays later, junior quarterback Jadon Wilson connected with freshman Ty'Ree Dickson for a 25-yard touchdown.

A muffed kickoff return, recovered by sophomore Dom Campobasso, set up Wilson's 4-yard scoring pass to junior Blayke Lohmann at 10:50.

Then sophomore linebacker Peter Alt blocked a quick kick, handing St. Francis another short field.

Wilson found junior Greg Bess-Henning for a 12-yard touchdown at 8:18, their third score in less than four minutes.

Wilson finished 5-of-8 passing for 89 yards and three touchdowns, adding a 5-yard scoring run late in the first quarter.

"We stayed efficient," Wilson said. "Everybody did their job, their part."

Grayslake North produced the night's longest scoring run.

Senior Beckett Dovel broke loose for a 70-yard touchdown with 3:38 remaining in the second quarter. He finished with a game-high 137 yards on 11 carries, providing a bright spot for the Knights.

St. Francis sophomore quarterback Luke Rentmeester threw three second-quarter touchdown passes, including strikes of 28 and 29 yards to Dickson. Rentmeester completed 8 of 9 passes for 103 yards.

Dickson finished with three receptions for 82 yards and three touchdowns. Senior Tivias Caldwell Jr. added 84 rushing yards and a score.

Spartans freshman Donovan Humphrey — QB3 — connected with Campobasso for a 27-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.

McMillen praised his team's depth, particularly at quarterback, but saved some of his strongest words for the opponent.

"That's a good, well-coached program," he said. "Their players battled hard for 48 minutes."