Anderson’s career-high 11 catches help Naperville North rally in loss to Oswego

Naperville North senior Jake Anderson is not the type of wide receiver who is going to take the top off of a defense.

Anderson doesn’t sprint downfield and catch fade passes. He has a different forte.

“It’s the short passing screen game,” he said. “I just try to make something out of every play — lower my head, get more yards, help my team.

“It’s pretty tough, but you’ve just got to keep your head up and be a dog every play.”

The 5-foot-11, 190-pound Anderson does a great job of doing that. Just ask his teammates.

“He’s a dog, man,” senior tight end Aiden Trasatt said. “He’s a big body. He’s going to run people over. He’s not afraid to lower his head and get dirty.”

Anderson did just that on a muddy field Friday night. He caught a career-high 11 passes from senior quarterback Dante Colasante and finished with 51 receiving yards during a game against host Oswego in the second round of the Class 8A playoffs.

“I do think it’s my most tough game of the season,” Anderson said. “I just tried to barrel through people.”

Anderson’s grit helped the 13th-seeded Huskies rally almost all the way back from a 21-0 deficit before the fourth-seeded Panthers, pulled out a 21-19 victory.

Anderson didn’t break a big gainer. His longest reception went for 11 yards. But Colasante kept targeting him, and eventually the short passing game opened up some big holes for junior running back Jayke Collins, who rushed 20 times for 198 yards, including touchdown runs of 55 yards and 20 yards.

The Huskies (8-3) had an extra-point try blocked following Collins’ first touchdown, and Collins was stuffed on a two-point conversion try after his second score.

But Naperville North’s defense, which held the Panthers (10-1) to 83 yards of total offense over the final 22 minutes, got a stop.

Anderson made three catches on the ensuing drive, which ended with Colasante scrambling and finding Trasatt on a 17-yard touchdown pass with 6:56 left in the fourth quarter. It was Trasatt’s only catch of the game.

“I knew he was going to see me,” Trasatt said. “We had that type of connection. I was sitting back there waving. He found me right in the corner, and it felt great to pull that one in. We needed it.”

The Huskies got the ball back on their 22-yard line with 3:39 remaining. Colasante immediately completed a 7-yard pass to Anderson, and Collins picked up a first down with a 10-yard run, but Naperville North turned the ball over on downs at their 42.

“We knew we could come back,” Trasatt said. “We just got to keep swinging. We had no other choice. We had to keep going, keep fighting to play our game.”

That’s what the Huskies did all season. They won seven straight games during the regular season and got their first playoff victory since 2010.

“I think the thing with this team is we’re all stars,” Trasatt said. “We don’t have that guy who thinks he’s outshining everybody else. We’re all here for each other, and it’s that bond that really makes us so strong.”

Colasante, who completed 19 of 29 passes for 129 yards, one touchdown and one interception, built a strong bond with all of the Huskies’ receivers, including Anderson.

“In the offseason, we threw two times a week, at least, and the chemistry from the summer until now has built up so much,” Colasante said. “I have unbelievable trust in that guy. That’s one of my good buddies.

“Those short passes are always open, so I’ll always have trust in getting that ball to him. Some of the short throws didn’t go our way, but you’ve got to keep getting him the ball and expect that one of them will get hit big.”

The Huskies weren’t able to hit the big one that would have kept their season going.

“We made another step,” Naperville North coach Sean Drendel said. “One of these years, we’re going to kick the door in. We’re getting close, so super proud of our kids. We’re fighters.”

Anderson’s efforts epitomized that. He was the ultimate possession receiver, finishing his final season of football with 49 catches on 64 targets for 363 yards and three touchdowns.

“He’s just a tough kid,” Drendel said. “Makes those catches, and he’s not afraid to go block people.”