ST. JOSEPH — Wyatt Wirtz stood on the St. Joseph Ogden football sideline, sipping water and catching his breath.
SJ-O junior returns the opening kickoff 82 yards against West Frankfort to give the host Spartans an early lead in the first round of the Class 3A playoffs at Dick Duvall Field on Saturday afternoon. Considering that, it was natural.
“Sometimes they take a short kick and it turns into a line drive,” Wirtz said. “We got some good momentum. I went with my lead blocker and I saw a good hole open up. I don’t usually have the ball a lot on special teams, so I feel like that in the playoffs. It feels great to be able to taste it.”
But amidst the celebration after Wertz’s kickoff return, one voice stood out above the rest.
“Don’t let that be the best play of the game,” SJ-O junior wide receiver Tim Blackburn-Kelly exclaimed.
It wasn’t. Far from it.
SJ-O showed why it deserves to be the No. 1 seed and has yet to lose a game this season, winning 48-0 against the Redbirds and setting up another epic second-round playoff game. The weekend set the stage for.
Unity’s SJ-O.
On Saturday afternoon, Unity jumped out to an early lead in a first-round game at Roxana before the Rockets won 44-31 and will play the Spartans next Saturday at Hicks Field in Tolono at 2 p.m. I got a chance.
Coach Sean Skinner and his Spartans had already begun to focus on Unity before the sun set this Saturday, basking in the joy of their third straight first-round playoff victory.
“We were going to play a good team either way,” SJ-O junior QB Cody McKinney said. “We are ready for that.”
The same goes for how the Spartans (10-0) closed in on West Frankfort (5-5). Whether McKinney made a big pass, Wirtz made an impressive run, or the SJ-O defense forced takeaway after takeout, SJ-O wasted little time in pulling away from the Redbirds. Ta.
“It was good to jump on them early and keep going, because if we let our guard down a little bit, we could give them some confidence,” SJ-O senior Tanner Seams said. he said.
Seams had as many catches on offense as he did on defense, with two receptions for 96 yards and a touchdown, including a 53-yard catch and a score on fourth down to give the Spartans a 34 with 5:32 left. -0 and gave the lead. Second quarter. He also started at free safety in place of the injured Colin Toomey and used his 6-foot-4, 185-pound frame to intercept two passes from West Frankfort quarterback Lucas Parker.
“Obviously, I prefer wide receiver because that’s my main position, but I’ve always liked playing defense,” Seamus said. “When I was a sophomore, I played free safety and only played defense, so it was fun to come back.”
The Spartans harried the Redbirds’ offense throughout the game, forcing six takeaways as Parker was just 8-of-21 passing for 46 yards and four interceptions. In addition to Seams’ two interceptions, linebackers Ryker Lockhart and James Barron each had an interception in the first half. Senior linebacker Jared Altenbaumer made a fumble recovery on West Frankfort’s early possession to start a turnover party for SJ-O, and senior defensive end Tyton Gerdes had another fumble in the second half. Added recovery.
“This is a testament to our defense,” Skinner said. “They watched a lot of film. They read the scouting reports. That’s the bottom line.”
The end result offensively showed a lot of positive traits for the Spartans as well. McKinney completed 11 of 12 passes for 213 yards and three touchdowns, all in the first half. Wirtz had 64 rushing yards on seven carries and two touchdowns, and Blackburn-Kelly scored a touchdown on a 63-yard punt return with 4:20 left as SJ-O trailed by 41-4. He contributed to the Spartans’ special teams, leading by 0. Second quarter.
SJ-O led 48-0 at halftime, which left them with a running clock for the entire second half, and with SJ-O resting their starters after halftime, many of the Spartans’ young players I had a chance to take some snaps.
But while the starters were out, they made play after play. Senior wide receiver Coy Taylor caught six passes for 75 yards and two touchdowns. He completed a 23-yard screen pass on SJ-O’s first offensive play of the game to give the Spartans a 13-0 lead with 9:54 left in the first quarter, followed by a well-thrown 25-yard pass. Added touchdown catch. A ball from McKinney increased SJ-O’s lead to 27-0 with 8:39 left in the second quarter.
“It made things a lot easier, especially in tough situations,” McKinney said of having a trio of talented receivers in Taylor, Seams and Blackburn Kelly. “On the fourth-down touchdown pass to Seams, I was confident because I knew I was throwing it to him.”
All the confidence the Spartans have built up over the past two months will be put to the test next weekend at Trono. The two longtime rivals and Illini Prairie Conference foes have already played against each other this season, with SJ-O winning 24-21 on a last-minute field goal on Sept. 6 at Dick Duvall Field. I won.
This time, the Spartans will make a short drive south next Saturday, looking for their third straight win against Unity.
The first playoff game between the two programs since 2015 will see one of Champaign County’s tradition-rich programs advance to the state quarterfinals. Unity have made it 16 times so far, achieving a similar result last season. SJ-O had previously advanced to the 16th round, but has not advanced since 2015.
There will be another big bet next weekend. Either the Spartans or Rockets win or go home. Let the hype begin.
“Let’s be honest,” Skinner said. “It’s a prime-time game now. Our program is back. Their program has been there. That’s how it should be. I can’t wait. We’re going to find a way to win as much as possible.” Same thing for them. I couldn’t be more excited. It’s great for our region. It’s great for high school football.”
