Most of time when a movie has a sequel it usually isn’t as good as the original. The fans from Springfield Sacred Heart Griffin were hoping this wasn’t true. Last Friday Night in Rochester – the feature showing was “Leonard Bowl II“. Both teams entered the game undefeated and ranked #1 in their respective class. Rochester entered as the defending Class 4A State Champion and ranked #1 in Class 4a, while SHG was ranked #1 in 6A. Last year, in the showing of “Leonard Bowl I” , Rochester outlasted SHG for the 13-10 win.
Last Friday, I made the drive down to Rochester to cover one of the most anticipated games of the year in Central IL. Two of the biggest questions that were lingering all week were 1. Will Oklahoma State recruit Wes Lunt play? and 2. How many people would be at the game?
During warmup’s it looked like Wes may be the starting QB.
Wes Lunt – warming up in Pre-game
During warm-up, word quickly began to spread that Wes would not be playing this evening.
Battle of the Banners
Springfield Sacred Heart Griffin’s Banner
Rochester’s Banner
Two of the main directors of the game were Legendary Coach Ken Leonard (SHG) and his son Coach Derek Leonard (RHS).
Father and Son wish each other good luck before kickoff
The game started off just how Coach Ken Leonard wanted it to. The Cyclones drove down the field and scored, led by the running of Tavion Whitaker.
Tavion Whitaker 14 rushes – 127 yds | 1 TD
Then it was Rochester’s turn to show what they could do with the ball. Several minutes later Austin Green connected with Zach Grant for a long touchdown pass.
Austin Green 28 – 56 271 yds 2 TD, 3 int
End of 1st quarter it was tied 7-7.
At the start of the 2nd quarter, SHG marched down the field to the 1 yard line and then let a golden opportunity to score slip away. After a series of penalties, SHG ended up turning the ball over on downs. Rochester thought this would be their time to take the lead, but SHG defense had other plans and ended up blocking Rochester’s punt.
Several minutes later, SHG Running Back Chris Harris broke loose for a 21 yd touchdown run.
Chris Harris takes the handoff from QB Pat Smith
On the next possession, Rochester decided to go back to the passing game.
Austin Green passes to #34 Garrett Dooley
But as Rochester was driving, the SHG defense stepped up and intercepted a pass from Austin Green.
On the next play after the interception, QB Pat Smith found #18 Michael Reavy across the middle for a 46 yard touchdown pass. This extended SHG lead to 21 – 7.
#18 Michael Reavy breaks away from the Rochester defender to score his first of two touchdowns on the night.
With only seconds left in the 2nd quarter Austin Green found his favorite receiver Zach Grant in the corner of the end zone for his 2nd touchdown.
Zach Grant catches his 2nd touchdown with 7 seconds in the half.
Halftime 21-14 | Springfield Sacred Griffin
At the start of the 3rd quarter, everyone was wondering how Springfield would respond to Rochester’s last second touchdown before the half. It only took a few minutes to find out when SHG drove down the field behind the running of Whitaker and Harris. Harris scored from 4 yards out for his 2nd touchdown of the night.
SHG now led 27-14.
Whitaker is a beast at running back
Chris Harris powers his way for another touchdown. Harris ended the night 15-115 yds 2 TDs
Rochester tried to get back into the game, but several key turnovers proved too costly.
Zach Grant dives for a pass.
#45 Seth Cronin puts a big hit on a #28 Chris Harris
SHG went on to score two more times. QB Pat Smith connected with Michael Reavy and Kemper Younkin added the insurance touchdown in the 4th quarter.
QB Pat Smith – 13-16 224 yards 2 TD
Overall, I had a awesome time at the game. I finally had the opportunity to meet Greg Beherns, ChinMusic, RocketMom and many other IHSS Members. The Taft Ribeye before the game was top notch.
SHG is a great football team and well deserving of their #1 ranking in 6A. As for as Rochester, right now I feel that they are a very good Class 4A football team. Once they get Wes Lunt back in the lineup, I think they will become a very scary 4A football team.