Since Matt Battaglia became Fenwick High School’s football coach in 2020, his teams have gone by the motto of “Fenwick FAST,” which features a high-octane offensive style of football that gets downfield in a hurry and can put up a lot of points.
But more often than not in one of the state’s best leagues, the Chicago Catholic League/East Suburban Catholic Conference, games are decided the old-school way: physical, hard-hitting defense, and running games capable of chewing up time.
On Sept. 20 at Triton College in River Forest, the Friars used a drive that took up the final five minutes to salt away a hard-earned 14-10 CCL/ESCC White Division victory over visiting Montini.
“Defense played great,” Battaglia said, “but the offense had too many mistakes, too many turnovers. It took us too long to wake up in the first half.”
Indeed, things started inauspiciously for Fenwick (3-1, 1-0 in CCL/ESCC White) as Jamen Williams threw an interception on the Friars’ second drive to Montini DB Max Bell, who returned it 44 yards to the 1-yard line. The Broncos (2-2, 0-1) immediately cashed in on the next play as JoJo James ran in for a 7-0 Montini lead at the 6:49 mark of the opening quarter.
Fenwick’s offense finally found its way in the second quarter as Williams (18-of-26, 145 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT passing; 11 carries, 73 yards rushing) connected with Raphiel Stewart (three receptions, 36 yards) for a 25-yard touchdown with 6:37 to play. Then with seven seconds left before halftime, Williams hit Emmett Romeus (five receptions, 37 yards) for a nine-yard touchdown and a 14-7 Fenwick lead.
“It was good to see us executing a one-minute situation before halftime,” Battaglia said.
“Jamen did great,” said Fenwick sophomore running back Jalen Morgan (24 carries, 84 yards). “Obviously, we’ve all got things to clean up, but he’s a great leader, and I’m grateful for him.”
Midway through the third quarter, Montini went on a 20-play march that started from its own 8. The Broncos made it to the Friars’ 11, but stalled and settled for a 28-yard field goal from Owen Berberich, which made the score 14-10 going into the final 12 minutes.
A promising drive by Fenwick was halted when Montini’s Vince Irion picked off Williams at the Broncos’ 11 with 7:56 left. James quickly got Montini into Fenwick territory with a 36-yard run, but the Friars’ defense stiffened and forced a punt, giving the offense the ball back with 5:18 left.
Thanks to good, hard running by Morgan and Williams, Fenwick picked up three clutch first downs and was able to eat up all the remaining time.
“I already knew what time it was,” Morgan said. “I was thinking, ‘run through everybody,’ and keep the ball as long as possible.”
“The offensive line had to calm down and do what we do,” Williams said. “Jalen’s been amazing. He’s really stepped up a lot and won us a lot of our games to be frank.”
The victory atoned for a 14-13 loss at Joliet Catholic the previous week. Williams felt it was important for the Friars to finish a close game.
“[Joliet Catholic] was a heartbreaker,” he said. “We were in a close game and didn’t pull it out. This week, we were in another close game and pulled it out, so it feels good.”
Defensively, Aidan Burns and Jack Paris each had a sack for Fenwick, while punter Noah Sur boomed a 64-yard punt.
“I was really proud of Noah,” Battaglia said. “He had a couple of missed field goals last week. We were encouraging him this week because we believe he’s one of the best kickers in the state.”
Even with the victory, Fenwick knows there’s room for improvement.
“We’re still far from playing our best football,” Battaglia said. “We just need to continue to get better each day, each week.”
Fenwick welcomes De La Salle for Homecoming, Sept. 27, at 7:30 p.m.