Sometime this week the Oak Park and River Forest High School football team will probably convene one last time and perhaps even discuss its 41-26 loss to visiting Palatine in a second-round matchup of the Class 8A playoffs.
After Saturday’s disappointing loss, as evidenced by the tears and hugs shared between the players after the game, the Huskies simply couldn’t believe their season was over, let alone talk about it.
Amid all the postgame emotion, OPRF head coach John Hoerster was quick to praise his players.
“Our team has a lot be proud about this year,” Hoerster said. “It’s really hard to put that in perspective now after such a tough loss. I just hope that they can look back years from now and feel good about what they accomplished. Our kids did some really great things this season.”
Unfortunately, the Huskies had no answer for Palatine’s potent passing combination of quarterback Zachary Oles and senior wide receiver Matt Lamm. The duo combined for four touchdowns in the first half as the Pirates scored TDs on five of seven offensive possessions to seize a 35-19 halftime lead.
“We could not lock down No. 13 (Lamm) at all. He looked like Randy Moss out there,” OPRF junior safety Rolliann Sturkey said. “If we would have taken away him at the beginning (of the game), and played like we did in the second half, the game would have been much closer.”
Reminiscent of its other loss this season (34-7 against Glenbard West), OPRF actually got off to a promising start against Palatine. After holding the Pirates to a three-and-out, OPRF went on an 11-play, 70-yard drive with four first downs and several quick timing patterns from quarterback Keegan Smith to wide receivers Cole Fields and Breshawn Wilkerson. Facing a fourth-and-15 at the Palatine 17, Smith rolled out right and fired a TD pass to Fields to put OPRF up 6-0 midway through the first quarter.
Palatine responded with Oles’ first TD throw to Lamm for 24 yards followed by Michael Hillmer’s extra point to take a 7-6 lead with 5:25 left in the first quarter.
OPRF regained the advantage 12-7 when Smith tossed a 29-yard pass to senior running back Jamarri Watson on another clutch fourth down conversion.
Oles scored on a 10-yard run up the middle with 13.4 seconds remaining in the first quarter as Palatine pulled ahead for good at 14-12. Midway through the second quarter, Old connected with Lamm on a 12-yard TD pass, extending the Pirates’ advantage to 21-12.
Senior running back Antonio Cannon pulled the Huskies back within 21-19 on a brilliant 51-yard run at the 2:41 mark of the second quarter.
“The guard pulled and I got to the second level,” Cannon said about the run. “I saw two of my linemen to my right and I made cuts off their blocks. After that it was just open space so I made sure that I took it to the house.”
Palatine tacked on two touchdowns over the final 1:30 of the first half to lead 35-19. Oles threw a pair of 24-yard passes to Lamm in the end zone to highlight the scoring spurt.
During the Pirates’ last scoring drive of the first half, OPRF defensive end Allen Stallings sacked Oles for what appeared to be a fumble that was recovered by OPRF teammate Sam Francis. The officials ruled it an incomplete pass. While OPRF had its hands full against the Pirates regardless, that play signified perhaps it just wasn’t the Huskies’ day.
Palatine kept the pressure on early in the third quarter when Oles broke free for a 73-yard scamper into the end zone to make the score 41-19.
OPRF scored its final TD of the season on a 2-yard run by Smith with 5:25 left in the third quarter to cut the margin to 41-26.
“We never stepped fighting. That’s just the personality of this group,” Hoerster said. “Hats off to Palatine. They executed what they do really well. I think they also used what we do well, which is being an aggressive team, against us. Palatine did some double moves which left some of their guys open, protected the ball well and their quarterback made some good throws. Defensively, I though they played a great bend but don’t break style against us.”
In the fourth quarter, Ryan Molina (interception) and Sturkey (blocked punt) made big plays but the Huskies went scoreless.
OPRF matched up on stat sheet, if not scoreboard
Statistically, Palatine and OPRF actually put up comparable numbers. The Huskies outgained the Pirates in total offense 502-463 yards, time of possession 26:19-21:41 and first downs 24-20. Both teams had a high number of penalties with OPRF committing 11 for 105 yards and Palatine 10 for 85 yards.
Smith completed 31 of 44 passes for 258 yards with two TDs and two interceptions. He rushed seven times for 53 yards. Cannon (10 carries, 95 yards) and Watson (14 carries, 91 yards) also ran well for OPRF, while junior wide receiver Eddie Gorens had a team-high nine receptions for 69 yards. Cannon had eight catches for 81 yards and Fields caught seven passes for 48 yards.
Sturkey paced OPRF in tackles with eight and Keyon Blankenbaker finished with seven tackles. Evan Bell recorded six tackles while Jahmari Moore and Molina had five tackles apiece.
Understandbly, a bittersweet feeling permeated the Huskies’ postgame huddle. For the third straight season, the Huskies produced a strong showing in the regular season followed by an early departure in the playoffs.
“Losing this game today is definitely one of the worst memories I’ll have in my life,” Stallings said. “Overall though, being a part of the OPRF football program has been great. My teammates are my brothers and I would do anything for these guys. I loved being a part of our defense. It’s the best defense I’ve ever been a part of and we had great players, great captains.”
Added Cannon: “Coach (Hoerster) talked about how different personalities can clash but we still must form one unit. I love the guys on our team and I wouldn’t trade them for the world. It hurts that we lost but we can’t do anything about it now. I left it all out all on the field, had a great season and was injury-free so glory to God on this day.”
Despite the loss to the Pirates, OPRF had another terrific season under Hoerster. The Huskies finished 9-2, highlighted by a second-place showing in their conference and impressive victories against Lincoln-Way East, Hinsdale Central and Fremd.
Led by Cannon and Watson, the offense performed well particularly considering a late-season switch at quarterback from Jeremy Hunt to Smith. The defense was even better led by senior standouts like Stallings, Moore, Francis, Bell, Wilkerson and Connor Nelson. OPRF held opponents to seven points or less in five of 11 games.
Looking ahead to next year, OPRF returns several talented players including Sturkey, Blankenbaker, Molina Gorens, Austin Maxwell, Kohri Blair, Jared Scott and Christopher Banks-Mitchell, among others, plus 60 percent of the starting offensive line.
“I’m excited about next season and I look forward to being a leader of the team,” Sturkey said. “It’s tough to lose, but we had a good run this season. Ever since we started with weightlifting and 7-on-7’s during the offseason, it’s been a lot of fun. I love our seniors and it was a good season.”
