FOOTBALL: H-F Tops Sandburg in Conference Battle

Breaking it Down: Homewood-Flossmoor and Sandburg had to wait 20 extra minutes Friday night, Oct. 19, due to senior night, but the Vikings didn't waste any time once they got on the field to make a statement.

The Vikings notched two touchdowns in just seven offensive plays to start the game, with scoring drives of 67 and 56 yards. Both drives were capped by Vikings' quarterback Ronald Johnson touchdown tosses.

The never-say-die Eagles didn't quit though, as Sandburg battled back in the second half, scoring on a Miles Taylor touchdown run and picking off Johnson late in the fourth quarter. The effort wouldn't be enough though, as the Vikings held on to win 21-8 and bound into the state playoffs with a win.

Patch’s MVP: Ronald Johnson, quarterback, Homewood-Flossmoor. Johnson tossed three touchdown passes in the game, each to a different receiver. He finished the game with 143 yards on 10-of-16 passing.

Homewood-Flossmoor Stat Pack: Taje Smith rushed for 135 yards and caught a touchdown, Vashon Nutt and Patrick Sheehan both caught touchdowns. On defense, Patrick Johnson, Thaddeus Little and Malachi Shannon all had tackles for loss.

Sandburg Stat Pack: Miles Taylor rushed for the lone Eagles score, Brendan Conlon had an interception. Robert Boyd III had a sack on defense.

Quotable I: "We've been practicing real, real, real hard this week, trying to bounce back from Bolingbrook and Lincoln-Way East. We've just been practicing real, real hard. Putting in extra time in the film room and the weight room." - Taje Smith, HF running back, on his team's preperations for the game.

Quotable II: "We didn't expect that, we knew they had a great offense, we knew they were explosive. ... We still didn't expect them to score in two plays."- Sandburg Head Coach Dave Wierzal on HF's fast start.

Team Records: The win improves Homewood-Flossmoor to 7-2 overall and 5-2 in the Southwest Suburban Blue Conference. The loss drops Sandburg to 7-2 overall and 5-2 in the Southwest Suburban Blue Conference.

What’s Next: Both teams will have their playoff pairings announced at 9:18 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 20.

Scores of Interest: Lincoln-Way East 42, Joliet West 6; Bolingbrook 31, Lockport 10. For more scores, check out the IHSA Scorezone.