In a game that saw a lot of mistakes from both sides, it wasn't all bad. Certainly if you read today's game story in The Sun, you know that Naperville Central wide receiver Riley O'Toole is something special for the Redhawks.
But I also thought junior Nick Linne did a good job in his debut as quarterback. Although the highlight was his 59-yard touchdown pass to O'Toole to end the first half, I was impressed by Linne's ability to run when he needed to. He bruised his way for two yards there, six yards here, but those yards add up. Linne also broke free for what should have been a 34-yard touchdown run to start the fourth quarter, but it was called back on a penalty. Central's defense also really caught fire in the second half, but went after Waubonsie quarterback Tyler Castro hard throughout the game.
As for the Warriors, it was a really rough night with all the penalties and special teams mistakes. However, Castro played well. A number of his passes were either right on target or very, very close. And despite some of the dropped passes, I was pretty impressed with Waubonsie's receiving corps. Mark Hilgers and Scott Kuehn especially stood out as bright spots. Even though last night's game wasn't the outcome expected, I think Warriors fans might see the best air attack in the last four years. The defense isn't where it was last season, but we've yet to see the impact that sophomore Owen Saldana might have at middle linebacker. Nonetheless, they had their moments. A fumble recovery in the first quarter and a killer display of tenacity to start the second. Central found themselves 1st-and-goal on the Warriors four yard line, but the Warriors shut the door at the one and bolted it closed when Pat Wellman broke up a pass into the endzone.
Both teams played with almost entirely new offensive lines and I have to give Central the edge on that one. Still, there's a lot of work to be done at both schools.
For those of you who were at the game, what bright spots did you see?
