Plano football tops Peotone 21-6

Entering the Week 6 outing against Peotone, the Plano football team was averaging 43.2 points per game.

Entering the fourth quarter against the Blue Devils, however, the game was scoreless - quite an unusual characteristic for the Reapers. Plano, however, scored three straight touchdowns in a span of about five minutes and defeated Peotone, 21-6, on Homecoming in an Interstate Eight Conference matchup.

"Our special teams kept us in it, our defense kept us in it - and then our offense woke up," Plano head coach Brad Kunz said. "Our (offensive line) really started to click toward the end of the game and really performed. A couple of weeks ago, we lost our left guard, Johnny Nevarez, to a shoulder injury. Nobody realizes how much chemistry it takes for the O-line to get along....I'm just really proud of the consistency and the effort."

With the win, Plano is now 5-1 overall and 3-1 in the conference. Peotone dropped to 2-4 overall and 1-3 in the league.

Plano junior Jay Winter scored two of the Reapers' touchdowns. The first was with 5:38 left in the game on an 8-yard run. He did it again about three minutes later on a 30-yard run. He ended up with 167 yards rushing.

"It's been a process for him - the transition from JV to varsity. Last year on JV, he had 1,300 yards and 20 touchdowns in eight games," Kunz said on Winter. "On varsity you can't do the same things on varsity as you did on JV...The holes weren't really there for him tonight at the beginning of the game, but he just kept plugging away like we've asked him to.

"Jay has the biggest heart you will ever be around. The way he cares for people and the way he attacks life on a daily basis."

After Plano's Jon Menke intercepted a Peotone pass, Tyler Ward scored on a 15-yard quarterback keeper. Senior Sergio Chavez then turned around and connected on his third PAT of the game.

The Reapers were up 21-0 before Peotone quarterback Kale Maupin hit Alex Panning with a 12-yard pass with 29.3 seconds left in the game.

Plano ended up with 268 total yards of offense. Peotone finished with 213.

"I was proud of the effort all around," Peotone head coach Apostolos Tsiamas said. "Our defense has been solid all year...We saw some film (on Plano), so we knew what to expect. We just battled and fought until the very end. Sad thing is, it was right there for us to win. We just didn't make the plays."

Plano's next game is at Sandwich (1-5,1-3). Manteno (6-0, 4-0) defeated the Indians, 61-28, in Week 6 of the season.

"The last time we beat Sandwich in Sandwich was in 2006...It's a tough place to play," Kunz said about Sandwich. "They are going to be up for it, but so are we."

"They are our rivals, so we are excited for this one," Winter added on Sandwich. "We'll be ready."

Kunz is hoping Damien Nunez will return to action on the defensive line after hurting his knee in Week 5 against Streator. Junior Martinez, however, came back this week after sitting out almost a month with an injury.

Kunz also wanted to mention one of the unsung heroes on the Reapers, Oscar Delabra, as well.

"He's a 5-foot-6 nose tackle who has caused havoc in the middle," Kunz said.