Fullback Jack Finn, Prairie Ridge run past crosstown rival Crystal Lake South

CRYSTAL LAKE – Late in the first quarter of Prairie Ridge’s 49-0 Fox Valley Conference road romp over Crystal Lake South on Friday, Wolves senior fullback Jack Finn was handed the football.

It was his fifth carry of the game, but this one in particular was special.

Doing his best Barry Sanders’ impersonation, Finn juked several defenders near the line of scrimmage just inside Gators territory.

Once he got into South’s secondary and beyond the line of scrimmage, the real show began.

Finn stepped on the gas pedal with an electric burst of speed. He cut right, then left, then snapped back to his right again behind a blocker.

He had one final trick up his sleeve, cutting rapidly to his left one more time, juking past several defensive backs for a highlight-reel, 46-yard touchdown run.

Finn had three of Prairie Ridge’s seven first-half rushing TDs, this one prompting a raucous chant from the Wolves’ student section once he found the end zone.

“Freaky Finn!” shouted the Prairie Ridge students. “Freaky Finn!”

“They were?” Finn asked after the win. “I didn’t even realize that. That’s kind of cool. But this was a total team effort. Our coaches, our blocking, a total team effort.”

It was that kind of night for the Wolves (2-0 overall, 2-0 FVC), who ran for 317 yards in the first half and 350 yards in the game’s first 24 minutes.

Finn carried the ball eight times for 163 yards, while junior teammate Luke Vanderwiel (10 carries, 106 yards) had three first-half rushing TDs, as well.

“I go to give credit to our scout team,” Wolves junior center Benjamin Nystrom said. “Nights like this happen because they work so hard, along with our coaches, to prepare us.

“We spend a lot of time watching film, too. We stayed disciplined tonight, and as long as we keep working this hard every week, the wins will keep piling up.”

Junior Jake Wagler (10 carries, 52 yards) had the other rushing TD for the Wolves, whose defense pitched a shutout for the second straight week.

Prairie Ridge held the Gators (0-2, 0-2 FVC) to only 20 first-half yards, while getting a pair of sacks – one by Andrew Koeppen, the other by senior linebacker Jace Kranig.

The second half then featured a running clock.

First-year Wolves coach Mike Frericks was asked to give his team’s overall performance a letter grade. He didn’t hesitate.

“A-minus,” Frericks said. “We did a whole bunch of things right, but we also had a turnover on special teams and four or five costly penalties we’ll need to look at on film and clean up.

“But for the most part, I was pleased. This was a very solid road win on both sides of the football.”

The Gators, meanwhile, fared much better during the second half.

Senior Logan Miller (15 carries, 99 yards) was a yard shy of the century mark on the ground. And South didn’t allow a point during the game’s final 24 minutes.

“That second half is something we can hang our hats on,” Gators coach Rob Fontana said. “We got better as the game went on and didn’t let that first half affect our effort during the rest of the game.”

“The other thing is this: Every week in the Fox Valley Conference is a playoff game. There are no breaks. There are no easy teams to beat. Our guys are resilient. They’ll work hard starting next Monday, and rebound and come back strong.”

The Wolves, meanwhile, are coming off a season where they went 9-0, before losing in heartbreaking fashion in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs to Nazareth.

They’ve outscored teams 66-0 over their first two games, and appear to be a contender in the FVC yet again.

“I was extremely lucky to inherit this roster and such a great group of kids from [former] coach Schremp,” Frericks said. “We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves. Our goal is to be playing our best football every week when we step on the field.

“As long as we keep doing that, the rest should take care of itself.”