Minnesota commit Owen Lansu makes presence felt in return, helps Downers North turn away Hinsdale Central

HINSDALE – More than the Old Oaken Bucket was on the line Oct. 25 at Dickinson Field in Hinsdale when Hinsdale Central hosted Downers Grove North in a key West Suburban Silver contest.

The Red Devils needed a victory to clinch playoff eligibility. While the hosts put up a strong fight, the visiting Trojans regained the services of junior quarterback Owen Lansu, one of the area’s top players. The Minnesota commit made his presence felt and led Downers North to a 42-28 victory.

“The tradition we want to set is that the Bucket stays in Downers Grove,” said Lansu, who completed 17-of-23 passes for 278 yards and three touchdowns. “Tonight was a little bit tougher than we expected to be honest, but we persevered.”

It took three plays for Downers North (8-1, 5-1 in WSC Silver) to hit pay dirt. Lansu connected with Tavarez Edwards (three receptions, 157 yards) for a 38-yard touchdown just a little more than 90 seconds into the game.

“It feels great to be back,” Lansu said. “I hated not being able to play, but the guys stepped up while I was out. We’re getting healthier and feel ready for the playoffs.”

Undaunted, Hinsdale Central (4-5) responded on its first play from scrimmage as Riley Contreras (15-of-28, 268 yards, two TDs) hit Dominic Tressiar (five receptions, 98 yards) for a 75-yard touchdown.

On their next possession, the Red Devils took the lead when Contreras found Finn Cain for a 30-yard strike.

Downers North countered on the ensuing drive as Jake Gregorio bulled his way in from three yards out to even things at 14-14.

The Trojans regained the lead on Lansu’s quarterback sneak from a yard out with 5:07 left in the half.

Hinsdale Central refused to yield. Patrick Connors’ 31-yard run set up his 1-yard score just before halftime that tied the game again at 21-21.

“It was wild, score after score,” Downers North coach Joe Horeni said. “I’ll tell you (Hinsdale) is the best 4-5 team in the state of Illinois.”

The game’s turning point occurred at the start of the second half. Hinsdale Central went three-and-out on offense and Downers North needed only three plays to make the Red Devils pay. Alex Fiermuga (10 rushes, 95 yards) broke loose for a 31-yard score with 9:27 left in the third quarter, giving the Trojans the lead for good.

“It’s a game of momentum,” Hinsdale Central coach Brian Griffin said. “Throughout the year, we’ve had one or two moments in games where the momentum switched and it’s been tough for us to come back.”

Early in the fourth quarter, Lansu hit Edwards for an 84-yard touchdown that seemed to take the air out of Hinsdale Central.

“Tavarez just started playing receiver a couple of weeks ago,” Horeni said. “He’s a phenomenal kid and we’ve been working hard to get him involved on both sides of the ball.”

The Red Devils didn’t quit and pulled to within a touchdown on Contreras’s 4-yard keeper with 6:08 left.

Lansu landed the knockout blow with two clutch completions: 45 yards to Tavarez Edwards on third-and-4 from the Downers North 36 and 11 yards to Joe Edwards on fourth-and-2 from the Hinsdale Central 11, the latter making the score 42-28 with 2:38 left.

“There were a lot of third downs where they executed and we didn’t,” Griffin said.

Any flickering Hinsdale Central hopes were doused on the ensuing drive when the Trojans’ Caden Chiarelli intercepted Contreras at the Downers North 46 with 1:33 remaining.

“I’m proud of my kids for fighting through adversity that we haven’t seen a ton of,” Horeni said.

Griffin was proud of his Red Devils for their effort.

“(Downers North) is a really good football team and I hope they go far,” Griffin said. “We challenged our kids to give everything and I think they did. I don’t think anyone would’ve thought it’d be tied at halftime. I couldn’t be more prouder.”

Oliver Thulin had eight catches for 108 yards for Downers North.

The Trojans, last year’s Class 7A runner-up, now prepare for another postseason run. Downers North hosts Wheaton Warrenville South (5-4) at 7 p.m. Friday in the first round of the playoffs.

Lansu believes the Trojans are up for the challenge.

“We feel confident we’ve got a shot against anyone we play,” he said. “We’ve got to focus on staying healthy and executing on every play. We know how much this means and the learning experiences from last year will hopefully help this year.”