Dylan Hodges, Sycamore ground attack take care of Noble/Bulls for first-round win

SYCAMORE – Playing in front of the home crowd in its first action of the postseason, No. 1 Sycamore was a force to be reckoned with on the ground.

The Spartans ran for six touchdowns against No. 16 Chicago Noble/Bulls. Five of them were in the first half in a 50-8 rout of the Bulls (5-5) in a Class 5A first-round playoff game Saturday at Engh Community Field.

Senior running back Dylan Hodges spearheaded the Spartans’ rushing attack with 118 yards and a touchdown.

Hodges said Sycamore’s rushing success was thanks to the Spartan offensive line firing off the snap faster.

“Our line got off fast,” Hodges said. “When you move the defensive line like they did fast and get off at them quick, they’ll go down fast. And that’s exactly what we did.”

While Sycamore was nearly unstoppable when it kept the ball on the ground, coach Joe Ryan knows improvement is needed in the opening stages.

“I’m not going to sit here and complain about a 50-8 win,” Ryan said. “But certainly, we think we can do some things better, and we’ll have to.”

The Spartans struggled coming out the gate with a three-and-out on their first possession, with senior quarterback Burke Gautcher fumbling the snap on their first play from scrimmage. Sycamore quickly got the ball back with an interception by senior linebacker Caden O’Donnell.

Sycamore then scored on each of its next four possessions. Junior running back Kevin Lee found the end zone first with a 1-yard run, with Gautcher converting the ensuing 2-point attempt. Gautcher scored the following drive with a 1-yard keeper to put Sycamore up 15-0 after the first quarter.

Lee struck again at the start of the second quarter with a 25-yard TD rush. On the first play of the Bulls’ responding drive, senior quarterback Smith threw his second interception to senior defensive back Carter York.

Sycamore capitalized on the takeaway five plays later with a 10-yard touchdown run by junior wide receiver Josiah Mitchell.

Matters went from bad to worse for the Bulls. Pinned in his own red zone, freshman punter Ivan Perez had his punt blocked by O’Donnell, who returned it for a short touchdown.

Leading 43-0 at halftime, Sycamore was able to rest its starters in the second half.

“It’s huge. We’re still in the game, cheering on our guys and stuff. Being out to go out during that first half and it’s nice, because we don’t have to take the risk of getting injured,” Hodges said.

With a running clock in effect, Noble/Bulls began the second half with possession and ate up most of the third quarter with a nine-minute scoring drive. Sophomore wide receiver Reggie Courtland scored the Bulls’ only points of the day on a 14-yard touchdown run and a 2-point conversion.

Sycamore closed out the scoring with a touchdown run from junior backup quarterback Isaiah Feuerbach. On third-and-18, Feuerbach escaped left and scrambled near the goal line before breaching the end zone on his second effort.

Saturday’s victory was Ryan’s 150th at Sycamore, a milestone he took little credit for. Earlier this season he picked up his 200th career win.

“This is not a one-man show,” Ryan said. “I’ve had a bunch of great players throughout the years and great coaches.”

The Spartans will advance to the second round, facing ninth-seeded Chicago Westinghouse, which was a 32-14 winner against Chicago Prosser. The game likely will be Saturday in Chicago.