Nathan Whitwell, dominant Batavia ‘D’ go old school to defeat Downers Grove North

BATAVIA – Chase Osborne may be the smallest kid on the football field, but Batavia’s 5-foot-9, 165-pound senior safety is one giant playmaker.

Just ask his coach.

“All-State DB is this tall. Tell me the plays you saw him make today,” Batavia coach Dennis Piron said. “He is everywhere on the field. A monster on the reverse, tackles for loss on screens. He just terrorizes you. He is taking us where we need to be.”

[ Photos: Batavia vs. Downers Grove North ]

Osborne was the center fielder and back line of a spectacular defensive effort Nov. 16. Batavia turned to an old-school approach on a windy afternoon – defense and the 40-carry running of Nathan Whitwell – to grind out a 17-7 win over visiting Downers Grove North in a Class 7A state quarterfinal.

Batavia (11-1), in a state semifinal for the third consecutive season, advanced to play at Lincoln-Way Central (9-3). Batavia beat Lincoln-Way Central 45-17 in the second round of the playoffs last year.

The Bulldogs in Saturday’s win could thank a defense that held Downers Grove North (10-2) to 17 yards rushing and shut out the Trojans’ offense. With Batavia ahead 14-7, the Bulldogs’ Jake Feller had an interception on Downers Grove North’s first drive of the second half that started at midfield. Feller later teamed with Gavin Pecor to block a field-goal attempt.

Downers Grove North quarterback Owen Lansu, a Minnesota recruit, was 18-for-30 passing for 146 yards.

“Our game plan was to come out aggressive. We were not going to let them throw the ball all over us, give them time in the pocket,” Osborne said. “We have the most athletic DB group in Batavia history, I think.”

And a big group up front that had Downers Grove North’s offense out of sync throughout the game. Batavia ran 68 plays, almost double the Trojans’ 39.

“That’s just credit to the big, scary dudes up front, Malachi [Smith], Xavier [Blanquel] and all our linebackers. I’d be out of sync, too,” Osborne said. “They take care of the hard stuff. Our job is easy.”

Batavia needed late magic and the passing of sophomore quarterback Michael Vander Luitgaren to rally from 21 points down to beat Lincoln-Way West in the second round of the playoffs. Vander Luitgaren and Bodi Anderson rotated at quarterback Saturday, frequently in the same series, throwing the ball to six receivers. Batavia even used Greyson Kelly behind center out of the Wildcat.

But Whitwell did most of the work.

He rushed for 157 yards on 40 carries, his 1-yard touchdown run providing the game’s first points with 7:27 left in the first quarter.

The defining drive came on Batavia’s next possession. Whitwell had seven carries and Vander Luitgaren and Anderson both completed passes on a 16-play, 91-yard drive. Vander Luitgaren’s 16-yard TD pass to Isaiah Brown on third and goal capped it off for a 14-0 lead with 7:22 left in the second quarter.

Whitwell’s heavy workload is nothing new. He carried the ball 35 times in Batavia’s season-opening win at Glenbard West. Batavia’s offense looks a lot different now with two quarterbacks subbing in and out, but Whitwell still is at the center of it.

“These are my favorite type of games. Pound the ball 40-some times,” said Whitwell, who topped 100 yards for the eighth time this season. “It’s a blessing to get the ball that many times and have your team block for you. One of my coaches said, ‘You remember Glenbard West. Let’s do it again.’ And I said let’s do it.”

Downers Grove North closed to within 14-7 at halftime on Oliver Thulin’s 26-yard interception return for a touchdown.

The Trojans got the ball at midfield on their first possession of the second half. Farrell stepped in front of Lansu’s third-down pass, a turnover that led to Caleb Peters’ 21-yard field goal and a 17-7 Batavia lead.

“We had opportunities offensively and just didn’t capitalize,” Downers Grove North coach Joe Horeni said. “We weren’t the best in some of our runs sets. We could have run the ball a little better. We just had to capitalize on opportunities.”

Osborne snuffed out the Trojans’ last best chance.

After Downers Grove North drove inside the 10-yard line midway through the fourth quarter, Osborne sniffed out an end around and dropped Max Troha for a 9-yard loss. The Trojans eventually turned it over on downs.

“Honestly, I’m not very good in the pass coverage, OK in pass coverage, but I’ve been playing football since I was 5 years old,” said Osborne, who had 100 tackles during the regular season. “Back then, all I did was run. I’m good at run stopping.”

Downers Grove North, last year’s Class 7A runner-up, fell short of returning to state. Horeni still saluted a group that led the Trojans to back-to-back quarterfinals for the first time since 2012 and 2013.

“I’m proud of our kids,” Horeni said. “It’s a special group of seniors. They won a lot of games at Downers Grove North.”