Gavin Lanham delivers under pressure for Princeton

Gavin Lanham got a text from teammate Will Lott the day after the second-round playoff game in Chicago telling him he was out of action with a broken foot.

Lanham knew what that meant. He was in.

Lanham would be taking over as quarterback for Princeton in its biggest game of the season despite taking very few snaps all season when the Tigers squared off against Lombard Montini in Saturday’s Class 3A quarterfinals.

“I was thinking I had to have confidence and be ready and study a lot and get ready,” he said. “I tried to be as confident as I could. Just being nervous I would have made more mistakes.”

Lanham said he had always been a quarterback and was ready to answer the bell.

While he did have an early fumble, Lanham came back to throw a 50-yard touchdown pass to senior Kaydin Gibson to tie the game late in the first half. It would be the Tigers’ only score of the game in a 24-7 loss.

Remarkable, considering Lanham had never attempted a pass in varsity competition before Saturday and he completed 5-of-10 passes on the day for 70 yards and one interception, including the touchdown gem.

“We had that set up and thinking it would work,” Lanham said. “It was me faking the pass to Noah (LaPorte) and them biting on that because they’re going to expect us to throw to him and Gibby just slipping through there. It was the perfect play.”

“We put together a game plan what Gavin does well and I thought Gavin did a great job,” Tiger coach Ryan Pearson said. “That’s really the first whole game he played at the quarterback position this year and to do it in a game of this magnitude really shows a lot about Gavin. I thought he led the offense really, really well.”

Part of the game plan included utilizing a single-wing formation with Lanham and running back Casey Etheridge both with their hands up to keep the Broncos guessing on who the ball would be snapped to.

“They weren’t expecting that,” Lanham said.

Lanham said he got great support from his teammates throughout the game.

“They were saying I got this and they all believed in me. That helped a lot,” he said.

Teammate Noah LaPorte and Tiger assistant Nick Lower said Lanham shined under pressure.

“Anybody else that got thrown in that position, they wouldn’t have done as well as he did,” LaPorte said. “He’s going in against a team that’s probably going to win state and he did great.”

“He wasn’t phased at all and kept his composure. Kid’s tough as nails,” Lower said.

While Lanham took over at quarterback, Lott had the tough assignment to only be able to watch his last high school game from the sidelines and do his best to support Lanham and the team.

“It was rough, but I was just trying to bring energy to the team to keep us fighting in the game,” Lott said.

Quarterfinals heartbreak

The loss was the fourth straight in quarterfinal play for the Tigers, the first two to IC Catholic and the last two at the hands of Montini.

The Princeton seniors poured their hearts and souls into Tiger football the past four seasons. It’s never easy to walk away when it’s all over.

“I love being a Princeton Tiger. Always going to be a Princeton Tiger,” LaPorte said, his voice cracking. “Playing with all my friends since the fifth grade. That’s the biggest thing. I grew up with all these kids. That’s a great feeling.”

LaPorte will be playing his next football for Northwestern University.

Pearson said the seniors all left their mark on the Tiger program with their leadership.

“Not only are they great football players, they’re great young men,” he said. “They represent our program in about any way a coach would want them to do it. And they’re going to be tough to replace. We told our underclassmen, what great examples they have left. Fortunately, we’ve had a string of senior classes that have left their mark on the program.

“Hopefully one day, we’ll get them (in the quarterfinals). But I’m very proud of these kids.”

Cousin connection

Unbeknownst to PHS senior Cade Odell and his family, Odell’s cousins and aunt from Manhattan, Kan. made the eight-hour trip to watch him play in his final game.

The Lambert family got there just in time to watch the “Tiger Walk” as the Tigers marched down Central Ave. to enter the field, with Odell breaking from his game face to give the cousins a quick wink.

Etheridge moving up

With 65 yards Saturday, Etheridge finished his junior season with 1,706 yards rushing and 25 touchdowns on 200 carries, averaging 8.5 yards per carry. He now has 3,807 career yards and is on track to move into the top 20 all-time in the state.

Jason Liska of Woodstock Marian (1993-95) ranks No. 20 with 5,277 yards.

James Robinson of Rockford Lutheran stands No. 1 all-time in Illinois with 9,045 yards from 2012-2015. The undrafted free agent out of Illinois State has played for four NFL teams, including the Jacksonville Jaguars, who he rushed for more than 1,000 yards in his rookie year in 2020.

Kevin Hieronymus has been the BCR Sports Editor since 1986. Contact him at khieronymus@bcrnews.com