Plainfield North football falls to East St. Louis in state title game

CHAMPAIGN – The most successful season in Plainfield North football history ended Saturday when Plainfield North fell to quick and powerful East St. Louis, 26-13, in the Class 7A state championship football game.

The Tigers finish 11-3 after earning their trip to state with an 18-17 semifinal victory over Fenwick in an overtime decision that became controversial a short while after the game. A ruling from Cook County court Wednesday ended the controversy.

East St. Louis (14-0) scored two spectacular touchdowns in the third quarter to extend a 12-0 halftime lead to 26-0 before North demonstrated its character in battling back. Quarterback Brady Miller ran 53 yards down the left sideline, with the help of a block from Ryan Krystofiak, to make it 26-7 with 11:48 left in the game.

The Tigers threatened on their next possession, thanks to Tyler Hoosman's 24-yard run to the East St. Louis 37. But that drive stalled.

On the Tigers' next possession, however, a 19-yard fourth-down pass from Miller to Dillon McCarthy and a roughing-the-passer penalty gave North a first down at the Flyers' 23. On fourth-and-10 from there, Miller hit Connor Pelow in stride on an out pattern to make it 26-13 with 2:58 left. The two-point conversion attempt failed.

East St. Louis scored touchdowns on two of its first three possessions in building its 12-0 halftime lead.

After North's defense produced a three-and-out on East St. Louis first possession, the Flyers took advantage of a short punt and drove 56 yards in 11 plays, a march that took 5 minutes 40 seconds off the clock and ended when Rey Estes threw a 10-yard touchdown pass over the middle to James Knight on a fourth-and-3 play with 2:55 left in the first quarter. The failed two-point conversion left it 6-0.

North went three-and-out, and the Flyers used a different route to reach the end zone as, after another short Tigers' punt, the Missouri-bound Estes connected on the first play with an open Jeff Thomas, one of the top receiver prospects in the nation, on a 43-yard scoring bomb to make it 12-0. The pass for two points failed and East St. Louis had its 12-0 lead with 1:12 left in the first quarter.

For the rest of the half, North's defense matched hard hits and big plays with the East St. Louis defense. The Tigers' offense did have a first-and-10 on the Flyers' 21-yard line early in the second quarter, but after Tyler Hoosman's 1-yard run, Lamontre Harvey sacked Miller for a 9-yard loss and Malcomb Bell then intercepted Miller's pass and returned it 4 yards to the 32 to snuff out the threat.

Three plays later, North cornerback Anthony Fumagalli intercepted a pass from Estes, who was under pressure from end Tim Donnahue. For the remaining 7:42 of the first half, neither defense budged.

East St. Louis finished the half with seven first downs and 142 total yards to North's four first downs and 37 yards. Miller was 3 of 9 passing for 32 yards with an interception and was sacked twice.

The East St. Louis scores in the third quarter came on Estes’ 61-yard pass to Thomas over the top of the North defense and Eric Owens’ 85-yard interception return after North had driven to a third-and-6 at the East St. Louis 18.