Nazareth players celebrate winning the fourth football championship in the school's history on Nov. 26 in Champaign. Photo by Jeff Vorva
Football Class 5A State Championship: Roadrunners win shootout for fourth state title
By Jeff Vorva
Staff Writer
Nazareth opened the season in August with a 2-0 win over Kankakee.
It closed the season the afternoon of Nov. 26 with a 45-44 win over Peoria at Memorial Stadium in Champaign to take the IHSA Class 5A state championship.
In between was a rollercoaster of wins and losses and a scramble just to make the playoffs.
“This was appropriate for these guys — nothing came easy,” Nazareth coach Tim Racki said after the one-point victory. “If it wasn’t for that [win over Kankakee] with the safety, we wouldn’t be here right now. I was out of my mind after this game because it was an incredible game.”
To win their fourth state title, the Roadrunners (10-4) competed in a game in which the teams combined for 89 points, 140 plays and 846 yards. Nazareth had to deal with Peoria monster running back Malachi Washington, who carried the ball 48 times for 275 yards and six touchdowns.
After Washington’s final score with 5:15 left in the game to pull the Lions (12-2) to within 45-44, he was met by Roadrunners sophomore Gabe Kaminski, senior Braden Ferguson and senior Finn O’Meara inches away from the goal line on the two-point conversion attempt. That turned out to be huge.
“I followed out defensive coordinator [Keith Lukes’] plan, Kaminski said. “He’s an incredible coach and we just followed through on his plan.”
Peoria had one more possession to try to take the lead, but it was dashed with 59 seconds left on a Zach Hayes interception.
“I made a break on the ball, I secured it and the feelings that just rushed through my head…I mean…I can’t believe it,” Hayes said after the game. “I’m still in shock. This is all I have ever wanted. And to make the interception to secure it is surreal.”
Justin Taylor led the Roadrunners with 108 yards on 17 carried and a touchdown. Sophomore quarterback Logan Malachuk threw for 245 yards and touchdown passes to Hayes and Edward McClain, Jr. and ran for two more scores. James Penley had four catches for 102 yards.
Brendan Flanagan added the final touchdown with 6:19 left in the game and Malachuk found Penley for what turned out to be the game-winning two-point conversion.
Peoria came into the game averaging 50 points per game with six games of 62 points or more. That included a 76-56 victory over Morris in the semifinals on Nov. 19.
Nazareth opened the season 2-4 – with losses to Lemont, Marist, Notre Dame, Carmel and St. Rita — and needed to run the table to get to the playoffs. The Roadrunners beat Leo, Montini and Benet to qualify for the postseason.
Once in the playoffs, Nazareth rolled over Glenbard South (48-22), Rockford Boylan (38-13) and Morgan Park (29-0) before surviving a tight 10-7 victory over Sycamore to get to Champaign.
“When we were 2-4, it was kind of quiet in the office and one of my assistants mentioned something about playoffs and I gave the best Jim Mora imitation. I just busted out laughing saying ‘Playoffs?!!?’ Everybody kind of got a kick out of it,” Racki said.
“We were just wondering how we were going to get into the playoffs. Let’s just work on win No. 3 first.”
The Roadrunner roster features just 13 seniors, and many underclassmen had their hands in this state championship. But there were growing pains early.
“Overall, we are a young team and it’s hard for kids and college players and even NFL players to go through a losing streak like that,” Racki said. “It’s difficult to maintain your confidence, faith, hope and keeping everything together. I was consistent with pointing out what we were doing well. I didn’t beat them up. They felt bad enough losing.
“Sure enough, once we started growing each day and we got that third win and fourth and fifth, you could see the confidence and the improvement in our play and our execution, and it just took off.”
Racki never imagined early on this team would bring home a championship, but felt pretty good after beating Sycamore in the semifinals.
“I’ve been blessed,” he said. “I was kind of in shock. It was a joy to see the kids after all of the adversity that they went through to be rewarded to a trip to Champaign.”
And a state title.
Local News
Area Sports Roundup: Six area girls bowling teams headed to sectionals
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff writer Six area girls bowling teams are headed to sectionals. Reavis and Stagg won IHSA regional titles last Saturday, and four other teams have advanced to this weekend’s action. Reavis won its own regional at Palos Lanes in Palos Hills with a 5,378 in six games, well ahead of…
Marist cheerleaders takes 2nd in state
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff writer After Marist’s cheerleaders watched a video of their state finals performance on Feb. 5, there were some long faces and tears as the girls filed out of the video room and into the cooling-off room. After a long meeting, there were more long faces. “I’ve had better days,”…
Balanced Nazareth wins East Suburban Catholic
Spread the loveBy Steve Metsch Correspondent Moments before the opening tip in the East Suburban Catholic Conference tournament title game, Carmel coach Ben Berg said his team was playing with house money.” Berg was referring to how Corsairs — 4-3 in conference play entering the tourney — were not expected to be playing in the…
Playing the race card remains popular
Spread the loveBy Ray Hanania Former Chicago Police Officer Jason Van Dyke is freed from a system that protects real criminals. Van Dyke went through the criminal justice system for shooting Laquan McDonald, a drugged-up, weapon-carrying thug with a history of violence who refused to listen to police after curfew in Chicago. Van Dyke was…
Need more free speech, not enforced silence
Spread the loveBy Thomas Knapp “They can have Neil Young or [Joe] Rogan. Not Both.” Thus the ultimatum from legendary musician Young, over his concerns with what he deems “misinformation” on the subject of COVID-19 vaccines, to streaming service Spotify. Spotify, unsurprisingly, chose Rogan. It invested an estimated $100 million in bringing the Joe Rogan Experience podcast…
Oak Lawn-Hometown Middle School packs meals for needy during holidays
Spread the loveBy Kelly White Wishing everyone to have the best holiday season, Oak Lawn-Hometown Middle School students packed meals for those in need before they went on Christmas break. The school, 5345 W. 99th St., Oak Lawn, hosted its annual Feed6 Meal Packaging event on December 4, where students gathered together, while socially distanced, with…
McCord shows off Stagg student artworks
Spread the loveBy Kelly White Stagg High School art students proudly had their work showcased at a local gallery. McCord Gallery & Cultural Center, 9602 W. Creek Road, Palos Park, featured the art of Stagg’s most creative until January 28. “Having my work as part of an art show in an art gallery like McCord is significant to…
Enjoy fiscal bliss while it lasts
Spread the loveBy Rich Miller I think by now you can see why Gov. JB Pritzker’s campaign spent so much money over the past month or so on TV and digital ads touting the state’s improved fiscal position. Illinoisans have been (accurately) fed fiscal horror stories about their state for decades. I don’t have to…
No injuries when Metra train hits school bus in Orland Park
Spread the loveBy Bob Bong No children were injured Friday afternoon when their school bus stalled on railroad tracks in Orland Park and the bus was hit by a Metra commuter train. The Orland Fire Protection District responded to an emergency call Friday when a school bus from American School Bus Co. carrying students from…
Neighbors
Nursing home industry unlikely to see much help from Springfield in tough budget year
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com It’s been four years since some of the worst scenes of COVID-19 played out in locked-down nursing homes during the early months of the pandemic. But while most of the world has moved on, the nursing home industry is still reeling from COVID, which exacerbated pre-existing challenges in…
Lawmakers consider tax break for news publishers, state-sponsored journalism scholarships
By ALEX ABBEDUTO & ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – A new measure being debated in the Illinois General Assembly would create a tax credit for certain news publishers based on the number of reporters they employ. The proposal from Sen. Steve Stadelman, D-Rockford, is part of a package of policies that he…
House GOP advances 2 human trafficking victim protection bills as others remain in limbo
By COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois clongcor@capitolnewsillinois.com After Illinois received another failing grade from a national advocacy group, state House Republicans have introduced legislation aimed at further protecting victims and prosecuting perpetrators of human trafficking. Shared Hope International, an advocacy organization that works to prevent sex trafficking, said in its 2023 Illinois report card that…
Hundreds of bills pass, including changes to state’s biometric data privacy law
By HANNAH MEISEL COLE LONGCOR & ALEX ABEDDUTO Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Lawmakers passed more than 200 bills this week ahead of their scheduled May 24 adjournment. Many of the measures will soon head to Gov. JB Pritzker, including a bill that changes how damages accrue under Illinois’ first-in-the-nation biometric data privacy law.…
Pritzker pledges to expand access to mental health care in Illinois
By DILPREET RAJU Capitol News Illinois draju@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – In the middle of Mental Health Awareness Month, Gov. JB Pritzker and Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton hosted a panel in Springfield this week at which he pledged to expand the state’s behavioral health services. With several dozen services providers from around the state in attendance, Pritzker…
With 1 week left in session, Pritzker admin says all revenue options remain on the table
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com While the governor’s office instructed its agency directors to prepare for $800 million in potential budget cuts last week, all facets of his plan to raise $1.1 billion in revenue to avoid those cuts remain under consideration. Read more: ANALYSIS: ‘Significant enough’ opposition to Pritzker’s revenue plan leads to…
Illinois launches summer food assistance program
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The state is launching a new program to provide food assistance during the summer for families with children who qualify for free or reduced-price meals at school. Gov. JB Pritzker joined other state officials and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Thursday to announce that Illinois will…
Lawmakers consider tax break for news publishers, state-sponsored journalism scholarships
By ALEX ABBEDUTO & ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – A new measure being debated in the Illinois General Assembly would create a tax credit for certain news publishers based on the number of reporters they employ. The proposal from Sen. Steve Stadelman, D-Rockford, is part of a package of policies that he…
House gives OK to new state agency focused on early childhood programs
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois House gave final passage Thursday to a bill establishing a new cabinet-level state agency whose mission will be to provide a kind of one-stop shop for services focusing on early childhood development and education. By the time it’s fully operational in 2026, the new…
As vacated Centralia funeral home prepares for new tenant, owner makes a startling find
By BETH HUNDSDORFER Capitol News Illinois bhundsdorfer@capitolnewsillinois.com In the basement of a Centralia funeral home in a dark hallway off the embalming room, tucked inside a nook behind two steel plates and a door, a visitor found three disembodied, neatly wrapped human legs, two of them marked with names and dated to the 1960s. The…