With Kennedy’s offense stuck in neutral at halftime against Muchin on Sept. 25, coach Rob Albano knew just where to go for a jump-start.
Using shifty junior Kavarion McCarter as a Wildcat quarterback, the Crusaders rallied for an 18-8 win at Rockne Stadium.
McCarter had all 10 of his carries after halftime, running for 62 yards. His 7-yard TD run on the first play of the fourth quarter put Kennedy (3-2, 1-1 Public Southwest) ahead to stay. McCarter added an 8-yard scoring run with 2:43 remaining to all but seal the win.
He is glad to do whatever’s needed to help the Crusaders win.
“It’s not my first time (running the Wildcat),” he said. “But I like doing this. It’s fun, run the ball up the middle. No one can tackle me for real. …
“My older brother (Kamarion) did it. I just want to follow his footsteps, thank him, thank my mom also.”
Kamarion played a key role in Kennedy’s run to the Public White Southwest title last season before graduating.
“I miss him a lot,” Kavarion said. “He was a big inspiration. I got my skill from him.”
Kennedy also has other capable skill players in running back Victor Sandoval and quarterback Mason Rychetsky. Sandoval had 12 carries for 65 yards against Muchin (1-4, 0-2) and Rychetsky ran 11 times for 50 yards.
But Albano figured it was time to add another wrinkle after Kennedy was limited to David Solarczyk’s 32-yard field goal in the first half.
“We’ve got a massive playbook here and it’s nice to break out some things every once in a while,” Albano said. “The run game just puts everything else in play. We weren’t hitting on the pass game, (had a) couple drops. It is what it is, that’s football. So keep it on the ground (with the Wildcat), we get moving, tire out the defense and then it opens everything up.”
The Crusaders are still trying to get healthy as they make a run at another IHSA playoff berth.
“He’s a jack of all trades,” Albano said of McCarter. “I’ve got Jacob Tunstill, too. I’ve got weapons. Injuries right now are hurting us and we’re pretty limited on offense, but we’re making it work. Victor (Sandoval) toughed the game out. Kavarion does everything I asked him to.”
Albano has seen growth in McCarter since last season.
“Last year, every time he was back there running the ball, he seemed a little timid,” Albano said. “This year, there’s no fear in his eyes. Our O-line is giving him space, they’re bullying these teams.”
Bogan 22, Hansberry 14 (OT): Jaylen Brown’s touchdown in overtime lifted the Bengals (3-0, 1-0 Public League Blue Southeast) to victory. Xavier Terrell ran a kickoff back 99 yards for a touchdown for Bogan and Jamari Mickles had a 20-yard score.
Curie 40, Senn 8: Darius Townsel and Malik Horton both ran for more than 100 yards as the Condors (4-1, 3-0 Public North) won easily. Townsel had 10 carries for 147 yards and a TD, and he also ran an interception back 31 yards for a score. Horton ran 10 times for 101 yards and a touchdown. Backup quarterback Damian Feret, filling in for injured starter Gabriel Taylor, had a 5-yard scoring run.
Fenwick 42, De La Salle 0: Phillip Seltzer was 8-of-19 passing for 48 yards for De La Salle (0-5). Amari Brown and Remi Edwards had seven tackles apiece.
Goode 58, Dyett 18: Quaylen Dobbs broke his own program single-game record by scoring six TDs as the Knights (5-0, 3-0 Public League South) became playoff-eligible. Dobbs, who also set the program season record with 18 touchdowns, scored on runs of 22, 16, 4, 56, 21 and 25 yards. He finished with 28 carries for 241 yards along with five tackles and two sacks/
Longwood 8, Solorio 0: Sebastian Valadez and Guillermo Hammond had interceptions for the Sun Warriors (0-4, 0-2 Public League South Central).
Mike Walsh contributed to this story.