Bogan’s Farrell Vinson got to live a defensive lineman’s fantasy on Oct. 16.
Late in the third quarter against Julian on Oct. 16 at Stagg Stadium, Vinson picked off a pass and rumbled 90 yards for a touchdown in the Bengals’ 38-20 loss.
“That’s my dream,” the 5-9, 240-pound senior said. “… The whole season I’ve been wanting the ball.
“But we ain’t got enough linemen for me to play a (skill) position. So I take one for the team. So when I got that pick, it felt good inside.”
Vinson has been part of a turnaround for Bogan (6-2, 4-1 Public Blue Southeast), which was 2-7 last year in coach Ernest Bryant’s first season and had to forfeit its opener this year because of low numbers. But after that, the Bengals ran off six straight wins before losing to Julian.
“Last year we had some tough, tough (times) with our chemistry,” Vinson said. “(This year) we came together as a family.”
Vinson has contributed by helping to anchor both lines.
“He’s been a dominant player,” Bryant said of Vinson. “(When) I came here last year, it was a power struggle for a bit. But he finally bought into what we’re trying to get going. He plays with a passion. Sometimes the passion can be too much so we’ve got to kind of keep him toned down.
“But he’s a ballplayer, definitely a ballplayer.”
Bryant is sympathetic to Vinson’s desire to line up in the backfield.
“(But) he’s probably our strongest lineman,” Bryant said. “We told him that, ‘If you’re in the backfield, who’s gonna block for you?'”
Bogan also had a 20-yard touchdown pass from Xavier Terrell to Jaylen Brown and a 3-yard TD run by Jumarion Sidener. But the Bengals couldn’t come back from a 24-6 first-half deficit.
Still, Bryant is upbeat.
“The growth is there,” he said. “… We’ve got some youth on the team, so we plan to be strong next year.”
Corliss 18, Goode 0: Quaylen Dobbs ran 21 times for 66 yards for Goode (6-2, 4-2 Public South) and also contributed four tackles, a forced fumble and an interception. Also contributing for the Knights were Aedan Cleveland (nine carries, 68 yards), Zacharias Pagan (five tackles, interception) and Dorell Ries (six tackles).
DuSable 34, Back of the Yards 24: Marko Franco ran for 109 yards and two touchdowns for Back of the Yards (3-4, 3-2 Public Blue Central). Bobby Applewhite ran for a TD and had two interceptions on defense.
Joliet Catholic 49, De La Salle 0: Dontae Patterson had four tackles for De La Salle (0-8).
Kennedy 38, Vocational 0: Quarterbacks Mason Rychetsky (2-for-2, 129 yards) and Alex Hernandez (2-for-3, 60 yards) both threw for two touchdowns as the Crusaders (6-2, 4-1) clinched second place in the Public Southwest. Jacob Tunstill had three catches for 124 yards and three TDs, while Kavarion McCarter had a 65-yard touchdown catch. Victor Sandoval ran three times for 65 yards and a TD, while David Solarczyk booted a 52-yard field goal.
Solorio 16, Chicago Military 8: Mark Palacio Jr. and Jayden Mireles ran for touchdowns for Solorio (1-6, 1-4 Public South Central). The Sun Warriors’ defense recovered two fumbles.
Woodlawn 64, Gage Park 0: Kenneth Wright had 205 all-purpose yards for Gage Park (1-7, 0-5 Public Blue Central) — 87 on three catches and 118 on kickoff returns. Zackery Kidd passed for 126 yards for the Owls and Noah Jennings had seven tackles.
Mike Walsh contributed to this story.