As the season progresses, Reavis finds itself with having not one but two productive quarterbacks.
In the Rams’ 47-15 road victory over Argo on Sept. 25, both QBs were highly successful.
Dardan Nreci was 8 of 11 passing for 115 yards and two touchdowns while also carrying six times for 59 yards and another score.
Nick Gutierrez was 6 of 9 passing for 79 yards and two more touchdowns for Reavis (3-3, 1-3 South Suburban Red).
“I was really happy with them (Friday) night,” Reavis coach Josh O’Shea said of his quarterbacks. “They both threw the ball well. I think we were 14 of (20) passing, so we were really efficient.
“On one drive, Nick went down (with an injury) and Dardan finished the drive with a touchdown. … They both have a little bit different skill set. Dardan’s more of a dangerous runner and Nick’s been really efficient with passing in the last few weeks, so he’s been getting more (playing) time. They pretty much were splitting every other series for the whole game but they were both great.”
As was teammate Christian DelBosque, who carried 20 times for 194 yards and a touchdown. In addition, the junior caught a pair of passes for 54 yards and another score. DelBosque also plays on the other side of the football, starting at outside linebacker.
“Christian played up (on varsity) last year, but he literally got hurt on the first play of the season versus De La Salle,” O’Shea said. “He was out all season, but we knew he was a good player.
“He’s been our featured running back this season. Christian just gets downhill really well and he’s not the biggest kid. He’s probably only about 165 pounds but he runs the ball hard and he finishes runs. He’s an explosive kid and a reliable guy…He was just a workhorse for us (Friday) night.”
Also contributing to Reavis’ offense were Ahmad Everette, who finished with six receptions for 51 yards and two TDs. Juju Shahin caught four passes for 51 yards and a score.
Defensively, the Rams were anchored by defensive end Josh Watkins, who returned an interception 25 yards for a touchdown, and Julian Juache, who added an interception.
For Argo (0-6, 0-3), which trailed 20-7 at halftime, its offense was led by running back Skylar Arellano-Phipps with a 52-yard TD run. The Argonauts’ other points came on a 30-yard TD pass from Chance Sanders to Axel Samaniego.
“The final score to be honest looks a little worse than it actually was,” Argo coach Phil Rossberg said. “It’s a rivalry game so the kids get up on both sides. I know our coaches were pretty intense watching film and everything. We thought we had a good shot (at winning) this week and the kids came out and played their butts off.
“The boys fought, but I thought at a certain point we were getting a little gassed out and started making some mistakes. … Overall, I thought our kids fought and battled and you can feel that rivalry a little bit in the beginning. It was kind of bumping and we had a good amount of alumni there. It was a good environment.”