HIGHSCHOOL FOOTBALL SEASON KICKSOFF
||| NO. 19MAINE SOUTH 44, NO. 7 MONTINI 13
Maine South senior Nick Leongas didn’t have the apprenticeship he hoped for last season. An injury in Week 2 kept him from playing quarterback or even really practicing at the position.
Instead, he did a lot of talking with Hawks starting quarterback Brian Collis.
‘‘ Every day during practice, we would talk, go over schemes,’’ Leongas said. ‘‘ It helped a lot. I thank him for that.’’
Leongas entered No. 19 Maine South’s game Friday against No. 7 Montini, the reigning Class 6A state champion, as an unknown to most. But he stepped up and accounted for four touchdowns — three passing and one rushing— in the Hawks’ 44- 13 rout.
Maine South coach Dave Inserra said he had been waiting years to see Leongas flash his stuff.
‘‘ We’ve had our eyes on him since back in third or fourth grade, playing flag football in Park Ridge,’’ Inserra said. “We saw what he could do all the way back then, and he showed it tonight.’’
Leongas’ night began with a hiccup, though. He fumbled on his first carry, and the Broncos’ Brendan Rauen returned it 51 yards for a touchdown. It was a gut- check moment.
‘‘[ Leongas] showed what he was made out of,’’ Montini coach Chris Andriano said. ‘‘ He rallied the troops. We couldn’t stop them in the first half. They had 21 first downs. [ Leongas] was the difference. He made a lot of plays.’’
Leongas finished 15- for- 25 for 231 yards.
‘‘ His poise and his gamesmanship were impressive,’’ Inserra said. ‘‘ He was a new quarterback in his first series [ when he fumbled]. He could have gone the other way, but he took it in stride and continued to execute. I’m real proud of his effort.’’
Hawks running back Fotis Kokosioulis was another eye- opener. He had 23 carries for 211 yards and touchdown runs of 31 and 13 yards.
Montini played without star running back Prince Walker, a Western Michigan recruit. According to Andriano, he has a strained quadriceps. Will Smith Jr. filled in admirably, with 16 carries for 181 yards and a 69- yard touchdown.
‘‘[ Walker] is our best kid running the ball, so that didn’t help,’’ Andriano said. ‘‘ Smith had a good game. We broke down and couldn’t really get a rhythm going on offense.’’
The Broncos also had a firsttime starter at quarterback in junior Brad Norgle. He finished 6- for- 19 for 55 yards.
‘‘ Maybewe tried to put too much on [ Norgle] too early,’’ Andriano said. ‘‘ We should have maybe tried to run the ball more early. He was nervous, and it showed. He’ll play much better.’’
It was the largest margin of defeat for Montini since the opening game in 2004.
‘‘ It certainly wasn’t easy,’’ Leongas said. ‘‘ We prepared all summer. I’m not shocked that we won.’’