'Big, strong, fast': Dominant offensive line leads Lena-Winslow to football state title
DEKALB — Ross Stabenow was taken aback when asked for an interview Friday after Lena-Winslow ran over Carrollton 38-25 in the Class 1A state championship football game.
“Am I that important?” Stabenow asked.
Maybe not by himself. But definitely when lined up next Tyler Croatt, Maddex Sargent, Jake Tippet and Henry Engel.
And in front of Marey Robey and Jake Zeal.
Robey (241 yards on 27 carries) and Zeal (115 yards on 15 rushes) got all the attention, but everybody who ran behind Le-Win’s punishing offensive line of Croatt, Stabenow, Sargent, Tippet and Engel looked unstoppable Friday as the Panthers rushed for 452 yards.
Championship recap: Lena-Winslow beats Carrollton for fifth 1A title
“We knew they were going to come right at us every play, and that’s what they did. And we just couldn’t stop it,” Carrollton all-state defensive end Hayden Flowers said.
Roby is as talented as any back in the state, averaging 214 yards in the last three playoff games. But, at least at times, Le-Win’s line made everybody look like Roby. Zeal broke loose for 17 and 60 yards on his first two carries.
“Their line was everything,” Flowers said. “They were big. They were strong. They were fast. That was a big struggle going against them.”
“We were on top of our game today,” Stabenow, a sophomore right tackle, said. “That’s the best we’ve ever played.”
It couldn’t have come at a better time. A state title was at stake. And Le-Win (12-2) had three turnovers to zero for Carrollton (12-2) in the first quarter and a half, keeping the game far closer than it should have been. “We couldn’t have played any worse,” coach Ric Arand said of the first half.
Yet Le-Win still led 30-19 — thanks to 359 yards rushing in the first half alone.
“We don’t get much credit,” Stabenow said. “Our recognition is through them running. Watching them run all over God’s green earth is great.”
Especially in a state title game.
“It’s the best feeling in the world,” senior left tackle Tyler Croatt said. “We have been doing it all year, and now we are here in front of thousands of people, and it’s just so fun.”
Le-Win’s blockers and backs were so dominant that the Panthers could run between the tackles and still mount 2-minute drives. Carrollton scored on a 47-yard pass top get within three points of Le-Win with 1:54 left in the half. It took the Panthers only 65 seconds to run four times for 70 yards and bump their lead to 30-19 after a TD and 2-point conversion.
Preview: How Lena-Winslow football can win its fifth state title in past 11 postseasons
“When we get on people, our backs can do amazing things,” senior center Maddex Sargent said.
It helped that Zeal ran so well that Carrollton couldn’t sell out to stop Roby.
“I don’t know if I have seen Zeal run that well before. He was insane,” said tight end/linebacker Brody Mahon, Le- win’s only All-Stater.
Roby, who has breakaway speed and a lot of Barry Sanders-style jump cuts, is always insane.
“We blocked pretty good,” junior left guard Jake Tippet said, “but seeing Marey do a lot of things on his own is pretty crazy. We try our best, but when we can’t get it done, he gets it done by himself.”
That wouldn’t have worked on a day when Le-Win was held to eight points in the second half and had three turnovers in the first 13 minutes.
It didn’t have to. Friday’s win was a group effort, starting with the offensive line, football’s tightest team within a team, where each member has to work in unison to pave the way for other teammates who generally garner all the attention.
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But on this day they were so dominant they earned a share of the spotlight themselves, paving the way for the Panthers' fifth state title in 12 years.
“When the line blocks, good things are going to happen,” Roby said. “They have been opening holes all year.”
“They had a nice wall," Carrollton coach Nick Flowers said. "They definitely won up front in the trenches."
Matt Trowbridge: mtrowbridge@rrstar.com; @matttrowbridge
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: IHSA football: Lena-Winslow line paves way in Class 1A title game
