Fremd finishes off Buffalo Grove

Numbers don’t lie, but they can be a bit deceptive.

Take, for instance, Buffalo Grove’s visit Friday night to Fremd for a Mid-Suburban divisional football crossover.

BG ran more plays, had a distinct territorial advantage and had an acute lead in time of possession.

Yet the Bison still trailed 10-7 to a Vikings team (2-2) that took advantage of its opportunities despite limited possession time and yardage deficiency.

Sophomore quarterback Sam Beutler’s direction of an efficient drive that ended with his own TD plunge and Andrew Stark’s potent 31-yard field goal as the half expired provided the difference for Fremd.

And it was a portent of things to come. Changing nothing, really, at halftime except a commitment to execution, the Vikings rolled up 235 of their 322 yards in total offense, unleashing A.J. McGhee (15 carries, 83 yards, 2 TDs) and finding Josh Jyawook 4 times for 66 yards and a TD’s worth of passing offense en route to a 31-10 victory.

“Everything’s there. We had it all,” Beutler said of the first half, in which Fremd’s penalties and fumbles added up to missed opportunities.

Fremd reversed the statistics in the second half, kept the dangerous Rich Zirngibl and his BG offense off the field and tightened up the defense when he was out there.

“Penalties kill drives. Mistakes kill drives,” Beutler said of the frustrating first half.

At intermission, “The word was, ‘execution,’” he said of the locker room pep talk.

Fremd scored on drives of 57, 68 and 58 yards in the second half as the ball-control offense had Beutler throwing less and handing off more.

“Offensively, mistakes killed us in the first half,” said Fremd coach Mike Donatucci, who would like to grab a playoff spot in his 19th and final year at the helm. “We’re getting better. We’ve still got a ways to go.”

For BG, Zirngibl, a “warrior,” as coach Jim Farrell refers to him, had a night of impressive stats go down the drain when BG couldn’t sustain its ball control after Kevin Cho’s 31-yard field goal tied the game in the third quarter.

Zirngibl’s 220 yards in total offense were offset by second-half picks by Fremd’s Jack Bossong and Steve Heibing and a lost fumble, fallen on by Fremd’s Greg Money. Fremd revved up its pass rush in the second half and forced Zirngibl into more difficult throwing situations, although Brian Kieczynski and Ryan Schumi had 3 receptions apiece.

BG’s defense, anchored by Matt Zabrin, Ryan Inlow, Zirngibl and Kieczynski, had forced Fremd into errors in the first half.

“We were prepared to do everything, but we just did not execute,” said BG’s do-everything quarterback.

“We’re playing against ourselves,” said Farrell. “We can’t have penalties. We’re blowing coverages and we need to get ready for the East.”