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Naperville Central rolls past Glenbard East

Naperville Central came into the 2013 season looking for redemption after a 4-5 finish last year and no playoff appearance.

The Redhawks equaled its win total from 2012 on Friday, moving to 4-0 on the season and 2-0 in the DuPage Valley Conference with a 55-0 Homecoming victory over Glenbard East.

“There’s a group of guys here that have dedicated themselves since last November when we didn’t make the playoffs and they put in a lot of time and effort together,” Naperville Central coach Mike Stine said. “They do this each and every day in practice. It’s not by chance that they come here and perform well.”

Ben Andreas got Naperville Central off and running on the opening kickoff, following his wall of blockers along the home sideline before cutting to his right and breaking free of several Rams defenders on his way to the end zone from 98 yards out to give his team a 7-0 lead just 17 seconds into the game.

“All 11 players did their job,” Andreas said of the opening kickoff. “We set up a wall just like we do on every other return and my teammates did their job. I couldn’t have scored without them.”

McMillen kept the momentum going for the Redhawks on Glenbard East’s ensuing possession. On the third play of the drive, Rams quarterback Alex Bojan dropped back and sailed a pass intended for Joey Moore that slipped out of his hands. McMillen was there to catch the ball in the air and then ran it back 25 yards into the end zone for a 14-0 lead.

Bojan threw his second of three interceptions on the Rams’ next possession, this time to Dan Dolehide, who ran it back 14 yards to the Glenbard East 14-yard line.

Two plays later, Andreas’ 14-yard touchdown run put Naperville Central up 21-0 with 9:22 left in the first quarter.

Following an 8-yard scoring run by Kevin Clifford and a 5-yard touchdown run by Nolan Davis, McMillen tallied his second interception return for a touchdown, this time from 20 yards out as the first quarter expired, giving the Redhawks a 42-0 lead just 12 minutes into the game.

Quarterback Jake Kolbe’s play-action pass to Michael Kolzow from 44 yards out, followed by Clifford’s 9-yard touchdown run was all the scoring Naperville Central needed heading into halftime.

The Redhawks defense held the Rams to just 46 yards of offense in the first half, including a net gain of only 3 rushing yards, two first downs, three turnovers and two defensive touchdowns.

“We’re the hardest-working defense in the state,” McMillen said. “We might not be the fastest, or the strongest, but we’re the hardest-working defense. I think we have one of the best defensive coaching staffs in the state and we couldn’t play the way we do without them.”

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