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Homewood-Flossmoor knocks out Neuqua Valley

Homewood-Flossmoor knocks out Neuqua Valley

Homewood-Flossmoor can make teams see double.

Neuqua Valley on Friday experienced the twin terror of junior running backs Deante Harley-Hampton and Devonte Harley-Hampton. They ran for 238 and 107 yards, respectively, and scored all 6 Vikings touchdowns in No. 3 Homewood-Flossmoor's 41-20 win over No. 6 seed Neuqua Valley in Class 8A first-round play in Flossmoor.

“If our linemen execute like how they did, this will be the results of every game,” said Deante Harley-Hampton, who scored on touchdown runs of 45, 63 and 42 yards, added a 9-yard touchdown catch and intercepted a pass on Neuqua's last play of the game.

“We've been able to do that virtually to everybody. We were just concerned a little bit about the elements,” said Vikings coach Craig Buzea, who will play No. 2 seed Edwardsville, a 28-14 winner over No. 7 Belleville East.

Neuqua Valley (6-4) executed wonderfully its first two possessions on scoring drives each spanning 80 yards. Charlie Hunter capped the first 9-play drive running from 20 yards out, the last 10 yards a swarming scrum of white and red uniforms moving slowly over the goal line.

Quarterback Broc Rutter ended Neuqua's second possession with a 3-yard down-and-out to his favorite possession receiver, Evan Moore, who caught 8 passes for 102 yards.

Homewood-Flossmoor's quick-strike capability retaliated both times, the Vikings leading 14-13 at halftime due to 6-foot-4, 280-pound Desmond Bland blocking Neuqua's second extra-point try.

That play seemed big but there were bigger to come. Neuqua drove to H-F's 13-yard line for first down with 54 seconds left before halftime but couldn't score.

“I think we knew coming in that we saw some things in the defense we could attack and it showed the first drive,” said Rutter, who completed 14 of 23 passes for 217 yards.

“We came out, we played very hard,” he said. “It was just tough to keep going.”

The teams traded early third-quarter scores per usual — Deandre Harley-Hampton breaking a 42-yard touchdown run, balanced Neuqua moving 64 yards to score on a Rutter 7-yard slant to Moore to get within 21-20 at 7:12 of the third quarter.

Neuqua's Eli Tappin recovered his own excellent onside kick at the H-F 48-yard line, plus a 15-yard penalty. But in what Wildcats coach Bill Ellinghaus called the turning point of the game, on fourth-and-2 at the Viking 25-yard line linebacker Eric Bey came off the edge to sack Rutter and turn over possession.

From there Homewood-Flossmoor assumed control with three unanswered touchdowns.

“We were able to do a lot of good things tonight,” Ellinghaus said. “We just weren't able to get the big play when we needed it, and that fourth-and-2 was certainly a big play.”

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