Harris shines as Vernon Hills downs Waukegan
Brandon Harris displayed trusty hands on an interception that led to Vernon Hills' first touchdown and later on a pass breakup to thwart a fourth-quarter drive.
“You're playing with a lot of heart!” Cougars coach Bill Bellecomo shouted in Harris' direction from the sideline after the latter defensive gem.
Vernon Hills quarterback Derek Jarrell also took note of Harris' tenacity and reliability at rainy Weiss Field in Waukegan on Saturday.
“I got to get (the ball) to him,” Jarrell said, smiling.
Jarrell did, connecting with Harris 13 times for 154 yards against Waukegan, as Vernon Hills equaled its 2017 win total by capturing a 15-6 decision.
“We've been playing together since freshman year and are real good friends,” Harris said. “Just the way (Waukegan) was playing, everything lined up. We just both worked hard and both did our jobs, and it worked out well.”
Just five plays into the game, Vernon Hills (2-0) found itself down an important part of its offense. Tailback Jake Morris injured his left ankle after taking a pitch and gaining 2 yards. Morris, who rushed for 181 yards (all but 3 in the first half) in the Cougars' season-opening win over Grayslake Central, did not return to the game.
“That hurt us big-time,” Bellecomo said. “I think it could have been a different game.”
Vernon Hills totaled just 8 rushing yards for the game.
“I know we got guys that we can put in, but Jake is a monster,” Jarrell said. “Anytime we can get him in, our offense is different.”
The Cougars relied on their passing game against Waukegan (0-2), and while Jarrell completed 25 of 47 passes for 338 yards and 1 touchdown, the visitors had a difficult time putting the ball in the end zone. They went into halftime up 8-6, despite coming up empty twice inside the 5. Waukegan's Fernando Andino had a strip/sack of Jarrell from the 2, and Gildardo Maya intercepted a scrambling Jarrell on the final play of the first half on fourth-and-goal from the 3.
“First half it was raining really hard, I was having trouble throwing the ball and, all around, we were just having troubles,” Jarrell said. “Once the rain started to clear up (after halftime), that's when we started to find it.”
Jarrell's 27-yard touchdown pass to Quinn Geren (6 catches, 138 yards) opened the scoring late in the first half, and the two seniors teamed up on the conversion toss. The drive covered just 35 yards after Harris' interception.
Waukegan pulled within 8-6 in the final minute before halftime, as Josiah Kerney scored from 1 yard out. Kerney, a junior transfer from Carmel Catholic, rushed for 122 yards on 24 carries. While the Cougars held sophomore Jessie Smith (3 rushing TDs in his varsity debut last week) to minus-6 yards rushing, fullback Daeivion Gentle added 45 yards on the ground for the Bulldogs.
“We knew coming that they had some real big guys, and we were scheming all week trying to see what we could do to stop them,” said Harris, a senior cornerback/wide receiver. “We just tried to do what we had to do. Honestly, the game was won in the box.”
The Cougars didn't score an insurance touchdown until midway through the fourth quarter, when Jarrell capped a 10-play, 65-yard drive by scrambling into the end zone from 7 yards out.
In anticipation of heavier rain coming later in the afternoon, the start time was moved up from 1:30 p.m. to 11 a.m. It might not have done either team any favors.
“Any time you get out of routine ...” Bellecomo said. “I get a feel for it when guys warm up. It was dead quiet. It was a sloppy football game. It feels good to get the win, but it feels likes a loss. We got a lot of work to do.”
Waukegan coach Jonathan Hadnott said he was proud of his team's defense, holding Vernon Hills' five-wide attack to just a pair of scores.
“We had a great defensive effort, but we left a lot of plays out there offensively,” Hadnott said. “We got out of rhythm a little bit.”