Rolling Meadows no match for mighty Glenbrook S.
As Glenbrook South quarterback Hunter Kreske said as he walked off the field, it's go time.
And off the Titans went Friday against Rolling Meadows.
In the season opener at John Davis Stadium host Glenbrook South scored touchdowns on all five first-half possessions and added a defensive touchdown, the basis of a 51-21 nonconference victory in Glenview.
"It was exactly how we expected, almost," said Glenbrook South defensive end Jacque Gariepy, whose hit on Rolling Meadows quarterback Evan Grace caused a fumble which Hank Leahy returned 35 yards for a 14-0 lead in the first five minutes.
The Titans reached the Class 8A quarterfinals and went 9-3, but Rolling Meadows also was a playoff team in 2021.
The Mustangs did not have the opener they wanted.
"I always talk about, I can handle losing if we don't beat ourselves, but it was a combination of they were better than us and we beat ourselves. Which is how you get a 30-point differential. Pretty disappointed in that," said Rolling Meadows coach Sam Baker.
Glenbrook South opened the scoring at 8:03 of the first quarter when Tommy MacPherson stiff-armed his way into the end zone, followed by the Jacob Priegnitz kick.
On Rolling Meadows' second play from scrimmage, Gariepy broke into the backfield and rocked Grace as he attempted to pass. No whistle came from the officials and linebacker Leahy scooped up the football and took it in for a 14-0 lead at 7:19 of the first quarter.
"I think any time you can get a defensive touchdown you feel good that you're going to be in a good spot to win a game," Titans coach Dave Schoenwetter said. "I thought our defense played really well in the first half."
Glenbrook South led 21-0 until Rolling Meadows opened the second quarter with a sharp Grace pass to Ben Petermann. Gabe Cherwin's kick pulled the Mustangs within 21-7.
Momentum did not sway.
Glenbrook South scored on Kreske passes to MacPherson, Griffin Dahiya and Leahy to go up 43-7 with 1:40 left in the second quarter.
Kreske completed 10 of 15 passes for 192 yards.
"That was kind of the question mark, I think," Schoenwetter said. "I knew we had a good backfield, I knew we had a good line, but the question was, are we going to be able to throw the football and complete it, and I thought we did a nice job."
The Grace-to-Petermann connection worked again right before halftime to trim the margin to 43-14.
The two opened the scoring in a decidedly slower second half on a 46-yard touchdown pass, and Petermann finished with 6 receptions for 145 yards.
Glenbrook South's Chuck Gottfred ended the scoring on a 1-yard run, his second touchdown to go with 116 yards rushing.