| No huddle, no problem for Ruettiger, JCA |
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By Larry Lindholm special to the herald news
Hilltoppers unveil new offense in rout of St. Joseph
Joliet Catholic Academy set the stage for Friday's crucial East Suburban Catholic showdown against Carmel with an amazingly easy 63-7 league victory over St. Joseph on Saturday.
The Carmel game will determine ESCC supremacy, and the Hilltoppers (7-1, 6-0) spent Saturday making sure that Carmel advance scouts had plenty to see.
JCA came out with a no-huddle look. Hilltopper quarterback John Ruettiger threw on eight of the first nine snaps, and the results were predictable.
With his team already up 7-0, Ruettiger connected with Connor Krisch on a 29-yard pass and run for a score. The play capped a four-play drive, all passes.
After a fumble recovery on the next St. Joseph possession, Ruettiger found Tim Bennett with a 60-yard scoring pass. Krisch and Ruettiger also hooked up on a 12-yard scoring pass before the game was 12 minutes old. JCA built a 35-0 lead after a quarter, and that was the end of the line for Ruettiger.
The Arizona State baseball recruit finished his day with 6-of-12 accuracy for 156 yards. He has 46 completions on the season, including 9 for touchdowns.
"We wanted to get some practice in the no-huddle," JCA coach Dan Sharp said. "We've been working on it for some time now. Coming in here, the goals were to work on this offense, get some work for the kids who don't get to play as much, and get out of here without any injuries. I believe we were able to accomplish those things."
It marked the fifth game of 50 points or better for the Hilltoppers, who have now scored 377. The offense has produced 2,611 rushing yards through eight games, including 277 against St. Joseph. The Chargers managed -22 rushing yards.
Reserve Dave Janicki paced the ground attack with 79 yards in 5 tries. Sharp employed eight ball carriers, and they averaged 10.6 yards a carry.
"I thought our secondary was improved today," Sharp said. "The defense came to play.
"We had an opportunity to work on things that should help us down the road."
Seven athletes scored for JCA, including Brandon Geiss, Joey Napolitano, Jim Bolin, and Mike Wurster.
Napolitano took over for Ruettiger and scored on a 7-yard run during the second quarter.
Bolin's day included 2- and 10-yard scoring runs. Wurster flashed skill during a 58-yard TD gallop in the third quarter.
The first of four Geiss carries on this day went for 35 yards and a score. It was the 15th scoring run of the year for Geiss, who entered Saturday averaging 8.3 a carry.
Cameron Meredith's 6-yard fourth-quarter throw to David Dixon ruined JCA's shutout bid. The Hilltoppers intercepted three Charger aerials and limited them to 10-of-27 for 93 yards.
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