Sheppard, Rada Carry Trojans to Home-Opener Win

Downers Grove North High School didn't just showcase a new field in Friday’s home opener; in many ways they gave their fans an entirely new team.

In a tough 21-33 loss in week one, the Trojan’s (1-1) running game looked stagnant. Friday was a different story, though, as they rushed their way to a 49-0 victory over visiting Morton High School (1-1).

Senior running backs Robert Sheppard and Anthony Rada carried the ball for a combined 215 yards and four scores. Sheppard led the way with 102 yards and three touchdowns while Rada ran for 112 yards and one touchdown.

“The new field makes me feel fast,” Sheppard said of his performance on recently installed field turf. “But it was really the offensive line that showed dominance tonight.”

Combined, the team rushed for a total of 369 yards and six touchdowns. Junior Stephen Kanis ran for 47 yards and had one receiving touchdown, and sophomore Kyle Leto ran for 41 yards and a touchdown.

The Trojans’ rejuvenated running attack was credited to a tough offensive line, which was without some of its starters last week.

“We had a few guys who didn’t play in week one, so this week we had our whole team together,” Trojans’ head coach John Wander said.

In addition to their success running the ball, the Trojan’s defense was able to shut out a Morton team whose offense put up 40 points the previous week. The Trojan defense forced two fumbles, one interception and four three-and-out punts in Morton’s first seven offensive possessions.

The struggling Morton offense only generated three first downs and 86 yards of total offense.

“My hat’s off to Downers North,” Morton head coach Bob Organ said. “We knew coming in here it was going to be physical, and it was.”

With the emergence of a running game, the Trojans have high hopes for developing a dynamic offense this season.

Quarterback Riley McGinnis, who had over 200 passing yards in week one, is excited about the success the team had running the ball this week.

“Our offense is pretty confident going into conference play,” McGinnis said. “It was good to have our linemen back.”

McGinnis had a quiet night despite finding Kanis for a 24-yard touchdown pass to end the first half. He went 2 of 5 with 39 passing yards and one touchdown. He also rushed for 34 yards.

“Riley is a very unique quarterback,” Wander said. “He can throw the ball well. If we can run [the ball] and [use] Riley’s arm, we can really have a diverse offense.”

The Trojans will look to display that offense next week when they travel to take on Oak Park and River Forest High School.