Fast Start Key to Lions Victory Over Trojans Football

When Lyons Township junior Jamari Burks came walking off the field with the game ball in hand, there was no question as to whether or not he deserved it.

Burks caught a 44-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter to put his team up 14-0 and later intercepted a pass which he returned for a touchdown in the fourth quarter, helping Lyons Township (2-2) defeat (1-3) 28-16 on the road.

“I feel great,” Burks said of his performance Friday night. “I’ve been working hard in practice. Coach told me to go out there and do what I need to do. I did that.”

After Lyons Township jumped out to a quick 21-0 lead with 2:52 left in the first quarter, it looked like Downers Grove was on their way to their first real thrashing of the season.

Junior quarterback Connor Onion found senior Evan Booth for a 5-yard touchdown pass to put Lyons Township on the board with 4:57 left in the first quarter. A Downers Grove fumble and 44-yard touchdown pass to Booth, followed by an onside kick and another quick score, put Lyons Township up 21-0 by the end of the quarter.

Onion was 11-19 for 142 yards and two touchdowns, Burks had four receptions for 48 yards, and senior running back Jaime Jones carried the ball 16 times for 110 yards and a touchdown.

“We felt good with the lead,” said Lyons Township head coach Kurt Weinberg. “I certainly couldn’t feel bad, but we knew Downers was a tough team and we knew it wasn’t over.”

Weinberg was right. The 5-yard touchdown run from Jones would end up being Lyons Township’s last offensive touchdown in the game.

The Downers Grove defense quickly recovered and began to resemble the unit defensive coordinator Bill Kleckner had come to expect.

“Our kids just hung in there and played really really hard,” Kleckner said. “All we had to do was make some adjustments in our secondary coverage.”

Lyons Township was forced to punt on three of its four offensive possessions in the second half after failing to pick up a first down. Downers Grove forced a fumble on the fourth Lyons Township possession, as Downers Grove’s Vontae Diggs stripped the ball and teammate Stephen Kanis picked it up.

The offense began to gain momentum as well, scoring 16 unanswered points.

Senior quarterback Riley McGinnis lead two scoring drives at the end of the first half. He found junior Garrett Tierney on an 18-yard touchdown strike to put his team on the board 7-21 with 4:16 left in the second quarter.

The ensuing drive McGinnis put the team in position to kick a 15-yard field goal and go into the half trailing 10-21.

“We may not have capitalized as many times as we wanted to,” Kleckner said, “but our offense did maintain the football and got first downs.”

Downers Grove had one more scoring drive in the second half, which was capped off with a 4-yard touchdown run by Senior Anthony Rada.

“We felt great after that score,” Rada said. “We definitely felt like the momentum was on our side.”

McGinnis was 17-31 for 224 yards and one touchdown. He also rushed for 39 yards and threw three interceptions. Rada ran for 97 yards and a touchdown.

Downers Grove North will look to end their losing streak next week when they take on . Lyons Township will try to get above .500 when they face Hinsdale Central.