Cary-Grove crowned state football champ

Cary-Grove's Kyle Panwell (left) and Ryan Barker carry the IHSA Class 6A state championship trophy after Saturday's 34-17 victory against Providence Catholic at Memorial Stadium in Champaign. (Travis Haughton – thaughton@nwherald.com)

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CHAMPAIGN – In the biggest game of their lives, Cary-Grove’s football players performed like it was just any other weekend.

Even against an opponent with one of the state’s richest football traditions, the Trojans were unflappable. When pressured, they responded emphatically. In the end, they were perfect.

C-G rode three second-half Alex Hembrey touchdowns and its larcenous defense to a 34-17 victory in the IHSA Class 6A state championship Saturday at the University of Illinois’ Memorial Stadium. It was the first state football title in school history, and the third ever for a Fox Valley Conference team.

“This is a great feeling, not only for us, but for our community,” C-G coach Bruce Kay said. “They’ve really rallied behind us since 2004.”

The Trojans lost in the Class 7A championship game that year, 13-3, to Libertyville. Many of the current players were in the stands for that game and vowed to someday bring the big trophy home.

“Even now, this is amazing,” center Hayden Baker said as he walked along the turf and shook hands with Trojans fans.

Hembrey carried 18 times for 187 yards and three touchdowns. C-G (14-0) finished with 414 total yards to 240 for Providence (12-2). The pivotal point in the game came late in the third quarter. Providence had taken a 20-14 lead on the first possession of the half, then stopped C-G’s first drive.

On fourth-and-1 from C-G's own 36, Kay called timeout and decided not to punt. The Trojans needed only a foot and ran wide with Hembrey.

“The thought process was we thought we could get 1 [yard], and we got a lot more,” Kay said. “We felt the toss was there.”

Quarterback Tyler Krebs tossed to Hembrey, who sprinted around the left side and turned the corner on running back Steve Hapanovich’s block. Hembrey tiptoed to stay inbounds, then raced down the sideline, put a maneuver on one defender and cut back to the middle of the field for a touchdown and a 20-17 lead.

“I was just happy to get the first down,” Hembrey said. “I had one guy to beat, so I had to make a move on the kid. It just feels good to get the win.”

The play crushed Providence. C-G picked off Joey Houlihan passes on the Celtics’ next three possessions, and Hembrey scored twice more to start the celebration.

“That was the game right there,” Baker said. “We knew we could get it. Our defense fed off that and got the ball back for us. That turned the game around.”

Houlihan completed three of four passes to move the Celtics to the Trojans’ 19. On third-and-9, C-G called timeout again. Defensive back Chad McCarron intercepted Houlihan’s pass in the end zone and returned it to the 26.

“[Defensive coordinator Don Sutherland] said we had to stop them and hold them to a field goal,” McCarron said. “I just read it right. I went and got it, I got a good break on it. I wish I could have housed it.”

Providence stopped C-G on that drive, but after a punt, Trojans defensive back Trent Sorensen picked off Houlihan at the Trojans’ 49. Hembrey ran for 6 yards, then broke free for a 45-yard score.

Linebacker Kyle Leibforth picked off another pass on Houlihan’s next attempt, and Hembrey scored to seal the game with 6:24 remaining.

“Four years of hard work paid off,” C-G linebacker Nick Underwood said. “We realized how great this is and what it means.”

Providence has nine state championships and played one of the state’s toughest schedules in the Chicago Catholic League Blue Division. Still, Kay thought coming into the game that the Celtics hadn’t seen an option offense as prolific as C-G’s.

“Give [Cary-Grove] a lot of credit; they were tough to stop,” Providence coach Mark Coglianese said. “I don’t think we ever really got on track on either side of the ball. We had some series, both offensively and defensively, where we played well, but we weren't [consistent].”

The Trojans' girls volleyball team won the Class 4A state championship two weeks ago, which was the first team state title in school history. Now, they have his and hers state trophies.

C-G is the first football state champion from the FVC since Woodstock won Class 5A in 1997.

“There were so many people behind us,” Kay said. “The feeling of letting them down would have been the worst feeling. This is 21 years of people contributing to the program and us finally getting that big trophy.”

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