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Downers South runs by Leyden
Updated: September 16, 2011 11:55PM
Josh Williams continued to run wild Friday night for Downers South, leading the Mustangs to a 49-0 West Suburban Gold win at Leyden.
The 5-foot-9-inch, 175-pound senior halfback rushed for 282 yards on only 12 carries and scored 6 touchdowns on runs of 37, 1, 5, 58, 47 and 10 yards,
as Downers South (4-0, 2-0) opened a 49-0 lead with 2 minutes 23 seconds remaining in the first half. The entire second half was played with a running clock because of an Illinois High School Association rule calling
for that scenario when a team reaches a lead of at least 40 points in the second half.
For the season, Williams has rushed for 995 yards on 79 carries (12.5 yard average per carry), and the Mustangs have outscored their four opponents, 161-7. Friday’s win was their third consecutive shutout.
“Our biggest challenge is ourselves,” Williams said after the win over Leyden (0-4, 0-2). “We try to focus on doing what we’re supposed to do, and we know that we can’t take anyone lightly.”
With his work done for the night in the first half, Williams said he didn’t mind sitting out the entire second half.
“It’s a great opportunity for some of the other guys to get in and play,” he said.
Downers South coach John Belskis has seen a number of great running backs in his 32 seasons. But he, too, can’t help but be impressed by Williams.
“I’d rather coach him than coach against him; that’s for sure,” Belskis said. “He does things that even surprise us. He’s as fast right to left as he is going forward.”
The Mustangs’ first touchdown of the game was the only one not scored by Williams. Quarterback A.J Simoncelli ran the ball in from 5 yards out with 8:23 to go in the first quarter, and Anthony Farinella, who was 7-for-7 on PAT kicks for the night, added his first extra point for a 7-0 lead.
Williams scored the first of his three first-quarter TDs on a 37-yard run with 4:32 left. He added a 1-yard scoring run with 1:16 remaining and a 5-yard touchdown run on the final play of the opening quarter. He added
three additional TDs in the second quarter.
“We have a lot of fun out there,” Williams said. “You need to do that, and when it’s time to get serious, we get serious.”
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