No. 15 Richards has Wisconsin-bound Dion Foster and a host of other college prospects. But coach Gary Korhonen calls 172-pound linebacker Sean Bailey his best football player.
Bailey made his coach proud in Friday’s opener against host Lincoln-Way East. His two sacks spearheaded a ferocious defense that held the No. 16 Griffins without a first down until late in the fourth quarter in a 30-0 whitewashing.
“We scouted them and knew they were tough at the skill positions,” Bailey said. “We knew we needed to contain their backfield.”
And contain the Bulldogs did. They yielded just 54 total yards, 43 on the game’s final drive. The Griffins had three total first downs, all on that drive, and turned the ball over three times.
The Bulldogs got three touchdown passes and 162 yards from Steve Whitney (9 of 18), while Foster added a 36-yard TD run. Foster (16 carries, 60 yards) was kept mostly in check by Lincoln-Way. Not so Whitney.
His 18-yard TD pass to Mike Lepper came five plays after Mark Williams returned the opening kick 70 yards to give Richards a 7-0 lead. Foster’s second-quarter run and a 28-yard field goal from Jim O’Grady made it 16-0 at halftime.
Whitney, who added two second-half TD passes, was on crutches afterward with his right knee heavily wrapped. “We won’t know anything until [Saturday],” Korhonen said.
