The ball was slightly behind Hanover Central’s Henry Maurer, and he spun to snag it for a touchdown.
The junior wide receiver also laid out to make a diving catch for another TD.
“Henry drives me crazy sometimes,” Hanover Central coach Brian Parker said. “He’s such an emotional kid, an emotional player. He’s tough. He works really, really hard.
“He’s such a great blocker. First and foremost, when you watch Henry play wide receiver, he’s dominant at the line of scrimmage against some of these cornerbacks in regards to his feet and his hands and how physical he is. For him to make two big catches like that, good for him.”
Maurer’s two big catches were among the highlights on Friday as the Wildcats pulled away from Andrean in their 33-9 victory on the road in Merrillville to wrap up the title in their inaugural Northwest Crossroads Conference season.
“It’s a great feeling,” Maurer said. “First year, we were expected not to be as high as we were. Expected to be at the bottom, we came to the top. Everyone was saying it was an upset, but I don’t think it was an upset. From the very beginning since June, I knew we had what it takes to be in this moment.”
In the postgame huddle, Parker said he has never been more proud of a team, even the 2021 sectional champion. Several minutes later, he elaborated on the latest accomplishment by the Wildcats (8-0, 6-0), who are ranked No. 2 in the Class 3A poll by The Associated Press and No. 3 by the coaches.
“It’s special,” Parker said. “The NCC is a phenomenal conference. We’re so fortunate to be a part of it. It starts with the schools that are in it. There’s a great group of coaches. Great players. So we respect the heck out of all of these teams. There’s no team we respect more than Andrean. Chris (Skinner) and I are close.
“To beat Andrean, Hobart and Lowell in a season, that’s hard to do, and we did it. Whether it’s the first season or the 20th, it’s special.”
The 6-foot-3, 180-pound Maurer finished with five catches for 67 yards and the two TDs against Andrean (3-5, 3-2). He entered the game with 17 catches for 153 yards and a TD, as well as 11 tackles as a starting outside linebacker.
Maurer’s first score was a 10-yarder from senior quarterback Matt Koontz, who threw for 228 yards and had three short rushing TDs, that gave the Wildcats a 19-3 lead with 5:18 left in the third quarter.
“I wasn’t expecting him to throw me the ball,” Maurer said. “But he was going to throw it to me no matter what. He weaved the ball, and it was interesting. I came up with the ball and celebrated with my boys.
“I had to flip my hips. But it was still a great-placed ball by Matt.”
Maurer’s second TD catch, a 28-yarder down the left sideline to make it 26-3 with 11:09 left in the game, was even more impressive.
“I couldn’t really judge it,” he said. “I’m not going to say it was all luck, but I’m coming over the shoulder, having to dive for it. We practice those, and I guess it paid off here.”
Maurer is also a standout basketball player. He started about half of Hanover Central’s games as a freshman and entered the lineup full time last season, when he averaged 8.5 points and 4.8 rebounds.
“I personally think I’m better at basketball than I am at football,” he said. “But I go season by season. I put 100% into both sports.”
The Wildcats had been 0-4 against Andrean, including two sectional games, but took their first meeting as members of the NCC to run the table.
“To go undefeated in this conference is special,” Parker said.
