Under the lights at Lazier Field on Friday night, ETHS couldn’t keep pace with Hoffman Estates, falling 24–7 in front of the home crowd. The Kits showed flashes of fight on both sides of the ball, but turnovers and missed opportunities kept them from gaining momentum. Hoffman’s steady offense and tough defense ultimately proved too much, handing Evanston a disappointing loss on its own turf.
“I thought our defense played very well for long stretches of the game and came up with some big plays, but we could not gain any real momentum because our offense never was able to click into gear,” stated new head coach Miles Osei.
In the first quarter, the Hawks dominated field position but were kept out of the end zone, with an interception by senior linebacker Cash Nelson and a few key defensive stands. However, the Kits could not capitalize as they too fumbled the ball on two separate occasions. Hoffman Estates opened the scoring at the beginning of the second quarter, with junior kicker Simon Howarth hitting a 40-yard field goal. They would then find paydirt for the first time in the game when senior quarterback Austin Lezniak found sophomore TJ Bond on a 14-yard slant pass. On the ensuing possession, the Kits were able to get on the board via a junior Justin Johnson touchdown from the Wildcat formation with a second left in the first half.
The Kits went into the break only trailing 10–7, but any hope of a win was extinguished when Lezniak and Bond connected for their second touchdown of the game. Just a couple of minutes later, senior running back Landon Ford fought his way in from four yards out to ensure the victory for the Hawks.
“Even though we got it within three, it never really felt like we had something going because of the way that they came out early in the second half,” explained Osei.
While the Kits’ defense—and specifically the pass rush—was immense in the first half, they began to tire out as they had to play almost the entire game on the field, with the offense unable to sustain prolonged drives.
“It’s really hard for a defense not to crack when the offense is unable to give them a break,” said Osei.
Evanston’s offense mustered just 48 passing yards and 155 rushing yards, including a 62-yard dash by junior Sean Hopson, who averaged just over 10 yards per carry (11 carries, 112 yards).
Hoffman Estates senior quarterback Austin Lezniak threw for 208 passing yards, completing 16 of his 33 attempts, and starting running back Landon Ford carried for 87 yards on 26 carries.
While speaking on the offense’s performance, Osei commented, “We have to be creative and move guys around to get our playmakers the ball.”
Evanston continues to search for its starter at the quarterback position. The Kits opened the game with Jake Everds under center but also gave significant playing time to Amare Watson as they continue to search for a consistent spark on offense. Meanwhile, sophomore quarterback TJ Gant was moved down to JV last week, where he responded with an impressive performance that only adds to the questions about the position. With no clear standout yet, Evanston is still trying to figure out who will lead the offense moving forward.
“We can’t be worried about who we are playing when we make this many silly mistakes,” observed Osei, while looking ahead as the Kits plan to take on #6-ranked Maine South away.
