Schmitz’s Last-Second Field Goal Lifts SJ-O to Thrilling 24-21 Victory Over Unity in Home Opener
By FRED KRONER
If you followed the progression of St. Joseph-Ogen’s football home-opener on Friday (Sept. 6) against Unity at Dick Duval Field, it went like this:
SJ-O scored.
Unity scored 1:12 later to create a 7-7 tie.
SJ-O scored.
Unity scored 3:10 later to create a 14-14 tie.
SJ-O scored.
Unity scored 8:03 later to create a 21-21 tie.
SJ-O scored.
Game over.
In a key Illini Prairie Conference showdown between two schools that will likely appear in this week’s Class 3A state rankings, SJ-O edged Unity, 24-21, when Charlie Schmitz’s first varsity field goal attempt sailed through the uprights with less than 2 seconds to play in the 48-minute contest.
SJ-O coach Shawn Skinner recalled the sequence that led to Schmitz’s 31-yard game-winner.
“The snap (by Brennan Oleynichak) and hold (by Tayton Gerdes) were great, the height was great and the distance was more than enough,” Skinner said.
The Spartan coach was so confident in the outcome that he had removed his headset before the play started.
“I handed it to one of the kids and said, ‘I don’t need this. We’re going to win,’” Skinner said. “Charlie makes 40-yarders in practice routinely.
“I didn’t see any reason it wouldn’t be successful.”
Schmitz also converted 3-of-3 extra-point placements after the three SJ-O touchdowns.
The winning drive began when Jared Altenbaumer recovered a bad snap as Unity was trying to get the ball to its punter.
“That created poor field position for Unity (on defense),” Skinner said. “All three of our units (offense, defense and special teams) contributed to the win.”
The Spartans were the first to reach the end zone. Quarterback Kodey McKinney scored on a short run with 4:05 left in the opening period.
With less than 20 seconds left in the quarter, McKinney hooked up with Tanner Siems on a 8-yard scoring strike.
Also before halftime, SJ-O registered its third TD when McKinney tossed 26 yards to Coy Taylor.
Both Siems (110 yards on four catches) and Taylor (105 yards on nine receptions) eclipsed the 100-yard mark for receiving. McKinney completed 12 of 17 passes overall for 269 yards.
Kaden Wedig (42 yards) and Tim Blackburn-Kelley (22 yards) hauled in a combined five passes.
“Unity was changing its coverage and blitzing five or six every time,” Skinner said. “Kodey did a great job handling it and our offensive line kept him clean for the most part.
“I was proud of the effort. There was never any panic or frustration.”
The game wasn’t over following Schmitz’s field goal.
Lucas Smith booted a line drive kickoff which the Rockets fielded and then lateralled several times before the ball was recovered by the Spartans to end the game.
Among the defensive stalwarts for SJ-O were outside linebackers James Barron and Carson Sarnecki as well as defensive linemen Quincy Jones and Gabe Mata.
Skinner said his squad had help from more than the 11 players who were on the field at any given time.
“We had a fantastic crowd,” Skinner said. “Our band and student section was the best I’ve seen in a long, long time.”
The final score was indicative of the quality of the game.
“Both teams played super hard,” Skinner said. “Both teams’ defense played well and really stepped up.
“They were using time of possession and slowed the game in the second half. Our defense did a great job of buckling down.”
The Rockets scored on their first possession of the third quarter, but were blanked thereafter, punting three times and losing possession once inside the 30 on a Barrron fourth-down tackle.
“Jones and Altenbaumer had a tackle to force them into that fourth-down play,” Skinner said.
SJ-O’s kickers – whether on punts or kickoffs – did their part to pin Unity deep in its own territory.
“Unity was often looking at 70-plus yards to drive (to reach the end zone),” Skinner said. “That was a huge factor. And after the first quarter, we had good kick coverage.”
The Spartans return to action on Friday (Sept. 14) at Fairbury against Prairie Central. The Hawks lost to Unity in Week 1 (32-13 at home) and beat Pontiac (37-7 on the road) last week.
“That’s a tough place to play,” said Skinner, whose team last won at Prairie Central in 2015, “and they are really big.”
