Illinois High School Football: Lincoln-Way East suffers first regular season loss in four years

For the first time in four years, Lincoln-Way East (Ill.) football has lost a regular-season game.

The Griffons, who were playing without star senior quarterback Jonas Williams, lost 14-6 on the road to Naperville North on Friday night. Williams was reportedly dressed out but did not play in the defeat. Star senior EDGE Jacob Alexander was also out.

The last time Lincoln-Way East suffered defeat in the regular season was Oct. 1, 2021, when it lost 30-27 at home against Sandburg. The Griffons went 9-3 that season.

Defense was, obviously, the name of the game on Friday night. Three-and-outs were abundant, but a key special teams play by Naperville North made a major difference in the first quarter. The Huskies blocked a Lincoln-Way East punt, got the ball at midfield and punched in a rushing touchdown to take an early 7-0 lead.

The Huskies defense continued to apply the pressure and it landed a reward of its own in the second quarter. East fumbled, Naperville North recovered and had great field position once again. It cashed in in a big way as William Eloe housed a 39-yard run to take the home team up two scores.

The East defense made its biggest play of the night in the third quarter with an interception from Casey Mikrut. The Griffons were in Naperville North territory and then finally finished a drive with a touchdown near the end of the third to cut the lead in half.

East’s true last gasp saw it get back into the Huskies’ red zone, but their defense answered the bell once again and forced a turnover on downs. The Griffons got the ball back with 85 yards to go and less than a minute to play, but was unable to muster a final threat as Naperville North pulled off the major upset.

Lincoln-Way East entered this week as the No. 2 team in Illinois and the No. 36 team nationally, according to the Massey Ratings. Naperville North, now 5-3 this season, entered as the No. 46 team in the state.

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This story will be updated.