Special circumstances Morris aided by Gronek's kickoff return, Balzer's kicking, Bell's snaps

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October 26, 2008

From out of the mud, the rain-saturated muck and the kind of slop ordinarily reserved for greasy-spoon restaurants, Morris High School kick returner Matt Gronek gnashed into the teeth of the Redskins' middle wedge and emerged on the near sideline with a bright white smile.

While the back of his jersey seemed like a remnant from a tractor pull with monster trucks, the front of Gronek's No. 25 shined like a milky silhouette with maroon-and-gold trim. And once the 5-foot-8, 155-pound junior gained that daylight, the story of Saturday afternoon's glory was revealed.

After eluding the midfield tackle of Plainfield North kicker Tim Eulitz, Gronek glistened en route to a 97-yard touchdown. Afterward, though, Gronek asked for forgiveness from classmate Danny Niewinski for an episode that resembled the Discovery Channel program on security flaws.

It takes a thief.

"I want to apologize to Danny Niewinski because I stole it from him," Gronek said. "He called it, but I actually got right in front of him for it, and the blocking was great. It was just wide open, and I didn't have to do much except run."

Playing in the Tigers' Mud Bowl instead of the Rose Bowl, Gronek's stun-run return of the second-half kickoff meshed with Morris' combined overall excellence on special teams as the Redskins reached the playoffs for the 21st time in the past 22 years with a 21-13 Southwest Prairie Conference win.

Three extra-point conversions and a 49-yard boot in the fourth quarter by senior kicker/punter David Balzer, superb long-snapping by senior Kevin Bell and a blocked extra point by senior safety Tim Sereno put Morris (5-4, 5-2) in the intangible position to oust tough-luck Plainfield North (4-5, 4-3).

On Morris' initial punt of the first quarter, a penalty erased a thrilling 90-yard return by Tiger junior running back Devonta Davis. Eventually, the Redskins responded likewise, with Gronek going up the sideline untouched via the similar vapor trail of former Notre Dame receiver Raghib Ismail.

It takes a rocket.

"Yeah, we got it right away with Matt Gronek, and he's fast," Morris coach George Dergo said. "He keeps his feet, and you need guys like that on a field like this to make plays for you. And those guys up front were blocking, too. For some, that's the only work they get and they want to whack somebody around. That was the time to do it."

"On a difficult day to kick, Dave did a great job getting the extra points, and we talked about that return at halftime," said Tom Peterson, the Redskins' assistant coach in charge of special teams. "We've been wedging it all year long, we had some good blocks and Matt used his speed to get to the sideline. What a boost for our team."

Another boost for Morris came when Gronek, the Redskins' leading receiver this year with 23 catches for 122 yards, returned after leaving the Plainfield South game in Week 7 due to a concussion. He navigated the conditions better than the captain of the Titanic, and his kickoff return started to sink North.

"Everyone else was stuck in the muck, too," Gronek said. "I was worried that the kicker was going to ankle tackle me there, but once I got by him, I was pretty sure I was in. It was nice, it was nice to be ahead again, and it got the guys motivated."

"That was huge, just huge," Balzer said. "Everybody stepped up after that, especially the guys on our defense, and the offense did their job by grinding down the clock."

Morris' main meat grinders were the Redskins' twin-brother backfield combination of senior tailback Adam Tondini (29 carries, 108 yards) and senior fullback Drew Tondini (6 carries, 51 yards). Adam's 22-yard tackle-slipping TD run in the second quarter and Drew's 40-yard TD rumble on a dive in the fourth built leads of 7-0 and 21-13.

Plus, on a stage of equally hard-hitting defenses and contrasting offensive styles -- Morris operating primarily in an I-formation, double tight-end set and Plainfield North switching between shotgun empty and shotgun trips -- perhaps the biggest edge materialized with Bell, Balzer and holder Matt Hussey, the senior quarterback.

They were spot on.

"Our coaches talk about special teams every week, that it wins games," Balzer said. "Bell has been snapping great all year long, Matt does a great job for me as the holder and (special teams) have been a big focus for us every game."

"Bell and Balzer did really well on the snaps and the kicks," Gronek said. "Everyone blocked well, and it's great because we didn't make any mistakes at all on special teams."

Twice, Morris capitalized on North miscues. Eulitz fumbled after a bad snap on a first-quarter punt and junior linebacker Chris Ingram recovered for the Redskins. Four seconds into the fourth quarter, Sereno blocked Eulitz's point-after attempt, allowing Morris to hold the slightest of leads at 14-13.

"Coach Peterson has us working on that stuff probably 30-40 minutes a night," said Sereno, who credited junior teammates Tyler Thetard and Cody Hester for creating additional pressure. "They were telling me there was a big hole earlier, nobody blocked me and the ball bounced off my arm."

Imagine the look on Dergo's face if the ball bounced away on the kickoff because Gronek and Niewinski had collided. Regardless, Gronek ended up with the key return, the Redskins regained the lead and the coaches heaped praise on a special unit.

They were right on.

"Those two guys have been fighting over the ball," Peterson said of Gronek's first kickoff return TD of 2008. "We have two fast kids back there, Matt sort of took it away from Danny, but then he did take it all the way."

"Our special teams played great," Dergo said. "We had it going in all three phases."

e-mail: bscheibe@scn1.com