JCA Checks Off Another On Craig's List

As the two-minute drill turned into a 52-second drill Friday night, Joliet Catholic Academy junior Craig Slowik took the controls and handled the offense like Jeff Gordon driving the No. 24 Chevy.

A 6-foot-4, 185-pound quarterback, the still-growing Shorewood native connected with senior tight end Isaac Grashoff for 16 yards and sophomore tight end Zach Rezin for 24 yards, both on second down.

Then, on first down with 14 seconds remaining in the first half at Hanson Stadium, Slowik hooked up with junior wingback Ty Isaac, who made a juggling, 20-yard touchdown catch through the middle seam.

And it looked as easy as it seems.

“For me, we don’t throw the ball all that much, so it’s my glory time,” Slowik said of the two-minute drill. “But we work on it every day at the end of practice, just to make sure we have our timing down and everybody knows where they are going, and I thought it worked out pretty well for us.”

The JCA football team pretty much fired on all cylinders against host St. Patrick. Slowik finished 4-of-6 for 85 yards, all in the first half, as the Hilltoppers posted a 56-7 East Suburban Catholic Conference rout.

Showcasing moves straight out of a video game, Isaac paced JCA (7-1, 6-1) by rushing for 181 yards on seven carries, catching two passes for 45 yards and scoring four TDs — three on runs of 1, 28 and 47 yards. Even when St. Patrick (3-4, 2-4) was in the right position, Isaac shocked the Shamrocks.

Northwestern-bound senior wingback Malin Jones (10 carries, 78 yards) scored on runs of 49 and 7 yards, junior fullback Ty Reitz (6 carries, 45 yards) scored on a 1-yard run and junior fullback Nate Dollinger highlighted the fourth-quarter running clock with his first varsity TD, a 2-yard bulldoze.

Still, what stood out of the mix was Slowik’s two-minute drill, something the Hillmen will need down the road. He went 3-of-5 for 60 yards, covering the distance in a mere 38 seconds for a 42-7 halftime lead.

Good deal.

“It certainly is,” JCA coach Dan Sharp said. “Any time you can work on certain parts of your game during a game, not in practice situations, it helps. And Craig showed great poise, the ability to get people lined up, get the play called and make good reads because at that point, it’s out of our hands and in his.”

Said Slowik: “They all just flew to Malin on the curl route, and that meant Zach was all alone on the sidelines for the wheel route because he only had one guy with him. And Ty is just awesome right now.”

“We’ve known it from Day 1 that if you can Craig time, he’s going to be able to throw the ball,” said Isaac, who also lives in Shorewood. “Once we get into our two-minute drill, we worked it really well. Honestly, we were making quick transitions, running good routes, and we made the big plays.”

Perhaps the biggest play for the JCA offense – which ended up churning out 447 yards, including 362 on 32 rushes – came on a fourth-down sack in the first quarter by junior linebacker Matt Madrigal.

“They controlled the ball for like eight minutes in the first quarter,” Sharp said. “That stop was huge because we knew we were clicking on offense. We needed the defense to come up with a crucial stop.”

“It was a big play,” Madrigal said. “And it always feels good to make big plays early like that.”

From there, the plays came for JCA like manna from heaven. Jones’ stiff-arm and cutback for a 49-yard TD began the barrage, but the Shamrocks countered with a 55-yard TD pass. Isaac juked around a tackler for a 1-yard TD for a 14-7 lead with 1:19 left in the first quarter.

A blocked punt by senior cornerback Brody Wilhelmi set up Isaac’s 28-yard score and senior safety Dominick Alllen’s fourth-down tackle set up Jones scoring on a 7-yard counter. Throw in Reitz, Slowik’s lob to Isaac, Isaac’s right-left-right combination and Dollinger and the rest was history.

“On his last touchdown, we forgot to block three people on the edge and Ty still found a way,” Sharp said. “He’s playing at a whole different level than everyone else, and the scary part is he can get better.”