A grueling four-week stretch that saw Huntley lose four games in a row, including three by one score to Cary-Grove, Jacobs and Prairie Ridge, made Friday’s Fox Valley Conference game against McHenry a must-win for the Red Raiders.

Needing two more wins to finish the regular season with a shot at its fourth straight postseason appearance, Huntley’s playmakers rose to the occasion.

Sophomore quarterback Malik Carter threw for 330 yards and five touchdowns, and the Raiders’ defense came up with three first-half turnovers in a 48-36 win against the upset-minded Warriors.

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IHSA Football: McHenry vs Huntley McHenry's Jeffry Schwab tries to avoid a sack from Huntley's Mason Maldonado during their Fox Valley Conference game on Friday, Oct. 17, 2025, in Huntley. (Paul J. McKenna for Shaw Local N/Paul J. McKenna for Shaw Local N)

Huntley (4-4, 4-4 FVC) can earn its fifth win in Week 9 when it travels to Hampshire.

But first, the Raiders were happy to celebrate their first victory in 35 days.

“It’s been tough, but it just makes you more hungry,” said Carter, who completed 23 of 28 passes with TD throws of 36, 59, 5, 8 and 35 yards. “Jalen Hurts said, ‘Hungry dogs run faster.’ Our team, we were starving. We really want these wins.

“I’m just proud of all the guys because we put in so much work and finally it paid off.”

Huntley never trailed Friday, with Carter finding wide receiver Jacob Marx (seven catches, 99 yards) for a 36-yard TD pass to the end zone in the game’s opening five minutes. McHenry answered when QB Jeffry Schwab (18 carries, 183 yards) slipped away from a potential sack by Ethan Albertson for a 51-yard run to even the score with 6:40 left in the first.

Huntley added a 4-yard run by sophomore Chase Hojnacki with 3:15 in the first quarter to go up 14-7. A fumble by the Warriors set up a short field for Huntley, which cashed in on a 1-yard TD run by Hojnacki.

Schwab, though, got loose again for a 33-yard TD run to cut the lead to 21-14 with 8:15 left in the third.

The Raiders responded with three more touchdowns before the half when Carter threw a deep pass to Kyle Ziebell for a 59-yard score on the first play of the drive.

Alex Vega recovered his second fumble of the first half, and Carter hit Hojnacki on a 5-yard screen for a 35-14 lead. Carter threw his fourth TD pass of the first half on an 8-yard pass to Matthew Schroeder (seven catches, 111 yards) to go up 42-14 at the break.

Carter didn’t start the season as the Raiders’ starting QB, but has blossomed into one of the FVC’s best passers.

“He can get himself locked in and in the zone and be that guy,” Huntley coach Mike Naymola said of his 6-foot-5 180-pound QB. “His maturity and his effort to really lead the team at a young age has been really impressive. A lot of the guys see that and it’s a big reason why he was voted one of the leaders of the team.

“As a sophomore, he earned his way into that role, just by what he did in the offseason and how he composed himself. We’re obviously really excited about what he can do for us.”

McHenry, which has lost six straight games following a 2-0 start, didn’t go away easy in the second half. After Carter threw for his fifth TD of the game with a 35-yard pass to Matthew Schroeder, the Warriors scored the game’s final 22 points.

Hunter Lechner had a 4-yard TD run with 10:31 remaining, then Mick Reidy added a 4-yard TD run with 4:30 left, adding a two-point try, to cut the deficit to 48-28. Robert Davis then recovered an onside kick, leading to a Dayton Warren 10-yard reverse and two-point run by Reidy to make the score 48-36.

The Warriors (2-6, 2-6) got the ball back one last time, but three straight sacks by Huntley’s Jonas Owens, Ryan Wabel and Toluwani Ajayi sealed the victory for the Raiders.

“We coach these guys hard, they respond well, and it weighs on me because, yes, this is the first year with the new staff, but we haven’t found a way to put four quarters together,” McHenry coach Colt Nero said. “I give them a lot of credit for how they responded. It’s easy to throw your hand ups, but that’s not who our kids are. Winning’s hard, and you’ve got to learn how to win. That’s part of it right now.”