Twenty years later, Oswego 2003 state champs still savor the memories ‘We had such a good group of guys’

Jeff Ziemnik and Adi Pynenberg share a bond whose roots lie on the grass turf at Oswego’s Ken Pickerill Stadium, and continue beyond football to this day.

Oswego Class of 2004, the two men still live down the street from each other. Both were the best man at each other’s weddings. Both coach their sons in OYTF.

The images may be fuzzy over 20 years. A VHS tape of the final game is needed to jog the memory. But the moment still is priceless.

Ziemnik, the quarterback on the 2003 Oswego team, and Pynenberg, a tight end/linebacker, were among the former players recognized Friday night as part of the 20th anniversary of the Panthers’ team that won the Class 7A state championship.

“It’s really the relationships that come to mind about that team, is what most people play for,” said Pynenberg, now a fireman in Glenview married to his high school sweetheart with three boys. “We were so special because we had such a good group of guys that were friends on and off the field. A lot of those friendships continue to this day. We had a good core group of guys that keep in touch. It’s cool to see those relationships.”

Ziemnik said he wouldn’t have remembered much about the 2003 Class 7A state championship game, Oswego’s 28-21 double overtime win over Libertyville, had he been asked about it three months ago. The memories flowed back when a VHS tape of the game was pulled out at a summer gathering at Pynenberg’s for the boys to see.

“First play of the game, they took the ball to the house on us, that set the tone for the game. Luckily it got called back,” said Ziemnik, now a financial advisor with a wife, son and daughter. “It was cold. I remember throwing an interception that was intended for Adi. What I most remember was the missed field goal at the end of the game that allowed it to go overtime.”

The game-winning score came on Dwayne Staniszewski’s 2-yard TD run, Oswego’s second state championship secured with a Libertyville incompletion in the end zone.

“It was one of those scrappy games that fed into our persona,” Pynenberg said. “It wasn’t luck, but the ball bounced our way at the right time. Double overtime, could have gone either way, we made just enough plays to work in our favor. Surreal.”

Ziemnik, Pynenberg and Sean Staffeldt were in a group of a half-dozen or so called up to varsity in 2001 as sophomores. “That was a rough year, I think we were 3-6,” Ziemnik said.

Oswego went 10-2 the following year, reaching the quarterfinals.

“We had a good junior year,” Ziemnik said. “Unfortunately we ran into Edwardsville and it wasn’t our day. The field was muddy and horrible and they just beat us. In 2003 we wanted to get farther than the previous year. At any level the goal is to win it all.”

The Panthers indeed ripped off five wins to start the 2003 season, before a 14-12 loss in Week 6 to Minooka.

“I don’t think if we had had that loss we would have won state,” Ziemnik said. “That opened our eyes, that we can lose a game. That turned us around and brought us close together.”

Oswego didn’t lose again, entering the playoffs with an 8-1 record. There was no chance of overconfidence, however, not with Oswego coach Karl Hoinkes steering the ship.

“He would feed into us the underdog mindset, that no one thinks much of Oswego. He would do a good job of keeping us humble despite expectations,” Pynenberg said. “That loss to Minooka definitely solidified things. Something like that can send a team one way or the other and it brought us closer. Hindsight being 20/20, it was almost a good thing.”

In the playoffs Oswego rolled past Alton 35-0, Bolingbrook 41-6 and East St. Louis 33-20. A 28-7 win over Downers Grove North in the semifinals sent the Panthers to state.

“We didn’t have any Division I scholarship guys and I remember Bolingbrook had some Big Ten recruit. We didn’t have that notoriety,” said Pynenberg, who went on to play at Wabash College. “If was fun. We were fighting to see how far we could take this. That Downers Grove North game, that was one of the most complete games we had played. I remember walking off the field thinking ‘Man, those guys didn’t stand a chance.’”

Ziemnik said it took some time to settle in that the Panthers were in fact state champions after beating Libertyville.

“I was in shock,” he said. “I remember coming home, being on the bus, having the cops ride us in. I think it took some time to process it all, especially at that age. But it was a pretty cool feeling, being one of the best. It was more shock like ‘Did this really happen?’ You had to just slap your face and make sure that it was all real.”