St. Rita offense rolls in CCL/ESCC Green win over Montini

CHICAGO – Montini quarterback Tre Jones found receiver Mario Florio for a 66-yard touchdown pass on the third play from scrimmage Friday night at St. Rita.

After that, it was all St. Rita.

A week after scoring only three points against a highly-touted Loyola defense, St. Rita scored six consecutive touchdowns following Montini’s opening score. St. Rita defeated Montini, 51-13, on Friday night in Chicago in CCL/ESCC Green division play.

The Mustangs offense stalled out on its first possession, but then later in the first quarter running back Kaleb Brown broke free for a 71-yard touchdown run.

It was just the spark St. Rita (1-1, 1-0 CCL/ESCC Green) needed.

“[It was] just an open hole, honestly,” Brown said. “The linemen definitely did their job as far as blocking. That was definitely a big factor, the linemen in general, just holding down, protecting.”

Brown, a junior, has his pick of pretty much any college he wants. He holds some 20 offers, including the likes of Michigan, Ohio State and Alabama. Following a relatively quiet Week 1 against Loyola, Brown showed why college coaches are so high on him.

[ CCL/ESCC notes: Mount Carmel’s Kenenna Odeluga “didn’t want to get my hopes up” when Illinois called, now he’s a future Illini ]

His ability to take even just a couple inches of space and turn it into a big play was evident Friday.

He did on St. Rita’s first touchdown and he did it again just before halftime. With St. Rita running the two-minute drill just before the half, quarterback Tommy Ulatowski found Brown on a relatively short pass that Brown turned into a huge gain.

“He doesn’t need a lot of space, but when he gets it, he’s gone,” St. Rita coach Todd Kuska said. “There’s not a lot of people can run with him and he showed that. And we’ve got some other weapons.”

The Mustangs’ other weapons were everywhere, too, Friday night. None made a bigger impact than senior receiver Henry Wilson. Early in the second quarter, not long after Brown’s first touchdown, Wilson caught a short pass from Ulatowski and made the defense miss.

Wilson evaded two or three tackles before barreling through another on his way to the end zone.

“I took it down the left sideline,” Wilson said. “I thought the first defender was going to tackle me, but I kept my balance. From there, I just knew I had to get in the end zone. I did anything I could.”

It was Wilson’s first touchdown since breaking his leg during the 2019 season. He is committed to play at Western Michigan.

Running back Kyle James scored two touchdowns and receiver Isaiah Bragg added another. Backup quarterback Brian Johnson punched in a 1-yard score late in the game.

Ulatowski finished his day 13-for-14 passing for 237 yards with three touchdown passes. Brown rushed for 97 yards on six carries, with one catch for 61 yards, with a touchdown rushing and receiving. Wilson caught five passes for 107 yards and a score.

For Montini (0-2, 0-1), the defeat drops it to 0-2 after a loss to Mount Carmel last week. There’s no shame in losing to Mount Carmel and St. Rita, who are both ranked in the top 25 in Friday Night Drive’s latest statewide power rankings.

[ Friday Night Drive Week 1 Power Rankings ]

Montini running back Josh Robinson led the Broncos with 56 yards on 15 carries. Florio’s touchdown was the big highlight of the night offensively, while senior receiver Jalen McBride added a 69-yard touchdown on a pass from quarterback Brett Pickering late in the game.