RICHMOND – Friday’s Class 4A second-round playoff matchup between Richmond-Burton and visiting Urban Prep/Bronzeville was a one-sided affair.

The No. 1-seeded Rockets carried the ball 34 times for 365 yards - an average of 10.7 yards per run - and got rushing touchdowns from four different players.

The end result was a dominant 54-6 victory over the No. 8-seeded Lions.

It also catapults the unbeaten Rockets (11-0) into the Class 4A state quarterfinals next week, against the winner of Saturday’s game between Providence Catholic and Joliet Catholic.

The Rockets have won 43 of their past 44 games dating back to the start of the 2019 season.

Each week, R-B coach Mike Noll sets goals for his team, and was asked following the win if he felt his team met those during his club’s 54-point romp.

“Yes and no,” Noll said. “Our guys played hard, and we practiced well all week. At times we seemed kind of flat tonight though.

“But of course, this is two weeks in a row where we’ve had big leads against teams we were expected to beat. It can be easy to slip up mentally and have trouble staying fired up in games like this. That’s one area we need to be better at.”

On the flipside, it gives players like starting fullback Steven Siegel rest, and prevents potential injuries when teams have the kinds of sizable second-half leads the Rockets have grown accustomed to.

For the second week in a row, Noll rested most of his starters in the second half, including Siegel, who needed just nine carries to amass 131 rushing yards, along with three TDs.

He now has 1,725 rushing yards and 36 TDs in just 11 games in 2022.

“That’s a luxury I’m grateful for,” Siegel said. “My teammates’ hard work keeps our starters from getting too beat up.

“That’s important, because I use a lot of energy on some of those bigger runs. You feel more refreshed later in the week, too. Things get way more physical for us next week. That rest is important so we’re fresh.”

Toby Quentrall-Quezada (6 carries, 72 yards) had a 19-yard rushing TD for R-B, while teammate Braxtin Nellessen had two rushing scores - one from 1 yard and another from 6.

Nellessen finished with 10 carries for 61 yards, and backup Oscar Bonilla (3 carries, 41 yards) scored the Rockets’ other rushing TD, giving them seven total TDs on the ground against the Lions (7-4).

“I think Oscar’s touchdown was a high point in this game,” Noll said. “It came right after they scored their only touchdown, which was against our second unit.”

That TD came on the first play of the fourth quarter, when Lions QB Justyn Garrison (11 of 21, 153 yards, TD, INT) found Ja’Vaun Ward-Malone on a 72-yard fly pattern for six points.

“Seeing guys who don’t see a ton of playing time respond like that after we gave up a touchdown is huge,” Noll said.

R-Bs lone passing TD was a 31-yard late first-quarter strike from QB Joe Miller to Max Loveall, who used a hesitation stutter-step to deke a defender after the catch.

Defensively, the Rockets notched five sacks, a fumble recovery, and an interception by Ryan Wiesniewski.

R-B has allowed just 106 points in 11 games, and knows the difficulty level is about to get massively cranked up in its next game.

“It’s gonna be a game against the Catholic League Orange,” Noll said. “So we know it’s gonna be a tough, physical battle no matter who we play.

“But we’ve been preparing for this all year. We’ve played seven playoff teams on our schedule, including Normal West, Rochelle and others. Six of those teams we faced won last week, and made it to the second round. We’re gonna do our best to be ready next week. It’s gonna be a physical game.”