Montini to celebrate 10th anniversary of football team’s perfect season

The Montini Catholic High School football team in Lombard will hold a celebration honoring the 10-year anniversary of its 2015 championship season.

The team is the first and only Bronco team to go undefeated. The commemorative event will take place during halftime of the season-opening game Aug. 29 at John L. Duffy Memorial Stadium.

Members of the 2015 championship roster will be recognized on the field as the program celebrates one of the most memorable seasons in Bronco history. The team will also celebrate together prior to the game at Montini’s Vince Gavin Stadium Club.

Fans in attendance will have the opportunity to join in the celebration, which will include the introduction of the championship team on the field and other special acknowledgments throughout the night.

The Broncos’ 2015 season, led by head coach Chris Andriano, who retired in 2018, and current head coach Mike Bukovsky, was a landmark year for Montini football, filled with new challenges and historic milestones.

With the Broncos moving up to Class 6A under new IHSA regulations, the program stepped onto a stage while Montini Catholic High School itself celebrated its 50th anniversary.

The Broncos opened with back-to-back victories over perennial playoff contenders Maine South and East St. Louis, then followed with a 38–7 win against St. Rita. From there, Montini hit its stride, scoring 35 points or more in five of its final six regular-season games and completing a perfect 9–0 regular season—the fourth unbeaten regular season in school history.

In the postseason, Montini opened with a 35–7 win over Wauconda followed by victories over Kaneland and DeKalb, which set the stage for one of the most legendary games in program history.

That semifinal matchup against Prairie Ridge has gone down as perhaps the greatest ever played at Montini. In a driving snowstorm, with snow tractors and shovels on the sidelines, the Broncos struck first, but the Wolves rallied to take a halftime lead and stretched it to 27–13 in the third quarter.

When the snow cleared, Montini surged and scored 22 unanswered points to complete a 35–27 comeback and punch their ticket to a seventh straight state championship appearance.

The title game at Husky Stadium in DeKalb was the final chapter in a perfect season. Facing Crete-Monee, Montini erased an early deficit with 28 unanswered points, transforming a 15–10 hole into a 38–15 victory.