Every so often, Sun Citians, Huntley High School comes along to entertain us with another sports story.
This year, it’s Red Raider football.
The Raiders made some major school history on October 23 when they defeated Dundee-Crown, 43-6, to complete their first perfect 9-0 regular season in their history. Remember, folks, Huntley High School was a small country high school of a few hundred students in the late ’90s, when Sun City came to their community.
Senior QB Anthony Bine drops back for a pass during prac ce rounds. (Photo by Chris LaPelusa/Sun Day)
Today, HHS is one of the largest high schools in the northwest suburban area, with nearly 2,700 students that are looking forward to studying next year in a facility just outside Sun City that is now receiving a $39 million makeover.
This is the fifth time the Raiders have qualified for the post-season playoffs sponsored by the Illinois High School Association (IHSA). In fact, the Raiders impressed the IHSA so much that they are seeded 2nd out of 32 teams in the IHSA’s Class 8A Division of post-season competition. They played a home game against Minooka last Saturday (see separate story in this edition of the Sun Day). If they advance past round one, they may host another game in succeeding rounds, depending on the results of several future games in the 8A Division.
Getting to this point in their athletic football history has taken 12 years. It began in 2003, when they joined the Fox Valley Conference that includes schools like Cary Grove, Prairie Ridge, Crystal Lake South, and McHenry, all of which have long traditions of sports excellence.
A few years later, Huntley upgraded its coaching staff by hiring head coach John Hart, who made a strong reputation with several championship teams in Indiana. Now in his fourth season, Hart has built and developed a dominant team that scored 372 points this fall, averaging 41 per game. The Red Raiders gave up an average of 15 points per game.
Huntley wasted no time serving notice that they would be a major force this year. In their opener, they soundly defeated Lincoln Way Central, a perennial playoff team from the south suburbs, 28-12. They followed up with a 59-28 rout of Chicago De La Salle, traditionally a strong Catholic League team. They seriously grabbed the area’s and the state’s attention on October 2 when they defeated state-ranked and 2014 state title runner-up Cary-Grove, 29-8.
Most productive players include senior quarterback Anthony Binetti, who passed and ran for 351 yards in Huntley’s 62-19 win over McHenry: Sophomore Eric Mooney and senior Casey Haayer are equally talented running backs and pass receivers. Seniors Dominic Swanson, Kyle Witt, and Zack Vretenar, junior Austin Zeis, and sophomore Cody Gaynor lead the way up front. Tim McCloyn, Tyler Larson, and Caleb Jones stand out on defense.
Going into the playoffs, the Red Raiders are ranked among the state’s top six teams in Class 8A. Twice before in the last eight years, the Red Raiders have qualified for the playoffs, but lost in early games. The last of these came last year, when they were defeated by Palatine in round one after achieving an 8-1 regular season.
The Sun Day asked Hart if this season surprised him.
“No, not at all,” he said. “We knew the Lincoln Way game would be a great indicator of our record.”
Hart praised his defense, especially in the Cary Grove game, where the Raiders pitched a shutout until the final minutes.
“We believe the only way to win championships is to be great on defense. Our defense has played at a very high level at times. In that Cary-Grove game, our defense was very special,” he said.
Finally, Hart said something that reveals how serious he is about playing one game at a time. Asked by the Sun Day if the round one draw in Class 8A shows he may have a favorable path to a deep playoff finish, he said, “You are guaranteed two things in the playoffs, one game and that your opponent will be talented and prepared.”
No premature celebrating or insulting bravado that could find its way to an opposing team’s locker room for Hart. For him, it’s one game at a time. Discipline now, celebrating later.
Look for further coverage of Raider football on the Sun Day’s website and in the November 19 print edition.
