With 8:19 left in the fourth quarter of the class 8A state championship football game, senior defensive linebacker Dillon Grooss blocked a Loyola Academy field goal and ran to score an 85-yard touchdown, setting the team up to win the state title for Central’s varsity football team.

“When I was running down the sidelines, I looked at the stands and I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is actually happening right now,’” Grooss said. “I saw everyone going crazy and there were so many thoughts going through [my] head; it was the best moment of my life.”

The game took place on Nov. 30 at Northern Illinois University’s Huskie Stadium. Central defeated Loyola Academy 13-10, to finish their season with a 12-3 record.

Mike Ulreich, varsity defensive coordinator and coach for the past eight years, recalls Grooss’ touchdown as a memorable game changer.

“I was sprinting down the sideline with Dillon as he was running for the touchdown,” Ulreich said. “It was probably the fastest I’ve ran in a long time, so needless to say it was an exhilarating feeling.”

Following the game, the team was welcomed back to Central by fans and parents who gathered in the main gym for a pep rally. The following week, an assembly was held during the school day in recognition of the football team’s achievements, as well as the accomplishments of other fall sports.

Varsity kicked off their season with five consecutive wins, then followed by three losses in a row. The sudden streak of losses halfway through the season left fans skeptical of Central’s chance to compete for the state title, but senior linebacker Jack Wooldridge knew the team was not easily influenced.

“When you win five games in a row, you feel on top of the world,” Wooldridge said. “The whole student body is talking about how good we are, and then losing three games in a row is like everyone [is] doubting you; but we knew what we were capable of the whole time.”

In the weeks leading up to the championship, the varsity team practiced every single day, which the team says helped to ease nervousness when the final game came around. Senior defensive back Dan Dolehide saw the team’s final game as nothing more than any other match.

“It didn’t feel like a state championship until we were actually there,” Dolehide said. “I didn’t think we were going to go all the way until we finally got there, [especially since] our coaches did the same things during practice.”

Football practices and conditioning were purposely not tailored for the state qualification, which Ulreich believes was the key to Central’s success.

“I think [head] coach [Mike] Stine did a tremendous job of sticking with the same process and routine and as a result our kids felt very comfortable and relaxed, and I think that it reflected in how we played,” Ulreich said.

Members of the team added to the coaches’ successful strategy by tightening their bonds with one another, which was evident both on and off the field. Players spent a lot of time training and hanging out outside of practice together, which they say was a positive change of pace compared to previous years.

“We had a lot of fun when we were together, but when we were out on the practice field, we got to work and I think that really helped a lot,” senior quarterback Jake Kolbe said.

Ulreich continuously saw a difference in the attitude of the players after losses and throughout the rigorous practice schedule. He attributes the change solely to the team’s determination to win.

“The difference was the kids; they made the whole thing go,” Ulreich said.  “The extra work they put into the off-season, the leadership that was displayed by our seniors and the unflappable will to win.  When we needed to show resolve after a tough loss, they responded.”

Tough losses were just what the varsity football team had experienced for years. Central’s last state football title was won in 1999 with the team led by running back Ryan Clifford, who scored a record 51 touchdowns that year. After coming off a 4-5 record last year, this marks the first time Central has competed in the state finals since 2001.

Though certainly gratifying, Ulreich says receiving the state trophy was not the only rewarding thing about the season as a whole. It is the relationships with his players that formed throughout the season, he says, that proved to be the “greatest prize.”

“I have never been around a group of kids that willed themselves to win like this group,” Ulreich said. “It is something you talk about, but it is such a rare thing to see. I look forward to seeing these guys graduate and go to college and grow up to be great fathers and great husbands.”

Posessing the championship trophy now sets up the team’s underclassmen for several more years of hard work. For sophomore kicker Connor Assalley, who scored seven field goal points in the game, the pressure to win another state title in the next few years is already present.

“It was a great experience to win the state championship as a sophomore,” Assalley said. “The seniors [this year] really deserved it, but hopefully we will be able to win another state championship in the next two years.”