East St. Louis Flyers quarterback Dominic Nelson was as calm as he could be as he guided the Flyers 80 yards downfield in the last six minutes of their IHSA Class 6A quarterfinal game against New Lennox Providence.
East Side trailed 26-19, but they were on the move. On fourth down and two, Nelson’s roll-out run for a touchdown pulled East St. Louis to within one point – 26-25 with one minute remaining. Coach Darren Sunkett reached into his playbook and decided to go for two points.
With some hometown fools from the “street patrol” barking from the stands for Sunkett to kick the game-tying extra point, I thought to myself in my Red Foxx voice, “Are you crazy?!”
It turns out that Darren Sunkett knows football, and didn’t even consider going for a PAT. He dialed up a play that left his talented freshman wide-out Jeff Thomas with man-on-man coverage, and Nelson hit the freshman sensation with a perfect pass to put the Flyers up 27-26. The Flyers’ defense held Providence Catholic on their side of midfield to seal the win.
With the win, the Flyers moved into Saturday’s state semifinals against Oak Lawn Richards at Jordan Stadium in East St. Louis. Kickoff is at 3 p.m.
 Providence Catholic was good. Running back Dominic Lagone rushed for 123 yard on 17 carries. And Ohio State recruit Miles Boykin had eight catches for 106yds.
But lost in all the drama at the conclusion of the ball game, once again, was the play of senior running back Gregory Taylor. Playing on both sides of the ball, Taylor rushed for 185 yards and three touchdowns. Taylor scored on runs of 3, 11 and 62 yards.
Taylor’s 62-yarder was the most electrifying of the game. The University of Mizzou recruit jolted off right tackle behind All American Terry Beckner Jr. for a sensational touchdown run on the first play of the second half. It took the life out of the 5,000-plus Providence fans.
Saturday’s game against Oak Lawn Richards will be the Flyers’ first semifinals appearance since 2009. The Flyers and the Bulldogs have a little history dating back when legendary coach Bob Shannon’s defense manhandled Richards 38-6 at historic Pardons Field in a 5A quarterfinals. After beating Elgin Larkin the following week, 19-15, the Flyers – a team which I was a member of – went on to win its first of now seven state championships.
On Saturday, the No. 1 seed Bulldogs of Oak Lawn Richards will unleash a stud on offense in junior quarterback Hasan Muhammad-Rogers. He has several Division 1 offers on the table, including Illinois.
Richards’ defense has been downright nasty in its own right during the season and playoffs. The Bulldogs’ defense had only allowed 1,897 yards total all season and only 723 yards on the ground with six shutouts, including two in the playoffs.
 The Flyers have not lost since the daytime nightmare on Sept. 21st against O’Fallon. Riding an eight-game winning streak, a win will advance them to the class 6A State Championship game on the campus of Northern Illinois University next Saturday, Nov. 30 at 1 p.m.
In addition, it will be the last home game for the seniors.
What a way to end the career at the House of Pain with a victory!
