If Downers Grove North’s recovery of an onside kick to begin the second half was a surprise, Hinsdale Central’s rapid-fire answer was a downright shocker.

Down just 6-0, the Trojans followed the recovery by driving to the Hinsdale Central 5-yard-line on a pair of nine-yard runs by quarterback Dan Sheppard. But facing second down and one, the Red Devils’ defensive front line led by Pat Clegg stopped three straight runs up the middle by Sheppard for no gain to take over possession.

“We needed a stop and knew it would come down to us stepping up, and we did,” Clegg said.

Hinsdale Central then immediately took over the game. John Whitelaw’s first down play action pass found Mick Culligan wide open down the middle for a 95-yard touchdown, beginning an offensive avalanche that ended in a 34-6 win for the Red Devils (5-1, 3-0 in conference).

“That goal line stand set the tone,” Red Devils’ coach Mike DiMatteo said, “and our offensive coordinator Jamie Pass made a gutsy call going for the home run deep in our own territory. Typically we don’t do that, but he had a feeling. And I think it woke our kids up that ‘we can do our thing.’”

Culligan hadn’t caught a pass in the first half, adding to the element of surprise.

 “(The pass) was called in the huddle and I knew it was going to be there,” Culligan said. “Sure enough it was.

“It was huge. It definitely pumped up the whole team. The sidelines got into it, our defense kept making big stops and from then on our offense came out and went to work.”

 The work was quick, as the quick strike to Culligan began a run of four touchdowns in Hinsdale Central’s next 12 offensive plays. The next possession produced results on the third play, when running back Rich Zajeski broke two tackles at the line and sprinted 65 yards for a touchdown for a 20-0 lead.

 Culligan was in on another big play opening the fourth quarter, hauling in a perfect throw from Whitelaw (13-of-21 passing for 272 yards) for a 41-yard touchdown. Whitelaw added a 29-yard TD run with 8:04 left.

The latest chapter of the Old Oaken Bucket rivalry game that began in 1935 started as an old-fashioned grind-it-out, low-scoring contest. A Garrett Kawa interception at the Red Devil 37 stopped Downers North’s best drive of the half, and Hinsdale Central’s offense answered quickly as Whitelaw had 57 yards of passing (22 to Davis Kalsbeek and a 35-yard scoring throw to Alex Kirk) to put his team quickly up 6-0.

But the defenses took over as the teams had a combined four first downs over the next 16 minutes. In the final 1:42, seven Whitelaw completions finally drove Hinsdale Central from its own 16 to the Trojans’ 20 with 13 seconds left in the half. But a bad shotgun snap was recovered by Downers North.

The Red Devils then outgained Downers North 297-29 in offensive yardage over the first 16 minutes of the second half.

“I told our guys at halftime we need to pick up our energy level, and that we were playing offensively not to lose,” DiMatteo said. “Part of that is because of the great respect our kids have for the program, coaches and kids at Downers North. But we told them ‘you have to let it all hang out and play.’"

Downers North (3-3, 2-1) scored its touchdown with 4:50 left on a 10-yard run by Jermal Jones. Joe Tokarski's 25-yard run helped set up the score.

Defensively, Stephen Banda intercepted a pass for the third straight week to halt a second quarter threat by Hinsdale Central at the Trojans' 40-yard line.

“DG has some good hitters and came out and played a good game,” Clegg said. “It was a lot of fun to have some good competitors, and to be playing in a game of such tradition, (the rivalry for) the Bucket since 1935, it was awesome.”