Sports
L-W East Features Talent Show on Football Field
Even without star receiver J.J. Robertson in action, the Griffins show they've got numerous players who deserve time on the highlight reel.
Lincoln-Way East standout wide receiver J.J. Robertson dons jersey No. 1.
He didn't get a chance to run any routes during Friday night’s season opener at Illinois State University's Hancock Stadium. Instead, he stood on the sideline in cargo shorts, held out of the game for undisclosed reasons.
Robertson had a great view of his teammates, who put on a show in Those teammates included No. 97, defensive lineman Matt Solner, who scored on a 7-yard run.
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"They're talented and you can't do the things they do without talent," Edwardsville coach Matt Martin said. "But let's be honest. Let's give their staff and their kids a lot of credit. There's not a bunch of Division I guys walking around out there."
Lincoln-Way East quarterback Blake Winkler threw three touchdown passes and collected 214 yards in the air. He certainly impressed Martin while shredding the Edwardsville defense.
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"He throws a rocket," Martin said. "You can have a kid covered pretty good, but it's hard to defend a perfectly thrown ball. You can't do it. The only way you defend it is you pray the kid drops it."
The Griffins didn't drop many passes. Jelani Yancy hauled in seven passes, including a pair for touchdowns. David Mahl had a 7-yard touchdown catch and Tyler Starke rushed for 77 yards and a pair of scores.
"We were really extremely excited going into this game," Winkler said. "We know we have a bunch of weapons from the outside and in, beginning with the offensive line and moving out to the receivers."
The offensive players weren't the only ones making an impact. The Griffins limited Edwardsville to 13 rushing yard on 20 first-half carries and just 48 total yards in the first half. Once the second half started, a running clock was instituted because of the score disparity.
"The first game, you really don't know what to expect," Lincoln-Way East coach Rob Zvonar said. "We knew they had a good summer and we started our summer camp June 6th. We didn't know for sure what to expect, but we knew they were tied of banging on each other."
Just like Edwardsville quickly tired of Winkler leading the Griffins into the end zone.
