Andrean's Rocco Allegretti picks up a first down on a pass from Brady Elish on Friday in Merrillville.
Noah Bortle
MERRILLVILLE -- The only consistency at Andrean is inconsistency.
Two quarterbacks saw playing time for the 59ers Friday. So did six different offensive linemen -- sometimes all of them at the same time. The defense had players running on and off the field in between plays all night long.
Why?
"A philosophy of our program is: If you physically are capable of playing on a Friday, then we've got to get you on a Friday," head coach Chris Skinner said.
It worked once again in Week 8 as Andrean (7-1, 5-0 Northwest Crossroads Conference) pitched a 21-0 shutout of visiting Hanover Central (3-5, 3-3 NCC) to extend its win streak to seven games.
The quarterback rotation wasn't due to a lack of effectiveness. When sophomore Dylan Gore engineered a scoring drive to put Andrean up 7-0 midway through the first quarter, it was senior Brady Elish who served as signal-caller on the ensuing series. It didn't matter that Gore had connected with Mark Grubbs Jr. for a 57-yard catch on the drive or that he capped it off with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Vo in the right flat.
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Elish would add a touchdown pass of his own on a 4-yard play action fake. Gore made the score 21-0 in the third quarter with a 10-yard strike to an in-breaking Vo.
Elish completed 8 of his 15 passes for 65 yards. He accounted for 12 yards on the ground and contributed on the defensive side of the football.
"Brady is a very talented quarterback, and he's played unbelievable on defense this year," Skinner said. "I mean, what he's put on film and what he's been able to do at cornerback has been great. And we love that we have Dylan who is able to take some snaps and continue the offense."
Gore threw for 88 yards on 4-of-8 passing in his time behind center.
"It's a lot to prepare for as a defense," Elish said. "Not knowing what to expect can kind of throw you off a little bit."
Star O-lineman and Wisconsin recruit Ben Novak wasn't immune to the switches either. The 6-foot-6 senior lined up at both guard and tackle throughout the night.
The line cleared the way for 99 Andrean rushing yards on 23 carries. The unit was especially effective in the second half, helping the 59ers run for 77 yards.
"I feel like the mentality of an offensive line is you can't let your opponent take a rest, you can't let them take a breath," Novak said. "I feel like continually pounding on them, play after play, drive after drive, and as the game wears on, they're gonna wear out.
"I put credit to our (offensive coordinator) to how our offensive line can shift and move to the success of the team. I feel it goes to go to show how we are as a unit."
The offensive line's performance was indicative of two words that Skinner was preaching all week in practice.
"Intensity and energy."
"I don't know what it looked like as a bystander," Skinner said, "but I felt like you could feel some of that energy and intensity. There were some big hits. There were some pads popping and that's what football's about."
Andrean will need that intensity and energy again next week when it takes on Lowell. With both teams' wins tonight, the Week 9 game becomes a de facto conference title game.
"This is no secret," Skinner said. "Everybody always asks preseason, 'what are your goals?' Every year our goal is to win a conference championship and to play as deep into the playoffs as we possibly can."
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