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| The 2000 season was an
exciting one for the Redhawks. Starting the season as early favorites to
win the DVC, and ranked #1 in the state of Illinois, the Redhawks quickly
showed they were capable of being the defending state champions. The team
was led early on by a stifling defense which did not allow a single point
in the first six games. Defensively, the Redhawks were paced by senior
DT Joe Alvarez (51 total tackles and 6 sacks), senior LB's Pat Spaeth (88
tackles), Drew Kocsis (93 tackles and 3 sacks), Ryan Amberson and Luke
Summers. Seniors Chris Hill, Bret Anderson (3 interceptions), Brian Uhlir,
Ken Kottke, and Mitch Nowicki (3 interceptions) also played a roll in the
RED SWARM Defense.
On offense, the Redhawks were led early on by star QB Owen Daniels who, in the first three games, completed 31 of 36 passes, threw 7 TD passes and no interceptions. Daniels suffered a season ending knee injury in the third game of the year and junior back-up Phil Horvath led the team for the remainder of the season, tallying 88 completions in 150 attempts and threw 10 TD's. Horvath's favorite target proved to be senior receiver Kevin Noel who finished the year with 39 catches for 632 yards and 5 TD's. Dan Prazak, Tyke Spencer and Kyle Adams also caught many of Horvath's passes. The 2000 edition of the Redhawks also possessed the dominant ground attack that has become an NCHS tradition. Powering the onslaught was senior FB Matt Yellin (91 rushes for 477 yards). Leading the ground game was junior HB Kyle Griffith (166 rushes for 1145 yards). Also racking up the yards were senior HB Johnny Sladek, and Spencer Palmer. The 2000 team was lead by a great senior class. All in all, everyone showed toughness and determination throughout the season as injuries mounted one after another. Many capable juniors stepped up to fill the voids caused by injuries. Most notably, QB Phil Horvath, and LB's Mike Lucas, Matt Benson and Ryan Senica. The team finished 11 and 1, Du Page Valley Conference Champions, and IHSA Class 6A Quarterfinalists. |