On the first play from scrimmage Friday night, Sandburg’s Anthony Shelton got clobbered.
He was taken to the turf courtesy of a sack by Homewood-Flossmoor’s Carlton Brownfield.
“He’s scared, he’s scared,” an adult bellowed from H-F’s side of the stands, referring to Shelton.
No, sir, he wasn’t scared — he’s been through this for a couple of years now.
“One bad play doesn’t matter,” Shelton said.
What mattered is that after a quick three-and-out by the Eagles on offense, the senior quarterback went from being perceived as scared by one fan to downright scary good after that.
Shelton went on to throw for 180 yards in the first quarter and finished with 291 yards and two touchdowns for host Sandburg in a wild 63-34 victory over the Vikings in a Southwest Valley Conference crossover game in Orland Park.
Charlie Snoreck caught five passes for 134 yards and two TDs to lead the Eagles (2-1), while Luke Basiorka ran for 95 yards and Quinn Durkin rushed for two TDs.
Brad Bittner grabbed a fumble recovery for a TD and Vincent Smith returned an interception for another TD during Sandburg’s 35-point outburst in the second quarter for a 49-20 halftime lead.
For H-F (2-1), RJ McDonald threw for 151 yards and Myles Ellis added five catches for 131 yards. Michael Terrell ran for 140 yards and three TDs, including a 63-yarder on the first drive of the third quarter.
Shelton was on pace for an even bigger performance in the air. But in the second half, the Eagles called 25 runs out of 29 plays. Some of his long completions came while he was about to get buried, but he still found his receiver.
“It’s just staying calm,” Shelton said. “That’s really it for me.”
Sometimes, he took the hit. Sometimes, he dodged the trouble and found an open receiver.
“I like to think that, no matter what, I’m going to get out there,” Shelton said. “When I get out there, I look downfield, and as people can see, I’m not the best runner.
“I keep my eyes open the whole time, and if there is someone there, I’m throwing it.”
Sandburg coach Troy McAllister liked Shelton’s grit after those struggles during the first drive.
“He’s seen a lot and he’s been through a lot,” McAllister said of Shelton. “Not much gets him shook. You saw after that first play, he responded with a great game.”
The Shelton-Snoreck connection, meanwhile, started two years ago when both were sophomores.
Snoreck was already making a name for himself on the varsity. In the second game of the season, starting quarterback Christian Evans was hurt, kickstarting Shelton’s career on that level.
“We’ve been friends since preschool,” Snoreck said of Shelton. “We have a lot of that chemistry where I can trust him that he’s going to get me the ball and he can trust me that I will be open.
“That chemistry that is there is perfect for a football team.”
The two may have known each other for a long time, but they weren’t able to form that rapport as a quarterback and receiver until recent years.
Shelton said when he was growing up, he wasn’t a signal caller. He played just about every position except quarterback.
“Honestly, I never started a down at quarterback until my freshman year,” Shelton said. “Coach McAllister came in my freshman year and looked at me as a potential quarterback, and he gave me what I wanted.
“He helped me out through all of these years. My sophomore year when I had to come in for Christian, coach McAllister relied on me and I relied on him.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
