Being in a four-player running back committee for Burlington Central means that opportunities to carry the ball and make a difference can be rare for senior Tyler McGladdery.
With the rainy, muddy conditions Saturday night, however, the 6-foot, 215-pound McGladdery figured there would be chances for the host Rockets.
“It’s just where the ball is going to go,” McGladdery said of the group’s approach. “If it’s down the middle, Noah (Hedlund) or I will take it. Outside, it’s usually our quicker running backs.
“It’s just based off of where the ball is going to go and who is going to do the job.”
Although all four running backs contributed along with senior quarterback Landon Arnold — the team’s leading rusher this season — it was McGladdery who go the job done again.
McGladdery delivered a pair of touchdown runs and gave the Rockets a lead they wouldn’t relinquish in a 24-14 win over Machesney Park Harlem in a Class 6A second-round playoff game.
It’s the first time Burlington Central (10-1) has reached the quarterfinals since 2006, which is before the players on this roster were even born. They travel next weekend to face Fenwick (8-3).
McGladdery scored on runs of 3 and 8 yards as the Rockets built a 17-7 lead and never trailed. He had 48 yards on nine carries. Arnold, a workhorse, ran for 131 yards and a late TD on 19 carries.
But when inside the 10, the Rockets called on McGladdery.
“It was just the hunger,” McGladdery said of his TD runs. “It was the drive to make it farther than last year. Everyone doubted us coming into this season.
“We wanted to make it farther than last year to show that we’re not a one-and-done team.”
Burlington Central made sure of that by rushing for 274 yards. Henry Deering had 44 yards and Parker Auxier added 36.
The Rockets established dominance at the point of attack on the first drive. A 16-play, 79-yard deal would eat up 8:50, capped by McGladdery’s 3-yard TD run with 4:01 left in the second quarter.
Max Gemelli then broke a 7-7 tie and gave the Rockets the lead for good with a 31-yard field goal as the first half expired. McGladdery’s second TD run came in the third quarter.
Burlington Central coach Brian Iossi admitted the adverse conditions opened up the door for the big-bodied McGladdery to step up.
“Ty did a great job,” Iossi said. “He’s battled the last two weeks. (Saturday) was more of a power, downhill game. Tyler ran really well. I thought Parker ran really well.
“Landon seals the deal at the end and finishes it.”
Harlem cut the lead to 17-14 with 5:36 in the fourth quarter, but Arnold took over from there. On the first play of the ensuing drive, he flipped the field with a 56-yard run to start things off.
“I saw green grass right away,” Arnold said. “I stumbled and thought I was down right away. We finished that drive together.”
In order to minimize the amount of hands touching a slippery ball, Iossi just kept going to Arnold.
“With the weather, we were just trying to keep it to as minimal exchanges as we could,” Iossi said. “Landon is our leading rusher this season. We trust him to get it done.”
He ran the ball the next six times, finishing in the end zone on a 3-yard run to clinch.
“He wants it on his back,” Iossi said of Arnold. “He wants the ball. He wants to finish with it. All of those guys are that way.”
After a disappointing second-round exit last season at Geneva, the Rockets are back to where they were nearly 20 years ago.
“Last year, I made a promise to the guys that we’d make it farther than they did,” Arnold said. “That’s what we just did.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
