Powerful Leshon Williams steps up late to lead Richards past St. Rita

There is no secret about what Richards is going to do on offense. Javon Robinson is proving to be a smart and capable quarterback, but when the chips are down the Bulldogs are Leshon Williams’ team.

“That last drive it was give it to our dude and ride him,” Richards coach Tony Sheehan said. “That’s why he’s going to Iowa and that is what we need out of him. He took the bull by the horns and got after it and the offensive line did a great job of opening the holes.”

Williams ripped off 17 and 22 yard runs on the key drive of the game, eventually scoring on a five-yard run with 3:11 to play to give the Bulldogs the lead for good.

No. 17 St. Rita had a chance to tie or win on the final drive of the game, but Damian Evans grabbed an interception to seal a 35-28 win for No. 6 Richards.

“I was just doing my job and the ball came to me,” Evans said. I made sure I grabbed it with everything I’ve got.”

Williams had 30 carries for 139 yards and two touchdowns.

“It was 28 to 28,” Williams said. “I just put my helmet down and ran hard. I have to give props to the o-line. They opened a lot of holes for the last two big runs. We just went and fought.”

Robinson was 10-for-17 for 150 yards passing. He threw for two touchdowns and had no interceptions in his second game as the Bulldogs’ starting quarterback.

“We did very well, we kept our composure,” Robinson said. “[Williams] is the difference. Anytime he touches the ball he can go for six. It’s just a show every time. I hand him the ball and watch him work. It’s a great view.”

Richards (2-0) led 28-6 after Robinson connected with Trishawn Lott on a 29-yard touchdown pass with 7:06 left in the third quarter.

St. Rita’s Joe Polselli (5) catches a pass against Richards. | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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Richards quarterbck Javon Robinson (3) passes downfield against St. Rita. | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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St. Rita’s Kaleb Brown (35) runs through the grasp of Richards’ Damian Evans (19) on his way to a 30-yard touchdown run. | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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St. Rita’s Isaiah Bragg (1) fumbles the ball against Richards. | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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St. Rita’s Brian Johnson (14) is tackled for a loss by Richards’ Nick Houston (28). | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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Richards’ Leshon Williams (4) runs through the St. Rita defense. | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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Richards’ Javon Robinson (3) is sacked by St. Rita’s Michael Milton (41). | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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Richards’ Leshon Williams (4) scores on a 20-yard run against St. Rita. | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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Richards’ Javon Robinson (3) scores on a seven-yard run against St. Rita. | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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Richards’ Leshon Williams (4) finds a gap in the St. Rita defense. | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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Richards’ Sebastian Lasak (10) scores a touchdown against St. Rita. | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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Richards’ Leshon Williams mishandles the snap from center. | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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Richards’ Javon Robinson (3) escapes from St. Rita’s Tramon Lias (9). | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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St. Rita’s Kaleb Brown (35) tries to avoid Richards’ Damian Evans (19). | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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St. Rita’s Kaleb Brown (35) holds off Richards’ Albert Jones (11). | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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Richards’ Javon Robinson (3) is flushed from the pocket by St. Rita. | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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Richards’ Leshon Williams (4) finds running room against St. Rita. | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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Richards’ Kajuan Wines (2) brings down St. Rita’s Kaleb Brown (35). | Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

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But then St. Rita came to life behind sophomore running back Kaleb Brown, who already has several scholarship offers from Power Five schools. Brown ran for touchdowns of 30, four and 15 yards in the second half. The last touchdown run tied the game at 28. Brown had 22 carries for 121 yards.

“Kaleb is nice,” Williams said. “He’s a special talent.”

Sheehan was impressed with his team’s response after the Mustangs (1-1) tied it late.

“They came out and got us a little bit on our heels,” Sheehan said. “But our kids were positive on the sidelines. There wasn’t any pointing fingers, they stayed together. They fought back and I’m really proud of how they played with their backs against the wall.”

St. Rita quarterback Brian Johnson, a junior, showed a nice soft touch on a 22-yard touchdown pass to senior Joe Polselli to open the scoring. Johnson was 9-for-16 passing for 99 yards. He threw three interceptions.

“We waited too long to make our big plays,” Mustangs coach Todd Kuksa said. “That’s a good football team. When you do that you are going to end up on the short end of the stick.”

Things don’t get any easier for St. Rita, which plays at Loyola and at Montini the next two weeks. Richards has a conference showdown with Hillcrest in Week 3.

“It is another huge one,” Sheehan said. “They are a very good program. We are going to have our hands full again, especially with [Hillcrest’s star running back Mar’Keise] Irving. He and Williams are probably the two best backs in the state. It’s going to be a show.”