Warren senior safety Zion Vines-Peterson was all over the field on Friday night.
A former running back, the 5-foot-9, 170-pound Vines-Peterson spent time covering Lake Zurich’s slot receivers, drifted back in the secondary and even defended out wide.
“He kind of manages our back end with our other safety, Mason Durst, and in our system, our safeties are like everything,” Warren coach Bryan McNulty. “By far, safety for us is the hardest position to play, so he does a really good job over there.”
Indeed, Vines-Peterson was one of the headline players on the defensive side of the ball for the Blue Devils, who beat Lake Zurich 27-17 on the road to take sole possession of first place in the North Suburban Conference and clinch at least a share of the title with one game left in the regular season. Vines-Peterson forced a fumble in the second quarter and made several key stops.
As usual, senior running back Aaron Stewart was the headline player on offense for Warren (7-1, 6-0). An Illinois recruit in both football and wrestling, Stewart carried the ball 32 times for 315 yards and scored four touchdowns against the Bears (6-2, 5-1). He was limited to 42 yards on his first eight carries but busted loose for touchdown runs of 52 yards, 82 yards and 3 yards in the second quarter.
With Stewart entrenched as the workhorse, Vines-Peterson moved from running back to safety last season. He said he’s still adjusting to the position.
“It’s hard playing safety, especially after not playing safety until last year,” he said. “I just wanted to play on the field. I was ready to play anywhere to help the team. I just love football.”
Vines-Peterson, who turned 17 last month, also runs track and has a strong burst of speed that allows him to fly to the ball. Last season, he had 52 tackles, three interceptions, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
“My season is going great,” he said. “Last year, I was much smaller, so I wanted to get in the weight room more. I gained about 20 pounds. I just try to play with toughness.”
Vines-Peterson was named one of the four captains for the game against Lake Zurich.
“We wanted four of the toughest guys tonight, and the kids elected Zion,” McNulty said. “He’s quiet, competitive, and he understands our defense. If he makes a mistake, he gets back and works for everything he’s got. He’s always been a great hitter, but his ability to play multiple positions and move guys around if we need to, it really helps our defense.”
With Warren leading 20-7 midway through the third quarter, Vines-Peterson was flagged for pass interference on third down. But he showed his resolve with two key plays to stop the Bears’ drive short of the end zone.
On the next play, Vines-Peterson darted toward senior wide receiver Christopher Chang — who had two touchdown catches — on a short pass play and limited him to a 3-yard gain. Several plays later, Vines-Peterson jumped a hitch play and tackled senior wide receiver Evan Peterson for a 3-yard loss on third down.
“I just had to bounce back and keep playing after the pass interference,” Vines-Peterson said.
Durst, a senior safety, said Peterson is an unsung player for the Blue Devils.
“He shows no emotion and will run down that gap and hit anybody,” Durst said. “He hits hard. We have a very good chemistry, and we play well together.”
Bobby Narang is a freelance reporter.