Naperville North senior kicker Leo Taylor didn’t have time to think.
He watched senior tight end Finn Bretag catch a 4-yard pass from senior quarterback Josiah Nothacker and get out of bounds with one second remaining in regulation. With the host Huskies out of timeouts and trailing Lockport by three points, Taylor had to spring onto the field to attempt a game-tying 56-yard field goal.
“We’ve tried it a couple times in practice,” Taylor said of the long-distance try. “But I never really thought I’d get the chance to do it in an actual game.
“That was the opportunity of a lifetime.”
Everyone in Naperville North’s stadium held their breath as Taylor’s kick sailed high and barely missed as time expired. The Porters celebrated a 20-17 Southwest Valley Blue victory that could have gone either way.
How close was the game? Naperville North outgained Lockport 362-361. Depending on whom you asked, Taylor’s kick was either a couple of feet short or a few inches wide.
“I thought, ‘Man, he’s definitely going to nail this,’” Nothacker said. “In practice, we do these scenarios two to three times a week. He’s great during practice. He’s got a great leg. It was just wide.”
Bretag, whose receptions on the previous two plays gave Taylor the chance, saw the same thing.
“He had plenty of distance,” Bretag said. “From my angle, it was centimeters right.
“So it’s not on him. As a team, we messed up a lot before, but I still have faith in Leo. He’s going to come back next week, and he’s going to drain one of the big ones for us.”
Taylor had previously made both of his extra-point attempts and was 1-for-2 on field-goal tries. His first attempt, a 28-yarder, was blocked after a shaky snap, but he made a 23-yarder to give the Huskies (2-3, 1-2) a 3-0 lead.
Nothacker, who completed 19 of 29 passes for 247 yards, tossed a 38-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Jack Zitko to give Naperville North a 17-13 lead with 6:03 left in the fourth quarter.
The Porters (2-3, 1-2) answered two plays later with senior quarterback Brendan Mecher’s 60-yard scoring strike to senior wide receiver Colton Benaitis at the 5:17 mark.
Things looked bleak for the Huskies when they got the ball at their 15-yard line with 34 seconds left and no timeouts. They mustered eight plays in that time, with Nothacker completing four passes.
The Huskies were at Lockport’s 43 with four seconds left. In a risky gamble, they ran one more play, with Nothacker whipping a quick pass to Bretag, who got out of bounds at the 39 in the nick of time.
“With about 30 seconds left, they were telling the field goal team to get ready,” Taylor said. “I knew when there were five seconds left on the clock they wanted to get a little more yardage.
“We needed to get any yards to have that opportunity, and the team did a great job of getting me to that point. My operation did really well. It’s obviously a hard kick to kick, but I try to set myself the expectation to hit that.”
Taylor wasn’t able to send the game to overtime, but he savored the adrenaline of the situation, knowing not many high school kickers get a chance to kick from that distance.
“It was the longest I’ve ever tried in a game by almost 20 yards,” Taylor said. “I enjoyed the moment so much.”
Though not the outcome.
“I’m a little disappointed about it, but you’ve got to get back to work and prepare for the next one,” Taylor said. “All I’ve got to see is what made it go a little right and then just fix up that for next time.”
Taylor, a third-year varsity player, is having the best season of his career. He has made 2 of 4 field-goal attempts, including a 38-yarder, and all 13 of his extra-point tries. Sixteen of his 18 kickoffs have gone for touchbacks.
Those efforts are starting to draw interest from college coaches.
“I’m not really sure what the plan is,” Taylor said. “But all I’m focusing on now is trying to prove myself and seeing what follows.”
And if the future includes another game-tying or game-winning field-goal attempt?
“Hopefully the team is up by enough that that’s not a problem we’re going to have,” Taylor said. “But if it comes to that, I’d love the opportunity.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter.