Before this season, JT Padron transferred from St. Charles East to St. Charles North. He had never been a part of the North Stars’ high-powered football rivalry with Batavia.
But after another instant classic Friday night, in a series filled with them in recent seasons, it stands to reason that the 6-foot-4, 210-pound senior quarterback is now officially a North Star.
“It definitely means a lot,” said Padron, who completed a whopping 31 of 59 passes for 344 yards and four touchdowns. “I just have to keep proving myself and keep getting better every day.
“It’s soaking in now.”
Padron led a wild comeback in the final 2:41 of the fourth quarter, erasing a 14-point deficit and guiding host St. Charles North to a 43-42 DuKane Conference victory over Batavia.
After a 14-play scoring drive capped by Carsen Durante with a 1-yard TD run, which cut the lead to seven, the North Stars recovered an onside kick. Padron then found EJ Mondesir for a 6-yard TD with 0:01 on the clock.
Instead of kicking the extra point and going to overtime, St. Charles North (5-0, 3-0) went for the dramatic win, with Padron finding Chris Akpede for a 2-point conversion and the final score.
Despite two interceptions, Padron delivered in the clutch to stun Batavia (3-2, 2-1).
“JT is a freaking animal, man,” St. Charles North coach Rob Pomazak said. “It takes what it takes. You never know where winning is going to show up. That’s why every play matters.
“Our kids never gave up. What a testament to those seniors. I gave them the keys to the car and they drove us home.”
Mondesir totaled 11 catches for 103 yards for the North Stars. Northwestern recruit Keaton Reinke added nine catches for 150 yards and two TDs. Braden Harms had eight catches for 65 yards.
Michael Vander Luitgaren kept Batavia in command most of the game, completing 17 of 23 passes for 301 yards and four TDs. Three TDs went to Thomas Prescott, who finished with three catches for 121 yards. Brett Berggren had five catches for 113 yards and a TD.
Mondesir, however, wasn’t the first option for Padron on the game-winning TD. His budding relationship with the newcomer helped him keep the play alive and come up with the big catch.
“It was really a broken play,” Mondesir said. “I saw that the flat route wasn’t open, so I had to get open. JT did a great job of delivering that ball to me.”
Mondesir said it has taken time for his chemistry to develop with Padron. Now that it’s coming together, he has emerged as a key threat alongside Harms and Reinke in the passing game.
“We started off slow,” Mondesir said. “Every week, we’ve been working on and off the field — film sessions all the time. We knew what we had.
“We just had to get the connection down and we would be a dangerous team.”
A 39-yard TD run by Henry Hahn with 2:41 left seemingly put the game on ice for Batavia. St. Charles North was out of timeouts and trailed by 14 points.
In retrospect, Batavia coach Dennis Piron felt the game should have been put away.
“Of course he was going to score the touchdown,” Piron said. “There was nobody there. If he goes down, we run the clock out. It’s weird how things end. That’s on me to not communicate that clear to our backs. Our only goal was to get the first down. That wins the game, and it would have.
“This one is going to sting for a while.”
Padron, meanwhile, was brought in and welcomed with open arms from day one. On Friday night, he orchestrated a comeback that won’t soon be forgotten at St. Charles North.
“It was amazing,” Padron said. “I can’t thank coach ‘Pom’ enough. He’s always had my back. Whatever it takes. We took advantage of the chance they gave us.
“We knew we were going to get it. We were so confident.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.