RICHMOND – After Wauconda’s offense struck first on a 75-yard pass play in the first quarter, Richmond-Burton relied on its power running game Friday evening to overtake the Bulldogs.

The Rockets bruised Wauconda for 310 rushing yards on 56 carries, a 5.54 average, and R-B's defense held the Bulldogs to only 39 yards on the ground in a 27-14 season-opening win.

Mike Kaufman led the Rockets with 170 yards on 18 carries, scoring touchdowns from 14 and 24 yards out, and senior Shane Byrne added R-B’s third rushing score from a yard out. Blaze Bigos added 11 carries for 69 yards.

KAUFMAN'S BIG NIGHT

Kaufman, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound fullback, averaged almost 10 yards a carry to lead the Rockets offensively. The junior’s night could have been even bigger, but an 88-yard touchdown in the second quarter was negated by an illegal shift with two Rockets’ players moving at the same time.

It didn’t matter, as Kaufman still scored on the drive with a 14-yard scamper to tie the game at 7 with 7:58 left in the second quarter.

“That was kind of weird with the motion, two people going, but it was great that we were able to bounce back,” said Kaufman, who was the Kishwaukee River Conference runner-up in the 100 and 200 meters this past spring. “Our line was doing great today, making big holes. We didn’t pass as much, but it’s all right … I like running.”

Kaufman added a 24-yard touchdown with 4:09 left in the fourth quarter to seal the victory. “Mike is just an instinctive football player,” Rockets co-coach Tad DePorter said. “He understands the importance of ball security … and he’s a big strong guy. We’re excited to have him healthy for a full season.”

EARLY STAND

Richmond-Burton (1-0) was in danger of going down by two scores in the first quarter after the Rockets muffed a punt after Wauconda’s opening score.

The fumble put the Bulldogs on R-B’s 15 with less than three minutes left in the first.

Three plays later, R-B was able to force a turnover of its own when a Rockets player knocked the ball loose from Wauconda running back Andry Nevski. Dylan Szumanski was there to pick up the ball for R-B, and Kaufman scored the Rockets' first touchdown on the ensuing drive.

The turnover was one of four for the Rockets' defense. Byrne and James Horner each recovered fumbles, and Devin Bailey had an interception.

DePorter also praised Johnathon Dodaro and Andrew Myland on the defensive line for making big plays.

“Our defensive lineman were eating them up,” said Byrne, a linebacker. “Our linebackers were all making tackles, and we were just everywhere we needed to be.”

ENCOURAGING START

Richmond-Burton had overcome a 1-2 start last year to finish 6-3 and make the playoffs for the 10th consecutive season. That's something this group wanted to avoid as the Rockets own the second longest postseason streak of area teams.

"We tightened up (in the third quarter) a little bit, but our defense made some big stops for us," DePorter said. "The kids have put in a lot of time and effort to make this a memorable season."

STAR OF THE GAME

Mike Kaufman, Richmond-Burton, jr., RB/LB

Kaufman ran for a game-high 170 yards on 18 carries, scoring a pair of touchdowns from 14 and 24 yards out. He had a long run of 54 yards.

QUICK STATS

Wauconda 7 0 7 0 – 14 Richmond-Burton 0 13 7 7 – 27

1st quarter W–Nolan 75 pass from Saccameno (Acosta kick), 2:45 2nd quarter RB–

Kaufman 14 run (Langlois kick), 7:58 RB–Kortan 26 pass from Uhwat (kick missed), 1:38 3rd quarter RB–Byrne 1 run (Langlois), 6:37 W–Nevski 3 run (Acosta kick), 0:28 4th quarter RB–Kaufman 24 run (Langlois kick), 4:09

AND ANOTHER THING … Richmond-Burton and Wauconda have opened the season against each other the past three years. With Friday’s win, the Rockets are 2-1 against the Bulldogs. (NWHerald 8/26/17)