Senior scores four touchdowns in victory over Madison
Aug. 21—MADISON — Brady Peet said he marked the Madison game on his calendar ever since the 2020 season ended.
"I hit the gym every day since then thinking 'Beat Madison, Beat Madison'," Peet said after he led Geneva to an 37-20 opening week victory over their neighborhood rivals. "That has been drilled into our heads ever since we were in midget league."
Peet scored four touchdowns against the Blue Streaks, including the first three of the game. The 6-foot-0 senior accounted for 102 yards on 15 carries.
"I scored four [touchdowns] in a JV game my freshmen year," Peet said, recalling the only other time he had achieved that milestone. "This was by far the best game I've ever played at the varsity level."
His biggest play, however, came early in the fourth quarter after Madison cut a 30-7 deficit to 30-20 with four minutes remaining in the third quarter.
Madison sophomore Carson Alley led the charge, scoring a pair of touchdowns. The first was on a 20-yard reverse pass from senior quarterback Michael O'Brien at the end of the 3rd quarter. The other was a 4-yard run early in the 4th quarter.
With the home crowd cheering on the potential comeback, Peet had other ideas. On the ensuing kickoff, Peet took a deep kickoff and returned it 88 yards for a touchdown, breaking the game open.
"Honestly I thought they were gonna kick it onside but that was our hands team where we've got one guy deep and that was me," Peet said. "He kicked it, it was a pretty decent kick and I just picked it up and saw an opening."
Geneva coach Chip Sorber praised the play of his senior.
"Brady really did a nice job on both sides of the ball," Sorber said of Peet, who also played linebacker. "He stepped up and played like the senior he is and the captain that he is."
Geneva came out of the gate strong early in the game, rushing for 130 yards in the opening quarter. Peet scored two touchdowns in the quarter on runs of 53 and six yards.
Peet then tacked on another 6-yard run early in the second quarter, giving the Eagles a 20-0 lead with 8:46 remaining in the half.
Altogether, Geneva gained 325 yards on the night, 279 on the ground.
Despite the rough start, Madison coach Mike Gilligan liked what he saw from his young group and was quick to praise his opponent.
"Our kids settled down, fought and they competed to the end," Gilligan said. "Hats off to Geneva. Chip's got a good program."
Both teams are scheduled to play next Friday.
The Eagles host Collinwood and the Blue Streaks play at Lakeside.
