Gorches: It’s hard to question Wheeler’s seniors after stellar season

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Wheeler's Nick Naspinskiruns downfield during the Class 2A Regional against Bremen at Wheeler on Friday, November 11, 2011. | Michael Gard~For Sun-Times Media

Updated: December 13, 2011 9:08AM

Once the dust settled on the Class 2A regional championship game at Wheeler on Friday night, Bearcats coach Dan Klimczak told his players how close they came to winning.

“You just didn’t make a couple plays,” he told them in the huddle after a 35-21 loss to Bremen, which advances to the semistate for the first time since 1997.

“A couple plays, that’s it. You made a heck of a lot of plays all year. We just needed to make a couple more tonight.”

It’s not hard to figure out which plays Klimczak was referring to.

One of them was an interception by Derek Hartwig that was so close to being a reality. He had Bremen wide receiver Ethan Pike covered like a blanket with 3.4 seconds remaining in the first half.

It wasn’t a thick enough blanket as Pike leaped over Hartwig, bobbled the ball, got control of it and just got the required one foot in bounds for an 18-yard touchdown pass that gave the Lions (13-0) a 21-14 halftime lead.

Wheeler’s defense played well at times, just not quite well enough on those “couple plays” when it counted most.

Another one of those plays came with 7:20 left in the game.

The Bearcats (12-1) had just recovered an onside kick after cutting the lead to 14 points. There was plenty of time left with Nick Naspinski at quarterback.

Region football fans have seen that all season.

But on the next play, Naspinski threw an interception down the middle of the field.

No excuses from the senior. He pointed the finger at himself.

“It got away from me,” he said. “It was all my fault.”

Wheeler forced a three-and-out from Bremen’s offense that hadn’t been stopped much of the night, and Naspinski led the offense into Bremen territory once again.

But with 3:46 left and the ball at the Lions’ 30-yard-line, the shotgun snap hit Naspinski in the foot. He tried to pick it up so he could still make a play — like he had most of the season when he wasn’t recovering from a broken ankle. Instead, he couldn’t get a handle on the ball on a frigid night. When Bremen’s Tim Zimmer fell on it, the Bearcats knew their magical season was undefeated no more.

“Turnovers haven’t hurt us all year, but they hurt us tonight,” Klimczak said.

“This senior class has been a staple of tradition for us. They never lost a regular season game. They never lost a JV game. I’m really going to miss them.”

No kidding. Who wouldn’t miss a player such as Naspinski, who broke his ankle on Sept. 23 against River Forest and was thought to have been lost for the season. Instead, he came back for the sectional semifinal against Rensselaer and led the Bearcats to a 14-7 victory.

How did he recover so quickly? Let’s just say he sounded like all-American wrestler (the fake kind) Hulk Hogan for a second.

“I drank my milk and took my vitamins, just like my mom has taught me,” he said, finding the strength to display a small smile despite still reeling from the loss.

“I have to thank my brothers (teammates) and my coaches. They helped me through it all.”

Teammates such as Robert Hurd, who took the loss harder than others.

“It goes so fast,” he said of his four years wearing green and orange while tears rolled down his cheeks. “It goes too freakin’ fast.

“(The four years) have been excellent. I’ve enjoyed every second of them — running sprints, two-a-days, conditioning — every second of it.”

Those seniors should be proud of proving the naysayers wrong.

Showing that Wheeler can win games in the postseason instead of beating up on the Greater South Shore Conference.

Showing that Wheeler can beat a supposed juggernaut like Andrean, then win two more games to hoist a sectional trophy before losing to a fellow undefeated squad in Bremen.

Nothing to be ashamed of in this season.

“We set the tone for the younger kids,” said Naspinski, who can relate since he was in eighth grade when Wheeler won its first sectional title in 2007. “Everyone doubted us.”

Four of the Bearcats’ last five losses over the last five years have been to final four teams — Rensselaer the previous two seasons, Lewis Cass in 2007 and Bremen. They beat everyone else, including a region team that was favored to reach the state title game.

It’s easy to point fingers and accuse a team of having too easy of a schedule. It’s harder for those nabobs of negativity to admit they were wrong.

“The seniors have heard it for too long, people questioning them,” Klimczak said. “And they proved them wrong. Anyone who questions them now, I don’t want to be around them.”