When St. Francis quarterback Alessio Milivojevic drops back to pass, he has no shortage of options.
But there’s one guy he looks for above all others: junior Ian Willis.
“Ian’s been everything for us this year,” Milivojevic said. “We have so many weapons they can’t really double-[cover] anyone. And when Ian gets one-on-one coverage, no one in the state can stop him.”
Willis lived up to that hype on Friday night, catching two long touchdown passes in a four-minute span of the second half as No. 14 St. Francis pulled away to beat Nazareth 35-17 in LaGrange Park.
First, Willis caught a 36-yard TD on the last play of the third quarter immediately after the Spartans forced a turnover on downs. Then St. Francis’ defense forced another three-and-out by Nazareth, and two plays later Milivojevic found Willis for a 59-yard TD with 8:46 remaining for a 35-11 lead.
“Alessio, that’s my guy,” Willis said. “I’ve been close with Alessio for a very long time and we have a connection that just clicks every time. If there’s a fourth down and it’s long I pretty much know it’s going to me because he counts on me to get open and I know I can count on him to get me the ball.”
Milivojevic, who is committed to Ball State, was 15-for-20 for 234 yards and the two TDs to Willis. He also ran for a score, giving him 31 combined touchdowns this season.
“If we don’t have the best quarterback in the state, I don’t know who is right now,” St. Francis coach Bob McMillen said. “[And] we’ve got four dynamite receivers. When you’ve got receivers like that and you’ve got a quarterback [like that] and give him time, he’s able to make those plays.”
Willis finished with five catches for 132 yards for St. Francis (7-2, CCL/ESCC Orange). Zach Washington added two receptions for 59 yards and Liam Kolinski caught a 44-yard option pass from Dario Milivojevic, Alessio’s brother.
Oh, and St. Francis also has a potent ground game. TyVonn Ransom had 26 carries for 101 yards, including TD runs of 12 and three yards.
“It’s nice to have a balanced attack, that’s for sure,” McMillen said.
The Spartans also had some playmakers on defense.
“[Defensive back] Asher Boose had the game of his life,” McMillen said. “We had some guys flying around all over the place, playing physical, going after the ball, making it uncomfortable for [Nazareth’s Logan] Malachuk. He’s a hell of a quarterback and they disrupted him all night.”
Malachuk finished 11-for-24 for 96 yards and one TD.
Defending 5A champ Nazareth (4-5, 1-2) started 0-4 against a powerhouse schedule, but had won four in a row to keep its playoff hopes alive. Now the Roadrunners will wait to see if they can earn a berth at 4-5 with a massive amount of playoff points (49 heading into Week 9).
“I know there was a possibility but we’ll see where the chips fall,” Nazareth coach Tim Racki said.
