Batavia’s ground game has received a lot of recognition during the postseason, and rightfully so, but senior wideout Isaiah Brown is having a pretty good run to remember as well. On top of that, Brown threw his hat into the prediction ring for Saturday’s big game. “Before I got on the bus, I told my teammates, ‘I feel like something good is going to happen,’” he said.
“I felt something different.” Then Brown went out and made a difference. He caught a pass on the first play and scored a touchdown on the first drive, setting the tone for a monster effort in the Bulldogs’ 25-21 comeback win over host Lincoln-Way Central in a Class 7A state semifinal in New Lenox.
Brown caught nine passes for 93 yards and three TDs for Batavia (13-1), which advances to the state championship game for the fifth time in program history and the first since 2022. Sophomore quarterback Michael Vander Luitgaren , playing in his seventh game while sharing snaps with Bodi Anderson , completed 12 of 18 passes for 210 yards and three TDs. Anderson also threw a TD pass.
Nathan Whitwell ran for 73 yards on 19 carries. Brown caught the winning TD with 31 seconds left in the fourth quarter, grabbing a 15-yard pass from Vander Luitgaren in the front corner of the end zone to clinch a trip to state for the Bulldogs, who face Mount Carmel (10-3) at 4 p.m.
Saturday for the state title at Hancock Stadium in Normal. Batavia’s Isaiah Brown (2) catches a pass against Lincoln-Way Central during a C.