Southern Illinois stars align, shine against Western Kentucky
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[In the fall, Southern Illinois' gridiron greats ran hard, hit hard and played hard all with one goal in mind: being the best.
But on Friday, a variety of helmets joined the huddle as former rivals turned into teammates for the Southern Illinois-Western Kentucky All-Star Game at McAndrew Stadium.
"When we're against them, I don't like them," Harrisburg High School alum Russell Rambert said. "But when we're playing together, I feel honored to be playing with guys of this caliber."
Head coach Kerry Martin, who serves that same role at Marion High School echoed those sentiments.
"One of the best things about this game is our kids getting to be around people they're rivals against. Then they find out that they're high school football players that are a lot like them, not as different as they might think. I think some friendships are made here and I think it keeps the rivalries healthy. We've gotten closer because of this game," Martin said.
Rambert was joined by teammate Zach Price, who starred on the Bulldogs' offensive line.
The Southern Illinois stars jumped out to a 14-3 lead en route to a 21-18 victory against Western Kentucky on Friday that saw a little bit of everything.
Martin said he implemented two different offensive sets as he attempted to get the most out of some of the region's most talented players. Southern Illinois' stars ran plays out of the option and spread playbooks, and it paid off early as Carterville High School's former quarterback Stephen Bleyer scored a pair of first-half rushing touchdowns.
"You practice all week and say it's just an all star game, then Friday night gets here and you want to win so bad," Martin said. "It's one of the highlights of my year to be a part of this."
Southern Illinois extended its lead to 21-3 with a little more than two minutes to play in the first half and looked like as if was ready to run away and hide with the lead. But Western Kentucky's offense began to move the ball down the field eventually leading to a 1st-and-10 from the Southern Illinois 14-yard line. However, penalties and plays for losses eventually moved Western Kentucky's squad into a 4 th-and-46 from the 50-yard line.
Western Kentucky's stars converted the lengthy first down on a pass that set up its first touchdown and a two-point conversion out of the swinging gate formation to end the first half.
Southern Illinois did not score in the second half, but its defense stiffened up when it mattered most, shutting down Western Kentucky's final drive to secure the win.
"It feels great to come out here and win our last game of the year," said Rambert, who will be playing football at MacMurray College in Jacksonville, Ill. "Southern Illinois' best coming out together. It was an honor to play with them."