You'd never know by talking to a humble Brookfield East team that for the first time in school history they’ve made it to level four of the playoffs.
To get there, they beat top seed and rival Brookfield Central 21-0. And scoring all three of the Spartans touchdowns was Samuel Santiago-Lloyd.
“When I see him catch fire like that, I just have to hand it off to him and watch,” described senior quarterback Jake Graf. “It's fun sometimes just watching what he can do. You can become a little bit of a spectator instead of a player.”
There weren't intentions for it to be the ‘Santiago-Lloyd Show,’ but it was after he had 28 carries for 150 yards, all three touchdowns and a sack.
“There were a lot of emotions for the fact that they beat us very badly during the regular season,” explained the senior running back and linebacker. “We just had another chance to get them back.”
So what's his secret? Did he eat Wheaties for breakfast?
“Honestly, what I had before the game I had a bag of Cheetos and two foot-long meatball subs,” he said with a laugh. “I downed them, yeah.”
So not exactly a dinner of champions, but they are close to being called state champs.
“We're really happy with where we are but you just have to stay humble and realize that it's been this long since Brookfield East has gotten this far and there's a chance we'll never get here again,” said Spartans Head Coach Ben Farley. “You try to take nothing for granted and live for the moment.”
Congratulations, Spartans for making it to level four of the playoffs for the first time in your school’s history and being named TMJ4’s Football Frenzy Team of the Week.
