Vandals win season opener over Carlinville

By Editor | September 3, 2025

The Vandals piled up 553 yards in opening the 2025 football campaign with a 51-33 win over Carlinville.

That offensive total, which ranks in the top 10 all-time in Vandals history, was just one of the big totals in the victory.

Andrew Casey stepped into the quarterback role with 290 yards passing, which is fourth all-time for most passing yards in a game.

And, returning all-state wideout Kohnor Depew’s 235 yards in receptions is No. 2 all-time in the Vandals’ record books.

A breakdown on the total yardage figure shows 263 yards on the ground, 290 yards passing and 290 yards receiving.

For that first game, “there were some things that were unknown, and obviously, we had some things that we were expecting coming in, and it doesn’t always go that way,” Vandals head coach Jason Clay said.

The Vandals have eight members of their squad missing for the first two games, which meant that some of their teammates have to step up in starting roles or in different positions.

“You’ve just got to kind of power through it,” Clay said.

“Obviously, the start of the game wasn’t how we would have scripted it,” he said.

“(Carlinville) kind of got a drive together and we got a big stop deep in our own end, and that was good, but then (we) ended up getting a penalty,” he said.

“And, we had the ball out across midfield, had a penalty that pulled us back, and we turned it over at the 5-yard line, giving them a short field,” Clay said.

“That’s not really how you would script the start, but we had a good response,” he said.

“We moved the ball down the field, kind of stalled out down there with penalties again. We ended up kicking a field goal, and then once we took the lead, we kind of kept it,” Clay said

“It was kind of back and forth in the third (quarter), but put them away late in the game and got some good stops on defense when we needed,” he said.

The Vandals fell behind 7-0, and a field goal by Cole Durbin made it 7-3 after one quarter.

A 15-yard run by Depew gave the Vandals the lead, and a 76-yard pass from Casey to Depew extended that lead, with the two scores and two conversion kicks by Durbin making it 17-7.

Every time Vandalia put points on the board, Carlinville responded with scores of their own … until the end of the third quarter.

Casey connected again with Depew, this time on a 57-yard scoring play with 3:08 left in the third quarter to make it 37-27.

Casey opened the fourth quarter with a 14-yard run for a score to give the Vandals a 17-point lead, and the Casey and Depew connection struck again on a 49-yard score to put the Vandals up by 24.

After some defensive issues in the first half, defensive coordinator Mark Rinehart “gave them a couple of different looks.

“We were having a little bi of trouble with some guys cramping, and we were a little bit thin back there, but coach (Rinehart) was able to change it up and give them a little bit different look,” Clay said.

“Run defense, we played well, but we gave up some big plays through the passing game. So, we’ll get that shored up and fix some things there,” he said.

“But, give (Carlinville) some credit, too,” Clay said. “They’ve got some good athletes at the skill positions; their quarterback threw the ball well, and the (Tate) Duckels kid was tough.”

The Vandals head coach was pleased to see the regulars and those stepping in for those missing working together.

“We were able to kind of stay balanced,” Clay said.

“Dillon (Hinton) really did a great job of running the football hard. The line was opening up holes, and he was bouncing off and getting extra yards after contact, which we love.

“And then, we made some big plays through the air,” he said. “Obviously, Kohnor had several big plays, but I thought Brenton (McCarty) had a key catch on a third down to keep the drive alive before the half, not giving the ball back and giving us a chance at a field goal,” Clay said.

“And, Jordan (Colburn) had a couple of big catches, as well.

“And, we’ve got other guys, too, that we’ll be able to eventually share the ball around to,” he said.

“Like I said, being kind of balanced.

“Andrew (Casey) did a great job,” Clay said. “He had almost a hundred yards on the ground and almost 300 throwing it.”

Clay has always talked about the Vandals having numerous weapons on his squad, and this year is no exception.

“I think we know that about our guys. That’s the nice thing, that we have guys who can do a lot of things.

“Obviously, Andrew can play receiver – we saw that last year, and he can play quarterback.

“We can move Depew into the backfield, and Jordan can run it, and they both can catch it,” Clay said.

“Q (Quenton Stombaugh) is also multi-faceted – he can play quarterback and he can come out and play receiver, too.

“Just a lot of good athletes and a lot of guys who can do a lot of things, so, we’ll just try to use all of our guys the best we can,” Clay said.

The Vandals open the home portion of their schedule with a 7 p.m. game on Friday at Mark Greer Field.

The junior varsity Vandals opened on Monday with a 28-14 win over Carlyle, and the freshmen lost to Trenton Wesclin, 14-0, defeated Hillsboro, 20-8, and lost to Columbia, 8-6, at the Greenville Freshman Jamboree.

Vandalia 51, Carlinville 33

Scoring Summary

C 1st Qtr., 6:51 5-yd run, Kip Reels, Joel White kick. C 7-0

V 1st, 1:18 31-yd field goal, Cole Durbin. C 7-3

V 2nd, 11:13 15-yd run, Kohnor Depew; Durbin kick. V 10-7

V 2nd, 7:35 76-yd pass, Andrew Casey to Depew; Durbin kick. V 17-7

C 2nd, 5:12 17-yd pass, Reels to Tate Duckels; 2-pt conv. failed. V 17-13

V 3rd, 11:27 67-yd run, Casey; kick failed. V 23-13

C 3rd, 10:25 56-yd pass, Reels to Duckels; White kick. V 23-20

V 3rd, 4:19 1-yd run, Dillon Hinton; Durbin kick. V 30-20

C 3rd, 3:30 79-yd pass, Reels to Duckels; White kick. V30-27

V 3rd, 3:08 57-yd pass, Casey to Depew; Durbin kick. V 37-27