Brothers Brody and Jackson Rudolph have put a big stamp on every game they play for Wauconda.
They don’t come off the field, and someone always seems to be carrying the ball or tackling whoever has the ball.
“It’s great to play with him, and it’s something I love doing — being with him every week,” Jackson Rudolph said. “It’s also nice to have my dad (Sean) on the staff as well. It’s always good to feel like you have someone who’s going to support you no matter what. I know my team will, but I especially know my brother will, too.”
In fact, the Rudolph brothers play off each other very well. On Friday, senior Jackson Rudolph rushed for 138 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries and junior Brody Rudolph scored on a 10-yard run as Wauconda outlasted visiting Antioch for a 25-20 win to secure first place in the Northern Lake County Conference with one game remaining in the regular season.
“I like the way he manages to do his best,” Jackson Rudolph said. “He blocks his hardest for me. We’re just able to get it done.”
The Bulldogs (8-0, 6-0) did just that against the Sequites (6-2, 5-1), who averaged 56.8 points during a five-game winning streak. The Rudolph brothers, both linebackers, helped limit Antioch to 191 yards and were involved in key stops in Wauconda.
“Our focus this week was to stop their run,” Jackson Rudolph said. “We’re usually able to run the ball with me, Brody and Cole (Koryanek). Our main goal was to stop their offense, and I’m sure we did a good job of that because we won.”
Wauconda’s win wasn’t confirmed until the final seconds, when Antioch faced fourth-and-goal from the 10-yard line. The 6-foot-1, 235-pound Jackson Rudolph put intense pressure on junior quarterback Ethan Patel, who cleared the end zone and then threw an incompletion.
“It was a straight-up offense through the C-gap, and they told me to go get the quarterback,” Jackson Rudolph said. “That was my only job. When I was running, I saw his eyes light up and I saw the white around his eyes and then I knew he saw me coming. But he was backing away, and I thought I would go get him.
“When he threw the ball, I thought, ‘Please, just drop it, hit it, intercept it, whatever.’ It got there right when he threw it.
The Bulldogs have come to expect game-changing plays like those from Jackson Rudolph since he broke into the starting lineup at fullback as a freshman. He took over the starting ball-carrying duties last season and was dominant as a bruising, straight-up linebacker. Entering Friday, he ranked third in the state with 22 rushing touchdowns and 1,115 passing yards on 127 carries.
“The kid does everything we ask of him and more,” Wauconda coach Chris Prostka said. “He’s a kid who leads by example, and no one can ever say he doesn’t do anything we don’t ask him to do. And who plays as hard as he does and takes the hits he does? Every coach should be so lucky to have a kid like him on their team.”
Two from the same beds are a bonus. It’s been a package deal for a long time. The 5-foot-10, 200-pound Brody Rudolph has been playing with his brother since they were little.
Their physical talents are self-evident as they both employ a ruthless style in attack and ruthlessness in defence. But there are other factors in their success.
“The three of us (including their father) will sit down and watch hours of film together and obviously do it individually as well,” Brody Rudolph said. “When we come together, we really break down what we need to do and how to stop it.”
Brody Rudolph also watches his brother and marvels.
“I’m not trying to outdo him, I’m trying to keep up with him,” Brody Rudolph said. “He’s obviously a tank at full-back. I’m looking up to him as much as I can.
“He’s a great leader on this team. He brings us together — leading our offense, leading our defense, telling us what we’re doing wrong and right, and keeping it going.”
The Rudolph brothers hope Wauconda can continue its run with a conference win over Lakes in the regular season finale followed by a long playoff run.
But they will enjoy the Bulldogs’ first win over Antioch since 2022.
“This was emotional,” Jackson Rudolph said. “This was the game everyone was looking forward to, and I think we put on a show for everyone to watch.”
Steve Raven is a freelance reporter.