Dionte Rodgers found the end zone for five touchdowns on Friday night. He shows his comfort in the end zone in this photo. (Photo by Brent Feeney)

EDWARDSVILLEEdwardsville High School running back Dionte Rodgers certainly knows how to find the end zone.

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Rodgers played a key part in the Tigers Friday night football win over Rock Island with five touchdowns.

The sophomore running back started with a 73-yard run on the Tigers' first possession. He contributed five touchdown runs, the longest 52 yards, on a 27-carry, 295-yard night that saw the Tigers take a 48-27 win over the Rocks. Edwardsville 2-0 on the season heading into Friday night's Southwestern Conference opener at Collinsville.

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“I saw an open lane and my linemen got the holes (open); I got the right reads. I just hit the hole,” Rodgers, a 5-6, 150-pound back, said. “They're a heck of a football team. We just worked hard a practice and did the things we were supposed to do. We just got the job done.”

Rodgers said staying to the game plan helped with the success he and the Tigers experienced against Rock Island. “Coach (Matt Martin) said he was going to call my number and I had to execute, so that's what I did,” Rodgers said. “I just got the job done.”

Rock Island tied the game at 14-14 at the half and pulled to 21-20 in the third quarter, but Edwardsville stayed to what they wanted to do. “We just stuck to the game plan and our response was just to go out and play our game,” Rodgers said. “The (offensive) line was doing a good job, they were.”

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