Antonio Barnes, Andrean dreaming of another ring

The Andrean senior won his first last fall when the 59ers were the final Class 2A football team standing. He earned his second as part of the Andrean baseball team in the spring.

Barnes hopes to need to be fitted for a third after the 59ers play in Lucas Oil Stadium again Friday.

“As a senior, this is how I wanted to go out,” Barnes said. “Our motto is, ‘One team, one dream.’ This is our one dream.”

Andrean will probably need someone to make some big plays to make that dream a reality. Barnes proved he has an ability to do that this season.

In the semistate win over Bishop Luers, the 59ers offense sputtered on its first drive. Barnes came up with a 30-yard pick six on the Knights’ first possession to steal the momentum.

He read the eyes of Luers quarterback Charlie Stanski on a run-pass option play.

“I was expecting something quick, either a slant or a hitch. I saw (Stanski) look at the receiver as he pulled (the ball from the running back). I gave the receiver a little bump and just jumped the route,” he said. “It was really cold and I could barely feel my fingers. I was just focusing on trying to catch it and hold it and get to the end zone.”

Barnes came up with a big stop on a fourth down in the regional game against Lafayette Central Catholic. He intercepted a pass in the end zone in the final seconds of a 24-17 regular-season win at Hobart, too.

He said he takes pride in not shrinking during important moments.

As a whole, Andrean has a team full of players who’ve been through the wars of one state title run, already. That’s an advantage they won’t have over the next opponent, though.

Evansville Mater Dei is awaiting a rematch of the 2021 Class 2A state championship. Andrean beat the Wildcats 21-9 a year ago.

“We know each other’s teams so it’s just going to be a game of who wants it more,” Barnes said. “I know they’ve probably been fired up to play us. They’re trying to get the series tied with this state championship.”

Mater Dei has a diverse passing attack. Four different receivers have 27 or more receptions on the season and none has more than 40. Quarterback Mason Wunderlich completes 65% of his passes, totalling 2,565 yards and 25 touchdowns with eight interceptions.

It’ll be a test for Barnes and the rest of the 59ers’ secondary.

“We’re going to have to study a little more, see if there are situations where (Wunderlich) has somebody he prefers or if there are certain route concepts,” Barnes said. “He’s tall. He can see a lot. It’ll be more of a challenge.”

Barnes isn’t afraid of a challenge. He’ll play college football while studying engineering, with offers from Rose-Hulman and Carnegie Mellon.

There’s one more high school game to play, though.

“We’ve worked really hard for ourselves. I think we really deserve this,” Barnes said. “We just have to come out ready to play Friday and practice hard all week like we have all year.”