CHICAGO | The jerseys may have been the same, but the Simeon team that faced off against Mt. Carmel in Saturday night's Class 8A playoff opener looked like a completely different squad that the one that got trounced by the Caravan in Week 1.

Only a 22-yard touchdown scamper by Milton Greer with just more than four minutes to play prevented a monumental upset, as the Caravan hung on late to defeat the Wolverines 19-14 at Gately Stadium.

Mt. Carmel (7-3) advances to face Stevenson in this week's second round.

After Greer's touchdown Simeon drove 74 yards to the Mt. Carmel 7-yard line with 52 seconds left in the game.

It was eerily reminiscent of last week, when the Caravan allowed Providence to retake the lead with a second left in the game. But this time, the defense held.

"I just kept telling myself we had to win," said Greer, who was on the field defensively for most of the final Simeon drive.

Greer finished with 85 yards and two touchdowns, none of which came easy.

The Caravan picked up two first downs on their opening drive, which was capped off by a 6-yard Greer touchdown. But those would be the last first downs of the half, as Mt. Carmel would go three-and-out on its next three possessions.

"Their defense has really developed," said Greer, who seemed too shocked by the close game to celebrate the win. "They've probably been working harder in practice, I don't know."

It looked like Caravan coach Frank Lenti had made the necessary adjustments when junior quarterback Chris Sujka put up a 55-yard rushing touchdown on his team's first drive of the half.

But the Simeon defense remained strong, returning a fumble for a touchdown on the next Caravan drive. A successful two-point conversion gave Simeon (7-3) its first lead at 14-13.

That merely served to set up Greer's heroics though. The Dolton resident and his fellow tailback Denzel Thompson each converted on third-down plays on the ensuing drive with their backs against the wall.

"I had to work really hard tonight," Greer said. "Plus I have a young group here, not like last year. But you just have to keep fighting for every yard."

PREP FOOTBALL

Class 8A Playoffs

First round

Mt. Carmel 19, Simeon 14

Milton Greer scored the game-winning touchdown on a 22-yard run.