Senior running back Brady Tanquilut listened to his father, and that worked wonders for Andrew.

Tanquilut’s father, Eric, was a star running back for Sandburg in the late 1980s and was coached by Mike Navarro, who was an assistant at that time.

That fact wasn’t lost on Brady on Oct. 11 when the Thunderbolts were ready to take on his father’s alma mater at Mike Navarro Stadium in Orland Park.

“There was some joking around,” Brady said of talking with his father. “I told him, ‘I’m going to do better than you on your own field.’

“I knew Mike Navarro was my dad’s coach and the stadium is named after him, so that was pretty cool. But my dad said, ‘I hope you score a touchdown here.’’’

And Brady came through.

Not only did Brady score on a 50-plus run the first time he touched the ball, he finished with 224 yards and three more TDs as Andrew earned a 42-27 Southwest Valley Red win over the Eagles.

Eric however, wasn’t too disappointed. After all, he’s an assistant coach for the Thunderbolts and had two other sons — Jake and Joshua — recently go through Andrew’s football program.

Like his brothers before him, who decided to concentrate on career in college, Brady is heading in that direction. He plans to major in exercise science, with hopes of being a physical therapist.

So, in his last go-around, Tanquilut wants to keep this season going for as long as he can as the 23rd-seeded Thunderbolts (6-3) open the Class 8A playoffs at 7:30 p.m. Friday on the road against 10th-seeded Fremd (8-1) in Palatine.

Tanquilut has combined for 1,000 yards rushing and receiving with 14 TDs this year for Andrew, and coach Adam Lewandowski said Monday he found out the team set a program record for points in the regular season with 333.

“We’re averaging 37 points a game and Brady has been a big reason for it,” Lewandowski said. “He’s a combination of his brothers. Jake had a low center of gravity, great vision, a lateral slasher. Great hands. Josh was a little bit longer in the body and was a great blocker and downhill runner.

“Brady is a hybrid of them.”

Andrew had a 3-6 record last season, missing the playoffs, and opened 2024 with a 1-2 mark after losses to Lincoln-Way West and Naperville Central. But the Thunderbolts caught fire by going 5-1, with the lone loss being a 49-20 setback to powerhouse Lincoln-Way East.

Tanquilut, who is convinced the Thunderbolts have what it takes to make a deep run in the playoffs, said Andrew has its eyes on a state championship.

“We need to control the ball as an offense,” he said. “We need to score on our opponents while wearing down the defense.

“The important thing is always ball security. That was a problem the first couple of games of the season, and it got a lot better.”

Family history shows a diverse amount of interests after high school for the Tanquiluts.

Jake, who is in college at Iowa, is applying to medical schools. Joshua, a sophomore at Moraine Valley, is a lead singer and guitar player who has performed solo and with a band at various area venues. He had a big audience this summer at the Orland Hills Party in the Park.

On occasion, Brady sets up equipment and helps with the soundboard for Joshua. Brady said his brother does an outstanding version of Elvis Presley’s “Suspicious Minds.”

Brady, however, has made up his mind about his future. He’s sending out inquiries to colleges.

“I still want to be involved in sports,” he said. “I think being a physical therapist would be pretty cool. I want to help people deal with their injuries.”

Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.