Elgin (0-4) at Waubonsie Valley (1-3), 7:30 tonight
Quote:
“We’ve had another good week of practice and the kids’
attitudes are good. They’re trying to get it done and trying
to get it turned around. I think the biggest thing is our consistency.
We’re hoping to run quite a few people in during the first
half this week to keep from running kids for four quarters. Hopefully
they’ll have a little better second-half performance if they
don’t have to go both ways the whole game.” — Elgin coach Dave Bierman
Last Year: Waubonsie Valley 38, Elgin 15 Last Week: South Elgin 42, Elgin 28; Waubonsie Valley
28, Neuqua Valley 26 Scouting Elgin: The Maroons will try to avoid their
first 0-5 start since 2002 tonight. A consistent problem reemerged last
week for Elgin when it was outscored 21-7 in the second half after playing
to a 21-all tie in the first half. For the season, the Maroons have
been outsco red 87-25 in the second half of their games. Elgin’s
defense is allowing an area-worst average of 47.8 points per game and
hasn’t held an opponent to few er than 41 points yet this year.
Offensively, senior quarterback Tom Roth leads the area with 700 passing
yards. Senior receiver Jamal Cook caught five passes for 135 yards last
week. Julian Smith is expected to be in action this week after battling
an injury. Scouting Waubonsie Valley: The Warriors enter tonight’s
game hoping to extend a nine-game winning streak against Elgin that
dates to 1994. Waubonsie Valley is 11-2 in the all-time series against
the Maroons. After losing to Naperville Central, Prairie Ridge and St.
Charles East in the first three weeks of the season, the Warriors notched
their first win of the year when they edged rival Neuqua Valley last
week. Waubonsie touts plenty of size up front on its line, which allows
quarterback Tyler Castro plenty of time to lead his team’s passing
attack. Castro completed 19 of 28 passes for 265 yards and four touchdowns
in last week’s win. Mark Hilgers was his top target, catching 10
passes for 198 yards and two scores. Erik Jacobsen’s Pick: Waubonsie Valley
Neuqua Valley (1-3) at Larkin (2-2), 7:30 tonight
Quote:
“Neuqua Valley has an awful lot of talent, they are a very
good football team and they are well coached on both sides of
the football. Despite the fact that they might not be above .500
at this point, there is no question they are one of the elite
teams in the Upstate Eight Conference.” — Larkin coach Matt Gehrig
Last Year: Neuqua Valley 56, Larkin 39 Last Week: Waubonsie Valley 28, Neuqua Valley 26; Larkin
38, East Aurora 20 Scouting Neuqua Valley: The Wildcats are in serious
danger of missing the playoffs for the first time in six years after
losing three of their first four games. With challenging contests against
St. Charles East, St. Charles North and Bartlett looming, Neuqua can
ill afford another setback this week. A failed two-point conversion
with 4:41 left in the fourth quarter left the Wildcats short against
rival Waubonsie Valley last week. Quarterback Alex Lincoln leads Neuqua’s
offense. He’s completed 44 of 104 passes for 643 yards and eight
touchdowns. Nathaniel Perez is the Wildcats’ top ground threat.
He’s run for 396 yards and four touchdowns on 57 carries. Scouting Larkin: After playing three straight road
games, the Royals return home hoping to climb above .500 for the first
time this year and looking to pick up their first victory of the season
at Memorial Field. Larkin trailed 13-12 after the first quarter in last
week’s game against East Aurora before pulling past the Tomcats
thanks in large part to an effective ground attack led by running back
Brandon Cooks and quarterback Jeff Saurbaugh, who racked up 116 rushing
yards and 114 rushing yards, respectively. The Royals’ defense
held East Aurora to only 214 total yards of offense. Junior running
back Jalen Williams is expected to return to action after missing last
week’s game for disciplinary reasons. Larkin lost to Neuqua Valley
in each of the past three years. Erik Jacobsen’s Pick: Neuqua Valley
Woodstock (3-1) at Dundee-Crown (3-1), 7:45 tonight
Quote:
“I think we’ve been improving every week, but we’ve
got to keep improving because we have a real tough stretch coming
up here. If we can keep getting better, hopefully we can keep
things competitive and maybe steal a few games.” —D-C coach Mike Davis
Last Year: Woodstock 35, D-C 7 Last Week: Woodstock 42, Grayslake North 0; D-C 28,
Grayslake Central 12 Scouting Woodstock: The Blue Streaks might have a talented
three-year quarterback in Derek Brown, but it is defense that is carrying
the day this season. Woodstock hasn’t allowed more than seven points
in any game this year and has allowed a grand total of 20 points through
the first four games. The Blue Streaks come in on a three-game winning
streak after earning their first shutout of the year last week against
Grayslake North. They held the Knights to only 95 yards. A steady blitz
package is the key to the defensive success. Brown has completed 33
of 57 passes for 455 yards and three touchdowns this year. Kevin Smith
is Woodstock’s leading rusher. Scouting Dundee-Crown: The Chargers are in the midst
of their first three-game win streak since 2000. Now they’ll try
to win four in a row for the first time since 1998. That ’98 squad
finished the year 4-5. The task gets much tougher for D-C as it enters
FVC Valley play. Three of its final five opponents own 3-1 records going
into this week’s action. In contrast, the Chargers’ past three
opponents are a combined 0-12. Senior running back Ian Salvatini is
D-C’s top offensive threat. He’s averaging 6.5 yards per carry.
Senior quarterback Logan Kissack threw for three touchdowns last week.
The Chargers have lost 12 of their past 13 against Woodstock, with the
one victory in that span coming in 2006. Erik Jacobsen’s Pick: D-C
North Boone (2-2) at Burlington Central (0-4), 7 tonight
Quote:
“North Boone is greatly improved. And we’re at a point
where we literally have to go week to week. The kids know that.” — Central coach Aaron Wichman
Last Year: Central 46, North Boone 6 Last Week: Genoa-Kingston 42, North Boone 9; Oregon 20, Central 7 Scouting North Boone: After going 3-15 in their first two seasons as members
of the Big Northern Conference, the Vikings enter league play this year
with high expectations after knocking off Winnebago and Rockford Lutheran
in BNC crossover play earlier this season. An infusion of young talent is
at the forefront of the turnaround, and sophomore quarterback Alex Albrecht
leads the charge. He’s completed 55 of 92 passes for 741 yards and
two touchdowns this year. His top target is twin brother Jon Albrecht, who
has 16 receptions for 314 yards and four touchdowns despite missing the
past two games. Scouting Central: The Rockets enter BNC East play with an 0-4 record for
the first time since 1993. They’ll try to notch their first win of
the season against a North Boone squad they beat by a combined score of
87-13 the past two years. The Rockets outgained Oregon 257-239 last week
but weren’t able to score until the game’s final minute. Sophomore
quarterback Tim Maroder is Central’s top offensive threat as he leads
his team’s option attack. After losing a number of players to injury
the first few weeks of the season, the Rockets expect several player to
be back this week. Sophomore Brandon Westergaard, who started Week 1 at
linebacker before breaking his arm, is slated to return with a cast. However,
he is moving to safety as sophomore Evan Billek has replaced Westergaard
at linebacker. Safety Bob Timm is also expected to return from a knee injury,
but Dom Genchi could be missing from the secondary after sustaining a slight
concussion last week. He is questionable despite being cleared to play. Erik Jacobsen’s Pick: Central
Hampshire (1-3) at Richmond-Burton (1-3), 7 tonight
Quote:
“Richmond is big and physical and they run right at you.
You have to be concerned how you match up physically with a team
like that.” — Hampshire coach Dan Cavanaugh
Last Year: Richmond-Burton 28, Hampshire 27 Last Week: Hampshire 20, Byron 6; Richmond-Burton 21, Winnebago 0 Scouting Hampshire: The Whip-Purs broke through last week for their first
win of the season thanks to a stout defensive effort and strong ground
attack. Hampshire held Byron to only 147 total yards while in the meantime
racking up 388 rushing yards on 62 carries. Senior Joe Moore led the way
with 180 yards on 35 carries. For the season the Whips are limiting opponents
to 200.5 yards per game. Senior James Goebbert leads the defense with
15 unassisted tackles, 12 assisted tackles and an interception. Despite
its slow start to the season, Hampshire hopes to contend for the Big Northern
Conference East Division title and make a run at a fourth playoff appearance
in five years. Scouting Richmond-Burton: After being held scoreless in a Week 3 loss
to Stillman Valley, the Rockets turned the tables last week by posting
their first shutout of an opponent since the 2005 season. This week they’ll
try to beat Hampshire for the fourth straight time and seventh time in
eight meetings. Last year both teams finished the regular season with
5-4 records, but only Richmond-Burton earned a trip to the playoffs. Justin
Russell and Brandon Sanko lead the Rockets rushing attack. Quarterback
Adam Pittser has completed only seven passes this season. Richmond-Burton’s
defense held Winnebago to only 3.4 yards per rushing attempt in last week’s
game. Erik Jacobsen’s Pick: Richmond-Burton
Marian Central (2-2) at St. Edward (3-1), 7 tonight
Quote:
“The most physical team is going to win this game. Marian
is big and strong. There’s not a lot of them, but the guys
they have are really good football players. If our kids decide
they want to go put up a challenge, it’s going to be a good
football game.” — St. Edward coach Mike Rolando
Last Year: Marian Central 30, St. Edward 0 Last Week: Immaculate Conception 14, Marian Central
7; St. Edward 42, Aurora Central Catholic 7 Scouting Marian Central: The Hurricanes were victimized
last week by the same Immaculate Conception team that handed St. Edward
its only loss of the season in Week 3. Marian Central was outgained
in rushing yardage 251-13 in the loss. The Hurricanes will be looking
to get back over the .500 mark. Their other loss this season came against
state-ranked Cary-Grove in Week 2. Marian lost Wisconsin-bound quarterback
Jon Budmayr for the year when he broke his collarbone in the first week
of the season. The Hurricanes now turn to Andy Stochl to handle quarterback
duties. Stochl, who has thrown for 597 yards and four touchdowns this
year, saw action last season when Budmayr dealt with a separate injury. Scouting St. Edward: Coach Mike Rolando hopes his
team can duplicate the effort it showed in last week’s dominant
victory. The Green Wave ran for 487 yards on 36 carries in the triumph,
good for an average 13.5 yards per carry. Seniors Jimmy Mathisen and
Moises Quiroga and junior David Hoebbel all ran for over 100 yards to
lead the way for the offense. Defensively, juniors Jon Godfrey and Dan
Duffy and senior Ryan Eigenhauser all recorded three sacks apiece as
St. Edward limited Aurora Central Catholic to only 165 total yards.
Juniors Jordan Torres and Price Davis are expected to return to action
after battling injuries. The Wave will try to snap a five-game losing
streak against Marian Central that dates to 2002. Erik Jacobsen’s Pick: Marian Central
South Elgin (1-3) at Thornton Fractional South (4-0), 7 tonight
Quote:
“Once you win a ballgame, it’s great medicine for the
next week. Everything picks up a little bit. I know (Thornton
Fractional South has) very tough kids, very physical kids. This
is their homecoming and they’ve got a lot of things going
on and a lot of excitement. It will be a good challenge and I
think our kids are really looking forward to the game.” — South Elgin coach Dale Schabert
Last Year: Thornton Fractional South 21, South Elgin
7 Last Week: South Elgin 42, Elgin 28; Thornton Fractional
South 14, Rich South 8 Scouting South Elgin: The Storm played well on both
sides of the ball while earning its first win of the season last week.
Defensively, South Elgin held Elgin to only seven points in the second
half. On offense, a balanced attack led the way to 482 total yards.
Senior quarterback Pat Rae threw for 312 yards and two touchdowns while
junior Trevor Hansley and senior Kelvin Ware ran for 88 yards and 66
yards, respectively. Senior Josh Smith is the area’s top receiver
with 20 catches for 324 yards. Coach Dale Schabert said his team benefitted
last week from the return of several players who had been out from injury.
That depth will help South Elgin continue to rotate players in the offensive
backfield, among other positions. Scouting Thornton Fractional South: The Rebels appear
well on their way to their 11th consecutive playoff appearance and 14th
trip to the postseason in 15 years. Despite the 4-0 start, Thornton
Fractional South does have a serious concern as quarterback Josh Titus
left last week’s game with a shoulder injury and didn’t return.
He didn’t complete a pass in the contest, but for the season has
completed 29 of 41 passes for 664 yards. Jake Reynolds stepped in at
quarterback in Titus’ absence last week and completed all four
of his passes for 26 yards. Rob Gafford led the charge on the ground
for the Rebels, racking up 111 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries.
Thornton Fractional South won the SICA East last season and finished
the year 7-3. Erik Jacobsen’s Pick: South Elgin
Lake Park (1-3) at St. Charles East (3-1), 7:30 tonight
Quote:
“As a coaching staff we’ve made sure the kids understand
how important it is to our success to run the ball. When you do
that you keep the defense off the field. I think that’s been
a great recipe for success not only for us moving the ball and
scoring points, but also keeping the defense fresh and helping
to their success.” — East coach Ted Monken
Last Year: East 30, Lake Park 0 Last Week: Bartlett 30, Lake Park 7; East 49, Streamwood 6 Scouting Lake Park: East coach Ted Monken contends the Lancers’ record
is deceiving, considering Lake Park lost to Conant by two points in Week
1 and was a few special teams snafus from beating Naperville Central in
Week 2. The Lancers went on to knock off Neuqua Valley in Week 3 and now
hope to spring another surprise. Lake Park was held in check on the ground
last week, managing only 68 rushing yards on 21 carries. Junior quarterback
Larry Nawrot and running back Kevin Thomas lead the offense for the Lancers,
who are coming off their third 4-5 season in four years. Scouting East: A dominant ground attack is playing a key role in the Saints’
success. So far this season they’ve run for 1,180 yards on 175 carries,
good for an average of 295 yards per game and 6.7 yards per carry. Senior
Wes Allen leads the charge with 631 rushing yards, good for the second-best
total in the area. Senior Kyle Wiebe isn’t far behind with 337 rushing
yards. East’s defense also played leading roles in its past two wins.
The Saints allowed a combined 142 yards in the two contests and held their
opponents to 30 rushing yards on 38 carries, good for an average of 0.8
yards per carry. Tonight’s game marks only the fourth contest between
East and Lake Park since 2001. The Saints are 1-2 in the past three meetings. Erik Jacobsen’s Pick: East
Genoa-Kingston (4-0) at Winnebago (1-3), 7 tonight
Quote:
“I’m pleasantly surprised so far this season. The kids
are playing really well and I’m really happy with our senior
leadership to this point.” — G-K coach Bill McCarty
Last Year: Winnebago 14, G-K 13 Last Week: G-K 42, North Boone 9; Richmond-Burton 21, Winnebago 0 Scouting G-K: The Cogs enter Big Northern Conference West Division play
needing a win to become playoff eligible for the second year in a row.
They are also in search of their first 5-0 start since the 1993 season.
Senior quarterback Chris Wilkins continues to perform as one of the area’s
top playmakers. He’s third among area rushing leaders and fourth
among area passing leaders. G-K boasts the area’s top scoring offense
and hasn’t been held to less than 40 points yet this season. Defensively,
the Cogs have held three of their four opponents to 13 or fewer points.
Junior linebacker Kolby Pinne will likely be out with a knee injury. Scouting Winnebago: The Indians didn’t allow a point in the second
half last week, but came away with a loss after failing to score a point
despite gaining 241 yards of total offense. Seth Gustafson is Winnebago’s
top offensive threat. He’s run for 518 yards on 73 carries this season.
The Indians played BNC crossover contests in the first four weeks, beating
Hampshire and Marengo and losing to North Boone and Richmond-Burton. Winnebago
is hoping to reach the playoffs for the second year in a row under second-year
coach Mark Helm. Despite beating G-K last year, the Indians have lost
two of the last three meetings against the Cogs. Erik Jacobsen’s Pick: G-K
East Aurora (1-3) at Streamwood (0-4), 7:30
tonight
Last Year: Streamwood 19, East Aurora 14 Last Week: Larkin 38, East Aurora 20; St. Charles East 49, Streamwood 6 Scouting East Aurora: With a win tonight, the Tomcats can reach the two-win
mark in a single season for the first time since 2000, when they finished
with a 5-4 record. East Aurora is 5-62 since the start of the 2001 season,
and two of those five wins came against Streamwood. The Tomcats snapped
a 16-game losing streak two weeks ago when they beat South Elgin. They then
led last week’s game against Larkin 13-12 after the first quarter before
fading in the second half. Michael Turner has run for 239 yards on 44 carries
the past two weeks and is East Aurora’s top offensive threat. Quarterback
Richard Jimenez is another playmaker who scored in each of the past two
games. Scouting Streamwood: Coach Cal Cummins has two wins since coming to Streamwood
in 2006, and both of those triumphs came against East Aurora. Like the Tomcats,
the Sabres have faced similarly hard times in recent years, going 3-37 since
the start of the 2004 campaign. A lack of offensive punch has been a particular
concern as the Sabres are last in the area with an average of 4.8 points
per game and haven’t scored more than seven points in a game. Junior
running back Derrick King is Streamwood’s biggest offensive threat.
Senior quarterback Noel Rivera has thrown for 292 yards but been intercepted
an area-high eight times. The Sabres were outscored a combined 103-6 the
past two weeks by St. Charles North and St. Charles East. Junior lineman
Johnny Alcala is out for this week’s game with an injured collarbone. Erik Jacobsen’s Pick: East Aurora
Cary-Grove (4-0) at Jacobs (1-3), 7:45 tonight
Quote:
“We certainly think we didn’t play at the top of our
game at all last week. We really need to get back on track and
we need to focus on executing more consistently on both sides
of the ball. We really felt like we let down, and that’s
not the result we want at all.” — Jacobs coach Dean Schlueter
Last Year: Cary-Grove 21, Jacobs 14 Last Week: Cary-Grove 35, Johnsburg 14; Huntley 36, Jacobs 0 Scouting Cary-Grove: The Trojans remained No. 2 in the Class 6A state
rankings this week after starting the season 4-0 for the fourth time in
five years. With the non-conference portion of its schedule over, Cary-Grove
now turns its attention to capturing its fifth straight conference title.
The Trojans tout a balanced ground attack that features four players who
have between 240 and 292 rushing yards for the season. Jonas Mack leads
the team with 292 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 35 attempts. Cary-Grove’s
defense held Johnsburg to 60 rushing yards last week and is limiting opponents
to an average of 14.8 points per game this season. Scouting Jacobs: The Golden Eagles struggled on both sides of the ball
in last week’s loss. Offensively they managed only 139 total yards
while being shut out for the first time since their final game of the
2006 season. Meanwhile, Jacobs’ defense allowed 476 total yards and
an average of 6.2 yards per rushing attempt. Running backs Jai Bradford
and Adam Dybeck are the top ground threats for the Eagles. Jacobs will
be trying to snap an eight-game losing streak against Cary-Grove that
dates to 1999. Erik Jacobsen’s Pick: Cary-Grove
Huntley (4-0) at Grayslake N. (0-4), 7:45 tonight
Quote:
“This week we’re just working a lot on conditioning.
We thought we played a little uninspired and maybe a little
bit lazy in the latter part of last week. We attribute that
to the kids having a few days off. We’re just working hard
on fundamentals and conditioning to try to make ourselves better.” — Huntley coach Steve Graves
Last Year: Huntley 48, Grayslake North 21 Last Week: Huntley 36, Jacobs 0; Woodstock 42, Grayslake North 0 Scouting Huntley: The Red Raiders can become playoff eligible for the third
time in school history with a win. They made their only playoff appearance
in 2001 and didn’t reach the postseason in 2006 despite finishing 5-4.
Huntley is off to its best start since that 2001 campaign, when it started
7-0. Senior running back Jordan Neukirch enters tonight’s game as the
area’s leading rusher and top scorer. He is the top threat in a ground
attack that is averaging 357.5 yards per game and 7.7 yards per carry. Three
different players ran for over 75 yards in last week’s win. The Red
Raiders held Jacobs to only 139 yards in that contest. Scouting Grayslake North: The Knights enter tonight’s game hoping to
avoid the third 0-5 start in the program’s three-year history. They
are 1-21 since the program’s inception. Grayslake North averages only
seven points per game and was held to a season-low 95 total yards in last
week’s loss. Meanwhile, the Knights defense is allowing an average
of 32.5 points per game. Glenn Mizowek is Grayslake North’s top ground
threat. He’s run for 284 yards on 69 carries. Quarterback Seth Foster
has completed 8 of 18 passes for 131 yards. Erik Jacobsen’s Pick: Huntley
Leave a comment