Elgin High: October 2008 Archives

ELGIN -- What began as a shootout quickly dissolved into a blowout as Lake Park handled host Elgin 43-23 in the final Upstate Eight Conference game of the season for both non-playoff bound teams Friday at rain-soaked Memorial Field.

An in-depth look at week 9's Upstate Eight Conference games in the area.

Senior forward Marcus Redburg, being counted on heavily by an Elgin High team that lost plenty to graduation, might not see game action until January.

With the 2008 regular season about to end, what better time to take a look ahead to what we might expect in 2009.

Although a number of area teams are dominated by talented seniors this year, there are a plenty of underclassmen making a big impact.

Look no further than Bartlett and Huntley, the two unbeaten teams in the area, to find some of the best young talent around.

Elgin standout receiver Jamal Cook was not in practice Monday.

Cook was absent from Saturday's game against Larkin for what the team called personal reasons. Cook practiced with the Maroons during the week leading up to that game.
When asked whether Cook will be back with the team for Friday's game against Lake Park,

Elgin coach Dave Bierman was unable to elaborate.

"I really can't comment on that right now," Bierman said. "At this time there is no decision (on whether he will play). Eventually it will all come out. There are just some things going on."

A message left for Cook and his mother, Thelma Dunner, was not returned.

-- Erik Jacobsen

Picking one story line from Saturday's annual Town Jug game isn't easy, but what would you expect from a rivalry as storied and complex as this one?

It's rivalry week here in Courier country, and in my opinion there's no better week on this year's schedule.

There's something about showdowns between natural rivals -- whether they play in the same town or in neighboring communities - that always seems to bring out the best effort from players, coaches, student cheering sections and sometimes even entire communities.

This weekend, area fans can't go wrong by going out to any one of three local showdowns. On Friday, Hampshire and Burlington Central will renew pleasantries in Burlington. Meanwhile, St Charles North and St. Charles East will be squaring off on the northwest side of St. Charles. On Saturday morning, Elgin and Larkin will meet for the 48th time at Memorial Field.

So what is it that separates these games from the rest? Answering this question has a number of layers.

Here's a look at the all-time series between the Elgin and Larkin, plus some of the all-time team records from the Town Jug series.