Larkin: September 2008 Archives

Who said teams can't handle a quarterback carousel halfway through the year?

First St. Charles North's Sean McGushin started taking a majority of the snaps from fellow senior Nick Neari in Week 3. Then Larkin and Burlington Central followed suit last week.

Five weeks into the season, Larkin made a quarterback change with one thing in mind: Reaching the playoffs.

Here are the Courier News High School Football Week 5 preview capsules. Don't forget to check out Erik Jacobsen's look ahead to Saturday's Game of the Week between Bartlett and St. Charles North. Sports Editor R.J. Gerber also examines how Hampshire and Burlington Central might fare in the Big Northern Conference East Division, which begins play tonight.

We're halfway through the high school football season, and things are really starting to heat up. For a video preview of Week 5, click here.

There's no doubt the area's biggest game will take place Saturday when St. Charles North travels to play Bartlett. While the Hawks will likely have plenty of support from their boisterous student section, Bartlett coach Tom Meaney might not have the support of his own family.

Elsewhere in the area, the future will be on display when a pair of talented sophomore quarterbacks square off out west. Also, three area teams might be able to pull off season-defining upsets this week.

It's no secret Larkin football is kicking off against a perennially down-and-out program when it travels to East Aurora on Friday. The Tomcats are 5-61 since the start of the 2001 season.

But those same Tomcats are also coming off a win against South Elgin last week. Can East Aurora really put together a win streak?

So of course I had to look for the last time the Tomcats had won consecutive games. They haven't done it since finishing 2000 with wins against DeKalb (then led by current Elgin coach Dave Bierman) and Lake Park.

East Aurora finished 5-4 that year and missed the playoffs. The Tomcats haven't been to the postseason since 1982 and have had only five winning seasons since then.

Needless to say, a win against the Royals (1-2) would be a milestone for East Aurora. The kind of milestone Larkin doesn't want to be a part of.

As the videographer for Courier Prep Football Weekly's "Game of the Week," I'm privileged to see some things on the sidelines that you won't see in the box score.

Check out the highlight-package here.

After the Hawks' 35-6 win over Larkin on Friday, many of Bartlett's coaches implored their players to keep working hard and to "keep their eyes on the prize." That "prize" being the Class 8A state title. Bartlett's first team on both sides of the ball played outstanding in the first half and quickly erased any doubt that Larkin would be able to beat them for the third time in a row.

For its part, Larkin continues to be a diligent group. Rather than hang their heads after being down 35-0 in the second quarter, the Royals hung with it and scrapped out a late touchdown. After seeing both the players and coaches in practice and at games the last two weeks, I find myself pulling for Larkin. The coaches stay positive and the players listen to the coaches and refrain from negativity on the sidelines.

On that note, something also has to be said about Bartlett. With the score lopsided early, the coaches were preaching "sportsmanship" and continued respect for their opponent. I didn't see any of the Hawks clowning around on the sidelines and they seemed to appreciate that Larkin had beaten them the last two years.

Stay tuned for next week's "Game of the Week."

By Erik Jacobsen
Staff Writer

Larkin has a new look with the word "pride" stenciled inside the block 'L' on its football helmet.

Apparently, that message and first-year coach Matt Gehrig's philosophy is sinking in.

The Royals showed a wealth of character by rallying for a 20-19 win at Jacobs on Friday. The intense, defensive showdown represented a far cry from last year's 75-58 shootout between the teams at Memorial Field.

The Golden Eagles won that contest, but they couldn't overcome an inspired effort from Larkin this time around.

The Royals fell behind 7-0 in the first quarter and could barely move the ball on its first four first possessions, gaining only one first down in that stretch. That didn't bend Larkin's will, though, as it struck with a pair of huge plays when Justin Kalusa scored on a 90-yard touchdown reception and Brandon Cooks took off for a 58-yard scoring run to put the Royals ahead 13-7 shortly before halftime.

Jacobs bounced back and scored on its first two possessions of the third quarter. In years past, Larkin teams normally wouldn't respond well to such adversity. But this time around the Royals didn't break, and they eventually broke through when 5-foot-8, 150-pound junior Jalen Williams fought his way past a host of Jacobs defenders to score the winning touchdown on a five-yard pass from quarterback Jeff Saurbaugh.

Williams, who recovered from a slow start to the night, was just one of many heroes on the night for Larkin. Count Saurbaugh, Cooks, Kalusa, John Hosey and Cody Schue and the entire offensive and defensive lines among the host of players who made big impacts.

However, the biggest stars of the night Royals might just have been Matt Gehrig and his coaching staff, who kept their team believing and maintained a positive and encouraging vibe on the sideline all night.

When Larkin finally gathered for its postgame talk, Gehrig's message was simple.

"There's nothing better than seeing all your hard work come to fruition," the 28-year-old said.

Spoken like a true winner.

MOST IMPRESSIVE WIN
I've got to give Larkin a lot of credit for its strong play, and what better way for Gehrig to introduce himself on the Elgin sports scene than with a thrilling win. But this spot belongs to Bartlett for the second straight week as the Hawks went down to Oswego and shut down Northwestern-bound running back Tim Riley in a 17-0 victory. Bartlett is for real and I'm sticking by my belief that a perfect regular season could be in the cards for coach Tom Meaney's squad.

BIGGEST SURPRISE
At first glance I was taken aback that South Elgin managed only three points in a 41-3 loss to Vernon Hills, but then I learned the Storm was without its starting fullback all night and that running back Desmond Perry went down with an injury early in the contest.

Therefore, I'm going to pin the biggest surprise on St. Charles East, which was drilled by Geneva 34-7. I thought the Saints would make it a game and come close to avenging their playoff loss to the Vikings last year. It looks like I was wrong and it looks like East still has a lot of work if it hopes to reach the upper echelon any time soon.