Recently in St. Patrick Category

Four Benet players were named to the East Suburban Catholic Conference honor roll: senior offensive lineman John Cannova; junior offensive lineman Pat Flavin; senior defensive lineman Nick Melka; and senior linebacker Mike Runger. For the entire all-ESCC list, click here. The conference's individual awards are listed below.

Most Valuable Player: Julian Sipiora, St Viator
Most Valuable Offensive Player: Mike Perish, Marist
Most Valuable Offensive Lineman: Dan Foreman, Joliet Catholic
Most Valuable Defensive Player: Jake Stockman, Joliet Catholic
Most Valuable Defensive Lineman: Steve Lester, Carmel Catholic
Coach of the Year: Dave Mattio, Marian Catholic

The East Suburban Catholic Conference has released its honor roll, which can be found here.

Benet seniors Mike Vanchieri (defensive back), Victor Sadauskas (defensive lineman) and Dan Schroeder (offensive lineman) earned all-ESCC recognition.

Marist - which will travel to Benedictine University for a second-round playoff game against Naperville North Friday night - placed eight players on the team. Here are the individual awards:

Most Valuable Player: Tyler Hudetz, Joliet Catholic
Most Valuable Offensive Player: Mike Taylor, Carmel Catholic
Most Valuable Offensive Lineman: Patrick Lyons, Carmel Catholic
Most Valuable Defensive Player: Joshua Mander, Joliet Catholic
Most Valuable Defensive Lineman: Nabal Jefferson, Marist
Coach of the Year: Pat Dunne, Marist; Mark Zavagnin, St. Joseph

The East Suburban Catholic Conference will wake up Friday morning with three undefeated teams - Marist, St. Patrick and Notre Dame. And with St. Patrick traveling to Notre Dame a few hours later, that grouping won't last very long.

Benet and Joliet Catholic are 1-0 in conference, but each lost its first two games. And of the five teams that lost its ESCC opener last week, four started the season 2-0. As Benet coach Gary Goforth said on Thursday: "Who knows?"

"This could be a topsy-turvy year in the conference for all we know," Goforth said.

Already this season Wheaton Warrenville South hammered Joliet Catholic, St. Joseph snapped a 45-game losing streak that stretched across five seasons and 3-0 Marist could be off to its best start since 1986.

With 10 starters returning from a 10-3 team that advanced to the Class 7A semifinals last season, Carmel was supposed to be an early ESCC frontrunner, but the Corsairs (2-1, 0-1) stumbled in the rain last week against an improved Marist team. That's how it's gone so far in an unpredictable ESCC.

Forget what we thought we knew - what will the ESCC look like by the end of Friday night and at the beginning of November?