THE JOURNAL & TOPICS NEWSPAPERS | FRIDAY, AUGUST 29, 2008
MSL Football/Week One Outlook
West Opens At Wheeling; Rivals Hersey, Viator Battle
It's only the first game of the season for area football teams this weekend but coaches know that every win matters come playoff time. This isn't college, where teams often start with cakewalk schedules. We jump right into hard-hitting football action tonight despite the fact it's still August.
Here's a look at what to expect, according to Journal football gurus Bobby Chilver and Dwight Esau:
Maine West at Wheeling
These two teams were once locked in the basements of their respective divisions but both are on the rise. Wheeling had their breakout season last fall with a trip to the playoffs for the first time in 11 years and Maine West hopes to make a similar impact in 2008, not having made the post-season since 2002.
The Warriors are in phase two of coach Chris Hare's rebuilding program and the team competed well last year despite some key injuries. Still, the toughness didn't translate much into the win column and the Warriors hope this year that can change. Quarterback Frank Hess is back and has a key receiver in Danny Lowe. In last year's opener, the Wheeling defense put a lot of pressure on Hess and forced some interceptions. But that was Hess' first game under center and he should be more composed this time around with a full season under his belt.
This will also be Warrior fans' first look at running back Calvin Williams, who expects to carry a heavy load of the West offense this fall.
While West may be improved, Wheeling is further ahead in their rebuilding process. The 'Cats were the feel-good story of last season, upsetting several good teams and making the playoffs, even giving a scare to eventual state champion Lake Zurich.
The bad news for Maine West is most of that Wheeling team is back, including quarterback Matt Holmes, WR James Kurtz, WR/S Mike Zimmer and CB Mike Barton. The one good news item for West is running back Abel Rangel has graduated. Rangel torched the Warriors for 166 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns in the second half alone to key a 19-7 Wheeling victory last fall.
While the running back position is a bit of a question for the 'Cats, the rest of the squad isn't. The Warrior secondary will have to be nearly flawless to slow down the duo of Kurtz and Zimmer, who should hold a height advantage over their opponents. Kurtz cemented himself as one of the top WRs in the area last year and seems to come down with everything thrown his way. Holmes was actually hurt in last year's season opener vs. West but later returned to lead Wheeling's late playoff run. He can use both his legs and arm to power the offense and the unit shouldn't have much trouble getting the ball downfield quickly.
Brendan Joyce and Mike Greene lead the Warrior defense that will need to keep the offense in the game early for a chance.
So while the Warriors may be improved, they are still well behind Wheeling, who should compete for another MSL title this year. Expect West to stay in for a bit but this one shouldn't be that close by the final buzzer.
Bobby's Bet: Wheeling 28, Maine West 7
Hersey at St. Viator
Once again, area fans, this is a championship game, not just a local season opener between two struggling teams.
The championship of Arlington Hts. always seems to charge up Hersey's Huskies and St. Viator's Lions, no matter what the season outlooks for the two teams are.
This gridiron confrontation is the equivalent of Cubs-Sox, Bears-Packers, Yankees-Red Sox.
Both teams are looking to bounce back from disappointing seasons last year - the Lions fell to 4-5 and sixth place in the East Suburban Catholic Conference, And the Huskies were winless and last in the Mid Suburban-West.
So the atmosphere will be tense and both these teams highly motivated tonight as they try to begin a new season on the right note.
Hersey has a somewhat experienced quarterback in Steve Nelson, and features good size and experience up front on defense, with Adam Wolotowsky, Joey Castellanos, Mike Schmadebeck, and Grant Reed.
The Lions will counter with Richard McLoughlin, an athletic, experienced receiver; proven tailback Nick Niro, and quarterback Julian Sipiora, who shared backup duties last year behind Dan Faerber and Eric Huber.
In 2005, the Lions achieved a high water mark when they went 9-2 and made it to the state quarterfinals. The Huskies have had limited experience with the post-season in the last few years.
Both coaches Mark Gunther of Hersey and Chris Kirkpatrick of St. Viator talked openly in the pre-season about how young their teams are. Friday night at Forest View, these teams will grow up fast, no matter the final score.
But forget all of the above and focus on the neighborhood rivalry of this game, and know that it will be an exciting, interesting contest between two relatively evenly matched teams.
Prospect at Downers Grove North
The Knights are looking to prove the MSL-East is still their house despite a down year in 2007. This test should be a good indicator as to where they are. In hindsight, it appeared it was a good indicator last year at least.
Sure, the Knights escaped with a 10-7 win in the opener against DGN last year but they didn't deserve it. Prospect was dominated in every aspect of the game, looked sloppy, turned the ball over and only escaped because the DGN quarterback fumbled the ball on the Prospect 1-yard-line in the fourth quarter.
Coach Bruce Pearlman called it "getting away with murder" and the lackluster performance could have been an indicator of an up and down 2007 season.
But it's a new year and Pearlman will be looking for a much more inspired performance from what should be a more experienced team.
Quarterback Miles Osei will take the snaps once again and should be an improved passer, as he gets more comfortable in the pocket. Osei actually made his varsity debut against this team last year and played well, running for 73 yards and passing for 58 despite having two touchdown passes dropped by receivers.
But of course it is his legs that make him special and his speed, combined with back Mason Pack, should provide a solid running game as Prospect will look to control the time of possession.
Expect a big statement game for the Knights here as they look to prove they're better than last year's 5-5 record.
Pick: Prospect
Hinsdale South at Rolling Meadows
The Mustangs were the ones making early statements last year as they rolled passed Hinsdale South 41-0 in 07's opener. It won't be quite as easy this year with most of the Mustang skill players lost to graduation, but expect the Meadows team to show they won't be a letdown from last fall.
The new skill players have something to prove and they could use this game as a way to make a big first impression.
Jimmy Garapollo takes over the snaps and should be comfortable as he received some valuable time last year in Mustang blowouts. Daquan Edwards had three 100-yard games last year and scored a TD against Hinsdale so he should bust out in a big way as he now has the running back job all to him self. Mick Viken is the number one receiver now and expect Garapollo to look his way a lot here while the rest of the WR core gets comfortable. While this won't be the 41-0 shellacking of 2007, the Mustangs should get this one done.
Pick: Meadows
Oak Park-River Forest at Elk Grove
Elk Grove needs to get its skill players experience and this will be a good test to see how they handle the pressure of varsity football. Sophomore Nick Meyer takes over at quarterback this year while Josh Anderson and Kyle Pfister run the ball. Neither of three, nor the receiver core, have a lot of downs under their belts but Coach Tom Whalen believes they can contribute early. This game will show just how far along they are in that process but it won't come easily. OPRF is a good football team and scored 33 unanswered points on the Grens last year for the win.
Where Whalen does have experience is at the line. If they can give their young QB and running backs time, we could see an much-improved offense this year. The same goes for the defense, where getting to the quarterback quickly will help take some pressure off the linemen and secondary.
The Grens are definitely on the way up but inexperience might prove costly to a consistently solid football team.
Pick: Oak Park - River Forest
Conant at Lake Park
The Cougars lost this opener last year on a last-second field goal and they'll likely be out for a little revenge. Conant returns 12 men from last year's team and they hope to get off to a better start than in 2007. The defense will be key to Conant as Otto Linderman and James Coleman anchor a touch core. Linderman actually scored on a big 35-yard interception return last year against Lake Park and he'll be looked at as a playmaker again this year. Sean Smith should get a lot of carries at running back and if his line provides some space, he could be dangerous. Expect a close one here but I'll give the edge to LP based on home field advantage.
Pick: Lake Park
Mundelein at Buffalo Grove
Buffalo Grove has been looking forward to tonight for a long time. The Bison lost their playoff hopes in the final week last season and are ready for a better result this year under new coach Jim Farrell. JP Kulick takes over the quarterback position and Farrell is touting his defense as top notch this fall. But the x-factor for BG is running back Josh Hampton. Hampton led the MSL-East is rushing yards last year and racked up an incredible 360 yards rushing in week two last year. But he was also susceptible to a couple off games. He won't be able to have those if the Bison hope to return to the playoffs. Farrell should get Hampton the ball as much as possible as BG will use the running game and defense to control the clock. If that plan works out, the Bison should have the advantage here.
Pick: Buffalo Grove
Previews compiled by Bob Chilver and Dwight Esau