Scouting Rockton Hononegah at Carmel

CLASS 7A

No. 6 Rockton Hononegah Indians (9-1) at No. 3 Carmel Corsairs (9-1)

When: 6 p.m., Saturday

Last week: In first round action, Rockton Hononegah def. Chicago Taft, 50-7; Carmel def. Elgin, 55-7.

Playoff history: Rockton Hononegah is making its seventh playoff appearance in nine years. Last year, the Indians lost in the second round to Glenbard West, 27-14…Carmel, the 2003 Class 6A state champion, is making its 11th straight playoff appearance. Last year, the Corsairs were ousted in the first round of the Class 7A playoffs by Prospect, 33-13.

Head coaches: Tim Sughroue, Rockton Hononegah; Andy Bitto, Carmel.

Just the facts: Like Carmel, Rockton Hononegah's only loss of the regular season came in final game. The Indians were handled by Northern Illinois (NIC-10) conference foe and champ Rockford Boylan, 49-7. Rockton Hononegah is scoring 34.2 points and allowing 18.3 points per game…Carmel ran the table in league play to become the outright champion of the rugged East Suburban Catholic Conference. The Corsairs' only loss of the season came in Week 9 in a nonconference game in Ohio. Carmel is scoring 37.6 points and is allowing 11.3 points per game. The Corsairs boast the stingiest defense in the ESCC.

Rockton Hononegah leaders: Rushing: Bryan Rothmaler (90 carries, 700 yards, 5 touchdowns), Chase Robinson (136 carries, 489 yards, 9 touchdowns); Passing: Chase Robinson (64-of-119, 907 yards, 12 touchdowns, 3 interceptions); Receiving: Ryan Masters (23 receptions, 355 yards, 7 touchdowns), Chris Grutsch (14 receptions, 198 yards). Tackles: Skylar Purifoy 81 tackles, Clayton Lewis 55 tackles.

Carmel leaders: Rushing: Jordan Kos (155 carries, 1,270 yards), Michael Panico (79 carries, 822 yards); Passing: Brian Serio (24-of-52, 488 yards, 8 touchdowns, 2 interceptions); Receiving: Ryan Cappis (9 receptions, 233 yards, 4 touchdowns), Brian Brennan (6 receptions, 107 yards, 2 touchdowns); Tackles: Luke Venegoni 105 tackles, Tyler Lees 104 tackles.

Line on Rockton Hononegah: It will be a very uniform game. Triple option all the way through. Hononegah runs the same triple option offense that Carmel does. “The strength of our team is our running game,” Hononegah coach Tim Sughroue said. “We need to control the clock with our running game. We need to stop Carmel from having big plays in their option game.”

Line on Carmel: The Corsairs could actually stop themselves from having any big plays if they continue to fumble with regularity. Carmel has fumbled the ball away on its first possession in the last four games, including its win last week over Elgin. Head coach Andy Bitto is serious about fixing the problem. “If you can't protect the ball, you ain't getting' it,” said Bitto, whose team fumbled five times against Elgin and lost three. “If we want to keep advancing in the playoffs, we won't have a glimmer of hope if we keep fumbling the ball. It's important that we hold onto it and protect it when we're getting hit.”