Week 6: Scouting the North Suburban
Mundelein Mustangs (2-3, 1-2) at Warren Blue Devils (1-4, 1-2)
When: 7:30 p.m., Friday
Last week: Mundelein def. Waukegan, 29-14; Warren lost to Lake Zurich, 35-6
Skinny: Warren has its back against the wall. The Blue Devils will be out of the playoff picture with one more loss this season. It's win out or bust for Warren, which has been struggling offensively. The Blue Devils' 6 points last week was their lowest point total of the season. On the season, Warren has scored just 99 points (19.8 ppg), which ties Mundelein for the second-lowest scoring average in the North Suburban Conference…Warren did put up some big offensive numbers in the passing game last week. Rotating between quarterbacks Ian Schilling and Luke Schmitt, the Blue Devils totaled 312 passing yards and scored its only touchdown on a 14-yard pass from Schmitt to Brandon Ryczek. Schilling completed 10-of-21 passes for 242 yards and Schmitt was 4-of-8 for 70 yards. Senior wide receiver Jalin Tolbert caught 4 passes for 150 yards…Mundelein has struggled offensively this season as well, but scored 14 fourth-quarter points last week to put Waukegan away. One of those late touchdowns wasn't exactly a tip to the offense, though. It was a 90-yard interception return by Aaron Woolford, who had 3 interceptions on the day to go along with 91 rushing yards. Meanwhile, quarterback Anthony Norris rushed for 51 yards and 2 touchdowns for the Mustangs…Mundelein turned in one of its best defensive efforts of the season, tying its season-low for points allowed. The Mustangs also allowed only 14 points in a win over Elgin in Week 2. Typically, Mundelein is allowing 32.8 points per game, second-most in the North Suburban Conference.
Lake Forest Scouts (3-2, 1-2) at Lake Zurich Bears (4-1, 3-0)
When: 7:30 p.m., Friday
Last week: Lake Forest def. Libertyville 28-14; Lake Zurich def. Warren, 35-6.
Skinny: Both of these teams are coming off of big wins. Lake Forest got back on the winning track with its win over Libertyville. The Scouts had lost two straight games. Meanwhile, Lake Zurich won its third-straight game with its trouncing of Warren. The Bears' stingy defense was on full display in giving up just 6 points to Warren. Lake Zurich leads the North Suburban Conference in scoring defense, allowing just 13.2 points per game. With its new spread offense, the Bears are also being productive in the scoring department. They are averaging 29.2 points per game, third-best in the league…Against Warren, running back Joey Stutzman was again a workhorse for Lake Zurich. He rolled up 166 yards and 2 touchdowns on 23 carries. Quarterback Evan Lewandowski completed 9-of-14 passes for 201 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Lake Zurich offense finished with 413 total yards…Lake Forest had its own workhorse against Libertyville last week in Liam Pooler. He rolled up 111 of the Scouts' 168 rushing yards on 25 carries. He also scored 2 touchdowns.
Libertyville Wildcats (3-2, 2-1) at Stevenson Patriots (4-1, 3-0)
When: 7:30 p.m., Friday
Last week: Libertyville lost to Lake Forest, 28-14; Stevenson def. Zion-Benton, 48-42.
Skinny: Usually one of the top games in Lake County each year, this game lost a little bit of its edge when Libertyville lost to Lake Forest last week to fall to 3-2 on the season. Libertyville sits in third place in the North Suburban Conference behind Stevenson and Lake Zurich, who are both undefeated in league play and tied for first place…Stevenson has been on a roll, having won four straight games since its 28-20 loss to Palatine in the season opener…Stevenson ranks as the top-scoring offense in the North Suburban (39.4 ppg) and will be facing a Libertyville defense that has allowed 95 points this season (19 ppg), which is second-fewest in the conference. However, the Wildcats are coming off a game in which they allowed 28 points, their second-most of the season…Speaking of defense, Stevenson won a shootout last week against Zion-Benton by coming up with some defense in the clutch. The Patriots turned away the Zee-Bees three times in the fourth quarter…Offensively, quarterback Aidan O'Connell scored 6 touchdowns for Stevenson. He ran in 1 touchdown and threw 5 touchdowns as part of his 19-of-35 performance that yielded 323 passing yards. Henry Marchese was O'Connell's big target. He caught 6 passes for 122 yards…Libertyville quarterback Jack Ruskell also was busy last week. He threw 41 passes against Lake Forest and completed 18 of them for 178 yards. Meanwhile, running back Brendan Bazar rushed for 79 yards on 13 carries for Libertyville.