Football: Lake County Week 2 previews
NONCONFERENCE
Antioch (1-0) at Grayslake North (0-1)
When: 7:30 p.m., today
Last week: Antioch def. Grayslake Central, 27-7; Grayslake North lost to Lakes, 28-27.
Outlook: Antioch kicked off new head coach Brian Glashagel's tenure in the right way. The Sequoits rolled up nearly 300 yards of offense and most of it came on the ground, which is exactly what Glashagel prefers. He used to coach at run-oriented Carmel. All four of Antioch's touchdowns also came on rushes. Running back Dan Larson had two scores and quarterback Matt Romani added two others...The win broke a long period of frustration for the Sequoits, who hadn't gotten a victory since Week 8 of the 2005 season...Grayslake North came oh-so-close to breaking its own winless streak. The Knights went 0-9 in last year's inaugural season for the new school. They showed last week that they are not the same team, coming within a blocked field goal in the closing seconds of getting the first win in school history...Running back Robbie Nesbitt ran all over the field for the Knights. He rolled up 177 yards and 2 touchdowns and broke a 59-yard run that Grayslake North coach Steve Wood called, "the best run in Grayslake North history."...Wood is hoping that offensive lineman Ryan Gutierrez, who tweaked his ankle in the second half of the Lakes game, will be ready to return to action...Glashagel is concerned about North's offense. "It could cause problems," he said. "They've got a little misdirection in their Wing-T like us, but they're also big and physical."
East Aurora (0-1) at Lake Zurich (0-1)
When: 7 p.m. today
Last week: Aurora East lost to Aurora West 38-6; Lake Zurich lost to Fremd 27-20
Outlook: Lake Zurich looks to rebound from a loss against a Fremd program that has made the state playoffs 12 straight years. The Bears' opponent tonight hasn't enjoyed nearly the same success. Aurora East has posted 1-8 seasons the last four years, after going winless in both 2001 and 2002. In its 12-2 season a year ago, Lake Zurich surrendered 27 points only once -- in its 35-21 loss to St. Rita in the Class 7A state championship game. One bright spot for the Bears against Fremd was the play of quarterback Bobby DeLeo. In his first varsity start, DeLeo completed 7 of 11 passes for 138 yards and no interceptions. Veteran fullback Adam Simpson rushed for a pair of touchdowns.
Glenbrook South (1-0) at Stevenson (0-1)
When: 7:30 p.m. today
Last week: Glenbrook South d. Glenbrook North 27-14; Stevenson lost to Loyola 27-0
Outlook: Mike Noll built McHenry into a Fox Valley Conference power and his coaching genius is showing again at Glenbrook South. The Titans went 4-5 in his first season three years ago but have posted 8-3 marks the last two years. Tonight's game is a rematch of the teams' second-round playoff battle in 2005. Stevenson won 32-7 before seeing its undefeated season end the following week with a quarterfinal loss to Maine South. Stevenson comes into tonight's game off a rare shutout loss. It was, in fact, the first time the Patriots have been blanked since an opening-round playoff loss to Downers Grove North in 2000. "We didn't play well in some phases of the game, and we played well in other phases of the game," Stevenson coach Bill Mitz said. "The big thing is, we gave them 14 points (off turnovers, including one of the Stevenson 2)." As the Patriots did last week, they'll face a veteran quarterback in Ryan McGrath. Stevenson features first-year starting QB Zach Wujcik. "We're excited to get back on the field and make amends for last week," Mitz said. "It's not the end of the world by any means. We learned some things about our football team." Stevenson last started a season 0-2 in 2003. The Patriots finished 7-4 that year.
Grant (1-0) at Grayslake Central (0-1)
When: 7:45 p.m., today
Last week: Grant def. Johnsburg, 28-21; Grayslake Central lost to Antioch, 27-7.
Outlook: The prospect of going 2-0 isn't the only thing that Grant is excited about this week. The Bulldogs can't wait to play on Grayslake Central's brand new synthetic FieldTurf playing surface. "The kids are really looking forward to that," Grant coach Kurt Rous said. "They're all talking about what shoes they're going to wear. It should be an experience for us. It'll be a little different."...The Bulldogs want the same result as last week, though. But they could do without the hectic ending. Grant had to score with 4.3 seconds left in the game to get the victory. Quarterback Pavel Zurkowski hit receiver Tommy Bychowski with 2 passes on the final drive and then ran in a 6-yard touchdown for the victory. Bychowski caught a total of 10 passes for 108 yards. He also returned a kickoff for a touchdown. "(Bychowski) showed last year as a sophomore that he could make big plays," Rous said. "Although, I guess I really wasn't expecting the kickoff return."...Grayslake Central wasn't able to get new coach Nick Goshe a victory in his debut, but Rous says that the score of Central's game against Antioch didn't tell the whole story. "We were able to watch their game since our game got moved to Saturday," Rous said. "I thought they looked pretty good. They were able to move the ball on Antioch. They threw the ball a lot and their linebackers were very active." Grayslake Central quarterback Greg Bey completed 16-of-31 passes for 193 yards.
Highland Park (0-1) at Vernon Hills (1-0)
When: 7:30 p.m., today
Last week: Highland Park lost to York, 20-13; Vernon Hills def. Niles West, 43-14.
Outlook: Coaches generally don't like surprises. But Vernon Hills coach Tony Monken was pleasantly surprised last week by his team's horsepower. The Cougars, who returned only one starter on offense from last year, rolled up 480 yards of offense against Niles West. More than 450 of those yards came on the ground. "It's hard to put together 400 yards of rushing on a night," Monken said. "But it's even harder when the only starter you've got back is a lineman. It was a nice way for us to start the year."...The Cougars got big numbers from option quarterback P.J. Marsek (172 rushing yards) and running back Larry Guerrero (151 rushing yards). Both also ran in 2 touchdowns each...Vernon Hills is going to have to tighten up its pass defense. Highland Park quarterback Johnny Lindquist is elusive and passed for 2 touchdowns last week. Against Niles West, the Cougars didn't always contain the quarterback very well. "We let the Niles West quarterback get at least 60 to 70 yards of offense after he broke out of the pocket," Monken said. "We can't do that against Highland Park. Their guy looked good last week. He can move around and he's got some nice receivers to throw to." Lindquist threw for more than 2,500 yards and 26 touchdowns last season.
Lakes (1-0) at Crystal Lake Central (1-0)
When: 7:45 p.m. today
Last week: Lakes d. Grayslake North 28-27; Crystal Lake Central d. Streamwood 34-21
Outlook: Crystal Lake Central enjoyed a revival last year, going 6-4 to record its first winning season since 1997. Tigers fullback Anthony Degani rushed for nearly 1,000 yards in a playoff season for coach Jon McLaughlin. In its season opener last Saturday night at Grayslake Central, Lakes needed a blocked field-goal attempt by Marcus Williams in the final seconds to hold off second-year Grayslake North, which went winless in its inaugural campaign. Quarterback Randy Ratajczyk heaved a 41-yard touchdown pass to Brad Sanderson with 1:13 left to put Lakes in front. The Eagles got short TD runs from Williams, Josh Gaido and Chawkeen Graham. Brent Gruber rushed for 40 yards and caught 5 passes for 55 yards. This is the first-ever meeting between the two teams.
Libertyville (1-0) at Carmel (0-1)
When: 7:30 p.m., today
Last week: Libertyville def. Barrington, 13-6; Carmel lost to Morgan Park, 28-6.
Outlook: Believe it or not, this is only the second time in history that these two schools -- just a hop, skip and a jump apart along Route 176 -- have faced each other in football. The first time was in 2000, when the two heavyweights got matched up in the Class 5A playoffs. Libertyville won that game, 28-21. Since then, both schools have won state championships and fans in the area have been clamoring for a rematch...Libertyville is coming off an impressive defensive outing against Barrington. Led by linebackers Justin Dietz and Andrew Jones, the Wildcats forced 5 turnovers and got several quarterback sacks and hurries. "Carmel went to a 3-3-5 defense this year that is similar to ours," Libertyville coach Randy Kuceyeski said. "I think talent-wise, we're both pretty even defensively."...Offensively, both teams sputtered in their openers. "We have a lot of new faces out there," Kuceyeski said. "And we made a lot of mistakes (against Barrington)." Meanwhile, the Carmel offense failed to score inside the 20-yard line four times against Morgan Park. "We're not used to doing that, we're not used to not finishing," Carmel coach Andy Bitto said. "We've got a lot of young guys and we just have to get over that hump." Quarterback David Venegoni scored the Corsairs' only touchdown, on a 77-yard run.
Maine East (0-1) at Round Lake (0-1)
When: 7:30 p.m. today
Last week: Maine East lost to Fenton 16-13; Round Lake lost to Westosha Central (Wis.) 20-16
Outlook: Round Lake looks to make it three straight over the Blue Demons. The Panthers won last year's Week 2 battle 42-18, after triumphing 24-7 in 2005. Despite its Opening Night loss in Salem, Wis., last week, Round Lake played creditably. Running back Ray Bryant might have been the biggest bright spot, as he rushed for 160 yards and 2 touchdowns on 23 carries. One of his TDs was a 52-yard scamper.
Marengo (0-1) at Wauconda (1-0)
When: 7:30 p.m., today
Last week: Marengo lost to Chicago Christian, 40-6; Wauconda def. Huntley, 27-13.
Outlook: Wauconda looks to start 2-0 for the first time since 2001, the year before Glen Kozlowski took over as head coach. That year, under former head coach Bob Kasper, the Bulldogs opened the season with consecutive wins over Harvard and Marengo before going winless the rest of the way...The Bulldogs certainly have every reason to be optimistic about starting a winning streak after last week's victory. They rolled up 371 yards of offense that were split almost perfectly between the rush (186 yards) and the pass (185 yards). "Huntley was stuffing eight or nine guys in the box sometimes and we were able to get around that because we could throw," Kozlowski said. "That makes such a difference."...Once again, running back Brad Wisniewski, who averaged 30-plus carries a game last year, was busy coming out of the backfield. He rolled up 141 yards on 28 carries and scored a touchdown. He was balanced out by quarterback Garrett Dorsey, who completed 9 of 15 passes for 185 yards...Meanwhile, the Wauconda defense racked up a few sacks, thanks to linebackers Jason Holtz and Brett Collier...Marengo, which has not won a game since 2004, is under the direction of new coach Matt Lynch. The Indians gave up 369 passing yards to Chicago Christian last week. The offense returned just two starters, including running back Cody Lewis-Hoch.
Mundelein (1-0) at Waukegan (1-0)
When: 1:30 p.m. Saturday
Last week: Mundelein d. Buffalo Grove 16-13; Waukegan d. Chicago Mather 34-0
Outlook: For the second time in three years, Mundelein opened its season with a win over Buffalo Grove. The Mustangs had several players who stepped up big, including linebacker Anthony Gianaras (11 tackles, including 2 for loss, tipped pass, 19-yard reception); defensive back Tyler Kennedy (interception, pass break up); fullback Danny Katz (9-51 yards rushing, 3 first-down runs); and kicker Bobby Burnicks (30-yard average on 5 punts, 2 for 2 on PAT kicks). Waukegan comes off a season-opening win but went just 2-7 last year and 0-9 in 2005. The Bulldogs count just 11 wins since qualifying for the state playoffs with 5 wins in 2001.
Warren (0-1) at Maine South (1-0)
When: 1:30 p.m. Saturday
Last week: Warren lost to New Trier 20-13; Maine South d. Schaumburg 48-22
Outlook: Warren pulled out a 28-22 win in the two teams' game last year to improve to 2-0, but the Blue Devils' season proved frustrating after that, as they finished 4-5 and failed to qualify for the postseason. Warren also beat Maine South in Week 2 of the 2005 season, only to see the Hawks earn revenge with a win in Round 2 of the playoffs. A young Warren team played decently in its season-opening loss, rushing for 210 yards, as Greg Kennedy led the way. He rushed 14 times for 96 yards and a touchdown. Tyreese Woodard led the Warren defense with 10 tackles, including 8 solos. Marcus Wilson registered a sack. Against Schaumburg, Maine South quarterback Charlie Goro had a huge game, rushing for 3 touchdowns and passing for 210 yards and 2 scores.