Downers Grove S. 31, Leyden 7
As if playing on the road against a playoff-bound team wasn't difficult enough, the Downers Grove South had to deal with Leyden's senior night in Northlake.
And, oh yeah.
The winner was going to take home the West Suburban Gold championship.
It sure looked like a daunting task.
But the Mustangs (9-0, 6-0) didn't make it look that way, defeating the Eagles 31-7, and gaining even more momentum as they will open the playoffs at home next weekend.
"Here is a team that is fighting for their lives," John Belskis said. "When you get a chance to go into Week 9, on your senior night and have a chance to tie for a conference championship, you're going to be at your best. So I think that was advantageous to see them play the way they did."
Nick Brown filled in admirably for the injured Scottie Williams. The senior runner rushed for 85 yards on 23 carries and scored 3 touchdowns, including the game's first score, a 29-yard pass from Chandler Whitmer on third-and-23.
"I pretty much went untouched. I got to thank my line and all of my blockers," Brown said. "The tight end went 29 yards down the field to make a terrific block for me to get in."
It was that kind of night in the first half for the Mustangs as Whitmer went 7-of-11, throwing for 120 yards in the first half.
"We knew what the defense was doing. We just ran good routes and the line blocked well," Whitmer said.
What went well for Whitmer in the first half, seemed to fall apart for him in the second half as the signal caller finished the night 9-for-19 and 151 yards.
"We weren't very effective in the second half. We had opportunities to put this away early. And we didn't take advantage of it. Give them credit; they played hard," Belskis said.
Downers Grove South spend the entire third quarter in Eagles territory, but Leyden (5-4, 4-2) refused to break in the second half.
"At halftime we really focused on showing a lot of character in the second half. We didn't want to get blown out," Leyden quarterback Tim O'Connell said.
O'Connell had a better showing in the second half, finishing 10-of-18 for 73 yards, but it wasn't enough for the Eagles to win their first division championship since 1998.
"It's disappointing that we lost, but they are a good team and I'm glad that we played them and not some other team," said wide receiver Sam Cochiaro, who finished with 5 grabs for 60 yards as the Eagles get set for their first playoff trip in nine years.
Josh Serrano added 81 yards on 31 carries, including the Eagles' lone touchdown, an 18-yard scamper with 19 seconds remaining in the game.
John Scott provided a 20-yard touchdown reception for the Mustangs.
Wes Manzer had 64 yards on 4 catches and Chris Heitpas added a field goal.
Joliet Catholic 45, Carmel 8: The theme for the Joliet Catholic defense on Friday night in its East Suburban Catholic Conference showdown with visiting Carmel was "No Mercy."
"We weren't going to let up," said Joliet senior defensive tackle Dan Foreman. "No mercy, never let up -- that's our motto."
By the time Joliet Catholic got done with Carmel in the battle to decide the 2007 East Suburban Conference champion, it was the Corsairs who were crying uncle.
Joliet rolled out to a 31-0 advantage, scoring on all but two of its first-half possessions and eventually rolling past the Corsairs 45-8.
The win secures another conference title for the 8-1 Hilltoppers and likely a top-seed in next week's Class 6A state playoffs.
Carmel had its seven-game winning streak snapped and completed the regular season at 7-2 overall. The Corsairs finished second in the ESCC.
"(Joliet) won the game in the first quarter tonight," Carmel coach Andy Bitto said. "We haven't given up a lot of big plays and we gave up far too many tonight."
David Venegoni took it in from 7 yards away to prevent the shutout. He completed a 2-point pass to Dylan Shearon for the game's final points.
-- Jeff Newton