Redhawks ready for familiar foe

The opponent may look familiar, but the stakes have been raised.

While Naperville Central plays Lincoln-Way East for the third straight season tonight in Frankfort, it'll mark the first playoff meeting between the football teams.

Considering the Redhawks (6-3) have been outscored 39-6 in the prior two games, it's not the easiest of Class 8A openers. As an 11th seed they'll try to stage an upset of the No. 6 Griffins (7-2).

"They'll be as good as anyone we've seen defensively," said Naperville Central coach Mike Stine. "We've got to figure out how to run the ball against them."

Luckily for the Redhawks, they're getting healthier where they need it the most. Offensive lineman Scott Baum returned from injury a couple of weeks ago along with Michael Caulfield, a senior running back who rushed for 700 yards last year.

Junior Nick Kukuc stepped up with 600 rushing yards with Caulfield out. Naperville Central's hoping the tandem will move the chains behind a healthy, improving line.

Then there's senior quarterback Harrison Daniels. The Redhawks have gone to a pass-first style at many points this season, a look that makes sense considering Daniels' ability behind center.

Daniels has completed 61 percent of his passes for 1,992 yards to steady targets such as receivers Mike Schmitz and Riley O'Toole, and tight end John Holm.

Defensively, the Redhawks are up against a Lincoln-Way East offense that looks similar to Naperville North -- a mix of double wing and spread. Linebacker Josh Jelesky, a Vanderbilt recruit, has given a huge boost to Naperville Central since his debut in the lineup in Week 6.

Returning Griffins running back Dan Cebula has been a steady contributor, but the team made a switch at quarterback. In last week's 31-8 win over Lockport, Spencer Stanek threw for a touchdown and ran for another.

"I don't think we've put a total game together yet," Stine said. "We'll need to do that in this one."