Prairie Ridge offense running on all cylinders

There is the obvious.

Prairie Ridge has been powered this year by outstanding senior running back Sam Campbell and junior quarterback Bryan Bradshaw.

But it's beyond the obvious that has helped the Wolves carve out the best season in the school's history -- one that will continue Saturday at 6 p.m. in the Class 6A state quarterfinals against host Lemont.

Prairie Ridge (11-0) is the No. 2 seed in the upper bracket of 6A, while Lemont (9-2) is the No. 6 seed and is fresh off a road upset of No. 3 seed and previously unbeaten Fox Lake Grant.

The winner heads to the state semifinals next weekend against either No. 4 Oak Forest (10-1) or No. 1 Oak Lawn Richards (11-0). If PR wins, it will host the semifinal.

"Right now offensively, especially, we're playing very well," said Prairie Ridge coach Chris Schremp.

While Campbell has run for 1,672 yards and has scored 30 total touchdowns and Bradshaw has thrown for 1,233 yards and run for 295 more, the Wolves have been bolstered by the contributions of many.

That group includes junior wing back Todd Budy and senior center Ryan Wise.

"Todd Budy has done an excellent job not only running, but blocking as well," said Schremp. "We've had great play from Ryan Wise, who right now probably ways 175 pounds. He faced a kid last week that weighed 250 pounds and you didn't even know that defensive lineman was out there."

Wise is part of an all senior offensive line that also includes tackles Zach Mucha and Mark Pfeiffer, along with guards Joe Timmer and Dave Carbajal. That unit has helped Prairie Ridge rack up in the neighborhood of 400 total yards of offense in recent games.

The Fox Valley Conference Fox Division champions are averaging 42 points per game this season and 49 points per game in its first two playoff victories. Prairie Ridge has racked up 40 or more points 7 times this season and has been held to less than 30 points in only a Week 2 win over FVC Valley Division kingpin Cary-Grove (16-14 triumph).

"Our offensive line has really stepped up," said Schremp, who also noted the strong play of junior defensive players Curtis Slack and Brad Young.

Prairie Ridge, which is 6-0 against teams with .500 or better records this year, will face a Lemont team that has also used the running game to its advantage.

Senior Bobby Earnest (5-11, 175) has run for 1,519 yards and 23 touchdowns, while senior quarterback Brett Nagel (6-3, 215) has run for 1,185 yards and 17 touchdowns and has passed for 468 yards and thrown seven additional passes for scores.

"Their quarterback is big and physical and likes to run the ball quite a bit," said Schremp, who is 40-21 in 6 seasons at Prairie Ridge. "He can rack up yards. We have to stop their quarterback from running too much against us. They run a spread offense and we've seen that the last couple of weeks, but not to the extent where the quarterback is running the ball like that."

Lemont's offensive attack is protected by a line that is headlined by University of Illinois recruit Graham Pocic (6-7, 305, T, Sr.).

"We've been successful running the ball," said Lemont coach Eric Michaelsen, who is in his sixth season as head coach (42-19 record). "We've got a couple of quicker kids that are able to break plays."

Senior inside linebackers Gordy Kickels (6-0, 215) and Willie Hayes (5-11, 225) key the Lemont defense that has limited opponents to 8 points or less in 7 of the teams 11 games (5 shutouts).

"Defensively we've been pretty good," said Michaelsen, whose program is making its fourth straight playoff appearance and second quarterfinal trip in three seasons. "We've had success against the run. We're a fairly aggressive defense. We try to get kids flying to the ball."

Michaelsen, who was previously the head coach at Walther Lutheran, had plenty of praise for his team's opponent.

"Everything I know about them is awesome," said Michaelsen. "They are well-coached and they have good size and real good team speed. They run the option attack real well. It's hard to simulate that. The quarterback is pretty nifty. He throws the ball real well. They have a really good scheme and the kids execute it well. It's easy to see why they haven't lost."

Lemont's only losses this season have come to the other remaining teams in the upper bracket of 6A. Lemont lost 23-22 to top seed Richards and lost 14-7 to eventual South Suburban Blue champion Oak Forest (No. 4 seed). Lemont is 4-2 this season against teams with winning records (all 6 games against playoff qualifiers).

Both coaches are aware of the stakes at this point of the game.

"Everything now is more tuned up," said Michaelsen. "The teams you play now are more physical and quicker. We understand we can't afford to make too many mistakes. If we do, we'll be done."

"From a preparation standpoint, the kids are much more focused," said Schremp. "They understand the finality of the playoffs. They are excited to still be playing and they want to go on and win more games."

Prairie Ridge has already set a school-record for victories and least number of losses in a season, breaking the 2001 team's 10-2 mark. That 2001 Dave Whitson-coached team and the 2007 Wolves share the honor of having advanced the farthest in the playoffs in program history (quarterfinals).