The skinny on Driscoll vs. Bloomington Central Catholic
Driscoll (13-0) vs. Bloomington Central Catholic (13-0)
IHSA Class 4A championship game
7 p.m. today at University of Illinois' Memorial Stadium, Champaign
The game: Addison-based Driscoll, which ended the regular season No. 1 in the Class 4A Associated Press poll, is one of 13 schools nationwide to have won six consecutive state championships (Massillon Washington, Ohio, did it twice), according to the National Federation of State High School Associations. The Highlanders look to join eight seven-time champs, or three more than Joliet Catholic, Mt. Carmel and Providence each have achieved in Illinois. Bloomington Central Catholic, which ended the regular season No. 3 in Class 4A and beat downstate Mount Carmel in the semifinal, is in its fourth consecutive playoff season and 20th overall. The Saints, who lost to Driscoll 28-12 last season in a Class 4A second-round game, last reached a championship game in 1994, beating DuQuoin 22-14 to win the Class 3A title under current coach Bobby Moews. The Saints won state titles in 1982 and 1987 under coach John McIntyre.
The road to the championship: A No. 1 seed, Driscoll achieved a running clock -- enjoying a 40-point margin -- in all four of its playoff victories. The Highlanders opened with a 47-19 win over No. 16 Bishop McNamara, defeated No. 8 Illinois Valley Central 42-7, No. 4 Chicago Christian 48-7 and in the semifinals, No. 2 Coal City 41-14. The No. 1 seed in the southern bracket of Class 4A, Bloomington Central Catholic beat No. 8 Eureka-Roanoke-Benson 45-0, No. 4 Quincy Notre Dame 21-14 and No. 3 seed St. Teresa 38-7. Then, as the clock wound down in the semifinal, the Saints drove to edge No. 2 Mt. Carmel 35-34.
The coaches: Driscoll coach Mike "Buzz" Burzawa has an overall record of 40-1 in his third year as Driscoll coach. His sole loss came Sept. 22, 2006, a 21-0 homecoming loss to eventual Class 5A runner-up Marian Catholic. Burzawa, a running back on Driscoll's first football titlist in 1991, was a varsity assistant with the Highlanders starting in 1998. Bloomington Central coach Bobby Moews (pronounced "Mays") has a record of 114-57 in his 15th season with the Saints.
Driscoll's offense (383.4 yards, 39.3 points per game) vs.
Bloomington Central's defense (178.7 yards, 10.5 points allowed per game): Driscoll's quick-strike, spread offense has blown teams away this postseason, averaging 44.5 points. All-staters Schwabe and Franken are dynamite open-field runners behind a physical, mobile, technically sound offensive line. Franken, with 1,623 yards rushing and 28 touchdowns, has averaged 131.8 yards in the playoffs despite toweling off in the fourth quarter. Baker, who has caught 33 passes for 550 yards, 6 touchdowns, is the most physically imposing among a receiver corps that includes senior Clay Cooper, but their crisp routes get them wide open. Schwabe has looked like anything but a first-year quarterback, completing 67 percent of his passes for 2,076 yards, 24 touchdowns to 2 interceptions. Under pressure he'll run -- for 766 yards, 10 touchdowns -- rather than force a pass. The key will be for Driscoll's line to control a Saints defensive front seven that has allowed a wee 629 yards rushing, or 48.3 a game. Shifting between a 4-3 and a 3-4 set, Eyre, Murray, Waldron, Ring and Geselle all started on last year's squad that mainly stymied Driscoll in Bloomington last season; the Highlanders needed Schwabe and Calabrese punt returns and a Franken 80-yard touchdown run to escape. All have made at least 89 tackles, with Murray at 108 and Eyre at 115 with 27 tackles for loss. The Saints were susceptible to the pass last week and in a 42-37 win over Rochester, and must make Driscoll drive without allowing big plays.
Bloomington Central's offense (335.0 yards, 31.8 points per game) vs.
Driscoll's defense (217.6 yards, 12.3 points allowed per game): BCC's Pro I marches behind the athletic Waldron, who has run 246 times for 1,828 yards, 7.4 per carry, with 24 touchdowns. Moews moves Waldron into a variety of spots to try to establish an advantage. McNeil has added 91 carries for 474 yards, 2 touchdowns. Waldron is the focus, but the Saints' also play-action pass. The younger brother of former Saints left tackle Nathan Rebholz, quarterback Adam Rebholz has completed 54 percent of his 198 passes for 1,588 yards and 20 touchdowns -- but 14 picks. His PAT block last week was the break the Saints needed, and he followed with a game-winning pass to Curran with 20 seconds left. The top receiver is returning starter Javier Safford with 42 receptions for 631 yards, 8 touchdowns. Two-way starters Ring and Eyre, leaders of a decently sized but somewhat young line, will have their hands full against a Driscoll defense that starts in a 3-5 but rotates in disruptive defensive end Trace Jenkins for a 4-4 look. Supported by the dogged Balaskovits and the unblockable Davis on the outside, honorable-mention all-stater Palermo patrols the rest with 4.6 speed. The Highlanders blitz to thwart both the run and pass. Rebholz's 14 interceptions will light a fire under Calabrese, who has 6; and Schwabe, who with 4 this season has 25 in his career, just 3 away from the state record.
Intangibles: Driscoll could be the best-coached team in Illinois. They'll have scouted every angle and are likely to present a new wrinkle or two… Driscoll's kicking tandem of Albreski and junior Brett Warren -- who takes the longer field-goal tries -- places second to Fenger, who is 12 of 20 on field goals with a long of 49 yards…Driscoll's takeaway ratio is plus-32; BCC is plus-4…Special teams: watch Driscoll's kickoff coverage and Calabrese's punt returns…Finally, Bloomington Central Catholic has nothing to lose and the upset of the year to gain.
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