Willowbrook fumbles chances vs. Proviso East

Teams that control the line of scrimmage usually have the upper hand in games. When weather conditions were like what they were on Saturday, it's even more of an advantage.

That's exactly what Proviso East did in a West Suburban Gold football battle against Willowbrook.

The Pirates dominated the defensive line, holding the visiting Warriors to 59 yards of total offense en route to a 20-0 victory in Maywood.

Slippery conditions also made it very difficult for either team to get much momentum on offense, especially for Willowbrook which fumbled the ball 10 times, losing 5 of them.

"They got after it and we didn't come off the ball very hard," said Willowbrook coach Mark Olson. "A day like today where we are not a throwing team and we've got to be able to run. When they are dominating the line of scrimmage like they were, you are not going to come out on top."

Proviso East (2-1, 1-0) was led offensively by some hard-nosed outside running by back Darnell Swanigan. Swanigan ran for 75 yards on 14 carries, including touchdown runs of 11 and 30 yards.

On the other side of the ball, Pirates senior defensive end Anthony Blackburn was all over the Warriors running backs, frequently meeting them in their own backfield for losses. Proviso East coach Aaron Peppers said Blackburn has football scholarship offers from Illinois State and Western Illinois. Linebacker Jawon Spivery also picked off a pass near the line of scrimmage and ran it back 40 yards for a score

"Defense has been carrying us all year," Peppers said.

For Willowbrook, it got interceptions from Brian Monette and Mike Kane. Olson was also pleased with the play of halfback Jibril Jones and tight end Doug Kuester. In the end, though, the fumbles gave the Pirates a short field and the Warriors couldn't get anything going in almost monsoon-like conditions.

"We need to rebound and get ready for Downers (South)," Olson said.