S. Elgin ready for first homecoming
This weekend will mark another milestone in South Elgin High School's brief history: the school's first bona fide homecoming football game.
South Elgin graduated its first class of seniors last spring, which means the first crop of alumni will return to root for the Storm on the school's first true homecoming this Saturday at noon, when South Elgin hosts St. Charles North (3-2) at Millennium Field.
For the past two seasons the school called the fall dance the harvest dance, since homecoming didn't quite fit. "That was better than calling it the we-don't-have-any-alumni-yet dance," South Elgin coach Dale Schabert said.
The alumni will be cheering for a team that last Friday pulled the area's upset of the year to date. South Elgin (2-3) traveled to Lansing last and shocked previously undefeated T.F. South 20-19 to ruin the Rebels' homecoming.
South Elgin led 20-0 after three quarters before T.F. South rallied for 3 touchdowns. After pulling within a point, the Rebels faked the point-after kick and threw instead. However, junior linebacker Sean Kolber intercepted the 2-point try and the South Elgin offense closed the game out with a first down.
Inside strength: Football games are won and lost at the line of scrimmage, and the area's three 5-0 teams - Bartlett, Cary-Grove and Huntley - have been winning the battles in the trenches on both sides of the ball this season. Last weekend was no exception.
The Bartlett defense held St. Charles North to 47 yards rushing and the offense gained 195 yards on the ground in a 21-7 victory over St. Charles North.
The only touchdown for the North Stars was an interception returned to the end zone. The Hawks' defense didn't allow a point for the second time this season, a particularly impressive feat considering the Bartlett offense turned the ball over 5 times.
"I thought the defense came through pretty well," Bartlett coach Tom Meaney said. "Shoot, I mean how many times do you give somebody 5 opportunities and they don't score?"
Huntley pitched its second straight shutout, holding Grayslake North to 84 yards on the ground while the offense ran roughshod over the Knights for 295 yards. Huntley will go for its third straight shutout this Friday against Grayslake Central (0-5).
Cary-Grove, which returned just two starters on defense this season, was the most dominant of the area's undefeated teams last weekend. The Trojans notched their first shutout of the season by limiting Jacobs to 13 yards rushing. Meanwhile, the Trojans' triple-option offense sparkled, gaining 378 yards on the ground in a complete 41-0 victory.
"I think our defense has improved a great deal each week," Cary-Grove coach Bruce Kay said. "Our punting has improved and, offensively, we're getting better."
Cary-Grove's offense hasn't missed a beat without talented junior running back Alex Hembrey, who missed his second straight game with an ankle sprain. Though his condition has improved, Kay said Monday that Hembrey will likely be held out of this weekend's game against Woodstock (4-1, 1-0 Valley Division).
Adjusting on the fly: Larkin switched up its backfield personnel last week. Coach Matt Gehrig moved speedy senior wide receiver Justin Kalusa to quarterback and quarterback Jeff Saurbaugh to running back against Neuqua Valley.
The two played those positions for the first time late in a game two weeks ago at East Aurora after Saurbaugh was forced to leave the game with leg cramps. Kalusa took over at quarterback and Saurbaugh played running back when he returned.
"We definitely needed some more depth at tailback, and Jeff really does some good things with the ball in his hands," Larkin coach Matt Gehrig said. "He runs downhill and attacks the defense and has shown that he really loves to run the ball. There's no better place to do that than at the tailback position."
Kalusa completed 7-of-20 passes for 109 yards in his quarterback debut, statistics that included multiple drops by Larkin receivers.
"I was really proud of the way he played in his first start at that position," Gehrig said of Kalusa. "He made some big plays and some good throws."
Gehrig also switched up the entire offensive scheme. The Royals now mainly use a shotgun spread with a tight end.
Razzle-dazzle: Bartlett reached into its bag of tricks and pulled out a successful play at a critical juncture in Saturday's 21-7 victory over St. Charles North.
The Hawks called timeout with 30 seconds left in the first half to decide on a play, facing third-and-3 at the St. Charles North 7-yard line.
Offensive coordinator Mark Williams eventually settled on the ultimate misdirection play. Wide receiver Alex VanNess cut across the backfield and took a handoff from quarterback Josh Hasenberg. VanNess then turned and threw back to a wide-open Hasenberg for a touchdown and a 14-0 lead.
"Actually, coach (Dan) Morrison, the offensive line coach, was the one who was pushing for that," Bartlett coach Tom Meaney said. "He's actually in charge of the run plays and coach (Eric) Ilich is in charge of the pass plays. Then coach Williams deciphers it and he decides what he wants to do.
"It's kind of funny that coach Morrison was the one pushing for the pass play. He's usually pushing for the run plays."