Success no surprise to Meyer, Elk Grove
Elk Grove's quarterback didn't necessarily think his team was sneaking up on people this year.
"I'm not surprised about it," said junior Nick Meyer of the Grenadiers' trip to the second round of the Class 7A playoffs, where they lost 20-14 Friday at St. Charles North. "I felt coming into the summer we could do great things."
But not everyone saw this coming from a team which won 7 games over the previous four years. Now, everyone does know what could be ahead with Meyer, linebacker-receiver Joey Bishoff, receiver-defensive back Eddie Stahl and offensive lineman Peter Ioakimidis leading a large contingent of returning starters.
"Looking back at our season I'm proud to say we accomplished a lot of our goals," said first-year Elk Grove coach Brian Doll. "Making the playoffs was one of the big ones.
"I'm lucky because I've got 16 starters coming back and that's a comforting thought. We'll miss the (Kyle) Pfisters and (Matt) McEnerys and you can't replace those kids, but we have things going in the right direction and the future bodes well. We're looking forward to great things."
One of the keys will be recapturing the chemistry the Grenadiers had this year.
"Not to bash anyone older than me, but last year there was so much division between the juniors and seniors," McEnery said before the St. Charles North game. "Coming into this year we wanted to make sure we were as close as could be.
"All of a sudden the juniors and seniors are best friends and hanging out on a regular basis. The team chemistry is the closest I've ever seen on any team I've ever been with."
Mileposts left behind: Prospect quarterback Miles Osei put up a few miles worth of passing and rushing yards in his three years on varsity.
But he left behind much more than big numbers in a career which ended Saturday night with a 7A loss to Wheaton North.
"Miles will be a tough kid to lose," said Prospect coach Brent Pearlman. "The only thing that makes it a little easier is Miles will go on and do big things the next five years of his career.
"He was courageous, his work ethic was unbelievable and he put his teammates first. If I had to make a list of the best players here I'd put him at the top of it."
And there were plenty of memorable moments for Osei even though he didn't achieve his goal of making it Champaign.
"The work I put in with my coaches and teammates and my coaches helped me throughout all of my four years," Osei said of what he'd remember most. "Just my teammates and the memories. Really good memories."
Right place, right time: It wouldn't be considered a surprise to anyone who has been around Fremd football to see senior Tom Carmody in perfect position to stuff Lake Park standout Artie Monaco for no gain on a third-and-2 draw play from the Vikings' 6 in Saturday's second-round game.
The next play went awry to end the threat and Fremd ran out the clock on a 21-14 win.
"A lot of credit goes to coach (Mike Donatucci) for putting us in the right situations," Carmody said. "He makes all the calls and time for us during our lunch periods to watch film. He puts us in the right mindset.
"I figured (the draw) would happen and I read the gap and filled it. Again, a lot of credit goes to 'Tucc' for putting us in right situation at the right time in practice every week."
A Dunne deal: Marist isn't just another coaching job for Pat Dunne. The 1998 graduate of the school set out to get the program rolling again when he became the head coach before last season.
The Redhawks are making consecutive quarterfinal trips for the first time in school history after they went 9-3 last year. They also made it in 1993 under Jim Nudera, who was at Prospect from 1995-98, and in 1986 lost the 6A title game 26-6 to Buffalo Grove.
"All of the guys on the tream and in the program have done everything here," said Dunne, who was a sophomore coach for two years and then took a year off before taking over the varsity. "I'm fortunate to have a group of coaches who have worked extremely hard, too.
"They go out every single day and do a great, great job."
Marist had losing records in eight of the nine seasons before Dunne took over the program.
Titanic numbers: It's easy to overlook Glenbrook South quarterback Mike Pullano since he's 5-foot-7, 150 pounds. But his numbers for the 8A quarterfinalist certainly merit his inclusion with the top quarterbacks in the state.
Going into Saturday's 1 p.m. trip to defending 8A champion Maine South, Pullano had hit 66 percent of his 121 passes for 1,430 yards with 24 touchdowns and zero interceptions.
Pullano has thrown 7 touchdowns in two playoff victories for the 9-2 Titans. And in a 45-34 loss to Maine South in Week 8, he was 11-for-17 for 166 yards and 3 touchdowns while rushing for another score.