Scouting WW South at Hinsdale Central
WW South at Hinsdale Central
Game time: 7:30 p.m. today.
Last year: WW South 34, Hinsdale Central 26.
Outlook: This is the fourth and final meeting of the series, and defending Class 7A champion WW South has a chance for a sweep. The last two meetings have been decided by a combined total of only 9 points. The Tigers enter the season as the top-ranked team in the Class 7A Associated Press rankings. They return University of Illinois-bound quarterback Reilly O'Toole, who last season passed for 2,111 yards and 24 touchdowns. His supporting cast may be stronger than last year given the potential with receivers Titus Davis, Travis Kern and tight end Jason Schuman. Running back Matt Rogers also returns, although the line suffered major graduation losses. Six-foot-five, 285-pound Kansas recruit Luke Luhrsen is the lone returning lineman at right tackle, and projected starting left tackle Rashawn Smith is out with a knee injury. Dom DeAngelis is switching from defense to offense to help fill the void on the line. Hinsdale Central's defensive strength clearly rests at linebacker with Keith Hahn, Pat Foley and Jake Knowles - three of the team's four captains. Offensively the Red Devils probably suffered the biggest graduation hit in the area with the loss of quarterback John Whitelaw, last season's Daily Herald All-Area Captain. Two quarterbacks, Alex Hodakowski and sophomore Brian Owens, will take over behind center. Knowles is one of the area's most talented running backs and he'll be working behind an extremely talented duo of linemen. Center Jack Allen is committed to Michigan State, and tackle Scott McDowell is also a Division I recruit. WW South returns key experience at each level of the defense. Lineman Will Davis is a terror off the edge, Jack Eshleman was a rock at linebacker last year, and safety Caleb Bednarz is among the area's top defensive backs. The secondary gets an additional boost from the return of cornerback Casey Armbrust, who missed last season with a torn ACL.
Next week: Maine South at WW South; Hinsdale Central at Proviso East.