Fremd faces challenge; WW South shows balance
Fremd is usually on the verge of wrapping up a football state playoff berth by this time of the season.
But now the Vikings need a four-game run to extend the longest run of playoff appearances in Mid-Suburban League history.
"(Being) 1-4 hurts," said Fremd coach Mike Donatucci after Friday's 17-14 MSL West loss at Schaumburg.
Especially since the signs of a better record have been there against a brutal schedule where the teams it has lost to are a combined 17-3. But there is no longer any margin for error for a program which has made 15 consecutive playoff appearances under Donatucci.
"Our backs are to the wall, but there isn't anybody we can't beat," Donatucci said. "That's up to us. And when I say us, that's everybody, coaches and players alike."
Fremd showed plenty of flashes Friday of what has made it a regular postseason participant against a Schaumburg team that was ranked No. 1 in the Class 8A Associated Press state poll before its Week 4 loss to Elk Grove.
The Vikings won the turnover battle with a fumble recover at their 16 by Jeff Parham and an interception at their 1 by Mike Risher. Parham and Justin Wallace combined to contain one threat to a field goal and Jack Konopka stuffed another 6 inches short at their 18 to preserve a 7-3 third-quarter lead.
Their first touchdown drive ate up 85 yards and 6:06 late in the first half as freshman Sam Beutler threw a perfect 35-yard play-action touchdown pass to Jeff Diegel. Beutler also led a late 99-yard drive where his 4-yard touchdown run was his third third-down conversion.
"He's still a freshman but the kid has guts," Donatucci said. "He's going to be a good one."
But only 2 first downs on its first five second-half possessions gave Schaumburg chances to finally get its explosive offense untracked.
"They're a good team but they're beatable and we had our opportunities," Donatucci said. "It comes down to making plays and we've been struggling with that. They're a talented team but we're a talented team, too."
And that's why Schaumburg's Pat Felde and Bob Quilico said they wouldn't count out Fremd yet.
"They played three of the best teams in the state," Felde said of Lake Zurich, Prospect and Elk Grove in Fremd's first four games.
"They're playing top 20 teams every week," Quilico said. "They're a real good team."
WW South on the offensive: Wheaton Warrenville South's offensive symmetry was on full display in Friday's 41-13 DuPage Valley Conference win over visiting Naperville North.
The Tigers (5-0, 3-0) rushed for 247 yards, led by Matt Rogers' 162 yards, and quarterback Reilly O'Toole threw for 228 yards. They scored on their first play from scrimmage - a 64-yard pass from O'Toole to Travis Kern - and they also grinded out an 11-play scoring drive to start the second half.
Three scoring drives went 80 yards, but in drastically different ways. The drive to start the second half lasted five minutes, 18 seconds, while the drive to end the first half took a minute.
The potent offense seemed to score in every possible way on six scoring drives that averaged 74 yards apiece.
"We try to balance our offense, and we've always done that," said WW South coach Ron Muhitch. "And in the long run I think that makes us a better team and a tougher team to defend."
Muhitch stressed the give and take between O'Toole and Rogers, noting that either could produce explosive numbers in a given game.
"That's a credit to both of those kids," Muhitch said. "If I wanted to focus on the running game, I think we could get Matt close to 150 every game. If I wanted to throw Reilly for 300, he could slap 300 on a team. Both of those kids are very unselfish and they play their roles.
"They complement each other, and that makes it fun."
If at first you don't succeed: Who doesn't run the Wildcat these days? Batavia put in the formation - along with plenty of other new offensive looks - this season.
In its season opening loss to Marmion, Batavia ran the formation just once. The play resulted in a fumble.
Not to be discouraged, the Bulldogs have stuck with it the past four weeks. The direct snap to Ben Fornek resulted in 29 yards rushing for the senior in a 28-0 win over St. Charles East on Friday night.
More than the numbers, Batavia coach Mike Gaspari likes keeping defenses guessing with different looks while finding a way to get the ball to a talented player who otherwise might not see it.
"It's a new wrinkle we put in as many things are," Gaspari said. "We expanded our playbook and are having a lot of fun with it. More than anything else it forces us to get the ball in Ben's hands who is another good football player. We have so many skill guys who can make plays it is hard from a traditional set to get them all the football."
At 3-2 Batavia has already surpassed last year's win total. Getting No. 4 Friday would mean even more to everyone in the program with archrival Geneva coming to town.
A rivalry that dates to 1913, Geneva holds the all-time advantage at 48-38-5. The Vikings have won three straight since Batavia punched its ticket to the 2006 Class 6A state championship game by beating Geneva 28-0.
With Geneva at 3-0 in the Upstate Eight Conference River Division and Batavia a half game back at 2-0, first place in the conference race is on the line.
"I knew going into the season there was going to be parity," Gaspari said. "I think because we had a little bit of down year (last season) people assumed it would stay that way. Seniors are so important to a football program. Our seniors this year. we could tell very early in the off-season that things were going to be different by the way they approached things."
Quick kicks: It's rivalry week in the DuPage Valley Conference, highlighted by a pair of cross-town games Friday night. Wheaton North (4-1, 2-1) travels to Wheaton Warrenville South (5-0, 3-0) while Naperville North (3-2, 1-2) and Naperville Central (3-2, 2-1) meet at North Central College - Brent Pearlman won his 99th game in his 12th and final season at Prospect against Hersey on Friday. Pearlman, who has only 33 losses, will be honored by the school with a brief ceremony Oct. 22 after the sophomore game with Buffalo Grove and a reception after the varsity game - Fremd offensive lineman Brian Bobek, who has committed to Ohio State, will be honored Thursday afternoon at the school with a jersey-presentation ceremony for his selection to play in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl on Jan. 8, 2011 in San Antonio.
• Daily Herald sports writers Marty Maciaszek, Kevin Schmit and John Lemon contributed to this report.
<p class="breakhead">Five games to keep an eye on for the upcoming weekend:</p>
<p class="News">Wheaton N. at Wheaton Warrenville S. (7:30 p.m. Friday) More than just bragging rights on line in DVC showdown</p>
<p class="News">Prospect at Rolling Meadows (7:30 p.m. Friday) Two of Mid-Suburban League's top programs renew rivalry</p>
<p class="News">Stevenson at Lake Zurich (7:30 p.m. Friday) Unbeaten showdown for edge in North Suburban Lake</p>
<p class="News">Geneva at Batavia (7:30 p.m. Friday) Upstate Eight River lead on line in 92nd meeting of neighbors</p>
<p class="News">South Elgin vs. Bartlett (7:30 p.m. Friday at Streamwood) Can Bartlett weather the unbeaten Storm?</p>