Scouting Cary-Grove at McHenry
Cary-Grove (4-2, 2-0) at McHenry (1-5, 1-1)
When: 7:15 p.m. Friday at McCracken Field
Last year: Cary-Grove 31, McHenry 28
Last week: Cary-Grove 28, Huntley 6; McHenry 57, Dundee-Crown 15
Outlook: This game is for fans who appreciate history sprinkled with a bit of irony. Between Week 6 of the 1997 season and the end of the 2001 season, McHenry dominated the Fox Valley Conference by beating 40 straight league foes. The streak was finally stopped by Lake Zurich, then an FVC team, in a 17-14 loss in the 2002 season opener. Shortly thereafter, Cary-Grove became the league's next great power. The Trojans went on a winning streak of their own, beginning with a 42-7 win over Huntley in the 2003 regular-season finale. The Trojans have since won 40 straight Fox Valley Conference games. Tonight, Cary-Grove will attempt to better McHenry's FVC record by beating the Warriors on their home field. Trojans coach Bruce Kay, who has long insisted the streak means nothing, didn't change his tune this week. "If thinking about the streak would help us stop them from completing passes, then we'd think real hard about the streak," Kay said Wednesday. "We've never talked to the kids about it. Winning or losing that game is the only thing that matters. Streak or no streak, we need to improve every week." The Trojans have done just that since an 0-2 start. Cary-Grove has won 4 straight games to crack the AP poll as the No. 8 team in Class 6A, two spots ahead of Crystal Lake Central, a team that throttled the Trojans in the season opener. The turnaround has been sparked, in part, by the development of four sophomore difference-makers: linebackers Zach Marszal and Kyle Norberg and running backs Ryan Mahoney and Patrick O'Malley. McHenry used its spread passing game to give the Trojans a scare last season. The 31-28 final was as close a call the state champions experienced in 2009. This season, the Warriors are averaging 29.7 points per game behind quarterback Robert Tonyan (1,860 yards, 16 TD, 6 Int.). "He's big and he seems fairly mobile," Kay said. "They throw and catch the football and they score points." However, the Warriors also allow points. The McHenry defense gives up 36.2 points per game. McHenry won 6 straight games in this series between 1998-2003, but the Trojans have won the last 6 meetings.