DH sports staff picks football MVPs
Daily Herald report
Here's a look at the Daily Herald's football MVPs and runners-up for Week 7 of the high school season.
Offensive MVP:John Rhode, Montini: Setting a program record and just 1 off the state mark, Rhode threw 8 touchdown passes in the Broncos' 59-14 Suburban Christian Conference crossover win against Walther Lutheran. The 6-foot, 195-pound senior tossed touchdown passes of 45, 8, 49, 2, 8, 26, 48 and 39 yards. Rhode was 17-of-21 passing for 349 yards, no interceptions.
Offensive runners-up:Quinn Baker, Cary-Grove: This 5-foot-11, 175-pound option quarterback rushed for 182 yards on 18 carries, including his 11th and 12th touchdowns of the season, in a 31-14 victory over Huntley. The junior also completed 6 of 12 passing attempts for 88 yards.
Quinn Buschbacher, Kaneland: Of the senior's 8 receptions against Yorkville, 5 went for touchdowns in Kaneland's 45-7 Northern Illinois Big 12 East win. The 5-foot-10, 175-pound receiver caught 8 passes for 161 yards with touchdown receptions of 49, 15, 17, 13 and 12 yards. Buschbacher's first 3 touchdowns gave the Knights a 21-0 lead.
Jordan Kos, Carmel Catholic: Jordan rules. One of the most prolific running backs in the history of a program that has produced many of them, the three-year varsity fullback enjoyed his best game as a Corsair in a 51-32 win over St. Viator. He rushed for 234 yards on 19 carries, scoring on runs of 20, 33, 7, 37 and 22 yards.
Cam Kuksa, Palatine: Kuksa is no longer a surprise weapon on a Palatine offense that has plenty of them. The junior rushed for 162 yards and 2 touchdowns on 16 carries and caught 3 passes for 40 yards as the Pirates extended their winning streak to six games and got its first win at Fremd for the first time in 14 years 28-7.
Defensive MVP:Jake Mueller, Hersey: Mueller picked the right time to come up with a couple of picks for Hersey. The senior increased his Mid-Suburban League-best interception total to 5 and had 4 tackles and 3 assists to the help the Huskies win a defensive struggle 16-0 over Wheeling and improve to 4-3 for their best record since 2004.
Defensive runners-up:Wayne Didier, Vernon Hills: Didier did well. The two-way lineman and three-year varsity player was a force defensively in the Cougars' 39-7 win over Mundelein. He recorded 2 sacks, including one in the end zone. The safety was part of an effort that allowed just 117 yards of total offense, helping the Cougars snap a three-game losing streak.
Johnny Major, Burlington Central: Harvard was driving for the potential game-tying touchdown with two minutes remaining when the Hornets threw a pass to the end zone intended for Collin Nolen. Instead, Major, a 5-foot-10 senior safety, came down with the ball for an interception, his fourth of the season, which lifted Burlington Central to a 14-7 road victory.
Jacob Razo, Kaneland: Razo, a 5-foot-8, 160-pound cornerback, intercepted Yorkville quarterback Nick Gillette once in the Knights' end zone and another time at their 15-yard line in Kaneland's 45-7 win. A senior, Razo also recovered a fumble, broke up 2 other passes and made 5 tackles.
Jack Toner, Benet: The Redwings blanked state-ranked South Bend Washington (Ind.) and its star-studded offense 6-0 thanks in much part to the play of Toner. The 6-foot, 155-pound junior cornerback snared 2 interceptions and held Washington's leading receiver to only 47 yards. Toner, who notched 8 tackles, also broke up 2 passes.