Scouting Week 7 Cook County football games
Elk Grove (5-1, 1-1) at Rolling Meadows (4-2, 1-1)
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Last week: Elk Grove lost to Prospect 35-21, Rolling Meadows lost to Hersey 35-14
Last year: Rolling Meadows 41, Elk Grove 13
Outlook: Elk Grove will be looking to show it can bounce back. The Grenadiers suffered their first loss of the season last week after opening the year with five consecutive wins. The offense, operated by third-year quarterback Mitch Janczak and featuring running back Jacob Elsner, is scoring 30 points per game. The Grens defense, which was a sieve a year ago, is allowing a conference-leading 12 points per game. Rolling Meadows' offense will be looking to change that. Quarterback Evan Grace and wide receiver Ben Petermann have developed a tremendous chemistry and have been lighting up defenses all year. Running back Skip Rozanski has been playing very well, especially in the last few weeks and could be a major factor Friday.
Hersey (6-0, 2-0) at Wheeling (3-3, 0-2)
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Last week: Hersey beat Rolling Meadows 35-14, Wheeling lost to Buffalo Grove 45-15
Last year: Hersey 42, Wheeling 18
Outlook: Hersey continues to fire on all cylinders thanks to their bicephalic quarterbacks in Colton Gumino and Carter Hansen. The duo has the Huskies ranked No. 2 in the Class 7A poll and averaging 41.7 points per game. Logan Farrell, Carson Grove and Logan Riley have also had a huge hand in running and catching the ball for Hersey. Wheeling, which won three of its first four games, has struggled a bit in MSL East play, losing both of their games thus far. The Wildcats lean hard on AJ Marchetti at quarterback while Simon Micula and Diego Giles look to pick up the pace running the football.
Niles West (2-4, 0-2) at Maine South (4-2, 2-0)
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Last week: Niles West lost to Evanston 31-0, Maine South beat Glenbrook South 23-16
Last year: Maine South 51, Niles West 21
Outlook: This is a battle between a pair of teams that are going in opposite directions. Niles West has lost its last four games. The Wolves have been shut out in their last two games and have scored just one touchdown during that four-game span. Maine South just continues to find a way to win. The Hawks played solid defense when needed in the fourth quarter and the offense did what it had to do in the end.
Maine West (3-3, 2-0) at Deerfield (3-3, 2-0)
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Last week: Maine West beat Vernon Hills 36-13, Deerfield beat Highland Park 20-0
Last year: Deerfield 45, Maine West 14
Outlook: This will be a battle between the final two unbeaten teams in CSL North play. Maine West heads into this game playing its best football of the season. Maine West has won its last two games and have outscored its opponents 78-13 during that span. Maine West has a trio of offensive stars in quarterback Tommy Delaney, wide receiver Szymon Grom and running back Isaac Pittman. Hopefully that will be enough as Maine West moves up in class against a Deerfield team that has qualified for the playoffs the last two playoff seasons and five of the last six of those seasons.
Buffalo Grove (3-3, 1-1) at Prospect (5-1, 1-1)
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Last week: Buffalo Grove beat Wheeling 45-15, Prospect beat Elk Grove 35-21
Last year: Prospect 17, Buffalo Grove 14; Prospect 13, Buffalo Grove 8
Outlook: Buffalo Grove has won three of its last four as the Bison look to rumble their way to the playoffs. Michael Cervantes, who slid from quarterback to running back this season, has made a smooth transition. Payton Diaz, who is now the quarterback, has settled in nicely as the signal caller. Prospect bounced back quite well last week after its Week 5 overtime loss to Hersey. The Knights are averaging 39.3 points behind the play of quarterback Brad Vierniesel, who has thrown for 1,746 yards and 18 touchdowns. Frank Covey has 1,17 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns while Jake Parisi and Sebastian Wildhart are also favorite targets.
Leyden (1-5) at Lyons (5-1)
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Last week: Leyden beat Proviso East 49-12, Lyons beat Proviso West 51-6
Last year: Lyons 49, Leyden 0
Outlook: The Eagles put everything together last week and came up with their best performance of the season. Diego Mendoza has been running the ball well of late and will be coming off a 152-yard, 3-touchdown performance. Now Leyden steps way up to take on a Lyons team that is averaging nearly 33 points per game.
Schaumburg (3-3, 1-1) at Hoffman Estates (4-2, 2-0)
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Last week: Schaumburg beat Fremd 30-23, Hoffman Estates beat Barrington 20-7
Last year: Hoffman Estates 49, Schaumburg 20
Outlook: This is always a great neighborhood battle. Schaumburg was able to prevail in double overtime last week to keep the Saxons in the playoff hunt. Schaumburg is getting nice production for its running game in Anthony DiGioia and Najari Williams. Hoffman won its fourth straight and was impressive on how the Hawks handled Barrington on both sides of the ball. Quincy Williams has settled in quote nicely for the Hakes at running back. Aiden Cyr and Stephon Sellers are a great combo through the air for Hoffman. Defensively, Nate Cleveland has been impressive at corner.
St. Ignatius (4-2) vs. St. Viator (4-2)
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m. at Forest View
Last week: St. Ignatius beat De La Salle 39-13, St. Viator beat Marian Catholic 18-14
Last year: St. Ignatius 38, St. Viator 13
Outlook: St. Viator enters a difficult two-game stretch beginning with the Wolfpack this week and state power Mt. Carmel next week. St. Viator changed quarterbacks last week, calling on Cooper Kmet. The sophomore threw for 176 yards as the Lions broke a two-game losing streak. Michael Nix continues his solid play on offense for the Lions while Jake VanBooven and Nicky Pastore have also been key factors. Ignatius boasts one of the area's best junior defensive linemen in four-star ranked Justin Scott.
Maine East (1-5, 0-2) at Highland Park (3-3, 1-1)
When: Friday, 6 p.m.
Last week: Maine East lost to Niles North 20-19, Highland Park lost to Deerfield 20-0
Last year: Highland Park 48, Maine East 6
Outlook: Maine East came close to its second win of the season last week. The Blue Demons have been getting better each week. They played a solid game last week with the Awad brothers providing the touchdowns. They will have to pick up the pace to keep Highland Park on its heels. The Giants have lost three of their last four games. But a win here would go a long way to assist Highland Park on a playoff run.
Conant (4-2, 0-2) at Fremd (0-6, 0-2)
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Last week: Conant lost to Palatine 42-10, Fremd lost to Schaumburg 30-23
Last year: Conant 42, Fremd 30
Outlook: Conant got off to a fast start winning its first four games. But the Cougars have run into a roadblock the past two weeks with losses to Hoffman Estates and Palatine. Conant looks to get its option offense back in gear with bulldog fullback Dominic Mininnni chewing up yards inside. Fremd came so close to breaking through last week. Sophomore quarterback Dylan Spedale stepped in and operated the offense quite well. He had help from running backs Ja Martinez and Jerry Chima who combined for 216 rushing yards. Fremd will also introduce their "Ring of Honor" before the game.
Barrington (2-4, 1-1) at Palatine (5-1, 2-0)
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Last week: Barrington lost to Hoffman Estates 20-7, Palatine beat Conant 42-10
Last year: Palatine 27, Barrington 10
Outlook: Barrington has its back against the wall. The Broncos will most likely need to win their final three games to keep their eight-season streak of qualifying for the playoffs alive. Dillon Fitzpatrick has run the ball well for Barrington. Palatine's defense, led by super sophomore Jaylen Williams along with Thomas Houser, Daevion Farrow, Ryan Wagner and Michael Tokar, was superb last week against Conant. Meanwhile, sophomore quarterback Tommy Elter has settled into his role nicely. Running back Dominick Ball is becoming the beast everyone thought he could be.