Scouting Fox second round playoff football games
Daily Herald correspondent, Shaw Local News Network
Class 8A
No. 13 Maine South (8-2) at No. 4 South Elgin (10-0)
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Seeds: Maine South is the No. 13 seed in the 32-team Class 8A bracket; South Elgin is the No. 4 seed.
About the Hawks: One of the state's most successful high school football programs in recent times (6 state titles since 1995; last year's team reached the 8A title game) hits South Elgin Friday. “South Elgin runs a disciplined and well-designed triple-option attack that makes you play the whole field at all levels,” Maine South coach Dave Inserra said. “It keeps everyone on their toes and is hard to defend for 48 minutes. Their defense swarms to the ball and cannot be overlooked. No. 9 is a heck of a player. It is a well-coached team in all three phases. They are 10-0 for a reason.” Inserra noted Maine South's players “have bought into the energy, effort and consistency needed to play for our program,” he said. “We have battled through injuries and two early close games. Our senior leadership is rising to the top. We need to play our game and make our practices our toughest opponent. This week will take unending discipline from start to finish.” Maine South quarterback Ryan Leyden missed weeks 2 through 8 due to injury. “Ryan settles everything down on offense,” Inserra said. “He needs to get the ball to his playmakers.” Wide receiver-cornerback Maurice Densmore is the team's leading receiver with 42 receptions and 8 touchdowns. “Maurice is a very good cornerback, too,” Inserra said. Defensive tackle Emmet Wolf has 72 tackles, 15 tackles for loss and 5 sacks. Maine South's losses have come to 8-1 Warren (19-17) and 8-1 Prospect (42-41).
About the Storm: “Maine South is solid in every facet of the game, but what stands out to me the most is they run and hit well,” South Elgin coach Dragan Teonic said. “They have their starting quarterback back and their sophomore running back is playing well. We have to tackle well and win the turnover battle. Our special teams will need to be locked in and we have to be willing to battle for 48 minutes.” The Storm won 28-20 last week against Belleville East in their playoff opener. “We were able to battle back multiple times in a game and secure the victory, which is something we haven't needed to do in a regular-season game for a long time. We weren't sure how our team would respond when down, mostly because our regular season doesn't prepare us for that.” Teonic added South Elgin is focusing on scramble situations on both sides of the ball, the 4-minute drill and punt returns. The Storm has run for more than 3,000 yards for a second year in a row — a school record. The 10 wins for the second year in a row is also a school record and the first 10-win seasons in program history. South Elgin is plus-56 in the turnover ratio since Teonic arrived in the program in 2018. Teonic had high praise for running back Jordan Green, quarterback Jake Sullivan and wide receiver Kyle Steinhofer. Green is averaging nearly a chain move a carry with 79 rushes for 789 yards (9.99 yards per carry) and 11 touchdowns. He has not fumbled this season. Sullivan has passed for 883 yards and has 16 touchdowns against only 3 picks, while rushing for 340 yards (5.4 yards per carry) and 5 scores. Steinhofer has 32 catches for 557 yards (17.4 yards per catch) and 7 touchdowns and also has a 2-point score. Teonic added Christian Tecza played a great game against Belleville East, while Josh Camacho and Danny Viscuso also have played well lately. South Elgin is looking to become the first team in program history to reach the state quarterfinals (fifth time in the second round in program history).
Class 7A
No. 4 St. Charles North (9-1) at No. 20 Hoffman Estates (7-3)
When: 2 p.m. Saturday
About the North Stars: St. Charles North is riding a nine-game winning streak. Headlined by two-way standout RB/LB Drew Surges, the North Stars have rolled since their Week 1 loss to Palatine. St. Charles North scored on its first four possessions and led 26-0 after one quarter in their big opening round win over Maine West. The North Stars were able to use some reserves offensively in the second half last week.
About the Hawks: Hoffman Estates survived against Elk Grove 29-22 last week and was able to avenge a Week 2 loss to that program. Quarterback Aiden Cyr was efficient in the win going 15-of-23 for 213 yards. Dimarte Neustader had a number of carries to sustain the offense, so it remains to be seen if that trend carries over.
No. 2 Hersey (10-0) at No. 18 Batavia (7-3)
When: 1 p.m. Saturday
About the Bulldogs: Batavia rolled in its first-round 42-0 win over Rockford Guilford last week. The same formula that has sustained for winning football games for the Bulldogs hasn't changed: An effective running game and a defense that doesn't allow opposing rushers to do much damage. Look for that to continue. Two-way standout Drew Gerke was able to play last week, but we'll see how his usage goes throughout the game. Look for Tyler Jansey to have another big game.
About the Huskies: Hersey finished its first perfect regular season since 1975 and beat Argo in the first round comfortably. The Huskies have scored at least 40 points in eight of their wins and four of their last five games. Hersey appears to have a number of offensive weapons, whether it's running back Brett Kersemeier, Chuck Meister (75 yards on six carries) or others getting touches. Kersemeier was apparently in uniform last week, but did not play so it remains to be seen if his availability changes.
Class 6A
No. 8 Kaneland (7-3) at No. 1 Prairie Ridge 9-1
When: 7 p.m. Friday
About the Knights: Kaneland rolled to a 35-14 win over No. 9 Riverside-Brookfield in the opener behind four touchdowns from Troyer Carlson — three through the air and one on the ground. The game was tied at halftime but Kaneland exploded for 28 points in the third quarter of the win. Kaneland's defense continued its hot streak on Friday, although it was the first time the Knights have given up double-digit points since a 28-7 loss to Sycamore win Week 6. Linebacker Dawson Trebolo blocked a punt in the third quarter of Kaneland's win. It's the second time in the last three postseasons Kaneland is facing an FVC school, having beat Crystal Lake Central in the opening round of the 2019 playoffs.
About the Wolves: Prairie Ridge beat Crystal Lake South 63-55 last week. The Wolves average 46 points a game and just had their fourth game of more than 50 points. They are allowing 314 points a game. QB Tyler Vasey has rushed for 2,835 yards, which is No. 11 in state history according to the ihsa.org records. He has 1,115 yards in the last three games and 34 touchdowns for the season. FB Nathan Greetham has 1,162 yards rushing. Prairie Ridge is in the playoffs for the ninth consecutive season and is 23-6 in the playoffs over that stretch. The Wolves tied with Huntley and Jacobs for the Fox Valley Conference championship. They are the only FVC member still playing.
— Compiled by Daily Herald Correspondent Mike Miazga, and Eddie Carifio and Jake Bartelson of Shaw Local News Network