West is best in BNC
There's no question which division of the Big Northern Conference is stronger this season: the West is best.
Through the first four weeks of the season, BNC-West teams are 16-8 overall compared to 7-17 for teams in the BNC-East, a division that includes Hampshire (1-3) and Burlington Central (0-4).
The disparity was most pronounced during divisional crossover play, when West Division teams won 11 of the 16 head-to-head matchups.
The BNC-West boasts three undefeated teams: Genoa-Kingston, Oregon and Stillman Valley, whereas, the teams topping the BNC-East are Harvard (2-2) and North Boone (2-2).
The West has outscored its opponents 607-414 and went 5-3 in nonconference games. East teams have been outscored 589-391 and finished 2-6 in nonconference play.
It means the BNC-East is a very winnable division for any of its six members. That gives Hampshire and, yes, even winless Burlington Central, reasonable hope to win a division title and the automatic playoff berth that comes with it.
"It's not a typical year," Central coach Aaron Wichman said last week. "If you look at our side, the conference standings aren't what they normally look like. It's unfortunate that our season started this way, but we're not the only ones in this predicament right now."
Improving Hampshire played undefeated Oregon to a standstill in the rain two weeks ago before losing in overtime. The Whips notched their first win last Friday with a 20-6 victory over Byron. The Whip-Purs open divisional play Friday at Richmond-Burton (1-3).
"I think it's wide open," Hampshire coach Dan Cavanaugh said of the BNC-East race. "I think Harvard and Richmond, ourselves, Burlington and North Boone - anyone can win it. I mean, North Boone beat Winnebago and Winnebago beat us, so it's really wide open. It's a different year."
Go figure: Larkin (2-2) blocked 2 East Aurora punts last Friday in a 38-20 victory. Rocky Camacho got the first and Reid Ellis blocked a second that was recovered in the end zone for a touchdown by Dom Collins.
The Royals saw on film that they might have a chance to get to the East Aurora punter, but how they did so was a bit ironic. "The two times we had the punt block on we didn't get to him," Larkin coach Matt Gehrig said. "The 2 blocks we got we were just in our normal punt return and we got through."
Larkin won last weekend without the services of junior running back Jalen Williams, who was suspended one game for a school disciplinary issue. Gehrig said Williams will suit up for this Friday's Upstate Eight game against Neuqua Valley at Memorial Field.
Injury update: Cary-Grove junior running back Alex Hembrey missed Cary-Grove's 35-14 victory over Johnsburg on Saturday after he suffered a sprained ankle in practice last Thursday. Hembrey is questionable for the Trojans' Fox Valley Conference Valley Division opener at Jacobs this Friday at 7:45 p.m.
"It's too early to tell," Cary-Grove coach Bruce Kay said on Monday. "We're cautiously optimistic that he'd be ready to go, but whether we would play him or not I'm not sure. We still have a whole season ahead of us, and we're happy with a lot of the other kids we have."
Cary-Grove's Jonas Mack handled the heavy lifting against Johnsburg in Hembrey's absence. The senior rushed for 153 yards in 12 carries and scored on a 33-yard run.
On the mend: Bartlett coach Tom Meaney has accompanied injured players to the hospital after practices before, but Monday's trip to the emergency room was a first.
Meaney accompanied fourth-year assistant coach Eric Ilich, a former Neuqua Valley quarterback, to the hospital after Ilich "ripped" a hamstring while demonstrating a passing route during practice, Meaney said.
According to Neuqua Valley football records, Ilich holds single-season school marks for completions (100), pass attempts (209), yards (1,476) and touchdown passes (13), records he set in 1999.