Schweighardt era comes to a close -- for now

CHAMPAIGN -- With the culmination of the Class 7A championship, so ended the Schweighardt Era at Wheaton Warrenville South -- for a generation, at least.

Chris Schweighardt, a senior receiver for the Tigers, finished with 10 catches for 138 yards in WW South's 7-3 loss to Lake Zurich.

Chris is the fourth brother to have played at WW South, all of whom have been part of state champion football teams.

Tom Jr. was a member of the Tigers' 1992 5A squad, while Matt (1996-96) and Jon (1996, 1998) were on two title teams. Chris played on last year's WW South Class 8A champs.

Their secret?

"We just go out and play football. That's all it is," Chris Schweighardt said after Saturday's loss.

Keep your ears and memory sharp for another Schweighardt down the line.

"You've got another 18 years then you've got one more coming," Chris said. "My older brother Tommy is going to have a baby in about 9 months, so you've got to wait about 18 more years."

It ain't over till they say it's over:ŒWith every championship Driscoll wins, the other shoe is: Can they do it again?

There was the usual murmuring this season that the Highlanders' string will be threatened.

If returning starters are an indication, Driscoll actually is in good stead compared to the last two seasons.

Offensively Driscoll will return receivers Austin Baker and Joey Calabrese and linemen Andrew O'Reilly and Mike Labadessa.

Placekicker Brett Warren comes back along with kicker Phil Albreski, who kicked extra-points in the playoff run.

Tight end Clay Cooper might as well be listed as a returning starter; backup quarterback Steve Schwabe took a lot of snaps against first team defenses with Driscoll rolling to eight running-clock victories.

Driscoll also will return defensive lineman Trace Jenkins, linebacker Frank Barcal and defensive backs Ricky Divito and Calabrese, who made 6 interceptions.

An easy pick: Driscoll all-state quarterback-safety David Schwabe entered his senior season with 21 career interceptions, coming off a high of 11 last season.

Playing quarterback this season, his reps on defense weren't as frequent early. In fact, younger brother Steve snared 2 interceptions sooner than David.

Schwabe closed fast. His 2 interceptions in the Highlanders' 48-24 win over Bloomington Central Catholic gave him 6 for the season and 27 for his career, 1 shy of the state record of 28.

Schwabe said his father challenged him to get the record, and Schwabe was pleased to be "up in the books."

In the big picture, he said, setting or equaling the interceptions wasn't the goal.

"It didn't mean anything to me," he said Friday in the media room at Memorial Stadium.

"I'd rather be here, have zero picks and still hoist the trophy."

No let-up: A glimpse of the collective heart of Glenbard North's football team was seen in Matt Ng's 88-yard kickoff return in the Panthers' loss to Naperville North for the Class 8A championship.

The Huskies led 40-12 with 2:54 left after Alex Dieckman returned an onside kick 46 yards for a touchdown.

Then Ng, the senior receiver-defensive back, gave it his all on his own return for a touchdown.

"No matter what the score was, I wasn't going to give up," Ng said.

It mirrored the Panthers' playoff rush.

Glenbard North entered the playoffs a No. 14 seed. Beating the No. 3, 7, 2 and 1 seeds to get to Champaign, the Panthers had been seeded 8 positions lower than any other team playing for a title. Lemont was a six seed.

Ng said an attitude adjustment got them there.

"Once playoffs start it's at 0-0, new season," he said. "We knew we had a clean slate, we had to show everybody who we really are.

"We had a lot of close games at the beginning of the season. We had to show them that those close games could be turned around and we could do some damage."

Winging it: WW South coach Ron Muhitch said quarterback Mike Piatkowski called the shots on the Tigers' last possession.

The senior commanded a spread set that began at the Tigers' 29-yard line with 1:47 left.

Piatkowski completed 2 passes to Schweighardt, 1 to Craig Brown and a third to Schweighardt for a first down at the Lake Zurich 42. The next two attempts were incomplete and the third was intercepted at the Bears' 8.

But the horse had pretty much left the barn by then. Piatkowski's stats were solid -- 18-of-28 passing for 208 yards -- but being held to 7 yards rushing was the killer.

"I despise throwing the football so much, in a game where you have to live and die by the pass," Muhitch said Saturday.

"We've been balanced all year, that's what's won games for us. We were not balanced tonight, and I think it shows."

Mlady's malady: Lost in the shuffle of Naperville North's 46-19 Class 8A state title game victory over Glenbard North was that the Huskies kept the offense rolling most of the game without their leading rusher.

Junior Nick Mlady, who ran for 1,274 yards and 10 touchdowns, left near the end of the first quarter with an ankle injury and didn't return.

Mlady, an all-area pick this season, will be one of only four returning starters next year as the Huskies defend the second state title in program history.

"We know we're going to lose a lot of seniors, a lot of starters," he said. "But all the juniors know we need to work hard in the off-season."

Also back in 2008: Three-time defending DuPage Valley Conference champion Wheaton Warrenville South will return seven starters next season including running backs Peter Jarrett, Mike Olp and linebacker Pat Dansdill. The Tigers also welcome key elements of unbeaten freshman, sophomore and junior varsity teams.

Glenbard North, which became the first four-loss finalist in state history, returns nine starters. Heading the list is 6-foot-6 quarterback Evan Watkins and running back Tyler Doll -- a duo that combined for nearly 3,800 total yards of offense.

Record breakers: Among the many records that fell last weekend, Naperville North senior receiver Alex Dieckmann set a Class 8A title game mark by scoring 4 touchdowns.

While it's not noted in the IHSA record book, it's probably safe to say the three straight touchdowns scored on kick returns in the fourth quarter of the 8A game was a record as well.

Naperville North's 13 wins was the most in program history, breaking the mark of 12 wins in 1992 and 1994.

Wheaton Warrenville South's streak of 27 straight wins came to an end with its 7-3 loss to Lake Zurich in the 7A final. The Tigers, along with Morris and Bloomington Central Catholic, were denied in their attempt to become the state's first program to win a title in four different football classes.

DVC downer: While a highlight of the weekend was the appearance of three DuPage Valley Conference schools in two title games, the 7A loss by WW South was a disappointment to many.

Even though Naperville North lost its only game this season to the Tigers -- a triple overtime defeat that cost the Huskies the DVC title -- the players and coaches still sympathized with the Tigers.

"Yeah, I do feel bad for them," said Huskies senior linebacker Bryan Bailin. "You always want to see a DVC team win."

Naperville North coach Larry McKeon, who received well-wishes from WW South coach Ron Muhitch in between the 7A and 8A games, also was pulling for the Tigers against Lake Zurich.

"They're an excellent football team, and I know they didn't come here to lose," McKeon said.