Scouting Week 2 Cook County football games
Maine South (0-1) at Warren (1-0)
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Last week: Lincoln-Way East 40, Maine South 0; Warren 43, Hersey 36
Last year: Maine South 35, Warren 18
Outlook: Maine South put up 363 yards of offense last week. Unfortunately, the Hawks had nothing to show for it on the scoreboard as four interceptions did them in. They will face a Warren defense that surrendered 445 yards and 36 points last week. But if Maine South is to post its third consecutive win over Warren, the Hawks will need to find a way to slow down Blue Devils running back Aaron Stewart who had 438 yards on 43 carries and 6 touchdowns last week. Maine South leads the series 4-1.
Wauconda (1-0) at Maine West (1-0)
When: Friday, 6:30 p.m.
Last week: Wauconda 44, Hinsdale South 26; Maine West 34, Elk Grove 16
Last year: Did not play
Outlook: It should be a battle of the running backs in Des Plaines. Wauconda features a pair of running backs in Jackson Rudolph (21 carries, 164 yards, 4 touchdowns) and Cole Korycanek (8 carries, 160 yards) who had big games last week. It will be the second week in a row the Bulldogs will be on the road. Maine West is looking to enjoy its first home game. The Warriors got good production from their running backs in Nathan Adebe (14 carries, 104 yards) and Louis Avalos (13 carries, 70 yards) last week. If the Warriors look to throw with quarterback Caden Nelson, Davion Tate is dangerous at receiver.
Hersey (0-1) at Barrington (1-0)
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Last week: Warren 43, Hersey 36; Barrington 48, South Elgin 20
Last year: Barrington 41, Hersey 32
Outlook: Quarterbacks Jake Nawrot of Hersey and Luke Tepas of Barrington will be the main stage here as both are coming off solid games in the first game of the season. Hersey will look to bounce back after a tough game defensively last week. The Huskies did look solid on the offensive end with Nawrot, who is a junior, coming off a 348-yard and two-touchdown performance. Brandon Jenkins added 87 yards on the ground. Barrington had another huge day against South Elgin, who the Broncos have outscored 178-51 in three meetings in the last two years. Tepas, who is a senior, threw for 279 yards and two touchdowns. Cameron Massillo had 123 yards and three touchdowns while sophomore running back Lamar Osterhues piled up 87 yards and two touchdowns.
Prospect (1-0) at Palatine (1-0)
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Last week: Prospect 28, Stevenson 18; Palatine 39, Rolling Meadows 22
Last year: Palatine 14, Prospect 9
Outlook: The defending MSL East and West champions square off for the second year in a row. Prospect used some special teams heroics along with a solid effort from a pair of juniors on offense — quarterback Jackson Cacinni (8-of-16, 126 yards) and running back Matthew Donnelly (17 carries, 63 yards). The Prospect offensive line of Shea Lewis, Joe Morales, Liam McDonnel, Owen Dewey and Danny Simon could have their hands full with the defensive front from Palatine: Illinois-bound Tony Balanganayi, Ball State-bound Evan Downer, Kam Bickel, Jacari Travis and Jaylen Maiden. Offensively, Kole Fager was a jack-of-all trade with 347 all-purpose yards, including 260 receiving yards. Pirates quarterback Will Santiago was 18-of-31 passing for 321 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Schaumburg (0-1) at Elk Grove (0-1)
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Last week: Antioch 34, Schaumburg 29; Maine West 34, Elk Grove 16
Last year: Schaumburg 22, Elk Grove 21
Outlook: Both teams had opportunities to win last week but let victories slip through their hands. Schaumburg trailed by six at the half, but the Saxons could not get over the hump. They will look to get back on top behind quarterback Ray Black (16-of-26, 160 yards) and Vince Heydecker (14 carries, 61 yards). Elk Grove trailed by three at the half. But the Grenadiers offense couldn’t generate another offensive score. Elk Grove did finish with 225 rushing yards, led by quarterback Nate Dean’s 90 yards rushing.
Buffalo Grove (0-1) at Fremd (1-0)
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Last week: Hoffman Estates 55, Buffalo Grove 14; Fremd 35, Lake Zurich 3
Last year: Fremd 45, Buffalo Grove 9
Outlook: The Bison had a tough time slowing down Hoffman’s ground game last week, fell behind 21-0 and just couldn’t recover. Buffalo Grove was able to generate a solid run game of its own with Matthew Kaput rushing for 84 yards. Fremd’s offense looked like it had not missed a beat last week. Johnny O’Brien threw for 315 yards, most of it to Marquan Brewster (9 receptions, 178 yards). But it was the Vikings defense, led by Troy Pepe, Tom O’ Brien, Jason Hardy, Brewster, Matt Klimas, Anthony D’Ambrosio and Owen Jakubcz, that stole the show. The Vikings came up with three turnovers and stopped Lake Zurich twice inside the 10.
Kenwood (0-1) vs. St. Viator (1-0) at Forest View
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Last week: St. Francis 38, Kenwood 34; St. Viator 22, Marian Catholic 19
Last year: Did not play
Outlook: St. Viator is coming off a huge win that featured some big plays. The biggest was near the end when the Lions turned away a two-point conversion to preserve their win. That play highlighted a great defensive performance by the Lions, who forced 5 turnovers. Gu Sitang led the way with an interception and a fumble recovery. St. Viator’s defense will be challenged again this week against a Kenwood team that put up 34 points last week. Kenwood is led by Kenyonte Louis, who is a transfer form De La Salle and was CCL/ESCC Red Division offensive player of the year last season. The Lions are looking for another solid performance from quarterback Joey Lampignano who was 17-of-29 for 128 yards last week.
Conant (0-1) at Rolling Meadows (0-1)
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Last week: Lake Park 35, Conant 13; Palatine 39, Rolling Meadows 22
Last year: Rolling Meadows 34. Conant 12
Outlook: Conant is hoping to get its offense back on track, failing to complete a pass last week. The Cougars did run the ball well with 232 yards behind Jackson Spizzirri’s 99 yards and Nathan Kutella’s 58. Rolling Meadows got off to a fast start last week with Luke Harvey (8 carries, 79 yards) scoring on the first play. The Mustangs will be looking to finish stronger this week. Meadows did have 236 yards of offense with Jack Brigham completing 9-of-22 passes for 114 yards and two touchdowns.
Hoffman Estates (1-0) at Wheeling (0-1)
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Last week: Hoffman Estates 55, Buffalo Grove 14; Oak Lawn 52, Wheeling 0
Last year: Hoffman Estates 42, Wheeling 7
Outlook: Hoffman got off to a speedy start thanks to a solid ground attack. The Hawks, who have been known to be flying high with their passing game, went to the ground to pile up 270 of their 383 yards of offense. Landon Ford accounted for 187 of those yards while Braylin Scales added 43 yards. Wheeling had a rough trip south. The Wildcats are hoping that a return home will allow their offense, which was led by Christian Campos (6 carries, 46 yards) and Juliani Saldivar (19 carries, 49 yards), to get rolling.
Maine East (0-1) at Round Lake (0-1), 7 p.m.
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Last week: East Aurora 41, Maine East 22; West Chicago 40, Round Lake 6
Last year: Maine East 10, Round Lake 7
Outlook: Maine East had difficulty last week. Quarterback Emil Rafidi did get things going late and had a touchdown pass and rushing touchdown. The Blue Demons are hoping to rebound against a Round Lake team that Maine East has beaten in the last three years to tie the series 3-3. Round Lake has lost 26 games in a row.
Leyden (0-1) at Nies North (0-1)
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Last week: Highland Park 21, Leyden 16; Evanston 49, Niles North 6
Last year: Leyden 14, Niles North 6
Outlook: Leyden is coming off a pretty solid effort last week, but the Eagles fell a bit short. Lucas Lattiker (16 carries, 140 yards) and Matthew Aquirre (21-for-36, 199 yards) accounted for 339 yards of offense for the Eagles. Leyden takes on another Central Suburban North opponent in Niles North, which fell behind by 3 touchdowns in the first quarter last week.