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Upstate Eight Week 6: South Elgin looking to get playoff eligible with win

South Elgin (4-1, 1-0) at Glenbard East (4-1, 2-0)

Game time: 7:30 p.m. Friday

Last week: South Elgin 56, Larkin 13; Glenbard East 44, West Chicago 14

Last year: South Elgin 42, Glenbard East 36

Outlook: South Elgin can become playoff eligible with a fourth-straight win. Glenbard East has 4 victories, but only one against a team with a winning record: Glenbard South (3-2). Still, the Rams have Storm coach Pat Pistorio's respect. "We're going to have our work cut out for us," he said. "They have a very explosive offense. We still have to win the big game and that's the one we have to get after. It'll be a step toward a conference championship, which is not our end goal but it's one of them and these kids deserve it." South Elgin's 4-1 start is its best since starting 5-0 in 2010, the last season the school made the playoffs. The Storm continue to rely on effective two-way play from linemen Brian Medina, Matt Zimmerman and Mike Ribando and receivers/defensive backs Andrew Kamienski and Derek Kumerow. The Rams are led by quarterback Philip Abruzino. The senior is DuPage County's leading passer with 1,229 yards and 14 touchdowns against 5 interceptions. His top receivers are 6-foot-2 senior Zach Walsh (25 rec., 386 yards, 3 TD) and 5-7 senior Karon Keyes (18-318-5).

Next week: Geneva (5-0) at Glenbard East; West Aurora (3-2) at South Elgin

St. Charles East (2-3, 2-1) at Geneva (5-0, 3-0)

Game time: 7:30 p.m. Friday

Last week: St. Charles East 44, Streamwood 12; Geneva 45, Elgin 10

Last year: Geneva 40, St. Charles East 7

Outlook: Geneva coach Rob Wicinski dug into video of last year's playoff loss to Cary-Grove in order to prepare for the same triple option offense the Vikings will face this week against St. Charles East. "We have some history with it and this will be like facing Cary-Grove south," Wicinski said. "Looking back at the film, we see a lot of good things we did and a lot of bad. I give St. Charles East credit. From the first week to the fourth week, they've improved tremendously." The Saints enjoyed their best offensive performance in the new system last week, gaining 358 of their 473 total yards via the rush. East quarterback Zach Mitchell left last week's win over Streamwood with a second-quarter knee injury, but Saints coach Bryce Farquhar listed him Wednesday as probable. Cam Canales last week rushed 7 times for 95 yards and a touchdown after moving out to play wing. "It's a new scheme and we're trying to put people in the right spots and see how they round out," Farquhar said. "We're making progress. We'll see. Hopefully, we can make some noise this week."

Next week: Geneva at Glenbard East (4-1); St. Charles East at Larkin (0-5)

St. Charles North (3-2, 0-2) at Larkin (0-5, 0-2)

Game time: 7:30 p.m. Friday

The quick hit: A young Larkin defense that yields 424 yards and 39 points a game faces a St. Charles North offense that gains 383 yards and scores 39 points a game. The North Stars need to stiffen defensively after allowing 90 points the last two weeks against state-ranked Geneva and Batavia.

Elgin (0-5, 0-2) at Streamwood (2-3, 1-2)

Game time: 7:30 p.m. Friday

The quick hit: Elgin must guard against the big play from Streamwood receiver Nino Adkins. He has 27 receptions for 341 yards and 5 touchdowns and has returned a kickoff for a score. The Elgin offense looks for better production being limited to 24 total yards in last week's loss to Geneva.

Bartlett (1-4, 1-1) at East Aurora (1-4, 0-3)

Game time: 7:30 p.m. Friday

The quick hit: The Hawks begin a stretch of 3 games against sub-. 500 teams. Their first five opponents own a 19-6 combined record. An improving Bartlett defense held state-ranked Neuqua Valley scoreless in the first half last week. The Tomcats have scored 13 or fewer points in their last 4 games.

West Chicago (1-4, 1-1) at West Aurora (3-2, 1-1)

Game time: 7:30 p.m. Friday

The quick hit: West Chicago allows 217 rushing yards per game. The Wildcats will be tested by the Blackhawks' wing-T offense on homecoming night in Aurora. Junior running back DaQuan Cross leads West Aurora with 444 yards and 7 touchdowns in 46 attempts (9.4 avg.).

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