It’s a privilege to watch high school football games from the sideline. Most schools will make room in the press box for reporters. That’s a much easier place to work, but there is so much to learn from hearing what the coaches and players have to say throughout the game.
The speed and violence on the field are right in your face. It makes for memorable moments.
Mount Carmel vs. East St. Louis, the Week 1 showcase game at ISU, was played at a considerably faster level than any of the other 14 games I’ve covered so far this season. It also featured the biggest hits.
But the game this past Friday in Cary was the most physical I’ve seen this year. Prairie Ridge and Cary-Grove mauled each other for four quarters. It was unrelenting, with grass stains and dirty uniforms adding an old-school feel.
“Two physical teams,” Trojans coach Brad Seaburg said. “We know each other really well and I think that adds to it.”
Prairie Ridge pulled out a 21-20 victory after Cary-Grove missed an extra-point attempt that would have tied the game with 55 seconds left.
Wolves senior Dominic Creatore, a force at running back and defensive back, mentioned that his teammates were thinking about Cary-Grove in particular while bulking up in the weight room over the summer. But he stressed that football is still a thinking man’s game.
“This game is mental,” Creatore said. “[If you are prepared] you can just react. That makes you play faster.”
Elite Elmhurst
York was expected to be one of the area’s best teams this season and it has lived up to that billing. Last year’s success wasn’t a flash in the pan.
The Dukes haven’t been challenged this season, scoring 218 points and allowing 75 in their five wins. They will play at undefeated Downers Grove North on Friday.
The other Elmhurst high school, IC Catholic, is overperforming expectations as well. The Knights, with an enrollment of 608, are a perennial power in the smaller classes.
They’ve taken a major step up in quality so far this season, knocking off much larger schools. IC Catholic beat Benet (1,271 enrollment) in Week 3 and highly-regarded Nazareth (1,180) in Week 4.
Bill Krefft’s team seriously opened eyes in Week 5, taking down Marist 28-21. The RedHawks are much better than their 1-4 record this season and are a traditional Catholic League power with an enrollment of 2,662. That’s four times larger than IC Catholic’s.
CPS coaching tree
Troy McAllister led Phillips to state titles in 2015 and 2017. Those are the only championships the Public League has won, so McAllister’s success at Sandburg recently is no surprise.
Three former Public League coaches that left the city relatively recently, and with much less fanfare, are also making major impacts.
George Klupchak, who built Payton into a quality program, now has Maine West at 5-0. This is his third full season in Des Plaines.
Vince DeFrancesco, the former Lincoln Park coach, has led Mundelein to a 4-1 start. He took over in 2019.
Eisenhower has qualified for the playoffs in all three of Sheamus Murphy’s full seasons and the Cardinals are 3-2 this year. Murphy built a winning program from scratch at Back of the Yards from 2015 to 2019.
Looking ahead
Every week of the season has produced high-quality games this season and that is not always the case. Week 6 is another dandy, with three of the top five teams facing ranked teams.
There’s also a major matchup in the Mid-Suburban League with No. 11 Hersey (5-0) hosting No. 19 Prospect (4-1).
