SVM _Prep Football Preview_082521 by Shaw Media

2021 PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW Team Rosters & Schedules  Preseason All-Area  Conference Previews Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Table of Contents

Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

SHAW MEDIA

2 What’s Where

This and that

Ty Reynolds column................... 3 Preseason All-Area.............. 16-17 Illinois state champions............ 30 Week-by-week schedule........... 31

Team capsule pages

Amboy..................................... 10 Ashton-Franklin Center............ 11 Bureau Valley........................... 12 Dixon....................................... 13 Forreston................................. 15 Erie-Prophetstown................... 18 Eastland-Pearl City................... 19 Fulton...................................... 21 Milledgeville.............................. 22 Morrison.................................. 23 Newman.................................. 24 Oregon.................................... 26 Polo......................................... 27 Rock Falls................................ 28 Sterling.................................... 29

Conference previews

Western Big 6............................ 4 Big Northern............................. 5 Three Rivers East...................... 6 Three Rivers West..................... 7 NUIC......................................... 8 8-Man....................................... 9

SVM Honors

> Sauk Valley Media’s Football Guide has won Top 10 awards in 11 of the Associated Press Sports Editors’ last 13 national competitions. Best Special Section, under 40,000 circulation 2007 • 2008 • 2009 Best Special Section, under 30,000 circulation 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 2014 • 2016 • 2017 • 2018

Editor

Section Credits

Ty Reynolds

Reporter Eric Ingles

Photography Alex T. Paschal

Cover design Teresa Spence

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COMMENTARY

As always, a new school year is marked with changes. This football season, it seems that “normal” is the change. After last season was postponed, almost canceled, then eventually shortened and played in the spring – without any playoffs – because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the sentiment I felt at every preseason practice I attended was relief and appreciation from the players that things were “back to normal.” Things will be a bit different at the newspaper office, too. As seems to be the trend in our business, fewer resources and manpower will dictate how we cover our 15 football teams this fall. But rest assured, we’ll be on the sidelines with our notebooks ready, and as always, make sure you

tyREYNOLDS Sports editor. He can be reached at treynolds@ shawmedia. com or 815632-2542, ext. 5554.

remember to include our Friday Night Drive website in your Saturday morning plans, for game stories, roundups and scores from the entire Shaw Media coverage area – from the Mississippi River to Lake Michigan – from every Friday night throughout the season. I’m happy to say that I’ll be back on the sidelines at a game near you each week this fall; it’s the first season since 2015 that I’ll be able to get out of

the office and instead go out to some games. And since a football game is one of my happy places – especially a high school game in the atmosphere of a Friday night under the lights – I’m beyond thrilled to have the chance to cover games once more. This “normal” season also brings with it some changes for our local teams. Amboy, AFC and Milledgeville join 2019 state champ Polo in the 8-man ranks. Fulton moves to the NUIC from the Three Rivers, with a realignment to East and West divisions and the addition of Mendota. Newman, like Polo, has a new cast of characters ready to try and defend its 2019 2A state title. Sterling will have tough tests the first two weeks of the season, but will reload (as usual) and

Alex T. Paschal – SVM file photo

The Newman Comets are the defending Class 2A state champs, having defeated Nashville in the most recent title game in 2019. looks to be the class of the Western Big 6 (as usual). Dixon is an experienced team with a lot of talent in an always-tough Big Northern, while Oregon and Rock Falls continue to take steps forward in rebuilding their programs. And with several teams leaving for 8-man football, things will be different in

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the NUIC, which is now a 9-team league where everybody will play one another; Forreston and EPC look solid, and Fulton is eager to see how its physical style translates to a new slate of foes. Like all of you, we can’t wait to see what awaits us in the “new normal” this fall.

SHAW MEDIA Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Back to ‘normal’ for the fall 2021 season

Conference Preview 2021

Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

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Western Big 6 Alleman Pioneers

2021 spring record: 2-4 Coach: Fritz Dieudonne Worth noting: Dieudonne gets his first head coaching job, stepping in for former Pioneers coach Todd DePoorter. Dieudonne, born in Haiti and growing up playing soccer, started playing football after being told at 13 he wouldn’t make his school’s soccer team. He is more than familiar with the Western Big 6, having been an assistant at Moline, Rock Island and United Township. When he introduced himself to his team in June after being hired, he estimates there were maybe 12-14 players there. By the time practice started, those players had talked a lot of their classmates into playing too, and the Pioneers opened August with 31 players. ... The Alleman offensive and defensive lines feature 6-foot-5 junior Charles Jagusah, who spent the summer fielding scholarship offers from Big Ten, Big XII and SEC coaches.

Galesburg Silver Streaks

2021 spring record: 2-4 Coach: Derrek Blackwell Worth noting: Blackwell is in his first year as the Streaks’ head coach. He is a former Galesburg player, having graduated from Galesburg in 2003. ... Dre Egipciaco was fourth in the conference in receiving yards in the spring with 424. His twin brother Alex was fourth in the league in rushing yards with 498. ... Tight end Aaron

Carl received an offer from Division II Northern Michigan. NMU tight ends have a history of going on to bigger things: former Wildcat tight end Rob Salah is the current head coach of the New York Jets.

Geneseo Maple Leafs

return. ... Wide receiver Matthew Bailey was an honorable mention allstate pick as a junior in the spring, and Maroon coaches describe him as a phenomenal athlete with Ivy League grades.

Rock Island Rocks

2021 spring record: 3-3 Coach: Larry Johnsen Worth noting: The Leafs opened the spring season 0-2 before going on a threegame winning streak. They nearly pulled off a Week 6 comeback, but ultimately fell to Moline. ... Geneseo will be building around a veteran offensive line, including Nathan VandeWoestyne, who was a second-team all-conference pick in the spring. ... On defense, the Leafs are looking at potentially starting five sophomores. ... Geneseo had two firstteam all-conference players in the spring in linebacker Dominic DeBoef and running back Bruce Moore, but both have graduated.

2021 spring record: 4-2 Coach: Ben Hammer Worth noting: The Rocks have a veteran quarterback in senior Eli Reese, who in the spring season threw for 1,337 yards and 15 touchdowns while rushing for 268 yards and three touchdowns. He will have to find new people to throw to, however, as the Rocks graduated all but one of their wide receivers. ... DesMond Woodson leads the Rocks in the defensive secondary, but is also a weapon on special teams. In the spring against Moline, he took a kickoff 80 yards for a touchdown. In 2019, he had a pair of kick return scores in one game against BradleyBourbonnais.

Moline Maroons

Quincy Blue Devils

2021 spring record: 2-4 Coach: Mike Morrissey Worth noting: Quarterback Alec Ponder capped off the spring season in record fashion, tossing six touchdown passes in a Week 6 win over Geneseo. He already held the single-game school record for passing yards with the 374 he put up against Galesburg two weeks earlier. ... The spring season saw the Maroons start four sophomores on the offensive line. All four

2021 spring record: 2-4 Coach: Rick Little Worth noting: The Devils will be a young team in 2021, with a large class having graduated in the spring and only a handful of seniors on the roster in the fall. ... Jesus Johnson will be one of the Devils’ top offensive weapons, a returning senior who is capable in both the running game and the passing game. ... Three candidates are in camp for the starting quarterback

job, with sophomore Adon Byquist, freshman Bradyn Little and junior Brian Douglas in the mix.

Sterling Golden Warriors

2021 spring record: 5-1 Coach: Jon Schlemmer Worth noting: The Golden Warriors have often gone with a quarterback platoon, and this fall is no different, as senior Drew Kested is back and Garrett Polson joins the mix as a sophomore. .... Sterling will once again go with a running-backby-committee approach. AJ Kested, Tyree Kelly, Antonio Tablante and Colt Adams could see carries; many of them will be playing on the defensive side of the ball as well.

United Township Panthers

2021 spring record: 4-2 Coach: Nick Welch Worth noting: The Panthers at one point in the spring had a 47-game conference losing streak, then won their final four games of the spring season, which is the longest active winning streak in the conference. ... United Township plans a runningback-by-committee approach this fall, but then Welch planned the same thing in the spring and Cayne Smith emerged as a 1,400-yard rusher. The Panthers have to replace all 11 starters on offense and all but four on defense. ... Matthew Kelly will get the starting job at quarterback as a sophomore.

Conference Preview 2021

Byron Tigers

2021 spring record: 3-2 Coach: Jeff Boyer Worth noting: Boyer said the team is hoping to match its 2019 BNC title (shared with Stillman Valley and Genoa-Kingston), but the team has “a lot of work ahead of us before we get to that point.” Braden Smith played quarterback last year as a sophomore, and Boyer said his return gives the Tigers the opportunity to throw the ball more than they have in the past. They also have a weapon in running back Chandler Binkley, back for his third year on the varsity team.

Dixon Dukes

2021 spring record: 1-3 Coach: Jared Shaner Worth noting: The spring 2021 team featured only four seniors, so there’s a lot of talent back on a team that, despite losing three of four games, didn’t play a game decided by more than one touchdown. The Dukes hope to feature a balanced attack with Jacob Gaither at quarterback. He threw for 621 yards and also led the team in rushing. The one win last year was against Stillman Valley, the 2019 co-champs of the league, on a late TD pass from Gaither to Hunter Gehrt.

Genoa-Kingston Cogs

2021 spring record: 3-0 Coach: Cam Davekos Worth noting: Davekos takes over the program from Chad Wilmarth, who guided the team to a 2019 conference co-title, plus a perfect mini-slate in the spring, which included a win over Byron. The team is loaded with senior talent, including 6-foot4, 210-pound linebacker and fullback Colin Nesler.

With their wing-T, runfirst attack, the Cogs have made the playoffs five straight seasons, including in all three of Wilmarth’s full seasons. Davekos is a longtime assistant and graduate of G-K.

North Boone Vikings

2021 spring record: 4-0 Coach: Ryan Kelley Worth noting: The Vikings rode their defense to a perfect record last season, and Kelley said he hopes the team can keep it up. He said he really likes his secondary with Will Doetch and Isaac Urtiz, and both double at receiver, as well. With Urtiz, Kelley said that his numbers last season weren’t eyepopping, but that was mostly based on opportunity. He expects those opportunities to increase this year. Junior Chandler Alderman will be the one getting them the ball, starting at quarterback for the first time.

Oregon Hawks

2021 spring record: 1-3 Coach: Nick Schneiderman Worth noting: Oregon hasn’t made the playoffs – or even won more than three games in a season – since the 2014 campaign. The last time they beat a team other than Mendota or Rock falls was Week 1 of the 2018 season, a 27-21 win at Rockford Lutheran.

Rock Falls Rockets

2021 spring record: 0-3 Coach: Kevin Parker Worth noting: Rock Falls has a three-man running back platoon with seniors Dillon Schueler and Booker Cross and junior Ryan McCord. Schueler had 24 carries for 256 yards and two touchdowns in the spring in the Rockets’ three games, with one of

the highlights of Rock Falls’ season being his 89-yard touchdown run against Mendota. Senior Jordan Jones returns for his second year as the Rockets’ starting quarterback. He completed 14 passes for 142 yards in the spring. Cross was Jones’ leading receiver in the spring with five catches. He also snagged an interception playing defense and had a punt-return touchdown on special teams.

Rockford Christian Royal Lions

2021 spring record: 1-4 Coach: Terry Gulley Worth noting: The Royal Lions return to the league for the first time since 2017, taking the spot of Mendota. They joined the Northeastern Athletic Conference, but the league dissolved after most of the teams joined the eightman ranks. In the spring, the Royal Lions played mostly NUIC schools, going 1-4. They have made the playoffs three straight years, but were bounced in the first round each time. Gulley takes over as coach this year. Only five players return from last season’s squad.

Rockford Lutheran Crusaders

2021 spring record: 2-1 Coach: Ron Gates Worth noting: Gates is in his first year as the head coach of the program after years as an assistant and adviser. He also runs a long-standing youth program out of Rockford. He said he hopes the team can qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2016. Although it was an abbreviated season in the spring, it was the team’s first winning record since its 8-3 run in 2016. Gates said the team is strengthened by its

returning senior linebackers and offensive linemen – with Jamyr Pitts and Liam Keller highlighting the group. Jacob al-Rahami was the team’s defensive MVP last year, and he’s back for his senior year at linebacker.

Stillman Valley Cardinals

2021 spring record: 1-2 Coach: Mike Lalor Worth noting: The Cardinals don’t return a lot this year, only one or two starters, Lalor said. There is a group of about 11 seniors that Lalor said will have to stay healthy to be competitive, including Dylan Davis, Cullen White, Andrew Latham and Patrick Hickey on the line. After winning a state title in 2013, the Cardinals didn’t return to the playoffs until 2018 but have made it two straight years and shared the league title in 2019.

Winnebago Indians

2021 spring record: 1-4 Coach: Mark Helm Worth noting: Helm said there’s a lot of excitement getting back to “what we can kind of call normalcy” – a nine-game fall season played under the lights. He said he has high hopes for Michael Cunningham this year, both at running back and at corner. Will Speltz started as a sophomore during the spring and is back at fullback and linebacker. Jakob DiPiazza and Devin Gibson, both seniors, will lead the way blocking for the offense. Gibson, at 6-5, 255, provides a lot of size on both lines. Helm said the team was in games last season but made mistakes at the wrong times that proved costly. Obviously, he said, that’s a main focal point of this season.

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Big Northern

Conference Preview 2021

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Three Rivers East Bureau Valley Storm

2021 spring record: 0-4 Coach: Mat Pistole Worth noting: The Storm didn’t win a game in four tries this spring, but they gained invaluable experience from juniors down to freshmen that third-year coach Mat Pistole is hoping pays off this fall. While depth remains a problem, the Storm return nine starters on offense and defense and gain the talents of two seniors who were unable to play this spring. “We are really excited to get going and have had a pretty good summer,” Pistole said. “Experience is going to be a great asset for us heading into the season. Plus, getting two of our best seniors back after not being able to play in the spring is massive for us. Depth is going to be a concern for us as it is for a lot of teams, but in regards to experience and knowing the system, we feel as good as we have since I have taken over about our team.” The Storm switch sides in the Three Rivers to the Wast Division, a move which will renew a rivalry with neighbor Princeton for the first time in more than 20 years.

Kewanee Boilermakers

2021 spring record: 2-2 Coach: Brad Swanson Worth noting: The Boilermakers return nine starters on both sides of the ball from the spring season for third-year coach Brad Swanson. The Boilermakers had 40-plus players in summer camp with hopes of getting back to the playoffs as they did in 2019 when

they went 7-4 and reached the second round in 4A. “We are returning a lot of guys that is for sure. They have been great leaders in the weight room and in the offseason. I am excited for the season, and the expectations around the locker room are very high. We talk about getting better everyday and it will all add up in the end,” Swanson said.

linemen, four running backs who got carries in the spring, and their top receiver back. “We’re going to be a little bit more open (on offense) than what we have been,” Pearson said. “We try to adapt our offense each year to fit the skillsets of the kids we have. We think we’re going to have some pretty good athletes out on the field.”

Mendota Trojans

2021 spring record: 1-4 Coach: Nick Guerrini Worth noting: The Red Devils had a tough spring, beating only winless Bureau Valley, but Hall had a young roster that gained valuable experience. The Red Devils return players who scored 80% of their spring touchdowns. Defensively, Hall brings back its top four tacklers. Dominic Guerrini was named first-team allconference at linebacker last season to go along with a second-team selection at running back, while Mac Resetich was second-team all-conference at running back and defensive back.

2021 spring record: 1-2 Coach: Keegan Hill Worth noting: The Trojans are new to the Three Rivers after playing in the Big Northern Conference since 2012, but Mendota has history with several TRAC members, as it played Hall, Princeton and Kewanee for many years in the NCIC. The Trojans, who have not won more than one game since 2014, look to take a step forward this season with an experienced roster that features seven threeyear starters. “We do have a positive senior class,” Hill said. “The junior class brings some skill and numbers. If we can play without having to start a sophomore right out of the gate, that shows we have a chance to compete now.”

Princeton Tigers

2021 spring record: 6-0 Coach: Ryan Pearson Worth noting: The Tigers lost all-state running back/ linebacker Ronde Worrels and several other key players from the undefeated spring team, but Princeton does return a strong core. The Tigers have five experienced offensive

Hall Red Devils

St. Bede Bruins

2021 spring record: 5-1 Coach: Jim Eustice Worth noting: The Bruins lost a strong group of players from their fivewin spring squad, but the cupboard isn’t bare at St. Bede. While there is a twoway battle to take over the quarterback spot for the graduated Braden Damerell, the Bruins return their best runing back and receiover in Tyreke Fortney, as well as a pair of returning offensive linemen. There is also a strong contingent of

returning running backs, and defensively, Jayce Ladzinski will lead the way after earning first-team allconference at linebacker in the spring. “We have some pieces,” Eustice said. “We’re going to have to have some young guys step up. We had a good sophomore group last spring who are juniors now. A lot of them got reps as the season went on and we had injuries. It’s a matter of kids growing up and getting better every day.”

Newman Comets

2021 spring record: 3-1 Coach: Brandon Kreczmer Worth noting: Still technically the reigning Class 2A state champion since there was no postseason in the spring, the Comets still have 17 players on the roster who were on the 2019 team that beat Nashville in DeKalb. The linebacking corps has been the bread and butter of the Newman defense for years, and this fall’s group is shaping up to be another strong one with Cody Donna, Ethan Van Landuit and Brennen Cook leading the way. In the 2019 state championship win over Nashville, Van Landuit, a sophomore at the time, led the Comets with 10 solo tackles and assisted on two other tackles. Nose tackle Will Rude is back after leading the Comets with seven tackles for a loss in the spring. In the meantime, he also won the IWCOA state wrestling title at 138 pounds. Cornerback Owen McBride had four interceptions in the spring to go with his 15 tackles and two sacks.

Conference Preview 2021

Erie-Prophetstown Panthers

2021 spring record: 1-4 Coach: Jesse Abbott Worth noting: The Panthers should once again boast a solid offense, led by senior dual-threat quarterback Kolby Franks. Behind a line led by senior Jacob Otten and senior Mason Misfeldt, Franks should have the time to run, hand off to senior back Connor Sibley or find him or fellow back Jase Grunder through the air. Sibley and Grunder double on the other side of the ball, leading a strong set of linebackers, with Misfeldt in the backfield. Abbott is seeing a lot more confidence from Franks this fall, allowing him to be more of a leader this year. The Panthers will be using a lot of speed to spread teams out, going to shotgun more often with Franks rarely under center. Defensively, the Panthers graduated most of the defensive line but will bring back most of the starters in the linebacking corps and in the secondary, with Abbott seeing more speed on defense this fall. With jobs up for grabs on the defensive line, Abbott is seeing plenty of competition. In years past, the Panthers have typically split home games between Erie and Prophetstown, but this fall all of the Panthers’ home games will be in Erie. In 2022, the Panthers will play all of their home games in Prophetstown.

Monmouth-Roseville Titans

Coach: Jeremy Adolphson 2021 record: 0-5 Worth noting: Experience will be the watchword for the Titans this fall. Among the 15 letterwinners back are seven starters on offense and nine on defense. Leading the way will be senior RB/

DB Derek Chandler, an honorable mention choice as a sophomore and second teamer as a junior, and senior WR/DE Logan Bratcher. Both are four-year lettermen, as are Charlie Fletcher, Silas Braun, Ethan Davis, CJ Johnson, Trevor Snyder and Ashton Toal There will be plenty of size for them to run behind. “We have a small but talented senior class with a lot of varsity experience,” said Adolphson. “We also return four juniors who started in the spring.”

Morrison Mustangs

2021 spring record: 2-3 Coach: Steve Snider Worth noting: Recent Mustangs teams have been able to deploy plenty of speed and this year’s team is no different. In the spring and summer, Alex Anderson and Justice Brainerd made up 50% of Morrison’s 4x400 relay team that took fourth at the state track meet in Charleston in June. This fall, they will carry with them all-conference second-team honors as a flex/DB and RB/DL, respectively. Also back on the line is senior Nathan Schaefer and in the offensive backfield, Thomas Dauphin. With Nathan Helms graduated, Danny Mouw takes over at quarterback. Snider sees Mouw as a player who brings a lot of leadership to the role. Morrison’s defense features a lot of speed in the secondary and a lot of size up front. The Mustangs used a tough defense to reach the quarterfinal in Class 1A in 2019, then opened the spring of 2021 with a shutout.

Orion Chargers

Coach: Chip Filler 2021 record: 1-5 Worth noting: The Chargers return six starters on offense and seven on defense from the spring club, with six of

those seniors who played a lot. TE/OLB Quinn Hoftender, the club’s offensive most valuable player in the spring, returns for a fourth varsity season and, along with thirdyear starter at RB, junior Cole Kratzberg, will likely be the favorite targets of returning QB Jared Mohr. Defensively, the Chargers look sound with their entire back seven returning. However, the questions come on both sides of the line. “We’re very young on the line, but we feel we have some really good talent there,” said Filler. “Just how fast they mature up front, that will be one key for us this fall. The other is to get better play from our quarterback. Having a good trigger man is essential and we have faith in Jared that he’ll be ready to go. … We’ll roll the dice and see what we’ve got, but we believe we have the talent to get back to the standard we’ve had for the last 20 years and make the playoffs.”

Riverdale Rams

Coach: Guy Dierikx 2021 record: 0-4 Worth noting: The Rams experienced growing pains in the spring, but that should help in the fall. Dual-threat QB Gage Hugart returns, as do his favorite targets, senior WRs Cole and Caleb Jennings, who are also starters at linebacker and on the defensive line, respectively. … Senior RB/LB Noah Huizenga will be a mainstay in the backfield, as well as two newcomers, RB/LB Eli Hinde and RB/DB Trent Doty, both juniors. Sophomore Carter Deines shows promise as a DB. “This is a young group, but with how last season played out, they did get a lot of playing time,” said Dierikx. “Obviously, they had to grow up quite a bit last year and that should help us. The big

thing is to stay away from the injury bug. We’re at about 26 deep, that’s (grades) 9 through 12. We have to stay healthy to compete.”

Rockridge Rockets

Coach: Jeff Henry 2021 spring record: 6-0 Worth noting: Most likely the conference favorite, the Rockets are coming off a perfect mark in the spring, a record achieved largely on the strength of now-senior quarterback Brayden Deem (1,123 yards, 16 TDs, 4 INTs passing; 440 yards, 7 TDs rushing) and speedy junior back Peyton Locke (109 carries, 1,064 yards, 17 TDs). Senior Connor Shaffer is the leader in the trenches, joined on the inside by senior Sam Buser, but jelling with the rest of the O-line is a necessity.

Sherrard Tigers

Coach: Brandon Johnston 2021 record: 3-1 Worth noting: The Tigers, whose last winning season was 2009 (8-2), have some solid cornerstones to build around in senior linebacker Dylan Russell and junior offensive tackle Walker Anderson, both all-conference honorable mention selections in the spring, plus senior WR/ DB Wyatt Dochterman and lineman Brenin Krack. Much will depend on the sophomore class, with Holland Anderson or Hunter Timerman candidates at QB and Keegan Miller and Zach Shields joining the line. “We have tremendous leadership on our roster, and that’s especially true from our seniors,” said Johnston. “We have low numbers in our junior and senior classes, but those kids have worked hard and set a good example for our younger guys. We will rely on that senior leadership to carry the team, especially early.”

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Three Rivers West

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Conference Preview 2021

Northwest Upstate Illini Dakota Indians

2021 spring record: 0-2 Coach: Joe Free Worth noting: Dakota never had much of a chance to get going in the spring, starting late to give the basketball players more of a season, then having to shut things down again just two games in. Nevertheless, the Indians did have a pair of honorable mention all-conference picks who are returning in SS Adam Thompson and RB/ LB Cam Foesch. ... Dakota returns eight starters on offense, led by QB Kaidyn Niedermeier, along with his top two receivers and fourfifths of the offensive line. ... Adrian Arellano broke the school record in the 40 and is ready to bring that speed to the field as a running back and linebacker. Free sees in Arellano a player who “plays with absolutely no fear.” ... The Indians have a lot of speed to burn, with 14 players running a sub-5 40.

Durand-Pecatonica Rivermen

2021 spring record: 4-2 Coach: Tyler Hoffman Worth noting: Senior QB Hunter Hoffman comes off a spring in which he was named NUIC North MVP after throwing for 1,495 yards and 21 touchdowns with just one interception. ... Du-Pec is looking to reload on the offensive line, after losing three all-conference picks to graduation. ... On the defensive line in the spring, Jake Anderson was a secondteam all-conference pick as an edge rusher and Trent Hetland was an honorable mention pick at the same position. Both were juniors.

East Dubuque Warriors

2021 spring record: 1-5 Coach: Joe Edler Worth noting: Running backs Dawson Feyen and Sam

Huntington return for their senior seasons after a spring which saw Feyen carry 50 times for 279 yards and four touchdowns while Huntington carried 63 times for 267 yards and four touchdowns. ... Gabe Hilby was second team all-conference in the spring as an edge rusher. ... QB Sam Bowman threw for 270 yards and two touchdowns and returns for his senior year.

Eastland-Pearl City Wildcatz

2021 spring record: 2-4 Coach: Jared McNutt Worth noting: Quarterback Kellen Henze is back for his second season of football after spending his falls on the golf course prior to the pandemic. The awkward nature of the pandemic offseason meant McNutt didn’t have offseason camps or 7-on-7s in 2020 to work with Henze, but has had that chance this summer. “With footwork and timing and the routes, he’s been getting a lot better,” McNutt said. “I think when we head into the season with pads on, he’s going to be a runner for us and do a lot of things with his feet.” ... The strength of the Wildcatz could be in the trenches. McNutt feels EPC’s defensive line will rank among the best in the conference, returning Gavin Sigel and Christian Fischer who are both around the 300-pound mark, and brining back Mason Brenner who saw playing time at linebacker and on the defensive line. Riley Schauer is back, having been a starter at defensive end since he was a sophomore.

Forreston Cardinals

2021 spring record: 3-2 Coach: Keynon Janicke Worth noting: Janicke is a 2012 Forreston graduate who began teaching at Forreston soon after graduating from the University of Dubuque

in 2016. This will be his first head coaching job. ... The Cardinals rushing attack will feature a trio of seniors in Jacob Fiorello, Devonte King-Black and Carter Daws. King-Black had 29 carries for 176 yards in the spring while battling for playing time behind then-senior Jordan Neuschwander. The rushing attack will be augmented by senior Tommy Appel and junior Quinten Frederick. ... The Cardinals bring back plenty of experience in the trenches with senior Mason Fox and juniors Casey DeVries and Johnny Kobler playing both offensive and defensive line and senior Cole Becker playing offensive line and tight end.

Fulton Steamers

2021 spring record: 4-1 Coach: Patrick Lower Worth noting: This is Fulton’s first year in the NUIC after leaving the Three Rivers following the spring 2021 season. ... Fulton has four three-year starters with Brock Mason at wide receiver and defensive back, Joey Huizenga on the offensive line, Jacob Jones at running back and linebacker, and Keegan VanKampen at linebacker. Huizenga is joined on the offensive line by seniors Zach Dykstra and Kole Schipper. .... The Steamers are in search of a new quarterback following the graduation of Connor Barnett, who threw for over 900 yards in the five-game schedule in the spring, completing 68% of his passes.

Galena Pirates

2021 spring record: 5-1 Coach: Ed Freed Worth noting: In the spring season, Galena’s defense had three senior all-conference first-teamers. But the Pirates also had a junior get all-conference honors,

with Brady Schemehorn an honorable mention at edge, Gabe Garcia an honorable mention at defensive line and Jarrett Basten a second-team linebacker.

Lena-Winslow Panthers

2021 spring record: 4-1 Coach: Ric Arand Worth noting: With no postseason in the spring, the Panthers are still technically the reigning Class 1A state champion, but just three starters remain from the 2019 team which went 14-0: Marey Roby, Madex Sargent and Luke Benson. ... Benson threw for 169 yards in the spring. ... After a seasonopening loss to Princeton in the spring, in which Roby was injured, the Panthers won their remaining four games, outscoring foes 92-52.

Stockton Blackhawks

2021 spring record: 3-3 Coach: Matt Leitzen Worth noting: The Blackhawks finished off the spring campaign on a strong note, winning three of their last four games, with the sole loss being a 14-6 setback to Galena. “We kind of got some things straightened out after that and finished the season with a big win on the road against Winnebago,” Leitzen said. “I think our kids look to that as that was as well as we played all year, which is what you want. You want to play your best at the end of the year.” ... Stockton’s strength will be in the trenches, where there is a lot of experience, with three returning starters. That depth and experience allowed the coaching staff to move Drew Mensendike from left tackle to tight end. ... Stockton’s QB is Caleb Mammoser, who came into camp a bit late in the spring due to basketball, but Leitzen has had a full offseason to work with him now.

Conference Preview 2021

Amboy-LaMoille Clippers

Coach: Scott Payne Worth noting: The Clippers make the move to 8-man for the first season, though the JV team played an 8-man schedule in the spring. … Amboy has a few options to replace graduated running back Sean Fitzpatrick, who finished ninth in the area in the spring with 373 rushing yards and 3 TDs. … Second-year coach Payne picked the brains of a few Iowa 8-man coaches over the winter, just to get a feel for the style of play in their new league. … Expect the Clippers to look very familiar on the field, as they plan to run their standard Power I offense and a hard-nosed defense. … Amboy’s numbers actually grew after the move to 8-man, as they ended last spring with 30 players and had 40 to open fall camp.

AFC Raiders

Coach: Ben Mershon Worth noting: The Raiders are in their first full season of 8-man football, after playing a few games in the spring. That came about when low numbers and injuries forced AFC to scrap their planned final 11-man season less than a month before the spring schedule started, and the Raiders were able to scrape together those games they played as JV contests. … Mershon is the second new coach in as many seasons at AFC, and it will be his first time coaching at the high school level; he has served as Junior Tackle coach. … The Raiders are focusing on smallscale goals this season, taking each game as it comes and trying to win each week while learning a new coach and a new style, believing that the overall record will take care of itself.

Milledgeville Missiles

Coach: Jason Wroble Worth noting: Depth is the biggest buzzword around the Missiles this fall as they start their inaugural 8-man season. Instead of using up the whole varsity roster to practice 11-on-11, coach Wroble and his staff have more options in terms of formations and personnel, meaning more competition for starting spots and the ability to vary the offensive attack this season. … While Milledgeville will still line up and run downhill at defenses, it will also spread things out and let new QB Izaac Toms-Smith utilize some weapons downfield. … Colton Stahl is the Missiles’ lone returning all-conference player, and they will have to replace their top two rushers and receivers and a QB who threw for 7 TDs, who were among the six seniors who graduated in the spring.

Polo Marcos

Coach: Ted Alston Worth noting: With no state playoffs in the spring, the Marcos are still the reigning 8-man state champions after defeating 2018 champ Milford-Cissna Park in the title game in 2019. … Polo is excited to welcome some former NUIC foes to the 8-man ranks, and is looking forward to renewing rivalries with Milledgeville, AFC and Amboy in the first three weeks of the season. … Polo will continue to use a power running game and physical defense that has been the team’s trademark since before Alston arrived for his first stint coaching the Marcos in 2000. … The Marcos had three rushers with more than 300 yards in the spring, but Avery Grenoble is the only one returning. … QB Tyler Merdian also returns after throwing for 278 yards and 4 TDs in the spring.

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Short adjustment period Clippers ready to make move to 8-man football By TY REYNOLDS

treynolds@shawmedia.com Amboy-LaMoille is moving to 8-man football this season, but it won’t be totally new to the Clippers. There will be some varsity players with 8-man experience, as Amboy played an 8-man schedule at the JV level this past spring. “I was on that JV team last year, and it was a pretty easy switch,” said quarterback Tucker Lindenmeyer. “It wasn’t much different than 11-man, a lot of the plays are the same, it’s just less people on the field, that’s about it. You’ve got to be aggressive. You can’t take plays off with this style of football.”

See AMBOY, page 20

Photos by Alex T. Paschal – apaschal@shawmedia.com

The Amboy-LaMoille Clippers will be taking the field this season for the first time as a varsity 8-man football team. The learning curve should be eased by the fact that the Clippers’ JV team played 8-man football this past spring.

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No. Name

Roster

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos.

Kye Koch

5-9

155

So. RB/DB

Dylan Daniels

5-7

135

Sr. RB/LB

Tucker Lindenmeyer

5-10

140

Jr. QB/DB

Jordan Gulley

5-8

165

Sr. RB/LB

Landon Whelchel

5-5

140

So. RB/LB

Troy Anderson

5-11

155

So. WR/DE

Jarrett Dempsey

5-8

150

So. WR/DB

10 Caden Wittenauer

6-0

160

Sr. WR/DB

21 Quinn Leffelman

5-9

190

Fr. RB/LB

25 Harley Lurz

5-6

130

Jr. WR/DB

26 Kaylee Scanland

5-3

135

So. OL/DL

35 Joe Quest

6-0

215

Sr. RB/DL

52 Levi McKinley

5-9

150

So. RB/LB

53 Austin Heath

5-10

170

So. OL/DL

57 Trey Payne

6-2

225

So. OL/DL

58 Vincent Zembrzuski

6-0

175

So. OL/DL

63 Lucas Blanton

5-8

165

So. OL/DL

65 Jairon Hochstatter

6-0

190

Sr. OL/DL

75 Landon Montavon

5-8

250

So. OL/DL

79 Ian Sundberg

5-10

250

So. OL/DL

83 Valentin Vazquez

5-8

165

Jr. WR/LB

85 Brennan Blaine

6-1

195

So. TE/DL

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Ashton-Fr. Center New coach, new style as AFC moves to 8-man By TY REYNOLDS

treynolds@shawmedia.com There is a lot of “new” for the Ashton-Franklin Center football team this fall. A new coach in Ben Mershon. A new style of play with the first full season in 8-man football. A new group of players looking to make their mark after playing in only a couple of games this past spring after an abrupt move away from 11-man right before the delayed and already-shortened season. Lane Koning reflects that “new”ness, as he is out for football for the first time. “I didn’t play last year; I’ve always wanted to play, but my mom kind of shunned me from playing last year, wasn’t the biggest fan of me playing – she still isn’t the biggest fan of me playing,” he said. “But I love the sport and I just want to be out there for my teammates and my school. “Me being new and also making the change to 8-man, it’s definitely weird, but I’m just trying to adjust to everything and do the best I can.” It’s kind of a reset for the Raiders. Just weeks before the spring season began, the team was forced to make a move to 8-man football a season earlier than anticipated due to low numbers. They played a couple of JV games, then had to find a new head coach for the second time in as many years in Mershon, who replaces John Kutz. “This is my first time coaching at the high school level; I’ve only coached Junior Tackle to this point,” Mershon said. “I’m familiar with some of these kids – my son is also on the team – and that helps. But this is totally new to me, and totally different than coaching little kids; these are young men who have their opinions and a knowledge of the game, and that’s great as we all adjust to a totally new system and style in 8-man.” Even with all the differences and adjustments, having even a couple of games in this style of football last season could help the Raiders adapt and gain confidence more quickly. “I feel like it helped us quite a bit, and our attitude will too,” Mason Moore said. “I feel like we’re going to

Photos by Alex T. Paschal – apaschal@shawmedia.com

ABOVE: AFC’s Lane Koning runs through drills Aug. 11 in Franklin Grove. The Raiders will be playing their first full season in 8-man football this fall, under a first-time high school coach. BELOW: AFC players work against one another during blocking drills Aug. 11 in Franklin Grove.

go out every week and give it our best shot. We just want to get better as a football team and work our way up, step by step.” The style won’t be too much different than in the past, with maybe a bit more passing on tap. Mershon likes what he sees on offense, especially in the backfield, as well as how the team seems to be meshing. “I think we’ll probably be about 60-40 run-pass,” Mershon said. “We’ve got a lot of depth at the running back position, and I think our

offense right now will be pretty solid. But we’re still putting it all together, and it’s going to take a while to adjust. Our main goal is to compete each week, keep improving, and I think we’ll come around eventually – hopefully sooner than later.” AFC is also putting in a lot of work on defense, knowing how important that side of the ball will be while getting up to speed on offense. “Defense is going to be a big key, probably the biggest thing that we’re going to need this year,” Moore said.

Roster No. Name

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos.

Zane Murphy

5-10

135

Jr. WR/DB

Nolan Rueff

5-7

160

Fr. OL/DL

Mason Munroe

5-11

170

Sr. E/LB

10 Calvin Messer

5-9

145

Fr. OL/DL

11 Carson Rueff

5-9

130

Jr. QB/DB

12 Lane Koning

6-2

150

Sr. RB/WR

14 Kydreel Green

5-11

180

Jr. OL/DL

18 Sean Lauer

5-9

130

Jr. RB/DB

19 Auden Polk

5-9

145

Jr. RB/LB

25 Daniel Bevan

5-10

140

So. OL/DL

34 Levi Near

5-6

120

Jr. RB/DB

50 Ben Rockwood

5-7

170

Fr. OL/DL

54 Bryant Rassmussen

509

190

Jr. OL/DL

55 Kaleb Goldman

6-3

250

Jr. OL/DL

60 Zoe Willcutt

5-4

140

So. OL/DL

Ryan Garcia

5-6

160

Fr. OL/DL

Rowdy Miller

5-6

135

Fr. RB/DB

Schedule

Game time Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Fri., Sept. 17, 7 Fri., Sept 24, 7 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

Opponent at South Beloit Polo at Peoria Heights at River Ridge Hiawatha at Alden-Hebron at Amboy Milledgeville Orangeville

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SHAW MEDIA Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Change in the air for Raiders

Bureau Valley

Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

SHAW MEDIA

Storm seek 1st win in 3 years Bureau Valley will let games take care of themselves By KEVIN HIERONYMUS

khieronymus@shawmedia.com MANLIUS – Bureau Valley entered the 2021 spring season on the heels of a winless 2019 fall campaign. While it was important to focus on winning that first game, third-year coach Mat Pistole thinks he may have stressed it too much, as the Storm dropped all four games in the spring. He won’t make that mistake again as the Storm huddle up for the 2021 fall season. “In the spring, I think I put too much emphasis on getting that victory, and I think it affected us negatively and put unnecessary pressure on us,” Pistole said. “This year we are entirely focused on taking it one day at a time, knowing that if we continue to make progress, the results will fall into place.” While depth remains a problem, the Storm return nine starters on offense and defense and gain the talents of two seniors who were unable to play this spring. This formula leads to optimism. “We are really excited to get going and have had a pretty good summer. Experience is going to be a great asset for us heading into the season. Plus getting two of our best seniors back after not being able to play in the spring is massive for us,” Pistole said. “Depth is going to be a concern for us, as it is for a lot of teams, but in regards to experience and knowing the system, we feel as good as we have since I have taken over about our team.” The Storm’s experience lies both up front and in the backfield. Senior running back Layton Britt is the Storm’s best offensive option. Jaden Michlig, who didn’t play as a sophomore, picked up right where he left off this spring. He is the Storm’s fastest player. Adam Johnson is a senior returning starter at quarterback who Pistole said improved drastically throwing the football as the spring season went on. “We are going to open up the pass game a little more this year after Adam has had a tremendous offseason that is going to allow us to pass

Scott Anderson

Bureau Valley’s Brock Foster runs the ball past St. Bede to score a touchdown July 17 during the Princeton 7-on-7 event at Princeton High School. the ball more than we did in the spring. He also does a great job leading the offense and getting guys in the right spots,” Pistole said. Receivers for the Storm include seniors Logan Johnson (WR/DB) and Nevin Bolin (TE/OLB). Pistole said both committed themselves over the summer to better their game. The Storm offense will get a boost from the return of seniors Brock Foster (WR/DB) and Levi Hardy (RB/ LB), who did not play this spring. Both have ability to be all-conference performers on both sides of the ball, Pistole said. Foster was going to be a staple for the Storm this spring, Pisolte said, but broke his foot going into the first game. The Storm have horses up front to get their offense and defense going. Pistole called senior guard Carter Haney his best offensive lineman. He will be moving back to his more natural position of DT in their 3-3 defense that fits his skills better. He was moved to linebacker out of necessity last year and played well, Pistole said, “but we are excited to get his athleticism with a hand down up

front for us.” Senior Brodie Hansen (OG/NG) is the Storm’s “strongest” player and a returning two-way starter, and will be counted on in the trenches on both sides of the ball again. Three sophomores and a freshman gained valuable experience starting all four varsity games this spring: sophomores Connor Scott, a guard/linebacker who has “a knack for being at the ball and making tackles; Cameron Lillie (C/DT), who Pistole expects to take a good leap forward this fall; and Ayize Martin (T/ DT), a “big, athletic kid, who has all the tools to be a great OT and DT”; and freshman Jon Dybek (T/DT). Defensively, the Storm return senior linebacker Eli Kruse, a second-team all-conference performer who was the Storm’s leading tackler this spring despite missing the last game with a broken wrist. “He is a tackling machine and has gotten even stronger and more athletic this offseason,” Pistole said. Britt will be moving to the “eagle” position that is very important in both the Storm’s pass-game and rungame defense, Pistole said.

Roster No. Name 1

Brock Foster

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos. 5-11

160

Sr. WR/DB

Beau Spencer

5-4

110

Jr. WR/DB

Layton Britt

5-10

155

Sr. RB/DB

Logan Johnson

6-0

170

Sr. WR/LB

Brock Shane

5-10

150

So. RB/DB

Nevin Bolin

6-2

200

Sr. WR/LB

12 Adam Johnson

6-1

175

Sr. QB/DB

13 Levi Hardy

6-1

215

Sr. RB/LB

16 Sam Rouse

5-8

195

Jr. QB/LB

24 Isaac Attig

5-10

160

Jr. RB/DB

30 David Dietz

5-8

150

Sr. RB/LB

32 Jaden Michlig

5-11

160

Sr. RB/LB

50 Connor Scott

5-11

185

So. OL/LB

51 Carter Haney

6-0

210

Sr. OL/DL

52 Ayize Martin

6-2

260

Jr. OL/DL

54 Nolan Nugent

5-8

225

So. OL/DL

55 Aidan Morris

5-6

150

So. OL/LB

62 Matheu Newman

5-11

160

Jr. OL/LB

63 Eli Kruse

5-11

215

Sr. OL/LB

68 Cameron Lillie

5-10

220

Jr. OL/DL

72 Carter Hartz

5-10

250

So. OL/DL

74 Hudson Blondin

5-9

195

Sr. OL/DL

75 Tim Bohm

5-11

300

Jr. OL/DL

76 Jon Dybek

6-0

275

So. OL/DL

78 Brodie Hansen

5-8

245

Sr. OL/DL

80 Eli Attig

5-11

150

So. WR/DB

88 Blake Helms

5-2

110

So. WR/DB

Schedule

Game time Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Fri., Sept. 17, 7 Fri., Sept 24, 7 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

Opponent Riverdale at Sherrard at Mendota Kewanee at Newman St. Bede Erie-Prophetstown at Princeton Hall

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Dixon Dukes looks to avenge close losses from spring season By TY REYNOLDS

treynolds@shawmedia.com The 2021 spring football season was a great learning experience for the Dixon Dukes. It also left them hungry for the 2021 fall season. The Dukes went 1-3, but the three losses came by a grand total of 17 points (two by five points and one by seven), while the win was a heart-stopping 20-19 victory over Stillman Valley. “It just gives us the motivation, makes us think that it’s our time to step up and really take on that senior role and win those close games,” Justin Dallas said. “I think those are good lessons we’ve learned,” Hunter Gehrt added. “It’ll make us want to fight for a little extra in the fourth quarter every game to make sure we’re not losing those close games.” With last season being so much closer to the fall, and with a summer camp squeezed in during the final week of July, Dixon’s players feel there’s much more continuity because everything is so fresh on their minds coming into the 2021 preseason. “It’s very key for us, because all of our players have just started clicking quicker and we’re meshing together better,” Dallas said. “Things are moving faster, and we’ll just be more mature players. I can’t wait to see what great stuff we can do.” Another factor that will help the

Photos by Alex T. Paschal – apaschal@shawmedia.com

Backs follow their blockers Monday in Dixon during a drill at the first day of football practice at Reagan Middle School on Aug. 9. Dukes this fall is experience. Dixon lost only four players to graduation from the spring, meaning the major core of the team on both sides of the ball is coming back. “We’ve got a lot of guys returning since we didn’t have many seniors last year, so we expect have a lot of success,” Jacob Gusse said. “We’re pretty excited, since everyone’s returning and we’re all returning starters. I think it was easier to get back in the groove. We remembered a lot of stuff from last year, we didn’t really have to go over much, just kind of hopped right back into it.” Jacob Gaither returns at quarterback after leading the team in rushing (362 yards, 2 TDs) and finishing tied for tops in the area with 57 pass completions, tied for second with 7

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touchdown tosses, and third in the area with 621 passing yards. He also has back a pair of all-conference receivers in Gehrt and Gusse, with that duo combining for 23 catches for 304 yards and 5 touchdowns this past spring. “Our Class of ’22 has been pretty good throughout the year, so just coming into our senior year, we should be good,” Gaither said. “As long as our chemistry is still there and we still have the plays down, this could be a really good year for us.” “Our running game should be pretty good, but I think our passing will be more of our strong suit,” Gehrt added. “We didn’t really lose much, and I think we’ll play pretty good football with the guys we have coming back.”

Roster No. Name

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos.

Jath St. Pier

5-10

155

Jr. WR/DB

Ryan Ramsdell

5-10

185

Jr. WR/DB

Tyler Shaner

6-0

160

So. QB/DB

Peyton Hale

6-0

195

Sr. WR/DL

12 Hunter Vacek

5-9

155

Jr. RB/LB

13 Ethan Hays

6-0

130

Jr. WR/DB

15 Jacob Gaither

6-3

175

Sr. QB/DB

16 Jacob Gusse

6-4

200 Sr. WR/DB

21 Mason Randick

6-2

180

Sr. WR/DB

23 Zavion Johnson

5-8

130

Sr. RB/DB

25 Brody Potter

6-0

190

Sr. WR/LB

27 Hunter Gehrt

5-10

175

Sr. RB/DL

32 Chance Perales

5-10

145

Jr. WR/DB

33 Trey Scheidegger

5-6

170

Sr. RB/LB

44 Mitchell White

5-8

195

Sr. RB/LB

50 Justin Dallas

6-3

210

Sr. OL/DL

51 Shawn DeVries

5-11

225 Jr. OL/DL

52 Gavin McAlister

6-3

280 Sr. OL/DL

55 Gavin Jensen

6-0

175

58 Johnny Baker

6-0

260 Jr. OL/DL

60 Jace Lenarz

6-4

280 Sr. OL/DL

65 Michael Bivins

6-2

240 Sr. OL/DL

74 Matt Warkins

6-6

300 Jr. OL/DL

75 Dre Jackson

6-0

300 Sr. OL/DL

82 Myles Nally

5-7

135

Jr. OL/DL

Jr. WR/DB

Schedule

Game time Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Fri., Sept. 17, 7 Fri., Sept. 24, 7 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

Opponent Oregon North Boone at Rockford Christian at Stillman Valley Winnebago at Rockford Lutheran Genoa-Kingston Byron at Rock Falls

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Veteran team hungry for wins

Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

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Forreston Mistake-free defense also key for Cards in strong NUIC By ERIC INGLES

eingles@shawmedia.com FORRESTON – The good news for Forreston Cardinals football fans: a dozen seniors return on an experienced squad, including running back Devonte King-Black. In the spring, the Forreston running back averaged 6.1 yards per carry for the Cardinals on 29. The now-graduated Jordan Neuschwander led the team with 595 yards on 50 carries, an average of 11.9 yards every time he took a handoff. Neuschwander is gone, KingBlack is still in Forreston, but the keys to the offense aren’t simply his. With Forreston’s depth at running back, he has to earn his carries. “Really just [have to] work my hardest, get my mind on the position, loving the sport, grinding, staying motivated,” King-Black said. King-Black is one of 12 seniors on the team which is just as packed with talented running backs. If he’s not moving the ball, Cardinals coach Keynon Janicke can call upon Jacob Fiorello or Tommy Appel or Matt Beltran or Quinn Frederick or Carter Daws or Noah Johnson. “We talked about the competition, and how we’re all working toward the same goals,” Janicke said. “There’s still competition within the room. Who wants those reps and who wants to be part of the rotation. We talk about it all the time that it’s OK to be a little nasty during football practice and then shake hands or kiss and make up or whatever you need to do after.” When it comes to how the Cardinals run the football, Janicke is not expecting too many changes. Blocking for those runners is another deep group of veterans on the offensive line. “We have Cole Becker coming back, who was second-team all-conference at tight end,” Janicke said. “Johnny Kobler moving over from guard to tackle. It’s going to be his junior year; he played a lot as a sophomore last year. Casey DeVries, a sophomore who got a lot of time, is now a junior playing center. Mason Fox on the other side. So we have a lot of guys coming back.” Meanwhile on defense, the Cardi-

Photos by Earleen Hinton – ehinton@shawmedia.com

ABOVE: Forreston’s Matthew Beltran (2) dives in for a touchdown against AmboyLaMoille last spring. BELOW: Forreston defenders try to bring down Milledgeville’s Damon Miller during their game March 27.

Roster No. Name 2 3 4 5 7 12 13 20 22 24 27 30 32 33 34 35 38 41 42 43 44 51 54 55 60 61 63 64 65 67 72 74 75 78

Matthew Beltran Jacob Fiorello Noah Johnson McKeon Crase Logan Dyson Cole Becker Devonte King-Black Tommy Appel Quinten Frederick Peyton Encheff Kyler Ganz Brock Smith Owen Mulder Micah Nelson Jace Engbert Carter Daws Alex Ryia Tymon Runkle Andrew Wells Kaleb Sanders Ethan Scaman Ethan Bocker Casey DeVries Braydon Altherr Colin Kuhn Austin Kochsmier Johnny Kobler Joe Snyder Grant Johnson Mason Fox Rees Zipse Drew Dieterman Devin Garcia Alex Milnes Zac Shuman

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos. 6-2 5-7 5-10 5-7 5-7 6-4 6-0 5-10 5-11 6-1 5-11 6-3 5-11 5-10 6-0 5-11 5-9 5-8 6-3 5-8 5-11 6-1 6-0 5-9 6-0 5-9 6-3 6-2 6-3 6-5 6-4 5-11 5-10 5-11 6-0

190 140 205 145 155 200 195 175 170 175 180 185 160 170 145 180 145 145 175 160 190 220 215 175 180 250 240 230 240 240 245 275 300 190 260

Sr. Sr. Sr. Jr. Sr. Sr. Sr. Sr. Jr. Jr. Jr. Jr. So. So. Jr. Sr. So. So. So. So. Sr. So. Jr. Sr. Jr. Jr. Jr. Sr. So. Sr. So. Jr. Jr. Jr. So.

Schedule

Game time Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Fri., Sept. 17, 7 Fri., Sept 24, 7 Sat., Oct. 2, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Sat., Oct. 16, 3 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

nals have the speed to swarm to a ballcarrier. The last full season that was played in 2019, Forreston allowed 19.9 points per game, but those numbers were inflated considerably in losses to Aquin and Lena-Winslow, and a shootout win over West Carroll. Over the first five weeks of the season, all Forreston wins, the Cardinals allowed a total of 44 points. “It’s looking pretty good,” Daws said. “We’ve got a few things to work on, but I think we’re doing pretty good.” Fiorello and Appel at cornerback

and Beltran and Logan Dyson at safety will supply a lot of that speed in the secondary. Up front, KingBlack will bring some of his speed as an edge rusher. “We want to try our best to play mistake-free defense,” Janicke said. “But even if we are making mistakes, as long as we’re being fast and more physical, that will usually cover some things up. As long as we’re doing that, we’re going to be doing well.” “Our defense is aggressive,” KingBlack said. “We’re smart, fast, strong. We’re just going to blow [things] up.”

RB/DB RB/DB RB/LB RB/DB QB/DB TE/LB RB/LB RB/DB RB/LB RB/DB TE/LB QB/DB RB/LB RB/DB RB/DB RB/LB QB/DB RB/DB TE/LB RB/DB RB/LB OL/DL OL/DL TE/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/LB OL/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL

Opponent Stockton at Durand-Pectonica at Eastland-Pearl City Dakota at Galena East Dubuque at Fulton Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley at Lena-Winslow

GOOD LUCK Forreston Cardinals! 505 W. IL Rt. 64 Lanark, IL

(815) 493-2181

SHAW MEDIA Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Lots of depth in ground game

Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

SHAW MEDIA

Preseason All-Area Team Sauk Valley Media picks 24 players to watch this fall Portraits by Alex T. Paschal Alex Anderson

Alejandro Arellano

Justice Brainerd

Brennen Cook

Morrison • Sr. • RB/DB

Sterling • Sr. • OL/DL

Morrison • Sr. • RB/DL

Newman • Sr. • RB/LB

Booker Cross

Justin Dallas

Junior Farnham

Jacob Gaither

Rock Falls • Sr. • RB/LB

Dixon • Sr. • OL/DL

Sterling • Sr. • HB/DL

Dixon • Sr. • QB/DB

Hunter Gehrt

Jacob Gusse

Kellen Henze

Drew Kested

Dixon • Sr. • RB/DL

Dixon • Sr. • WR/DB

Eastland-P.C. • Sr. • QB/DB

Sterling • Sr. • QB/DB

Sauk Valley Media picks 24 players to watch this fall Portraits by Alex T. Paschal

Devonte King-Black

Tucker Lindenmeyer

Brock Mason

Owen McBride

Forreston • Sr. • RB/LB

Amboy • Jr. • QB/DB

Fulton • Sr. • E/DB

Newman • Sr. • TE/DB

Blake Nettleton

Wayde Reimer

Will Rude

Dillon Schueler

Sterling • Sr. • HB/DB

Polo • Sr. • OL/DL

Newman • Sr. • RB/DL

Rock Falls • Sr. • RB/LB

Gavin Sigel

Colton Stahl

Keegan VanKampen

Ethan Van Landuit

Eastland-P.C. • Sr. • OL/DL

Milledgeville • Sr. • OL/DL

Fulton • Sr. • RB/LB

Newman • Sr. • RB/LB

SHAW MEDIA Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Preseason All-Area Team

Erie-Prophetstown

Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

SHAW MEDIA

EP has experience, weapons By ERIC INGLES

eingles@shawmedia.com ERIE – The Erie-Prophetstown defense this fall sees a lot of experience in the linebacking corps, but not much up front. The Panthers return all of the starters from the shortened spring season at linebacker, moving some around, but are looking for people to step up to fill in for some now-graduated defensive linemen. Defensively, the Panthers have been looking strong when everyone’s on the same page, coach Jesse Abbott said. The key is going to be doing that and playing fast. “Up front, it’s going to be D-line, linebackers just understanding what their job is game to game,” Abbott said. “Being able to just play fast and play physical.” The defensive line has three big interior players, including Clay Hockaday and Jaeson Gaylord, who did not play in the spring. Joining them up front is returning senior Elijah Friedrichsen. Jacob Otten is in line to start at defensive end, but there is a job opening at the other end spot. “We’ve got to fill in the other one with a couple guys who I think are very capable, Nick Ballard and Jason Johnson,” Abbott said. “It’s just going to be probably a rotational thing. We don’t have a lot of depth, so when we can get some rest for guys, it’s going to be pretty big.” Abbott feels the strength of the defense will be at linebacker, where all four starters return. “We had to move one kid to a different position, but otherwise three of our four are in the same position as last year,” Abbott said. “That’s going to be big.” On offense, quarterback Kolby Franks is back, and offers the Panthers a dual threat with his ability to both throw and run. Behind Franks is a large cast of running backs who are all capable of stepping in and making plays. “It just opens up the playbook more and it gives us more opportunities to get at the defense,” Franks said. “It allows us to create more sets out of things. It’s more to our advantage.” Abbott plans to use Franks in shotgun more often this fall, rarely putting him under center in hopes

.Shaw Media file photo

Erie-Prophetstown has plenty of experience back on defense this season, especially at linebacker. that spreading things out more will be a better use to the athletic ability on the field. Franks should see plenty of chances to run the ball, as will Connor Sibley and Jase Grunder. “One of the things we’ve preached, we did a little of it in the spring, is to have our guys understand that we might not have a 1,000-yard rusher, we might not have a 15-touchdown kid, but we might have four guys with 500 yards,” Abbott said. “We might have five different guys catch

passes. That’s something we sold to them in the spring, sold to them in the summer, and we’re seeing the benefits of that right now. They understand how each thing they do is important to the other guy.” Paving the way is a Panthers offensive line that has the senior presence of Otten and Mason Misfeldt. “We’re looking pretty good,” senior center Max Vahle said. “We’re coming together pretty good, feeling good. We’re all family.”

Roster No. Name

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos.

Tyler Ballard

5-9

140

Jr. RB/DB

Jack Minssen

6-0

165

Jr. QB/DB

Kolby Franks

6-2

160

Sr. QB/DB

Trevor Cobo

6-0

155

Sr. WR/DB

Braxton Froeliger

6-1

160

Sr. WR/DB

15 Mason Misfeldt

6-1

180

Sr. RB/LB

21 Corey Barnes Jr.

5-10

155

Sr. WR/LB

23 Trevor Dennison

5-10

170

Jr. WR/LB

24 Hunter Bruketta

6-1

160

Jr. TE/LB

25 Hayden Sumner

5-10

165

Jr. WR/DB

31 Jase Grunder

5-7

150

Jr. RB/LB

34 Connor Sibley

6-0

190

Sr. RB/LB

44 Jacob Johnson

6-0

195

Sr. TE/DL

47 Tommy Fajardo

6-2

170

Sr. TE/LB

51 Jaesan Gaylord

6-2

275

Sr. OL/DL

52 Max Vahle

6-0

230

Sr. OL/DL

65 Jacob Otten

5-9

180

Sr. OL/DL

70 Keegan DeBrackeleire 5-8

175

Jr. OL/DL

74 Clay Hockaday

6-3

295

Jr. OL/DL

75 Nick Ballard

6-5

220

Sr. OL/DL

78 Elijah Friedrichsen

6-4

280

Sr. OL/DL

81 Tucker Jepson

6-0

180

Sr. TE/LB

Game time Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Fri., Sept. 17, 7 Fri., Sept 24, 7 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

O D L U CK O G

GOOD LUCK TEAMS!

1245 N. Galena Ave., Dixon, IL SM-ST1906101

815-284-2052

Area Teams

Have a great season!

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Opponent at Mendota St. Bede at Sherrard Rockridge at Orion Riverdale at Bureau Valley at Monmouth-Roseville Morrison

Good Luck To All Area Teams!

www.rockriverag.com SM-ST1907902

Eastland-Pearl City By ERIC INGLES

eingles@shawmedia.com LANARK – The key to a successful 2021 for the Eastland-Pearl City Wildcatz on offense will be getting the ground game moving. The key for the Wildcatz on defense will be stopping other teams from getting their ground game moving. On both sides of the ball, that’s going to begin in the trenches. “I’ve seen a lot of guys on our defensive line that have really stepped up and made a lot of improvements from last year, like Christian Fischer, Riley Schauer, Gavin Sigel, Paul Sturtevant, Mason Brenner, all those guys,” EPC wide receiver and cornerback Jaxson Sturtevant said. “It makes our jobs a lot easier with those guys on the line. They stop a lot and don’t let a lot through.” On the offensive side of things, Fischer is part of a group that brings a lot of size. “Just talk to each other, make sure everybody is figuring everything out,” Fischer said. The running game will focus on a trio of backs, with Maddux Hayden, Thomas Owens and Cody Cole. Schauer also will have a chance to carry the ball. “Whoever has the hot hand will be the guy we put back there,” EPC coach Jared McNutt said. In the shortened spring season, it was a quarterback who led the Wildcatz in rushing. Kellen Henze had 66 carries for 307 yards and three touchdowns as the Wildcatz went 2-4. “I’m really excited. I think we’ll be

Shaw Media file photos

EPC quarterback Kellen Henze sets to throw a pass against Amboy during their game this past spring in Freeport. really solid this year,” Henze said. “We’ve got a lot of playmakers all around and our line is pretty solid up front. That will open up our run game which, in turn, will open up our passing game.” On the defensive side of things, both Sigel and Fischer are near the 300-pound mark, making them hard for opposing offensive lines to move. Brenner has experience at both linebacker and on the defensive line, where Schauer has been a starter since his sophomore year. McNutt sees a group built to stop the run. “I think, hopefully, we’re going to be physical,” McNutt said. “We’re going to have to be to be successful.”

GOOD LUCK EPC Wildcatz!

505 W. IL Rt. 64 Lanark, IL

(815) 493-2181

Good Luck To All Area Schools! Thomson 815-259-2455

www.stsb4u.com

Mt. Carroll 815-244-2261

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Your Hometown Friend Savanna 815-273-2261

No. Name 1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 14 15 20 21 22 24 27 28 29 31 43 44 45 52 55 61 63 66 68 69 70 76 77 79 84 85

Cole Huber Carsen Heeren Jaxson Sturtevant Brady Sweitzer Kellen Henze Weston Gronewold Ethan Petta Owen Rogers Max McCullough Tyson Clark Logan Freier Oliver Petta Thomas Owens Shay Schramm Donovan Kuhlemier Riley Schauer Levi Burkholder Cody Cole Maddux Hayden Joe Dinderman Evan Rausch Mason Brenner Tanner Perdue Levi Sheffey Lathan Mister Gavin Sigel Riley McKenna Paul Sturtevant Christian Fischer Carter Piquette Cade Monks Lowden Preston Jayden Downs Austin Sundquist

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos. 5-6 6-1 6-0 5-10 6-0 5-9 5-7 6-2 6-1 6-2 5-5 5-7 5-11 5-10 6-1 6-0 5-11 5-7 5-11 5-9 6-2 5-9 5-9 6-4 6-3 6-3 5-9 5-9 5-11 5-6 5-11 6-3 6-2 6-2

150 160 170 160 180 160 145 175 160 180 130 160 215 145 165 195 165 170 185 180 190 195 175 245 240 340 165 216 300 215 220 280 200 205

So. Jr. Sr. So. Sr. So. Fr. Sr. Jr. Sr. So. Sr. Sr. Sr. Jr. Sr. Jr. Jr. Jr. Jr. Sr. Sr. Jr. Jr. So. Sr. Sr. Sr. Sr. So. Jr. Sr. So. Sr.

Schedule

QB/DB QB/DB WR/DB RB/DB QB/DB WR/LB WR/DB WR/DB QB/DB WR/DB WR/LB WR/DB RB/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/LB RB/DB RB/LB RB/LB WR/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL TE/LB TE/LB

Game time Opponent Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Lena-Winslow (at Lanark) Fri., Sept. 3, 7 at Stockton Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Forreston (at Lanark) Fri., Sept. 17, 7 Durand-Pecatonica (at PC) Fri., Sept 24, 7 at Dakota Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Galena (at PC) Fri., Oct. 8, 7 at East Dubuque Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fulton (at PC) Sat., Oct. 23, 1 at Walther Christian

Good Luck EPC Wildcatz!

Savanna-Thomson State Bank

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Roster

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26208 U.S. Hwy 52 • Lanark, IL 61046 (815) 493-2191 • SLOANS.COM

SHAW MEDIA Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

’Catz look to run, stop the run

Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

SHAW MEDIA

• AMBOY

Continued from page 10 It will be the first “regular” season for second-year head coach Scott Payne. The 1997 Amboy graduate took over last summer for Hall of Fame coach Gary “Tank” Jones, but saw his first season moved to the spring and shortened because of the pandemic. He’s done his homework, though, contacting some 8-man coaches in Iowa to pick their brains. “I think there will be a little bit of adjustment; 8-man seems like it’s more of a speed game. But as far as offense and defense goes, we’re going to do the same thing,” Payne said. “Last winter I started talking to a couple of coaches from Iowa, and they said whatever you’re good at, just stay with that and don’t try to switch everything. We’re Amboy, so we’re going to stay in the I and we’re going to run the ball. That’s what we want to do.” The speed of the game is something the players are looking forward to. “I think it’s going to be a really fast game, and I think it’s going to really fit our team,” Joe Quest said. “We’re more of a ground-and-pound team, and with only one layer of defense behind the line, I think we’re going to be able to score some touchdowns this year. We’ve got a few running backs that can step in at the 2-back this year,

and they’re pretty quick, so I think it’s really going to fit well in 8-man.” Jordan Gulley is one of the players in the mix to replace graduated all-conference running back Sean Fitzpatrick, and he’s excited to see what the Clippers can do on both sides of the ball. “We’re in a new league and playing a new style, but I think we’re going to have a pretty decent season,” Gulley said. “It’s supposed to be a really high-scoring style, so it should be fun. I’m excited for that, and we’re just going to stick to Amboy football, with a couple pass plays here and there. It’s going to be pretty much the same. “Defensively, Coach is telling us every day that we need to be the best tackling team in the state, and we’re working hard at that everyday.” Along with the Power I offense, a hard-nosed defense has also been Amboy’s calling card. Payne and the Clippers see that continuing, and they’ve put in a lot of work on one-onone tackling in the open field and man-to-man coverage down the field. But with more numbers in the first season of 8-man than the final year if 11-man – there are 10 more players in the program now than at the end of last spring – the Clippers hope to be able to rotate more players into the lineup and have fewer of them play both ways, leaving them fresher for the fourth quarter. And with more 8-man experience

Photos by Alex T. Paschal – apaschal@shawmedia.com

Amboy-LaMoille’s Jordan Gulley runs through drills with his team Aug. 10 at Amboy High School. than some of their opponents because of last year’s JV schedule, it should be full steam ahead for the Clippers. “I’m pretty excited. Hopefully we’ll be able to step up another notch in the 8-man game and do really well this season, and I think we’re going to be pretty good,” senior Caden Wittenauer said. “We’re kind of picking up from the JV coaches on a few things here and there … and once we get into the season, we’ll watch more film and pick some more things up and just keep getting better.”

Schedule

Game time Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Fri., Sept. 17, 7 Sat., Sept 25, 2 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Sat., Oct. 16, 1 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

Opponent Peoria Heights at Milledgeville Polo West Central at Milford-C.P. at Hiawatha AFC at Orangeville at Alden-Hebron

Community is More Than Part of Our Name. Good luck to all area teams on your upcoming season!

Dixon • Fulton • Morrison • Rock Falls • Sterling www.commstbk.com

Fulton

Steamers have plenty of experience heading into fall season By ERIC INGLES

eingles@shawmedia.com The new guys in the NUIC are bringing with them a lot of experience on the offensive line, with plenty of three-year starters sprinkled throughout what last year proved to be a tough defense. Fulton’s defense allowed a total of 26 points in its first four games of the spring – all wins, including a shutout of rival Morrison in the last Wooden Shoe game for a while. That defensive dominance came to an end in a season-ending loss to Princeton, but the Steamers feel there is a lot to build on defensively in the NUIC. “We’re a fast team this year,” senior defensive back Brock Mason said. “I think we’re going to be fast to get to the ball, flying around the field making tackles.” Mason is one of a trio of threeyear starters on defense, along with linebacker Keegan Vankampen and defensive lineman Kole Schipper “Those are the guys we’re looking for in leadership, but you’ve also got other guys that played last year,” Steamers coach Patrick Lower said. “We’re going to just keep building off what we did last year.” Mason takes on more of the load offensively at wide receiver this year, as well as taking on more responsibility on defense. His coach is looking to see more consistency in hopes Mason will be ready for everything the team is throwing at him. On the offensive line, the Steam-

Steve Sieken – SVM file photo

The Fulton Steamers gather around the Wooden Shoe trophy after beating rival Morrison 56-0 this past spring in Morrison. Despite losing their star quarterback and a few other key players, the Steamers still have plenty of experience on defense and the offensive line heading into their first season in the NUIC. ers have to replace the entire right side of the line after the graduations of Nate Portz and Josh Huizenga, but bring back the other three starters in Schipper, Joey Huizenga and Zach Dykstra. To fill the right tackle and right guard roles, three players are in a fight for two starting spots. At quarterback, Lower didn’t have to look far to find a replacement for the graduated Connor Barnett, handing the ball to his son, Patrick. The younger Lower has big shoes to fill after Barnett completed 57 of 83 passes for 904 yards and 10 touchdowns in the abbreviated spring season, leading the Steamers to a 4-1 record and earning him SVM Player of the Year honors. His successor is

benefitting from many of the things Barnett figured out in the spring. “I think a lot of what Connor did last year was he taught me more about the mental game, knowing what’s coming in pass coverages, what the defense is going to be in,” he said. “I learned a lot from him last year, and I hope to use that and make myself even better this year.” The senior quarterback sees a lot of versatility with Fulton’s offense, with Mason looming on the edge as a receiving target and plenty of options in the running game. “We can run the ball inside and outside. We can throw shallow. We can throw deep,” he said. “I’m just excited to get going.”

Keegan VanKampen Brock Mason Payton Curley Patrick Lower Brayden Dykstra Endi Qunaj Jacob Jones Davis Ludin Conner Sheridan Carson Wherry Trevor Tiesman Ethan Price Drake Pessman Kole Schipper Baylen Damhoff Cameron Glazier Lukas Schroeder Joel Ford Ryan Eads Ben Fosdick Caleb Rice James Crimmins Zach Dykstra Joey Huizenga Zane Pannell Kole Schipper Chris Carroll Braiden Damhoff Connor Howard Isaac McWilliams Elijah Stillings Robert Sheckler Dawson Christiansen Keegan Lubinski

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos. 6-1 6-0 5-7 6-3 5-10 5-7 6-1 5-10 5-10 5-8 5-7 6-2 6-1 6-0 6-6 5-9 6-0 5-10 5-8 5-5 6-0 5-10 5-9 6-2 5-8 6-2 6-1 6-0 6-1 6-0 6-2 5-10 6-0 6-0

220 190 140 185 160 150 170 155 150 120 125 170 160 160 175 170 170 170 140 140 165 160 170 220 170 225 200 250 195 235 190 240 260 230

Sr. Sr. Jr. Sr. Jr. Jr. Sr. Sr. Jr. Jr. So. Jr. Jr. Jr. So. Sr. Jr. Jr. Jr. Jr. So. So. Sr. Sr. Jr. Sr. So. Jr. Sr. So. Jr. Jr. Jr. So.

Schedule

Game time Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Sat., Sept. 18, 2 Fri., Sept 24, 7 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

Sterling 2707 W. Lincolnway 815-625-7240

SM-ST1907913

Prophetstown 412 Washington St. 815-537-5151

RB/LB E/DB E/DB QB/DB QB/DB K RB/LB E/DB E/DB E/DB RB/DB E/LB E/DL E/LB E/LB E/DL RB/DL RB/LB RB/DB RB/LB RB/LB RB/LB OL/LB OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL

Opponent at Galena East Dubuque Durand-Pecatonica at Madison (IL) Lena-Winslow at Stockton Forreston at Eastland-Pearl City Dakota

Frary Lumber SM-ST1907395

724 North Brinton Avenue, Dixon, IL 61021

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 9 10 12 13 17 19 21 22 23 30 33 34 43 45 48 51 54 55 56 58 60 63 66 67 69 74 75

Good Luck To The Fulton Steamers, Sterling Warriors, and Erie-Prophetstown Panthers!

Meghan G. Crisham, D.D.S. Michael L. Brechon, D.D.S. Shailee S. Patel, D.D.S www.dentistdixon.com

815-288-4731

No. Name

Fulton 915 Second St. 815-589-3100

SHAW MEDIA Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Full steam ahead in Fulton

Roster

Milledgeville

Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

SHAW MEDIA

Flexibility, versatility for Missiles

No. Name

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos.

Izaac Toms-Smith

5-10

175

Sr. QB/LB

Connor Nye

5-11

165

So. QB/LB

10 Kieren Harris

6-3

200

Sr. TE/LB

11 Bryce Aude

5-10

135

Jr. WR/CB

14 Kacen Johnson

5-11

150

Jr. RB/CB

16 Payton Sarber

5-8

170

Sr. RB/LB

22 Ashton Nobis

5-8

150

Sr. RB/LB

24 Colton Hendrick

6-2

155

So. TE/CB

26 Kolton Wilk

6-0

155

Jr. RB/LB

32 Tristan Green

5-11

160

So. RB/LB

33 Andrew Lapp

5-8

155

Sr. RB/LB

35 Bryce McKenna

5-7

135

So. TE/LB

40 Dimetri Garza

5-8

150

Sr. RB/LB

48 Micah Toms-Smith

5-7

165

Fr. TE/DE

50 Cayden Akers

5-11

170

Jr. TE/DL

52 Bruce Raymond

5-9

235

So. OL/DL

54 Dalton Adamec

6-0

200

Fr. OL/DL

55 Tyson Helfrich

6-2

230

Sr. OL/DL

59 Jacob Promenschenkel 5-10

200

So. OL/DL

Milledgeville’s Gage Wilk runs the ball during practice Aug. 16. The Missiles are spreading things out a little more this fall as they make the move to 8-man football.

63 Eric Ebersole

5-10

175

Jr. OL/DL

64 Wyatt Meiners

5-4

125

So. RB/LB

“In 8-man, we’re able to spread out more,” Toms-Smith said. “Because we have guys fighting for starting positions, it feels like we’re into it more, and we have flexibility at every position. We’re having a lot of fun with it, and I think we’re going to have a good time this season.” But with the fun, there’s still a lot of hard work going on. The switch to 8-man means not just installing new plays, but learning how to run the offense and the defense with three fewer players on the field. “We’ve just got to keep our heads down and keep grinding. We’ve got a great group of guys out here, so I feel like that as long as all of us just do our jobs, we’ll be fine,” Payton Sarber said. “We’ve got a lot of talent around the field. As long as we keep

68 Blake Marruffo

5-9

230

Fr. OL/DL

75 Blake Schurman

6-3

260

Sr. OL/DL

76 Colton Stahl

6-3

290

Sr. OL/DL

80 Landon Frederick

5-10

150

Fr. TE/LB

82 Gage Wilk

6-1

180

Sr. TE/DL

Team preparing for first season of 8-man style of play By TY REYNOLDS

treynolds@shawmedia.com After winning a few close games with big plays on both sides of the ball during a 4-2 run through the spring season, the Milledgeville football team comes into the fall of 2021 with some confidence. A switch to 8-man football isn’t tempering that enthusiasm at all – in fact, it might even be stoking it. “It’s fun,” senior Izaac TomsSmith said. “We’re having a good time with it.” The biggest thing the Missiles have noticed is depth. It’s something the team has struggled with the past several seasons, but the move to 8-man has eliminated that issue. “It’s a huge change. If this team was playing 11-man, I’d be very concerned depth-wise; we’d have just enough varsity guys for a line and a couple guys vying for a few spots in the backfield,” head coach Jason Wroble said. “But now that we’re in 8-man ... it allows us more options. I feel like we have a lot of skill players who can step in and hopefully that level of competition pushes everyone to be better.” It’s not just flexibility in the starting rotation that the move has afforded Milledgeville. Now with players competing for fewer spots, there are also more possibilities at those spots. Instead of being forced to line up and run the ball most of the time, Wroble can pick which personnel he wants on the field and play to that group’s strengths with his formations and play calls.

Alex T. Paschal – apaschal@shawmedia.com

doing our thing, I think we’ll have a good season.” Defense is where Milledgeville’s players know they have to play their best every Friday night. That’s where the confidence honed from making big game-winning plays on that side of the ball this past spring will come into play the most. “There’s a lot less field, but at the same time there’s more room to run, it feels like – and that means defense is going to be a little harder this year than last year,” Ashton Nobis said. “Open-field tackling and rallying to the ball are going to be big. You can’t just have one person trying to tackle the ball carrier, we need to have the whole team, because if he gets by that one person, he could be in the end zone.”

GOOD LUCK Milledgeville Missiles! 18 E. 4th St. Milledgeville, IL (815) 225-7151 Good Luck To The Milledgeville Missiles! SM-ST1907896

Roster

Schedule

Game time Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Fri., Sept. 17, 7 Fri., Sept 24, 7 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

Opponent at Polo Amboy River Ridge at Blue Ridge Alden-Hebron Orangeville at Aquin at AFC South Beloit

O D L U CK O G

GOOD LUCK TEAMS!

Area Teams

Have a great season!

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Mustangs’ backfield full of state-caliber sprinters By ERIC INGLES

eingles@shawmedia.com Steve Snider comes to Morrison finding a team ready to run. The speed that Morrison teams have been able to show off and rely on in recent years is still there, and Snider is excited to be able to tap into it. “I think we’re really going to run the ball well,” Snider said. “We’ve got a backfield with a lot of track guys and some wrestling guys that are tough, physical runners, and fast too. You look at Alex Anderson, Justice Brainerd, they’re two of our backfield guys and they were both on the 4x400 relay that took fourth in the state in June. Tommy Dauphin, he’s another track guy, a 200 and 100 runner. Kayden White and Logan Baker are both wrestlers.” Snider comes to Morrison from Orangeville, where he joined the staff as an assistant coach in 2013, then took over as head coach for the spring season in 2021, going 2-4. He was able to install most of the offense during summer work with the Mustangs. “The playbook is different and we’re learning it,” Anderson said. “I think we’re picking up on it pretty quick.” With so much speed on the field, Snider said he will be able to rotate players a lot more, keeping fresh legs on the field and allowing each player to make plays where they can excel. While much of the speed is back, the Mustangs do have a new quarterback, as Danny Mouw takes over after Nathan Helms graduated. “You look at him and you don’t think Brett Favre, you don’t think Aaron Rodgers,” Snider said. “He’s not a tall guy or anything like that, but he might be the most respected guy in the locker room.” With Mouw taking a leadership role on offense, Anderson and Baker have that role on defense as the Mustangs’ free safety and strong safety. “The safeties in our defense make all the calls, do everything in the huddle,” Snider said. “They walked out there from Day 1 and they listen

SVM photos

ABOVE: Morrison coach Steve Snider (right) watches as the Mustangs go through a drill during practice Aug. 11. In his first year at Morrison, Snider inherits a speedy stable of Mustangs. BELOW: Morrison’s Alex Anderson tries to pull away from a Newman tackler during their game this past spring at Roscoe Eades Stadium.

Roster No. Name 2 4 6 7 8 9 10 12 13 14 15 16 17 20 21 22 23 25 28 31 33 34 50 51 52 56 59 60 63 65 70 71 73 74 75 81 88

Danny Mouw Alex Anderson Chase Newman Kayden White Blake Adams Justice Brainerd Logan Baker Blaze Hicks Daeshaun McQueen Karder White Jason Hall Colton Bielema Cooper Bush Camden Pruis Brayden Swaim Anthony Cook Carson Strating Donny Reavy Andre McQueen Gavin Streets-Wood Evin Banks Thomas Dauphin Evan McDonnell Braxton Houzenga Aries Cross Cameron McDonnell Nate Schafer Landon Cook Skyler Everhart Afton Eyrich Aaron Freeman Carver Findley Tyler Shambaugh Austin Boonstra Beau Brackemeyer Adam Helms Trey Strating Aiden Dolieslager Joshua Hemminger Zach Milder

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos. 5-9 6-0 6-0 6-0 6-2 6-2 5-9 5-10 5-10 5-7 5-6 5-10 6-1 5-8 5-9 6-1 6-0 5-8 6-3 5-10 5-2 6-0 6-0 6-0 5-6 5-11 6-4 5-11 5-10 6-0 6-3 5-9 6-3 5-4 6-3 5-7 6-4 6-0 5-8 5-8

140 160 140 180 170 200 155 135 155 130 150 130 145 140 185 180 185 140 185 140 90 180 200 220 145 195 225 205 220 245 235 190 330 235 210 135 180 150 170 140

Schedule

and they learn and they do everything right, and that gets the attention of their teammates.” Defense was one of the keys to the Mustangs’ resurgence a few years ago. When Morrison reached the quarterfinals in 2019, the Mustangs allowed a total of 81 points in 12 games, shutting out Fulton, Bureau Valley and Erie-Prophetstown in the span of four weeks and holding six other teams under 10 points. In the spring season, Morrison opened the campaign with a shutout win over Riverdale and held Newman to 14 points a couple of weeks later, but also allowed 34 points in a loss to Rockridge and 56 in a loss to Fulton. Anderson said a big key on defense is the size up front. “It’s a lot of big guys,” defensive

lineman Tyler Shambaugh said. “A lot of guys have been playing since sophomore year, a few since freshman year, so it should be pretty good.” On defense, Snider brings in a philosophy of using non-contact tackling drills in practice, saving the hits for Friday nights while keeping players fresh later in the year. “There’s always doubters that say you can’t do it that way, there’s always the old-school coaches that [think] you have to beat on guys day after day,” Snider said. “Especially at a small school – I came from an even smaller school [Orangeville] – we don’t want to get beat down. We’re going to work on our form every single day, but we’re not going to beat on each other.”

Game time Sat., Aug. 28, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Fri., Sept. 17, 7 Fri., Sept 24, 7 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

Jr. Sr. So. Sr. So. Sr. Jr. Jr. So. So. So. Fr. Fr. So. Sr. So. So. Fr. Sr. Fr. So. Sr. So. Sr. Fr. So. Sr. Fr. Sr. So. Sr. Sr. Sr. Fr. Sr. Fr. Sr. Sr. Fr. Fr.

QB/DB RB/DB RB/DB RB/LB WR/LB RB/DL RB/DB WR/DB RB/DB RB/DB TE/LB QB/DB TE/LB RB/DB TE/LB TE/LB RB/LB RB/DB WR/DB TE/DL WR/DB RB/LB OL/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL RB/DB TE/LB WR/DB OL/DL RB/DB

Opponent at Newman Kewanee Monmouth-Roseville at Hall at Sherrard Rockridge at Orion Riverdale at Erie-Prophetstown

SHAW MEDIA Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Morrison New coach, same speed

Newman

Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

SHAW MEDIA

Sticking with what’s working By ERIC INGLES

eingles@shawmedia.com There are a lot of newer faces and younger players in camp for the Newman Comets this spring. Most of them should be familiar with the playbook, though, since it’s the same one Newman has been using for years. Not looking to change anything from a system that helped bring the Comets another Class 2A state championship in 2019, Newman is sticking with what has always worked with a hard-nosed rushing attack. “Ground and pound,” senior Brennen Cook said. “We’re going to run the ball, we’re going to run up the middle like we always do. We’re going to run Blue Machine football.” The list of exactly who will be doing the running is a long one, as coach Brandon Kreczmer will again go with the committee approach. The starting quarterback job is also up for grabs, with several players in the mix. It also helps to have such a large group of backs, since Newman has a fairly small group overall. Having multiple players who can step in means others can catch their breath for a play or two. “We have a plethora of running backs we can plug in,” Kreczmer said. “The nice thing about that is they all do something different. We’ve got guys that can get us 30 yards, we’ve got guys that can break it.” That run-first scheme serves the Comets well in other ways. Several

Photos by Alex T. Paschal – apaschal@shawmedia.com

Newman’s Brennen Cook pulls in a pass for a big gain against Princeton this past spring of their postseason games in 2019 saw Newman put together long clock-killing drives late in the game, depriving the opposing offense of a chance to answer while also giving Newman’s defense a chance to rest. “I’m a defensive guy, but our offense is our best defense,” Kreczmer said. “The longer we keep the ball out of the other team’s hands, it makes our job easier on defense.” And even the defense is benefiting from having the same playbook year after year, as new players can come into the high school program already knowing where they need

to be and what they need to do each play. “We’ve always run the same defense since we were little, built from the ground up,” Cook said. “It’s always been the same, and we’re just trying to help them along. They’re doing pretty good.” In the trenches, the Comets will be young. On the offensive line there is just one returning starter from the spring season in Garrett Williams. Elliot Noble, another senior, will step into one of the other starting spots this fall as the center.

See NEWMAN, page 25

Luck Of The Irish

Roster No. Name 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 20 21 22 25 30 31 33 34 35 36 40 41 42 43 44 45 50 51 52 53 54 55 60 63 66 68 75 76 81 83 85 86

Mason Glaudel JJ Castle Rhett Oetting Cody Donna Hunter Luyando Ayden Batten Mario Passini Jacob Donald Mac Hanrahan Brennen Cook Carter Rude Blake Holbrook Ethan Van Landuit Owen McBride Marcus Williams Cameron Dugger Gabe Padilla Austin Van Landuit Jared Carney Will Rude Quinten Williams Isiah Williams Nolan Britt Colin Messer Logan Hermeyer Hayden Witt Elliot Noble Dylan Garland Chris Accardi Trenten Hicks Caleb Donna Dax Snyder Nick Nardini Garrett Williams Adam Morgan Chad Haley Drew Scott Jaesen Johns Alex Rodriguez Ethan Preuss Brady Grennan

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos. 6-0 6-1 5-3 6-2 5-10 6-0 5-8 6-1 6-0 6-0 5-8 5-6 6-0 5-11 6-0 6-1 5-7 5-11 5-8 5-7 5-9 6-1 5-10 5-11 6-2 6-1 5-8 5-10 5-10 5-10 5-10 5-8 6-3 5-11 5-9 5-11 6-2 5-11 5-11 6-3 5-4

160 180 122 175 190 165 150 175 165 190 150 150 200 165 205 180 170 160 120 150 170 155 160 130 165 290 170 170 180 155 175 220 210 270 240 275 190 160 150 151 135

Sr. Jr. Sr. Sr. Jr. Jr. Sr. Sr. So. Sr. So. Jr. Sr. Sr. Sr. Jr. Jr. So. Sr. Sr. So. So. Jr. So. Jr. Sr. Sr. Jr. So. Sr. So. So. So. Jr. Jr. So. Jr. Jr. Sr. Sr. So.

Schedule

Game time Sat., Aug. 28, 7 Fri., Oct. 3, 7 Sat., Oct. 11, 7 Fri., Sept. 17, 7 Fri., Sept. 24, 7 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

Opponent Morrison at Rockridge Orion at St. Bede Bureau Valley at Princeton Hall at Mendota Kewanee

Good Luck Newman Comets!

To All Area High School Football Teams!

218 21 8 Lo Locust st S St. t. S Sterling terlin te in www.kellysinc.com 625-7969 (for carryout)

Dixon Glass

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RB/DE QB/LB RB/DB QB/DB RB/LB QB/DB WR/DB TE/K E/CB RB/LB QB/DB RB/LB RB/LB TE/DB RB/LB RB/LB RB/LB RB/LB RB/DB RB/DL RB/LB E/DB RB/DB E/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL TE/LB TE/LB TE/DL TE/DL RB/CB

414 W. 1st St., Dixon 815-288-3000

• NEWMAN

Continued from page 24

SHAW MEDIA Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

On defense, the Comets still have a strong weapon in Will Rude, who in the short spring campaign had 11 tackles with seven tackles for loss. “He uses his quickness, wreaks havoc like he’s done the last couple of years,” Kreczmer said. “He played a little bit as a sophomore on the state team, and played really well for us last year.” Other than Rude, there are plenty of players who could end up slotting into the other roles. “Everyone’s flying to the ball,” linebacker Ethan Van Landuit said. “Everyone knows their assignments.” Van Landuit has been a starter since his sophomore year, and has emerged this fall as a team leader on defense. Cook will also return at outside linebacker and Marcus Williams, a defensive lineman in the spring, will move back to linebacker. “The new guys are physical, smart, they fly to the ball,” Van Landuit said. “We’re trying to teach these guys everything we know from the guys that were above us. Read your keys, know your assignments and follow the ball.” A couple of weeks into practice, Kreczmer would like his team to be a bit further along, but overall he likes where the Comets are at. “Offense, defense, special teams, I think right now we’re where we should be,” he said.

Photos by Alex T. Paschal – apaschal@shawmedia.com

St. Bede’s Luke Story is pulled down in the backfield by Newman’s Ethan Van Landuit during their game this past spring

Good Luck

Newman Comets Rock Falls Rockets SterlingWarriors Dixon Dukes

and all other surrounding area football teams!

Angelo’s 625-5163

Angelo’s Delivery 625-5000

SM-ST1908029

Angelo’s II 625-5451

Angelo’s III 285-0055

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Oregon

Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

SHAW MEDIA

Defense, chemistry are key On defense, team will rely on tried-and-true blueprint By TY REYNOLDS

treynolds@shawmedia.com The strength of Oregon football has been a strong ground game and a hard-nosed defense. Don’t expect anything different this fall. Nick Schneiderman is entering his fifth season as the Hawks’ head coach, and he’s still using the blueprint that former coach John Bothe – who will serve as the defensive coordinator this season – used when he took over the program in 1998. However, there will be some “tweaks” for a team that lost quite a bit of senior leadership to graduation after the spring season. “Scheme-wise, we’ve adjusted from last year’s squad since we were so senior-dominant, just making some adjustments on offense and defense, and the kids are learning those well,” Schneiderman said. “We’re just making some tweaks here and there, putting the guys in the right spots so they can compete at their best level.” The changes have been embraced by the players, who appreciated just having a season at all last school year, but are eager to get back on the field for a full fall season. “It is awesome to be back in the fall and have somewhat of a normal year. It’s pretty nice to have that normal feeling back again,” senior Ethan George said. “Offensively, we’re doing a lot of run plays, but we’re going to do a little more power work, trying to power through the defense and win the play at the line of scrimmage. On defense, we’re doing zone work, covering all areas of the field and putting in some new stuff for our outside linebackers, more coverages. I think we’re going to be pretty solid this year with our aggressiveness and being able to win plays.” As has been the case this entire millennium, the Hawks will focus on the small-picture goals and let the big picture work itself out. That means Oregon’s players are looking solely on preparing for Week 1, then building off that as the season rolls on. “The goals are the same as always: concentrate on Game 1 and win that. You always want to win

Earleen Hinton file photo – ehinton@shawmedia.com

Oregon’s Daniel Dominguez tackles Stillman Valley’s Hunter Ilkow during their game this past spring at Landers-Loomis Field. Dominguez is one of the senior leaders who will help anchor the Hawks’ defense this fall. that first game of the season, start off strong, and take that into the second game, and then the next game, and then hopefully into the playoffs,” senior Daniel Dominguez said. “As for our style, we might be throwing the ball a little bit more, and the strength of our team will be more on the defensive side. We’ve got more seniors on our defense, and that experience is going to help.” Schneiderman also pointed to the defense as a team strength, and is thrilled to have a Hall of Famer taking over on that side of the ball this fall. “Defensively we haven’t made a tremendous scheme change, but fundamentally and concept-wise, we’ve simplified it for a better understanding,” he said. “It’s a great system. Coach Bothe and coach [Justin] Ebert are some of the best defensive minds I’ve been around for 18 years, and when coach Bothe agreed to take over the defense, I was ecstatic. His system, his terminology is simple. The kids catch on quicker, I think, and it puts guys in more of a stable position where they can concentrate on one spot and they can just go out and play, not try to overthink things.” Schneiderman singled out Dominguez and Isaac Reber for

their leadership in the locker room and on the field. “The seniors that we do have, we’ve got some great leadership out of them. Isaac Reber and Daniel Dominguez have stepped up to the plate; as leaders, they’ve knocked it out of the park,” Schneiderman said. “I think they’re two of the best leaders that I’ve had in my tenure, both verbally and also by example. I think they’re great examples for the very large fresh-soph group that we have here.” The culture and chemistry on this Hawks squad also is mentioned as a strength – and it’s been evident from the start to a new member of the team. “I’m new to Oregon, so I’m actually stepping into this team for the first time, but it’s been a fun journey so far being an Oregon Hawk,” said Carter Marlatt, who moved to the area from Huxley, Iowa. “It’s been great being here, a great football program, amazing offense and defense, and our chemistry is strong. “I came in here and started lifting right away, met some people and got close to them quickly. We went on the football field, and we’re just tight and there for each other, and we all bonded and we’re ready to go.”

Roster No. Name

4 Hunter Buchanan 5 Shaun Blake 6 Carter Marlatt 7 Keegan Diehl 8 Gregory Gabucci 12 Chase Harvell 14 Jayden Jenkins 15 Isaac Reber 16 Trevor Burkhart 21 Daniel Dominguez 22 Gabe Eckerd 24 Anthony Bell 26 Dalton McCammon 31 Jackson Glendenning 32 Emmett Peterson 33 Griffin Marlatt 34 Seth Stevens 35 Collin Winterland 36 Anthony Bauer 45 Matt Troha 51 Elizabeth Ruter 52 Jonathon Alaniz 53 Jackson Fox 54/28 Ethan George 55 Kaydin Reber 56 Evan Kosick 57 Noah Hodges 58 Houston Arterburn 60 Brantley Watts 64 Zander Downs 65 Elijah George 74 Alex George 75 Evan Flaharty 84 Zander VandeSand 85 Logan Heinzmann

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos. 6-0 506 5-8 5-9 5-10 5-9 5-9 6-2 5-8 6-0 5-9 6-1 5-11 6-0 5-9 5-10 5-9 5-10 5-8 5-8 5-3 6-0 5-9 5-11 5-10 6-0 6-0 5-11 5-11 5-7 6-2 6-2 6-2 6-2 6-2

160 160 145 150 160 145 135 205 160 195 170 180 150 145 165 170 140 170 145 135 155 215 160 175 245 220 185 190 155 180 195 195 300 170 205

Jr. Sr. Sr. Jr. So. Sr. Jr. Sr. So. Sr. Jr. Jr. So. So. Jr. So. Jr. So. So. Jr. Jr. Jr. Jr. Sr. Sr. Jr. So. So. So. So. So. So. Jr. So. So.

Schedule

Game time Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Fri., Sept. 17, 7 Fri., Sept. 24, 7 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

QB/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/LB WR/DB WR/DB RB/DB RB/LB RB/LB RB/LB TE/LB RB/LB QB/LB TE/LB WR/DB RB/DL TE/LB RB/LB WR/DB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL WR/DB TE/DL

Opponent at Dixon Rockford Christian Stillman Valley at Winnebago Rockford Lutheran at Genoa-Kingston at Byron Rock Falls at North Boone

GOOD LUCK Oregon Hawks!

505 W. IL Rt. 64 Lanark, IL

(815) 493-2181

Polo

By TY REYNOLDS

treynolds@shawmedia.com For the second time in 2021, the Polo football team heads into a season as the defending 8-man state champions. Since no playoffs were held in the spring, the Marcos kept their title as reigning champs, and now a new group looks to keep the Marcos on top and match the feat from 2019. “We’re a different team than the team that won the state title, but I think we can be as successful,” senior Tyler Merdian said. “We were all a part of the team, but we weren’t really a big part of the team. We just learned from those guys; they were great role models for us, and we just want to follow in their footsteps and have similar goals this year. “We take it personally that we want to defend the state title. Since there was no state championship last year, we’re still the reigning state champs, and we want to keep that up. We have a target on our back this year, and we want to win; we like being the team that everybody wants to beat, we enjoy that role.” Polo used a potent, multi-pronged offensive attack and a physical, hardnosed defense to win the 8-man state title in 2019, and plan to rely on the same formula this fall. While that title team was full of talented seniors, this year’s players learned a lot from that veteran group and want to put their stamp on the program this fall. “We want to show teams that we’re still the reigning state champions and we’re ready to fight every game. We don’t have everybody that we had in the state championship run, but we all know what it took to win that, so we’re all willing to work hard,” lineman Cooper Blake said. “Me and Tyler, we were both injured during the state championship run, so we got to sit there and watch and just see everything and what went into that every day. “Some of the freshmen on that team who are juniors now worked with us, and us sophomores who are now seniors worked with the seniors on the state team, who showed us how to build a program and create a championship-wining team. It was really good to be a part of that, and made us hungry to do it ourselves.” Ted Alston enters the second season of his second stint as Polo’s head coach. He took over in 2000 and

Shaw Media file photos

Polo’s Avery Grenoble (right) carries the ball against River Ridge during their game this past spring in Hanover. guided the Marcos to the playoffs five straight years from 2005-2009, stepping down after the 2010 season. He then took over again after Jeff Bumsted retired following the 2019 state title run. He’s aware that his players are looking at the season as a chance to defend their 2019 championship, and likes the way it seems to be motivating them – especially with some new 8-man teams who were former rivals in the NUIC on their schedule. “Technically we’re the defending champs, and the kids are absolutely excited and motivated by it,” Alston said. “Especially with teams coming in from the NUIC who we used to play all the time, that adds even more to it. You want to prove to them that if they want to come into 8-man and have success, they’ve still got to beat us at this point. And it’s just fun because they’re teams we’re familiar with and we play them in everything else, so that added a lot of excitement this year.” The Marcos will renew rivalries with Milledgeville, AFC and Amboy in the first three weeks of the season, and host former NUIC teams River Ridge and Aquin in weeks 5 and 9. “I’m glad we get to play a lot more of the kids we used to see in the NUIC,” Blake said. “We know those kids, and it’s fun to play against guys that you know and bring back some of those old rivalries. It’s nice to bring that back into football.

“It’s real nice to be back to normal. Obviously you want to win all your games, and we’re expecting to have a strong season. We’re looking good out here, so I think we’re going to be all right.” Fans should expect to see the same old Polo attack on both sides of the ball this season. “What we’ve been doing since 25 years ago, that’s kind of what we fell comfortable doing and what we’re familiar with, so we’ll be able to do that,” Alston said. “We’ve got some other things that we’re able to do pretty well this year; I like our skill players, but we’ll obviously try to establish the run and play strong defense like we’ve always done.

No. Name 1 3 7 8 10 11 12 14 15 17 18 20 22 23 25 27 28 31 34 35 36 42 44 45 50 51 56 58 60 61 64 67 79 82 84 88

SM-ST1693069

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos. 5-6 5-6 6-3 6-0 6-0 6-0 5-6 5-8 6-0 6-3 6-2 5-10 5-7 5-11 5-6 5-9 5-2 5-11 5-3 6-4 5-11 5-10 5-10 6-0 5-10 6-3 6-1 5-7 5-7 6-0 6-2 6-2 6-1 5-9 6-0 5-11

120 115 170 175 150 195 115 260 165 170 120 150 145 165 120 175 100 145 100 195 200 210 190 160 190 210 165 195 210 210 230 250 240 155 165 160

So. So. Jr. Sr. So. Sr. Fr. Jr. Fr. So. Fr. Jr. So. Jr. Fr. Jr. Fr. Fr. Fr. Sr. Sr. Jr. Fr. So. So. So. So. Sr. Fr. Sr. Fr. Sr. Sr. Fr. So. So.

RB/LB RB/DB TE/DB QB/DE QB/DB TE/LB RB/DB OL/DL TE/LB RB/DB RB/DE RB/LB RB/LB QB/DE RB/DB RB/LB QB/DB RB/DB QB/DB TE/DB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL TE/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL RB/LB

Schedule Game time Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Sat., Sept. 18, 1 Fri., Sept 24, 7 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

GO - FIGHT - WIN

(815) 864-2111 Shannon (815) 946-2777 Polo (815) 864-2125 Lake Carroll www.fsbshannon-polo.com

Gage Lagee Korbin Devora Ryelan Lindaas Tyler Merdian Carter Merdian Wyatt Queckboerner Billy Lowry Brian Lopez Shane Hollis Brock Soltow Wyatt Angier Avery Grenoble DeAngelo Fernandez Cayden Webster Sylas Wiegmann Brady Wolber Gus Mumford Noah Dewey Gage Zeigler Kahlil Sankey Wayde Reimer Waylon Harris Jeff Donaldson Landon Brooks Alex Albano Johnathan Mummert Jacob Monaco Devin Rucker Shawn Patton Blake Diehl Logan Nelson Daniel Engel Cooper Blake Kailin Gulbranson Josh Conway Nathaniel Yingling

Opponent Milledgeville at AFC at Amboy Decatur Lutheran at FlanaganCornell-Woodland River Ridge at Peoria Heights Hiawatha Aquin

GOOD LUCK Polo Marcos!

505 W. IL Rt. 64 Lanark, IL

(815) 493-2181

SHAW MEDIA Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Primed to defend 8-man title

Roster

Rock Falls

Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

SHAW MEDIA

Rockets moving forward Parker has normal offseason for first time as Rock Falls coach By ERIC INGLES

eingles@shawmedia.com

Photos by Alex T. Paschal – apaschal@shawmedia.com

No. Name

Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos.

Booker Cross

5-11

165

Sr. RB/LB

Jordan Jones

5-11

180

Sr. QB/DE

Colin Cook

6-1

170

Jr. WR/DB

Vincent Lombardo

5-11

170

So. QB/DB

11 Baraka Boards

5-11

160

Sr. WR/DB

12 Aidan Kobbeman

5-7

150

Jr. QB/DL

13 Hayden Lee

6-1

185

Sr. TE/DE

20 Audric Thomas

5-11

185

Sr. WR/DB

26 Kaleb Bull

5-10

170

Sr. RB/LB

28 Dillon Schueler

6-1

185

Sr. RB/LB

30 Braxton Law

5-9

165

Sr. RB/LB

32 Kohle Bradley

5-6

120

So. RB/DB

44 Carter Schueler

5-11

180

So. RB/LB

50 Austin Cernich

5-6

175

Sr. OL/DL

52 Payhton Smith

5-10

165

Sr. OL/DL

54 Ryan McCord

5-10

175

Sr. OL/DL

55 Brock Parker

6-1

215

Sr. OL/DL

63 Triston Shaw

6-0

265

Sr. OL/DL

64 Antonio Calderon

5-11

225

Sr. OL/DL

75 Blake LeFevre

6-0

230

Jr. OL/DL

78 Lyden King

6-0

310

Sr. OL/DL

79 Jason McCord

5-11

240

So. OL/DL

Rock Falls’ Carter Schueler works on hand-eye coordination during drills at football camp July 27 in Rock Falls. quarterback Jordan Jones said. Dillon Schueler, Booker Cross and Ryan McCord stepped into the running back role in the spring as a three-man platoon, and all three are back, with Schueler and Cross seniors and McCord a junior. Schueler is very focused on what kind of program he will leave when he’s gone, hoping to help bring the younger players along so that they can pick things up after him, both as a running back and as a linebacker.

“I’ve got to show defensive coverages and what to do when the offense throws stunts,” he said. Running will still be the focal point, but with a veteran backfield, the playbook can open up a bit more. “Really for us, it’s about our linemen making it work,” Parker said. “We didn’t get the job done up front last year, and that’s why it didn’t work. We’ve got the guys there and we just have to get it done.”

Good Luck

Newman Comets Rock Falls Rockets SterlingWarriors Dixon Dukes

and all other surrounding area football teams!

Angelo’s 625-5163

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For the first time since Kevin Parker became the head coach of the Rock Falls football team, the Rockets are getting something of a normal offseason. When Parker was named the Rockets’ coach in 2019, it came just weeks before practice, not enough time to put his own stamp on the summer workout program or camp schedule. And a year later, a global pandemic knocked things off track, delaying the season entirely until the spring. So the summer of 2021 is a chance for Rock Falls to make up for lost time. The Rockets launched into a normal offseason, hitting the weight room in May and having practices and optional camps Monday through Friday for much of the summer. “We kind of tried to evaluate that with the season we had last year; how far does that put us back?” Parker said. “Or does it get kids forward that had extra time to prepare and create their own discipline system.” Where the delay of the 2020 season hurt the most for Rock Falls was in the participation numbers. Parker said in the weight room sessions and offseason work before things got put on hold, they would see 50 to 60 kids putting work in. By the time the season kicked off in March, there were slightly over 30. “That was tough for us to take as a program,” Parker said. “I think it set us back, but in those times also we did build some culture, doing things the right way, building things up that take time.” But the numbers are back up this year, with a packed practice once the fall season began this week and Parker putting in the building blocks of a strong program at the youth level. Rock Falls comes into the season with a strong freshman group, meaning that for the first time since Parker has been at the helm, the Rockets will field a freshman team. “The more people that come in, the more people want to come out,”

Roster

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Schedule

Game time Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Sat., Sept. 18, 12 Fri., Sept. 24, 7 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

Opponent Rockford Christian at Stillman Valley at Winnebago Rockford Lutheran at Genoa-Kingston Byron North Boone at Oregon Dixon

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Sterling By ERIC INGLES

eingles@shawmedia.com The quarterback platoon has worked at Sterling in the past. So has the running-back-by-committee approach. Both were in use in the spring, when the Golden Warriors went 5-1 in the COVID-delayed season, and even with many of the individual players from those groups moving on, the plan is still in place this fall. At quarterback, returning to the platoon is senior Drew Kested. “He’s done a really good job this camp,” Sterling coach Jon Schlemmer said. “Garrett Polson is going to be splitting reps with him. They both do a really good job. They both bring similar skill sets to the table. They’re both getting better every day.” Kested completed 22 of 33 passes for 200 yards in the spring while splitting time with Kael Ryan. This year, his running mate is Polson, a sophomore. “He played a lot of sophomore and JV in the spring, but the game moves so much quicker at this level,” Schlemmer said. “When you’re growing up in varsity games, there’s going to be some growing pains and there are going to be bumps in the road, and that’s OK, but you learn.” At running back, Noel Aponte has graduated after a year in which he led the team with 655 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns. The committee set to step in includes Tyree Kelly, himself a starter at linebacker since his sophomore year, as well as Antonio Tablante, Colt Adams and AJ Kested.

Photos by Alex T. Paschal – apaschal@shawmedia.com

Linemen run through drills in Sterling on Aug. 9 “We know a lot of those guys are going to be playing on both sides of the ball, so getting them spells, we think they’re all going to do a good job,” Schlemmer said. At wideout, the injury bug has also bit senior Carter Ryan, though not enough to shelve him for the entire season. A foot injury will keep him on the sidelines for at least the first couple of games. Watching practice from the sidelines so far this August, he is seeing an aggressive group on offense. “They get after it a lot in practice, and I just like it a lot,” he said. “It seems like every day is a competition, and the offense is going really hard against the defense, and I think that looks good for Week 1.” Demarri Johnson is set to take one of the starting jobs at tackle.

“I would like to take this under my wing and just do the best I can,” he said. “Just do everything I can to make everyone better.” Younger players are going to have to step in, but Sterling still has Jason Farnham Jr. who has been a starter on the line since his freshman year. He will also be in line to be a big part of the defensive line. “Junior Farnham, if we get him healthy, he’s as good as we’ve ever had,” Schlemmer said. “Alejandro Arellano, there’s a couple other young guys who have done well in camp. Defensive line-wise, I think we have some guys up there that are going to be able to play. We saw in our last game last year, if you can’t stop the run, it’s going to be a long night. Coach LeMay has done a great job prepping those guys.”

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Tommy Tate Garrett Polson Antonio Tablante Drew Kested Mateo Vasquez Devin Fargher Kael Ryan Braiden Herrera AJ Kested Cale Ledergerber Tyree Kelly Colt Adams Manuel Cano Ethen Benters Carter Ryan Jaryn Garza Gammon Williams Fabricio Pena Mason Emin Jacob Huffman David Tessman Yuriy Guerrero Dylan Doss James Morris Isaiah Mendoza Lucas Austin Noah Davis Blake Nettleton Tyler Bielema Lance Wren Xander Ramirez Anthony Speers Christian Beasley Chase Ulrich Anthony Amezola Isaiah Ramirez Javier Luna Luis Diaz Mitchell Sechrest Diego Leal Cameron Schneider Albert Lawrence Xavier Farnham Christopher Marin Thomas Schlafer Alejandro Arellano Troy Hernandez Nathan Cavazos Demarri Johnson Peyton Davis Justin Null Junior Farnham

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Pos.

WR/DB QB RB/LB QB/DB WR/DB WR/DB RB/LB WR/LB RB/DB WR/DB RB/LB RB/LB RB/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/LB K QB/LB WR/DB RB/DB P WR/DB WR/LB WR/DB HB/DL HB/LB HB/DB HB/LB HB/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL K OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL WR/DB HB/DL

Schedule

Game time Fri., Aug. 27, 7 Fri., Sept. 3, 7 Fri., Sept. 10, 7 Fri., Sept. 17, 7 Fri., Sept. 24, 7 Fri., Oct. 1, 7 Fri., Oct. 8, 7 Fri., Oct. 15, 7 Fri., Oct. 22, 7

Opponent at Lake Villa Lakes Lombard Montini Galesburg Alleman at Geneseo Quincy at Rock Island Moline at United Township

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SHAW MEDIA Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Committee approach at QB, RB

Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

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Illinois state champions 1974-2019 8-Man 2018 – Milford-Cissna Park (12-1) 2019 – Polo (13-0) Class 1A 1974 – Flanagan (12-0) 1975 – Triopia (13-0) 1976 – Hampshire (13-0) 1977 – Genoa-Kingston (13-0) 1978 – Arcola (11-1) 1979 – Hampshire (13-0) 1980 – Atwood (14-0) 1981 – Aquin (13-0) 1982 – Ziegler-Royalton (12-0) 1983 – Yorkwood (13-0) 1984 – Routt (13-0) 1985 – Arcola (14-0) 1986 – Aquin (12-2) 1987 – Bloomington C.C. (12-2) 1988 – Arcola (13-1) 1989 – Orangeville (12-2) 1990 – Newman (12-2) 1991 – Stockton (14-0) 1992 – Calhoun (14-0) 1993 – Calhoun (13-1) 1994 – Newman (14-0) 1995 – Carthage (14-0) 1996 – Chenoa (12-2) 1997 – Galena (14-0) 1998 – Carthage (14-0) 1999 – Carthage (14-0) 2000 – Carthage (14-0) 2001 – Wethersfield (13-1) 2002 – South Beloit (13-1) 2003 – Galena (11-3) 2004 – Alexis United (13-1) 2005 – Aquin (13-1) 2006 – Tuscola (14-0) 2007 – Galena (14-0) 2008 – Triopia (14-0) 2009 – Tuscola (11-3) 2010 – Lena-Winslow (13-1) 2011 – Dakota (12-2) 2012 – Maroa-Forsyth (13-1) 2013 – Lena-Winslow (11-3) 2014 – Forreston (13-1) 2015 – Arcola (14-0) 2016 – Forreston (14-0) 2017 – Lena-Winslow (14-0) 2018 – Forreston (12-2) 2019 – Lena-Winslow (14-0)

Class 7A 2001 – Prospect (14-0) 2002 – Prospect (12-2) 2003 – Oswego (13-1) 2004 – Libertyville (14-0) 2005 – Prospect (13-1) 2006 – St. Rita (13-1) 2007 – Lake Zurich (13-1) 2008 – East St. Louis (13-1) 2009 – Wheaton Warrenville South (13-1) 2010 – Wheaton Warrenville South (14-0) 2011 – Boylan (14-0) 2012 – Glenbard West (14-0) 2013 – Chi. Mt. Carmel (13-1) 2014 – Providence (13-1) 2015 – Glenbard West (14-0) 2016 – East St. Louis (14-0) 2017 – Batavia (13-1) 2018 – Nazareth Academy (13-1) 2019 – Chicago Mt. Carmel (14-0)

Class 2A 1974 – St. Teresa (13-0) 1975 – St. Teresa (13-0) 1976 – Fulton (13-0) 1977 – Mahomet-Seymour (12-1) 1978 – Stockton (12-1) 1979 – St. Teresa (12-1) 1980 – Schlarman (13-0) 1981 – Schlarman (12-1) 1982 – Bloomington C.C. (12-1) 1983 – Woodstock Marian (13-0) 1984 – Amboy (13-0) 1985 – Casey-Westfield (14-0) 1986 – Woodstock Marian (12-2) 1987 – Woodstock Marian (13-1) 1988 – Carlyle (14-0) 1989 – Woodstock Marian (14-0) 1990 – Seneca (14-0) 1991 – Fulton (14-0) 1992 – Richmond-Burton (11-3) 1993 – Coal City (14-0) 1994 – Rockridge (12-2) 1995 – Hampshire (12-2) 1996 – LeRoy (14-0) 1997 – Central A&M (14-0) 1998 – Aledo (12-2) 1999 – Stillman Valley (12-2) 2000 – Stillman Valley (14-0) 2001 – Aledo (13-1) 2002 – Aledo (14-0) 2003 – Iroquois West (13-1) 2004 – Newman (13-1) 2005 – Dakota (14-0) 2006 – Maroa-Forsyth (14-0) 2007 – Dakota (14-0) 2008 – Immaculate Conception (10-4) 2009 – Morrison (14-0) 2010 – Newman (14-0) 2011 – Morrison (13-1) 2012 – Mercer County (14-0) 2013 – Newman (13-1) 2014 – Eastland-Pearl City (14-0) 2015 – Tri-Valley (14-0) 2016 – Deer Creek-Mackinaw (13-1) 2017 – GCMS (14-0) 2018 – GCMS (14-0) 2019 – Newman (13-1)

Class 3A 1974 – West Chicago (13-0) 1975 – Metamora (13-0) 1976 – Geneseo (13-0) 1977 – Geneseo (12-1) 1978 – Geneseo (13-0) 1979 – Mascoutah (13-0) 1980 – Morris (12-1) 1981 – Mount Carmel (13-0) 1982 – Bishop McNamara (12-0) 1983 – Monmouth (12-1) 1984 – Anna-Jonesboro (12-1) 1985 – Bishop McNamara (14-0) 1986 – Bishop McNamara (11-3) 1987 – Bishop McNamara (12-2) 1988 – DuQuoin (14-0) 1989 – Althoff (13-1) 1990 – Althoff (13-0) 1991 – Driscoll (14-0) 1992 – DuQuoin (14-0) 1993 – Pontiac (13-1) 1994 – Bloomington C.C. (13-1) 1995 – Hall (13-1) 1996 – Carterville (14-0) 1997 – Kaneland (14-0) 1998 – Kaneland (14-0) 1999 – Byron (14-0) 2000 – Harrisburg (14-0) 2001 – Hall (13-1) 2002 – Immaculate Conc. (13-1) 2003 – Stillman Valley (13-1) 2004 – Driscoll (12-2) 2005 – Bureau Valley (14-0) 2006 – Plano (14-0) 2007 – Plano (13-1) 2008 – Illini West (14-0) 2009 – Stillman Valley (14-0) 2010 – Illini West (14-0) 2011 – Aurora Christian (13-1) 2012 – Aurora Christian (13-1) 2013 – Stillman Valley (12-2) 2014 – Wilmington (14-0) 2015 – Bishop McNamara (13-1) 2016 – IC Catholic (14-0) 2017 – IC Catholic (13-1) 2018 – Monticello (14-0) 2019 – Williamsville (14-0)

Class 8A 2001 – Downers Grove South (12-2) 2002 – Lockport (13-1) 2003 – Lockport (12-2) 2004 – Downers Grove North (12-2) 2005 – Lincoln-Way East (14-0) 2006 – Wheaton Warrenville South (14-0) 2007 – Naperville North (13-1) 2008 – Maine South (14-0) 2009 – Maine South (14-0) 2010 – Maine South (12-2) 2011 – Bolingbrook (13-1) 2012 – Chicago Mt. Carmel (13-1) 2013 – Naperville Central (11-3) 2014 – Stevenson (14-0) 2015 – Loyola Academy (14-0) 2016 – Maine South (11-3) 2017 – Lincoln-Way East (14-0) 2018 – Loyola Academy (10-4) 2019 – Lincoln-Way East (14-0)

Most championships 1. Joliet Catholic 14 2018 2. Chicago Mt. Carmel 13 2019 3. Providence 10 2014 4. East St. Louis 9 2019 5. Driscoll 8 2007 5. Rochester 8 2019 7. Wheaton Warrenville South 7 2010 8. Newman 6 2019 8. Carthage/Illini West 6 2010 8. Montini 6 2015 8. Maine South 6 2016 11. Stillman Valley 5 2013 11. Sacred Heart-Griffin 5 2014 11. Bishop McNamara 5 2015 11. IC Catholic 5 2018 16. Arcola 4 2015 16. Bloomington Cent. Catholic 4 2008 16. Geneseo 4 1982 16. Lena-Winslow 4 2019 16. Woodstock Marian 4 1989

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Class 4A 1974 – Rockford East (13-0) 1975 – Joliet Catholic (13-0) 1976 – Joliet Catholic (12-1) 1977 – Joliet Catholic (13-0) 1978 – Joliet Catholic (13-0) 1979 – Wheaton North (12-1) 1980 – Althoff (12-1) 1981 – Wheaton North (13-0) 1982 – Geneseo (12-1) 1983 – Woodstock (11-2) 1984 – Morris (13-0) 1985 – Washington (13-1) 1986 – Tinley Park (12-2) 1987 – Providence (13-1) 1988 – Richards (14-0) 1989 – Richards (14-0) 1990 – Joliet Catholic (14-0) 1991 – Providence (14-0) 1992 – Oswego (13-1) 1993 – Chicago Heights Marian (14-0) 1994 – Belvidere (12-2) 1995 – Providence (14-0) 1996 – Providence (14-0) 1997 – Providence (13-1) 1998 – Glenwood (14-0) 1999 – Joliet Catholic (14-0) 2000 – Joliet Catholic (14-0) 2001 – Driscoll (12-2) 2002 – Driscoll (13-1) 2003 – Driscoll (14-0) 2004 – Montini (13-1) 2005 – Driscoll (14-0) 2006 – Driscoll (13-1) 2007 – Driscoll (14-0) 2008 – Bloomington C.C. (14-0) 2009 – Metamora (13-1) 2010 – Rochester (14-0) 2011 – Rochester (12-2) 2012 – Rochester (13-1) 2013 – Rochester (13-1) 2014 – Rochester (12-2) 2015 – Chicago Phillips (14-0) 2016 – Rochester (13-1) 2017 – Rochester (14-0) 2018 – IC Catholic (14-0) 2019 – Richmond-Burton (14-0)

Class 5A 1974 – Glenbrook North (12-0) 1975 – Deerfield (13-0) 1976 – St. Laurence (13-0) 1977 – East Leyden (13-0) 1978 – St. Rita (13-0) 1979 – East St. Louis (12-0) 1980 – Chicago Mt. Carmel (13-1) 1981 – Joliet Catholic (13-0) 1982 – Guilford (13-0) 1983 – Glenbard West (13-0) 1984 – Richwoods (13-0) 1985 – Rockford East (11-3) 1986 – Wheaton North (13-1) 1987 – Joliet Catholic (12-2) 1988 – Richwoods (14-0) 1989 – Chicago Mt. Carmel (13-1) 1990 – Chicago Mt. Carmel (14-0) 1991 – Chicago Mt. Carmel (12-2) 1992 – Wheaton Warrenville South (14-0) 1993 – Belvidere (14-0) 1994 – Providence (14-0) 1995 – Maine South (12-2) 1996 – Chicago Mt. Carmel (14-0) 1997 – Woodstock (14-0) 1998 – Chicago Mt. Carmel (14-0) 1999 – Chicago Mt. Carmel (13-1) 2000 – Chicago Mt. Carmel (13-1) 2001 – Joliet Catholic (13-1) 2002 – Providence (14-0) 2003 – Joliet Catholic (13-1) 2004 – Joliet Catholic (14-0) 2005 – Sacred Heart-Griffin (14-0) 2006 – Sacred Heart-Griffin (14-0) 2007 – Metamora (14-0) 2008 – St. Francis (13-1) 2009 – Montini (10-4) 2010 – Montini (12-2) 2011 – Montini (12-2) 2012 – Montini (12-2) 2013 – Sacred Heart-Griffin (14-0) 2014 – Sacred Heart-Griffin (14-0) 2015 – Nazareth Academy (12-2) 2016 – Peoria Central (13-1) 2017 – Chicago Phillips (14-0) 2018 – Joliet Catholic (10-4) 2019 – Rochester (13-1)

Class 6A 1980 – Gordon Tech (12-1) 1981 – Brother Rice (11-2) 1982 – Reavis (12-1) 1983 – East St. Louis (13-0) 1984 – East St. Louis (13-0) 1985 – East St. Louis (14-0) 1986 – Buffalo Grove (14-0) 1987 – Hersey (12-2) 1988 – Chicago Mt. Carmel (14-0) 1989 – East St. Louis (14-0) 1990 – Thornton (12-2) 1991 – East St. Louis (13-1) 1992 – Naperville North (12-2) 1993 – Loyola (12-2) 1994 – Homewood-Flossmoor (13-1) 1995 – Wheaton Warrenville South (12-2) 1996 – Wheaton Warrenville South (13-1) 1997 – Lincoln-Way (14-0) 1998 – Wheaton Warrenville South (14-0) 1999 – Naperville Central (14-0) 2000 – Maine South (13-1) 2001 – Providence (14-0) 2002 – Chicago Mt. Carmel (13-1) 2003 – Mundelein Carmel (14-0) 2004 – Providence (13-1) 2005 – Morris (14-0) 2006 – Normal (14-0) 2007 – Joliet Catholic (13-1) 2008 – Sacred Heart-Griffin (13-1) 2009 – Cary-Grove (14-0) 2010 – Boylan (14-0) 2011 – Prairie Ridge (13-1) 2012 – Crete-Monee (14-0) 2013 – Batavia (13-1) 2014 – Nazareth (14-0) 2015 – Montini (14-0) 2016 – Prairie Ridge (14-0) 2017 – Prairie Ridge (14-0) 2018 – Cary-Grove (14-0) 2019 – East St. Louis (14-0)

Alex T. Paschal file photo – apaschal@shawmedia.com

Newman’s Connor McBride finds the end zone in the first half of the 2019 Class 2A state championship game against Nashville at Huskie Stadium in DeKalb. The Comets won 35-14 to claim their sixth state title.

When and where to see your favorite team each week Week 1 Friday, Aug. 27 • Sterling at Lake Villa Lakes, 7 p.m. • Oregon at Dixon, 7 p.m. • Rockford Christian at Rock Falls, 7 p.m. • Erie-Prophetstown at Mendota, 7 p.m. • Lena-Winslow at Eastland-Pearl City, 7 p.m. • Stockton at Forreston, 7 p.m. • Fulton at Galena, 7 p.m. • Peoria Heights at Amboy, 7 p.m. • AFC at South Beloit, 7 p.m. • Milledgeville at Polo, 7 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 28 • Morrison at Newman, 7 p.m. • Riverdale at Bureau Valley, 7 p.m.

Week 4 Friday, Sept. 17 • Alleman at Sterling, 7 p.m. • Dixon at Stillman Valley, 7 p.m. • Oregon at Winnebago, 7 p.m. • Newman at St. Bede, 7 p.m. • Morrison at Hall, 7 p.m. • Rockridge at Erie-Prophetstown, 7 p.m. • Kewanee at Bureau Valley, 7 p.m. • Durand-Pecatonica at Eastland-Pearl City, 7 • Dakota at Forreston, 7 p.m. • West Central at Amboy, 7 p.m. • AFC at River Ridge, 7 p.m. • Milledgeville at Blue Ridge, 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 18 • Rockford Lutheran at Rock Falls, noon • Decatur Lutheran at Polo, 1 p.m. • Fulton at Madison (IL), 2 p.m.

Week 2 Friday, Sept. 3 • Lombard Montini at Sterling, 7 p.m. • North Boone at Dixon, 7 p.m. • Rock Falls at Stillman Valley, 7 p.m. • Rockford Christian at Oregon, 7 p.m. • Newman at Rockridge, 7 p.m. • Kewanee at Morrison, 7 p.m. • St. Bede at Erie-Prophetstown, 7 p.m. • Bureau Valley at Sherrard, 7 p.m. • Eastland-Pearl City at Stockton, 7 p.m. • Forreston at Durand-Pecatonica, 7 p.m. • East Dubuque at Fulton, 7 p.m. • Amboy at Milledgeville, 7 p.m. • Polo at AFC, 7 p.m.

Week 5 Friday, Sept. 24 • Sterling at Geneseo, 7 p.m. • Winnebago at Dixon, 7 p.m. • Rock Falls at Genoa-Kingston, 7 p.m. • Rockford Lutheran at Oregon, 7 p.m. • Bureau Valley at Newman, 7 p.m. • Morrison at Sherrard, 7 p.m. • Erie-Prophetstown at Orion, 7 p.m. • Eastland-Pearl City at Dakota, 7 p.m. • Forreston at Galena, 7 p.m. • Lena-Winslow at Fulton, 7 p.m. • Hiawatha at AFC, 7 p.m. • Alden-Hebron at Milledgeville, 7 p.m. • Polo at Flanagan-Cornell-Woodland, 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 25 • Amboy at Milford-Cissna Park, 7 p.m.

Week 7

Week 8

Friday, Oct. 8 • Sterling at Rock Island, 7 p.m. • Genoa-Kingston at Dixon, 7 p.m. • North Boone at Rock Falls, 7 p.m. • Oregon at Byron, 7 p.m. • Hall at Newman, 7 p.m. • Morrison at Orion, 7 p.m. • Erie-Prophetstown at Bureau Valley, 7 p.m. • Eastland-Pearl City at East Dubuque, 7 p.m. • Forreston at Fulton, 7 p.m. • AFC at Amboy, 7 p.m. • Milledgeville at Aquin, 7 p.m. • Polo at Peoria Heights, 7 p.m.

Friday, Oct. 15 • Moline at Sterling, 7 p.m. • Byron at Dixon, 7 p.m. • Rock Falls at Oregon, 7 p.m. • Newman at Mendota, 7 p.m. • Riverdale at Morrison, 7 p.m. • Erie-Prophetstown at Mon.-Roseville, 7 p.m. • Bureau Valley at Princeton, 7 p.m. • Fulton at Eastland-Pearl City, 7 p.m. • GCMS at Forreston, 7 p.m. • Milledgeville at AFC, 7 p.m. • Hiawatha at Polo, 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 16 • Amboy at Orangeville, 1 p.m.

Week 3 Friday, Sept. 10 • Galesburg at Sterling, 7 p.m. • Dixon at Rockford Christian, 7 p.m. • Rock Falls at Winnebago, 7 p.m. • Stillman Valley at Oregon, 7 p.m. • Monmouth-Roseville at Morrison, 7 p.m. • Erie-Prophetstown at Sherrard, 7 p.m. • Bureau Valley at Mendota, 7 p.m. • Forreston at Eastland-Pearl City, 7 p.m. • Durand-Pecatonica at Fulton, 7 p.m. • Polo at Amboy, 7 p.m. • AFC at Peoria Heights, 7 p.m. • River Ridge at Milledgeville, 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 11 • Orion at Newman, 7 p.m.

Week 6 Friday, Oct. 1 • Quincy at Sterling, 7 p.m. • Dixon at Rockford Lutheran, 7 p.m. • Byron at Rock Falls, 7 p.m. • Oregon at Genoa-Kingston, 7 p.m. • Newman at Princeton, 7 p.m. • Rockridge at Morrison, 7 p.m. • Riverdale at Erie-Prophetstown, 7 p.m. • St. Bede at Bureau Valley, 7 p.m. • Galena at Eastland-Pearl City, 7 p.m. • East Dubuque at Forreston, 7 p.m. • Fulton at Stockton, 7 p.m. • Amboy at Hiawatha, 7 p.m. • AFC at Alden-Hebron, 7 p.m. • Orangeville at Milledgeville, 7 p.m. • River Ridge at Polo, 7 p.m.

Week 9 Friday, Oct. 22 • Sterling at United Township, 7 p.m. • Dixon at Rock Falls, 7 p.m. • Oregon at North Boone, 7 p.m. • Kewanee at Newman, 7 p.m. • Morrison at Erie-Prophetstown, 7 p.m. • Hall at Bureau Valley, 7 p.m. • Forreston at Lena-Winslow, 7 p.m. • Dakota at Fulton, 7 p.m. • Amboy at Alden-Hebron, 7 p.m. • Orangeville at AFC, 7 p.m. • South Beloit at Milledgeville, 7 p.m. • Aquin at Polo, 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 23 • Eastland-P.C. at Walther Christian, 1 p.m.

SHAW MEDIA Sauk Valley Media/ SaukValley.com • Wednesday, August 25, 2021

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