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This is State Representative Steve Reich. Since twenty sixteen, it's been my privilege to represent the sixty third district in the Illinois House. I'd like to continue representing you, and I'm asking for your vote on November fifth. Thank you pay for.
By citizens to elect Stephen Reich.
Hello everybody, and welcome to the Friday Night Drive Championship Game preview podcasts. I'm Josh Welby here with Steve Sustie and Michael Dweljack, and we're a day away from Thanksgiving, which must mean it's time to talk to football. So I say in the forecast it's going to be hi of the twenties this weekend in Bloomington normal area. So it's great football weather.
You know.
How are you guys doing as we look ahead to Friday and saras looking.
Forward to it. I think it's going to be interesting weekend of games. I'm not sure how a few of them are going to play out, and some of the other ones, I guess we're just gonna have to wait and see. But it's always pretty intriguing because usually you get a lot of these matchups that you're not going to see in the regular season. So and there are quite a few of them that have created that. And there are some really elite talents across the board, I mean,
even into some of the smaller classifications. I'm not really accustomed to seeing two Power five D one prospects in the one A game, but that's what we're getting. So you know, it's I think there's a lot of really interesting individual talents over the course of the eight games that will have the opportunity to see.
No doubt about that, guys. And Susan. He brought it out, so I'll bring it out. You know. We'll start with one A and worker way up to the top eight A and Susan, I tell you what, it's not every year. I mean, I think you get some good teams in one A every year, but I'm not sure if there is the sizzle with this one A game that there is in this particular game with bellvel Aldhoff and Lena Winslow. Obviously,
Alena Winslow has been quite the regular here. I think this is what they're fifth championship game in a row, nineteen twenty one, twenty two, twenty three they won three and more. They lost last year to Camp Points Central and then Aldhoff, a team that I think you and I and probably Michael two have been kind of following all years, sort of like we can't wait to see this team live, you know, with the likes of Deer Hill and things like that. You know, what do you
make about this matchup? Just a lot of excitement for this one.
I think, yeah, it's just really interesting because you kind of get into these games when in one A and like you mentioned, with Lena Winslow's track record, it's kind of a situation where you're like, they're not the favorite, and like, I mean, I don't necessarily think that ALTAF is the you know, huge favorite in this game, but even the conversation that you're having entering a one A final where it seems like Lena Winslow has been in this final so many times over the last decade and
they're not. They're not the odds on favorite. Here's that's pretty surprising. In a lot of ways. And that's too all TOFs credit because there's just, like you mentioned, there's just talent on this football team that you don't typically see at the one A level. You know, you look at the air Hills statistics. The Oregon recruit. He had a ninety I believe in ninety eight yard touchdown run in the semi finals, ran for almost four hundred yards. It seems like that was happening a lot over the
stretch of the postseason. Maybe not four hundred yards, but a disgustingly high number. He's averaging almost eighteen yards to carry. Think about that for a minute. I mean, that's just insane. So there are just things about this team and I haven't seen them as much on tape as I would have liked to. I did get I did look a lot at them in Week nine when they're playing a six to a playoff team in Caitlin. They didn't have Hill in that game. But this is just this is
not your prototypical class one A football team. But on the other side, you've got a Lina Winslow team that runs an offense that sometimes gives people a little bit of trouble, and I guarantee there's not a single person over on that Lina Winslow sideline. It doesn't think that they they can't win this football game against All TOV and that usually makes for an interesting matchup.
And you mentioned deer Hill averaging, you know, eighteen yards to carriers, So I looked at your ear story in a one A game and and Lina Winslow has their own running back Alec I think it's last probably noun sleasting. He's averaging fourteen yards to carry it, So crazy stuff. And you mentioned a few times on this podcast that Lena Winslow maybe during the regular season there wasn't that quite the dominance that we've seen in the past, but they've really turned it on in the playoffs.
Yeah, they've got a nice one to two punch in the backfield and that you know, the way Lina Winslow runs their offense, you know, it almost comes down to a guessing game because if you're not if you're not on the right guy, the other guy's gonna burn you. So it becomes kind of this chess match in regards to trying to stop because they run things so well, they run their systems so well, they have such a great understanding of what they need to do to be successful.
So you know that I think this is a game that could potentially be a high scoring shootout because it looks like both teams have the potential to do that if things align.
And you know, similar to last week Loyola, you don't like picking against them in a playoff game, but you do come out you do like all off in this game. Though, if I'm not mistaken, yeah I do.
But I'm not Like there's a lot of games this weekend where I feel like I'm pretty confident in the team that I'm picking. It is not the case in one A. I am not very confident that I am right in that situation. It's it's little more than a coin foot game to me on paper.
So a couple, you know, real powerhouse programs in one A and the one A Championship two it's a little bit different. I mean moreau Forsyth. They're a team that you've seen quite a bit, had stayed over the years, at the very least getting the semifinals. They've had that run of getting this semi finals. Chicago Christian Man, They're another story altogether. They've really I thought they were going to be good this year. I did not think they're going to be playing on Thanksgiving weekend.
Yeah, it would have been hard to look at, you know, what Chicago Christian has done in the past, and then even knowing that it looked like they were going to have a pretty good team this year, making that leap. I mean I mentioned it a little bit on Monday's podcast in regards to Chicago Christian. They've won four playoff games this year, getting to the finals. In school history. Prior to this year, they'd won six. So we're talking about a program that just simply is in rarefied air
for it getting to the final. So you just really don't have a track record to know how they respond. But they're a fascinating team. You kind of look at what they've done all year long and how they've done it. It's a very senior dominated football team. I believe there are eight players that start on both sides of the ball, and I know that happens sometimes at the small school level, but maybe not quite to that level. I mean, it's about as close to ironman football as you're gonna get.
I mean, they have multiple players that literally do not
leave the field offense, defront special teams. They are on for every single play, and in some ways I think that's pretty cool, But in some ways it gives me a little bit of pause for how they might deal with a morea forsythe team that really likes to crank up the tempo, high octane, take as many snaps as they can get off, and in that sense, that might be a problem for Chicago Christian with so many guys that they rely on to be out there so much.
And you mentioned some of the you know, high end division one town in a one A game, I mean the same thing in two A with with Merrell Foresty. They have Grant Smith. He's a tight end linebacker. Believe going to u of I, it's got I think, I think eighteen touchdowns this year, you know, so obviously he's going to be a guy that keep an eye on. And like you said, Merrie forest that team that really plays an up tempo style, well.
He's another one of those two way guys too. He's got eighteen touchdowns. He's also got one hundred hundred plus tackles on the defensive side of the ball, so he's probably gonna be everywhere from aural forsythe You're going to hear that name called a lot on both sides of the football, but he's by far not the only weapon that this team has. They they really like to air it out, but they can run the football and run
it effectively. So, uh, just it's a very it's a high powered team, and you would kind of expect that. This is their tenth finals since two thousand and six, so they know how to get there. They haven't maybe had the success level in the actual title game that they wanted to, but but it's a very pedigreed program that understands what it wants to do.
Kind of makes them you know, I think Chicago Chrishi, if they would have finished it off and win a state championship, my god, that would be a that'd be that'd be one of the better stories of the weekend. But man, with with their with Murraah forsite, their experience, their talent level, you know, it's kind of hard to go against them in this game. Yeah it is.
You know, it's just like all the things that we talked about, like building up to this point. You know, I morele Force I think is the favorite here, you know, the the underdog story in me is pulling for Chicago Christian a little bit to finish the job. But you know, I think it will be intriguing to see how it plays out. I think more is a very is a
favored team here. But you know, it would not surprise me if Chicago Christian comes in there, you know, devil make care attitude and and and put it out there all on the line and see what happens, because they do have some really they have some really talented players in their own right. We didn't we didn't really go into them specifically, but there are some guys on that team that can break some plays and make some things happen.
The three a matchup as Mantini playing Monticello. Mantini is a program that I mean, guys, you know, last decade, Mantini was like every year they are at State either winning it or more often than not winning it or or taking second. But it's been a little bit of a while, you know, Michael and they got in that c C L E SEC and and just to grind of that conference. And you know, I mean, I think you know, in Roman numbers a little bit down, and you know, they lost a few players that were with
the program. But you know, they really came back in a big way last year to get to the semifinals and then there they took the next step this year and Michael, they do it with a very experienced defense. I taught to Nicki Costaldo defensive tackle. He's one of those guys they have. I think they have ten guys that were starters or played a lot of sophomores, and and you know that experience has really shown, it.
Really has, and you know, kind of looking at you know, we get these team team info and stats and all the kind of stuff that you don't really get throughout the season, and when you look at it, I mean, Montini has only given up thirteen points in the first quarter throughout the entire season. And that's huge, right, just being able to kind of limit your opponents from what
they want to do at the beginning. I know those numbers are sometimes skewed based on who you're playing, but I mean that that alone just kind of says how much experience you have, just being able to start off from the beginning and limit your opponents from really building a lead or you know, building any sort of confidence. And you've seen that throughout the year where they've been able to get big stops, they were able to limit
opponents from really getting damage. And you know that also comes from having an explosive offense to go along with an experienced defense. But yeah, I mean that defense is just really limited opponents for much of the season. And when they have broken this year, I mean it's come against some of the best teams in the state. Obviously, when they've competed in their c CLU CEC schedule.
And then you know, on the offensive side, I mean there was a few games earned the year where they played in some low scoring games. I think Fenwick was a really low scoring loss where you know, the offense didn't quite you know, rise to the level that defense is at. But you know they made a few tweaks, you know, earn the year. I believe they're rotating quarterbacks. They went to the sophomore or Israel Abrams full time.
He's got to offer from Iowa State. I believe, really talented, kind of dual threat kid good arm can run the ball. And then you know Arami Peterson. I mean he was their middle linebacker last year. They had a few injuries at running back and now he's taken over and Mike. You know, Sus he talked about him as a as a battering ram type running back. He has every bit a battering ram running back. He is, as he has a load, he is very difficult to bring down.
Yeah, you just kind of get that feel, even though you look at the stats and they haven't you know, they haven't overworked him by any sense of the imagination in terms of carries or things like that. But if Montini gets into a grind it out type of football game where they need to put together a twelve play fourteen play drive to kind of keep the opponent from carrying the ball or taking you know, taking you know, control of the game tempo wise, that's an asset that
they definitely have. They have a guy that they can just say, Okay, we're gonna grind six minutes off this clock and see what happens. They can just work the ball to him and usually that works for their advantage.
You know. On the other side of Monticello, you know, there is a little familiarity there. It has been that long Sinceider in the state championship game and then Sus They've had a few games along the way that it's kind of like you know, to say it's destiny is Darling's type of thing, but it is a little bit like that. I mean, they had a close quarterfinal game, they had that kind of crazy finish against the Lonely Unity, and they got a really good offensive player. Actually he's
a two way player like Young. I think he's a baseball recruit for Illinois. Something crazy. He's accounted like four thousand yards of offense and over forty touchdowns.
Yeah, and that's one of those things where I think it's going to be interesting to see what factor the weather plays this weekend because Monosall is kind of a free wheeling offensive team and they need to be able to do all the things that are in their offense, especially against this Montini defense that has not cracked against a lot of quality opponents. So Montini needs to have all the tools that it's disposed. It will really make
a run at Montini. It'll be interesting to see if the weather has maybe an impact on whether or not they're able to access every page in their playbook because over time, if you watch the Monacello program, you know, under Kuley Welter, it's a creative program. They do creative things. I'm sure they're going to have some things in their bag that they're going to roll out specifically for this week in an attempt to, you know, maybe maybe pull
a rabbit out of their hat in certain situations. But will the will the surrounding conditions allow those things to happen. That's going to be interesting to watch.
And and you know, with respect mount of Cell, they might need a little bit of a rabbit out their head. I mean, Montini, I think after they that that Byron game was kind of like, all right, whoever comes out of that is going to be the prohibitive favorite to win three A. And I think that still bears out when you're talking about an experienced defense, a good running game, a talented quarterback, albeit a young quarterback. So we'll see
how he does, you know, circumstances. But you know, it's hard to go against Mantini in this game.
Yeah, it's tough. I mean, it really does look like like you said that, that Montini Byron game was kind of the kind of the prelude to the actual state championship game. That's been the situation that it's kind of been for the last two years, with Byron winning last year's game and then rolling over every everyone else along
the way. So you know, I think Montini is a clear favorite in this game, and I'm interested to see how mont Solo tries to attack this defense because I think, regardless of class, I think this is a really really good defensive unit and it's shown throughout their very difficult schedule.
The four A Championship game, which is Friday night at seven o'clock, give or take, interesting game. Two teams that I don't know that being the year Suis or Michael, we would have said, all right, you know I got to Paul Prep against Mount Zion in the four A Championship game. I think we could have probably won a few bets with that one with respect to those programs. But you know, Michael'll start with de Paul Prepp. You know, why are they here?
What?
Like what what has put them in position to do this? Because you know, it's been a long time since well, not that school, the previous iteration of it, Gordon Tech, has been in a championship game.
Yeah, it just kind of feels like they're on a heater. If we're sticking with like gambling terms and that kind of stuff, it just feels like this group, you know, they were able to eke out a twenty six to four team win over Saint Lawrence in the quarterfinals. They continue their momentum in the semi finals to get Okayst.
Coles City twenty one to fourteen. I think this is an experience group for which is funny to say for a group that obviously, you know, is back in the playoffs for the first time since twenty fifteen and won its first playoff game since you know, two thousand and five when it was Gordon Tech, Right, So you know this team hasn't been here too often, but it seems like it's got experience and doesn't really buckle under pressure. You've got a pretty dominant running it run at rusher
and you know, Nick Martinez, he's really stable. He really gives them a bunch of you know, chunkyards. You're there. You've got a really stout defense where you know, yes, there are some talented players that can maybe lead you, but it does feel like it's a whole effort as opposed to one guy. And you've got a dual thread quarterback who can you know, scramble, who can pick up yards?
Who can you know sometimes maybe he doesn't make the right throw er, you know, takes a sack, but you've got a quarterback that can kind of keep you alive. And that is the common theme here in playoffs, right. You talked about Abram Fermontini. Juji Rodriguez kind of does the same thing for DePaul where he just keeps plays the lives and finds players open. Then maybe when the play would have been done four or five seconds ago,
he's able to kind of keep it alive. So that kind of makes him a dynamic offense that kind of makes it, you know, fairly difficult to stop.
On the other side. Sus Mountain Zion, I mean, you know, I think they're three and three at one point this year, so probably wondered if they were gonna, you know, even get to the playoffs at that point, and then you know, getting this far. I don't think we necessarily expected them to win, you know, their last week's game, but but you know, they got a lot of big time talent on their team as well. When you're talking about high Division one recruit caliber players.
Well, this was a team that at the beginning of the season I was pretty high on, to be completely honest with you, because of the things that they have that you just mentioned. I mean tight end J. C. Anderson is a junior who's been recruited by every major collegiate program nation.
You know.
Wide receiver Brandon Trimble is kind of I think I referred to him early in the earlier in the week as the Swiss Army Knife of the Mountain Zion offense. He pretty much does whatever they need him to do at any time. He's a u of I recruit. These guys can really do it, and it was really confusing to me early in the season why they were having so much trouble, you know, you know, kind of getting some momentum going. I found out through the grapevine that
there were some health issues. They had some some key guys that were hurt. It appears now that they're should they're putting their best foot forward and they're playing their best football at the right time. So, I mean, knowing all those things in concert, I can see how they got here. Not knowing those things six to eight weeks ago, I would be I would have been surprised that they
were here based on their early season results. But Michael mentioned to Paul prep on a heater, I think some of the same can be said about Monzion.
Still, this is.
A matchup that Number one, I don't know these teams as well as some of the other teams in state. And I also liked this matchup because I don't know what's gonna happen. I could, I could, I could see either of these teams coming out on top. And I don't know if I could say that about some games this weekend.
Yeah, I'd agree. I think this is definitely one of them that creates one of those matchups that I talked about at the beginning of the of the podcast. Here it creates a pairing of two teams that we would never have like said, hey, this is this is a game that we're going to get at this point in the season, because, like you said, if you would have said at the beginning of the year, are our for a finalist or De Paul Prep and Mountain Layon, I would have I would have given you one of these.
I mean it would have been like, I don't know what you're what you're talking about here. I maybe would have bought into Mount Zion a little bit to Paul. I mean, let's look at their track record just to be honest. They haven't been in the playoffs since twenty fifteen, so that would have been a large leap to have to make. So this is a this is a really intriguing story on both sides. I'll say that.
Yeah, I would have been like de Paul Prepp. Are we talking basketball here? We're talking football. I I know they got a really good basketball program. I did not know so much about football, but you know, great stuff. Looking forward to it on Friday Saturday. If there's one theme, I think is rematches. There's some programs with a lot of familiarity in recent years. And I'll start with that
five A game Nazareth Joey at Katholic. You know, they obviously faced each other last year in a game that the final score really is not indicative of the kind of game that was. That was that was a close game for a good part of the game. JC actually led it half. And then this year interesting game is a low scoring game, sixteen to thirteen. I think NAS won. And I'll tell you what, Michael, if Joey a Katholic can get it to be a sixteen to thirteen game on Saturday, I think they'll take that.
Yeah.
I mean I covered that game and it was for a while there. I mean, it was just a rock fight. I mean it was just pretty much you know, who was going to, you know, run the ball really well, who was going to pick up five or six yards and that kind of stuff. And the difference in the game were two explosive throws from Logan now Chuck, and they were able to pick up the win there and kind of hold on at the end to kind of
turn away a late joya Catholic push. But you know, obviously these teams are different than they were, and whenever they met, I think it was like Week five. So these are two different teams the same way that they're different teams from last year's team. But I am curious to know just kind of how much familiarity plays into this thing. Obviously this team, these two teams saw each other last year's championship, they saw each other in Week five.
The talent is a little different, but it's fairly the same. I mean, you know, Joia Kathick is going to run the ball. They've had a great offensive and defensive line. Nazaretha has explosive, skilled players who can make plays, right. So I'm really interested to see how much do you take from that Week five game plan and do you apply it to this and do you how do you kind of take away you know, Trenton Walker from making an explosive catch? How do you get to Logan Malchuck?
Because not many programs have done a good job of trying to get them. How much is you know, Joey Catholic looking at the Mount Carmel tape with the understanding that obviously we don't have Mount Carmel, But what can we do with to kind of eliminate that? And I think the obvious thing is take away the passing lanes, force Nanzareth to run and if you can stop them from running, and I think Julian Katholck can make this a really competitive Hey football fans, listen up.
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The game Sous.
It's interesting mixes styles Joy at Catholic, you know from everything I'm reading about. You know, huge offensive line running to football. You know Nazareth getting into the outside with multiple receivers. You saw it last week. You were at the game against Saint Francis. Saint Francis had difficulty containing the big play. Joy at Katholic had difficulty containing the big play in last year's championship game. I remember James
Penley had a huge game for Nazareth last year. And honestly, James Penley, he's like their second or third best receive, second or third best He's like their second or third leading receiver on this team. I mean, there have so many weapons. Trenton Walker, as Michael alluded to, has emerged as a really big time threat for Nazareth as well.
You know.
I think the thing that's most intriguing to me about how this game will play out is I think Joliet Catholic's defense has been playing really really well since that initial meeting between the two schools. Not that they didn't in holding they already hauld Nazareth to the fewest points that they had up they'd scored all season. But since then, I feel like Julia Catholic's defense has been really really good.
And I don't know if that's a product of great improvement or the product of the fact that maybe their bracket was not very strong, because I think that it might be a combination of the two, because that defense, especially in the playoffs, has played incredibly well. Not only are they not allowing points, They've only allowed twenty points
through four playoff games. They're not allowing yardage. I mean they are sending teams off at an incredible rate of three and out, three and out, three and out, get the ball, run the other way.
To score.
I mean, it's that's just what they've been doing for the better part of six weeks right now. That's just what they've been doing on defense, on the defensive side of the ball. Is that a product of schedule? Is that a product of actual attainable performance level going up? I don't know the answer to that. We're gonna find out on Saturday morning.
Yeah, I mean, so I don't like picking against the joy yit Catholic program. But that being said, I don't know, Susan. It's hard for me to imagine these Nazareth seniors not going out on top, and just the way they're playing right now in the playoffs leads me to believe that they're the favor going on Saturday.
I'm inclined to agree with you. I do think, for a frame of reference, I think this has the potential to be the most intriguing game of all eight in just the way that I think it may play out.
Six eight game. East Saint Louis is not playing Kerry Grove, and they're pretty happy about that. But Geneva's pretty good as well. You know, suits first of all, at East Saint Louis, what do you make about this team. I mean, they're a team that you know, it's sort of like we hear about them like in a sort of a mythical ora a sense throughout the year, and then once or twice a year we get to see them live and we love to do that.
Well, Michael and I saw him back in Week one, and I know we both walked away very impressed with what we saw. And that was just Week one, and all this team has done since then is get better. And that's that's pretty alarming when you start to think about how good they looked in Week one and they keep getting better. They have absolutely demolished everyone in the playoffs.
At this point, in my heart of hearts, I was kind of hoping for another Carry Grove matchup, just because I wanted to see if they could do it again against this team, because boy, especially defensively, East Saint Louis just looks incredible. They're so fast to the ball. They don't seem to be they look a little undersized, but it does not convert over to the field. That's one of the things that I think I've noticed about them.
I Mean, Loyola had a huge offensive line and that did not detain East Saint Louis from doing pretty much whatever they wanted to do defensively in that game. So this is a really, really good football team. They're a little bit different offensively than what you're used to. It is not a we're looking for the quick sixty eighty yard touchdown pass hitter. They will kind of dink and dunk you down the field and take you apart that way. They have an army of running backs that they use.
It's it's not exactly the prototypical East Saint Louis team, but I think it's one of the more intriguing ones that we've had the opportunity to watch.
And you mentioned their defense too. I mean to me, that is the you know, sort of the interesting power on power matchup for this game is East St. Louis defense. Sounds so good. Geneva's offense has just been fantastic all year. Tony Jahino has just been a revelation for them as a quarterback. In a first year start, He's thrown forty
six forty seven touchdowns four thousand yards. Talon Taylor, the Georgia recruit, you know, one of the best receivers and well probably the best receiver in the state, and then they have a lot of other guys. You know, can Geneva put up points against this East Saint Louis team because they're probably gonna have to to give themselves a chance to win this game or be competitive.
Yeah, I don't think this is gonna be a ten to seven football game. That that I'm pretty sure of. So that's one of those things where I feel like you're right. I think they're gonna have to figure out a way to get some points on the board, and they might they might get used to like having to do that in a different way than they're used to. And when I say that, you know they're not gonna have a lot of time for downfield plays to develop. They're gonna have to get the ball in the hands
of their playmakers quickly. And East Saint Louis, on the other side, has a very talented secondary that closes up windows really really fast. So the decision making is gonna be have to be quick and assertive and put in the right place because if mistakes are made in those areas, East St. Louis will make you pay.
So I've been wrong this year to pick against Geneva on a few occasions, namely Batavia and that Carry Grove game. But man, it's it's hard to pick. Again, it's East St. Louis in this game, just with what they bring to the table. Yeah, I can't, Michael, Yeah, I think like.
If I know, obviously I don't cover either one of these teams, but I think the thing that makes that East lewis so special. And I was thinking about this, like, would today's Loyola team beat East St. Louis And I still feel like no, just based on you know, their offense is explosive, but that defense is just so physical and they're able to get to you so quickly. They put on a strong had the athleticism on that defensive line was insane for week one and it's just so hard to protect.
You know.
Loyola obviously was still trying to figure out its offensive line, but listen like that, that that defensive front is so physical and so quick where you don't really have too much time to make decisions offensively, and by the time they get to you, they're gonna lay a hit on you, fully legal, but they're gonna make you feel that they're there so for how much you know, you know, everyone
loves this offense. I mean, I love this defense. This defense was, you know, one of the better defenses I've seen the entire season and it was only Week one.
Yeah, there's definitely there's definitely guys that are just really really enjoyable to watch on this defense just from what they're able to do.
The linebacker KeAndre McClendon is just an absolute peace. And then you know, you look look around that roster and the guy that I think is just kind of their kind of their spark plug and just get stuff done. Almo Almo Gilliam Junior is a kid that literally it felt like in that Loyal agame he was in on
every freaking play. I mean that that's just I mean, those two guys from the linebacker position are just flying all over the place and you might be able to contain one of them, but good luck trying to keep both of them away. I mean, that's that's just the reality of the situation.
No doubt you guys were fortunate enough to see that team in Week one. I'm really looking forward to seeing them this weekend against an even at six a game, seven a game again, and a lot of later there Mount Carmel playing Batavia. This is a fourth year in a row. These two programs have met. Mount Carmel's of course won the first three meetings, and Michael Mount Carmel. If there's a team peaking at the right time, they
look at the part. I mean they you saw them against Saint Rita and they really kind of took it to Sant Rita.
Yeah, I mean, I think the biggest thing is and this will go into our next two classes what we're talking about here, but a healthy quarterback is really important to your team's success, right, and that's kind of what you've seen with Jack Elliott. I mean, he's back to being one hundred or probably not one hundred percent. No one's one hundred percent at this point. But he's he's explosive, he's healthy, he's able to run the ball, and he
has a good relationship with with his wide receivers. That's not to say that he didn't have one at the beginning of the year, but all three of his top receivers were new to the team. You had Cooper liam who came over from Eko Valley a senior. You have Quinn In Parreles sophomore, and then you had Marshawn Thornton who came in as a freshman toward the end of the year, and all three of those threats are just explosive. You're able to run the ball, he's able to connect
with a lot of them. Obviously, Jordan Lynch is gonna scheme up a good offense. But I've covered a bunch of, you know, Mount Carmel games this year, and every opposing coach says that Jack Elliott is the best player in the state. He's dynamic, he can throw the ball perfectly, he can run the ball, he knows how to run that offense. He's a perfect quarterback for Jordan Lynch. And yeah, I mean Batavia. I'm sure you know. Obviously they'd had
their rivalry in the last couple of years. They went to Mount Carmel, brought the one town, one team banner and that started a whole thing. But this is not an offense that I would want to face if I was any team right now.
No doubt about that. And Susan on the other side, you know, Batavia is a team that you know, going all the way back to Week one, I saw them at Glenbard West, the game they actually won, and I really wondered if they were a team, a Batavia team that was capable of making a run like that. No disrespect to the Patavia program of the utmost respect, but I really wonder if they had a team that can make this far because they leaned so heavily on Nathan Whitwell,
they're running back in their defense. But man, they have found magic in the playoffs with the rotating quarterbacks, specifically the sophomore Michael vanner lewit Garran. You were there for that second round game where they pulled the rabbit out of their hat at Lincoln Way West, and then they went down to another Lincoln away school last weekend and Michael vander Luigharran led I think like an eighty five yard drive in the last couple of minutes with a
touchdown Isaiah Brown. They've really found something in the playoffs, and they've made them a more dangerous team the fact that they don't just lean so heavily on Nathan Willow even though he's their main guy.
You know, they've just I've talked about this a lot kind of during this playoff run. They've done a really excellent job of recognizing what it's going to take and what sort of game plan is going to be to their best advantage through this playoff run. You know, you go back a round two. They had a disaster of a first half, went in and they downplayed it. But whatever they whatever they adjusted at halftime, all of it worked.
It was I mean, it might have been one of the more closest to perfect halfs on both sides of foot of the football. I think I've ever seen a team play both on offense and defense. Everything they did worked in that second half to win the game over Lincoln Way West. It was and they and they needed it all because they didn't actually win that game until the final minute. So and then you go to the next round. They figured out that hey we got to go to
school here. They gave the ball to Well a whole bunch of times and they and they beat Downers Grove North. Then they switch gears again in the semi finals. It's just a team that has done a remarkable job of morphing into the best version of themselves for the situation
that they have at hand. So I don't know if they're going to be able to do that again here because as we mentioned prior, this is an awfully big beast that they have to deal with here in Mount Carmel and their track record, to be honest against Mount Carmel, the last four seasons they've ended their postseason. Batavia's ended the postseason runs at the hands of a Mount Carmel and the last three have not gone very well for Batavia. So a large bridge has to be cleared and circling
back to Mount Carmel for a moment. This is a little bit off topic, and Michael, maybe you can speak to this. I saw some videos this week from the one of the freshmen that you meant you mentioned Thornton and another freshman that they have on the defensive line. What exactly are they feeding the fourteen and fifteen year olds in Mount Carmel? My goodness, especially Caleb Tucker. Oh my gosh. I couldn't even believe that that particular individual was a freshman in high school.
Yeah, I mean, I mean there's a reason why they call him the bone crusher. That's his nickname as a freshman.
Yeah.
I mean, I only got a chance to see him last week because he was obviously on the freshman team throughout the year, but he joined the squad after and I mean you could tell he's three. I mean, he's three hundred and thirty pounds six four, but he glides. I saw Jordan Lynch talk about this in the teleconference, but like he doesn't he carries in well as well as you can't hold three hundred and thirty pounds for a freshman. So I mean, yeah, I don't know what
you're supposed to do when you got that. And then Brandon Jones, a junior who's going to USC, That's just a tough matchup you got defensively, just trying to stop those huge, versatile bodies that they have.
So guys, for me, the key from this this game is is is camp Batavia, especially the outset, can they just slow Mount Carmel's offense down. Because a couple of years ago, the twenty twenty one game that was a game at Mount Carmel, they came down to the wire sort of a controversial finish. The last two years have not been they have not been close games, particularly last year, and I think I think the big part is that they have just not been able to slow down Mount
Carmel's up tempo playmakers on offense. They just they just have not been able to do it. Candy this time, I don't know if they can.
I mean, I think the biggest thing is going to be can you stop Jack Elliott? Right? I mean that's just going to like can you take that that? I mean, Loyola was able to do it by taking away his passing lanes, and he said, like he's talked about how that Loyola game really helped the offense click and figure
things out here for the playoffs. Like I feel like I get that quote every single year, But you know that this if you can stop Jack Elliott or do anything to have stopped him from running take away passing ways, that's the only way you're going to stop this offense. Because you know, as far as Jack Elliott goes, that's as far as this offense is going to go. And if he's going to run past you, if he's gonna throw a seventy yard bomb down like down the field.
I don't think that there's really much of a competition here.
The a to a final.
Uh.
You know, another game between teams that have seens are quite a bit in the playoffs in recent years, Loyola playing York. Loyola course a two time defending state champion. They've beaten York in the last two semifinals. Now they play each other in the final and Michael, you know, Loyola again, like some of these other programs like Mount Carmel, there's times where like all you know, just how good are they are they gonna be able to be up to what they've been in the past. Man, they have
answered all questions late in the year. Obviously, that Lincoln Way East game was huge for them.
Yeah, I mean, I think the biggest thing is, like we talked about with Mount Carmelo and Jack Elliott, you see how good Loyola is. What the healthy Ryan Fitzgerald, right, Like, obviously in Week one against East Saint Louis, that team was still trying to figure things out. New offensive line, obviously the defensive line. Obviously EA. St. Lewis is a great team. Those are all factors in that game. And
then then lost to Saint Francis in Week three. You know, Ryan fitzheal didn't play and he's been kind of limited throughout the year with the hamstring injury. Kind of showed
that he was kind of healthy. And then Mount Carmel game where they blew out Mount Carmel, and in the playoffs, you've just seen how versatile and important he's been where you know, against Lincoln East, you know, obviously Loyol's defense did really well, but it also was because Loyola just drove down the field and took away time and took away possessions where Jonas Williams didn't have the time to make the plays right because he wasn't on the field.
So I think that's the biggest thing where you've got a threat in Ryan Fitzgerald when he's finally healthy, that he'll throw you a bomb. He'll throw you a ten yard pass to pick up a first down, but he's also going to barrel into your best linebacker and pick up a first down. He's not afraid to run. And you see just how different in goodness offense is with Ryan Fitzgerald being as close as healthy as you could be heading at the championship weekend.
So there's some offenses this weekend that kind of go through the running back, go the receiver or whatever. These two teams, clearly it all starts with the quarterbacks. I mean, Ryan Fitzgerald running the football, throwing the football, doing whatever he does. And my gods, Bruno Masso, if there's a kid that's had a better playoffs than that young man.
I mean, he has just turned earned it on. I think, you know, run for over about one hundred and fifty yards every week, making huge throws whenever they need them. He has just really I mean, he's been one of the best stories of the playoffs. He's been great.
Yeah, he really has. And you and I have talked about this a lot during York's playoff run in regards to maybe underestimating what they were capable of and whether or not I mean this run was even possible because I think both of us were kind of aligned with, you know, maybe they'll win a game or two here, but thought that the road eventually, one of these teams was going to get them, and in reality that just
simply has not happened. And a lot of that has to do with his play, the fact that he just continues to make play after play after play in the sense that you know, if there was a team that was going to challenge them, you felt like he had another he had another loop on his belt, another trick that he could pull out of there and get it done for them. Because he's just really been great, especially in the postseason. Numbers bear that out. I mean, you
saw the kind of playmaker that he is. Even even though it was a tech a negative play, the way that they rounded out that semi final game is I mean, he was able to use what the tools that he has in his belt to just run the rest of that clock out so they didn't have to worry about punting, you know, a bad snap or any of those other things.
Took that safety. It was a smart play, ended up finishing out the game, and it completely alleviated any risk that they might have had of releasing that ball back to Apriville Central.
And he also had another play in earlier in the fourth quarter where I mean they were up by three or one, it was only a one or two and he made it was a fourth down play or third down and long, and he just made a long throw off of one foot.
Just on a dime.
He's not a guy that's gonna make a lot of throws for them, but it seems like when they need him to make the throws, make throws, he does. And obviously that's the same way for Ryan Fitzgerald. To me, guys, one of the big things is, you know, it's hard for Loyola to get their offense off the football field. Lincoln We East really struggled to that to do that for me, for York to have a chance, you know, can they get Loyol's offense off the field and can they stay on the field.
Yeah, it's definitely going to be a situation where, you know, I think York needs to try to stay on the field. After witnessing what I witnessed the Lincoln Way East game last week, you know, keeping Loyola off the field is a much bigger challenge moving forward into this game. I mean, I was I didn't. I wish I would have. I didn't track time of possession in the second half of that game, but I'm sure the gap was astonishingly wide. I mean, Loyola opened the second half with a monster drive,
a four team play drive. They had another drive right out after that that closed out the third quarter that I was actually shocked was ended by an interception that Ryan Fitzgerald for because I seriously, I don't think he made a single bad decision other than that pass over the entire second half. He always seemed to make the best choice. Whatever the choice is we're available to him. He picked the best one other than that one pass.
So I mean, keeping him from being able to engineer drives like that is the biggest challenge you work faces in my opinion.
Yeah, either way, we're gonna see history.
Guy.
I mean, York has never won a state championship. They've never been in the state final. Loyle, on the other hand, they win three eight eight titles in a row. Pretty impressive. Whatever you want to say about Loyal, pretty impressive.
They can do that especially, and I would say just basically the exactly last team to do it was Main South and look late two thousands and that you don't see that too often anymore.
You don't gonna be a lot of fun guys. We're gonna be there all weekend. Everybody catch up on Friday Night Drive. We've got a lot of stuff, you know, features previous, what have you ahead of that. And then Michael Susan and I will both be here, both there both days this weekend for Michael dwall Jack and Steve Susie. I'm Josh Welge. Everyone have a great Wednesday and a great Thanksgiving.
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