2024 season preview: Scouting the Upstate 8 East Conference

Team previews

Elmwood Park Tigers

Coach: Terrance Terry

2023 record: 2-7, 1-5 Chicago Prairieland

Schedule: Aug. 30 Woodstock North; Sept. 6 at Chicago Christian; Sept. 13 Fenton; Sept. 20 at Glenbard East; Sept. 27 at Glenbard South; Oct. 4 West Chicago; Oct. 11 Riverside-Brookfield; Oct. 18 at Streamwood; Oct. 25 Ridgewood.

Worth noting: After finishing their lone season in the Chicago Prairieland with a 2-7 record, Terry is entering his second season as head coach hoping that a change in conference scenery will prove to be fruitful for the Tigers’ rebuild in the long term. Elmwood Park is set to mainly be run by a big chunk of juniors with playing experience this season. Players like quarterback Matthew Fritz and wide receiver Jairus Ponce will lead the offense while linebacker Trinidad Lopez leads the defense. While the Tigers did start last season with an 0-6 record, including not getting more than two touchdowns in each of the first four games, they did go on to win two of their last three games against Westmont and Chicago Academy - Kelvin Park. Those two wins could be the boost they need to potentially find some more victories this season.

“The hope for 2024 is for the program to become a consistent 5A playoff team capable of a run,” Terry said. “In order to do that, the Tigers will first focus on competing week-in and week-out in the revamped Upstate 8 conference.”

Fenton Bison

Coach: Mark Farrell

2023 record: 0-9, 0-9

Schedule: Aug. 30 at Elgin; Sept. 6 Streamwood; Sept. 13 at Elmwood Park; Sept. 20 Glenbard South; Sept. 27 Riverside-Brookfield; Oct. 4 at Glenbard East; Oct. 11 at East Aurora; Oct. 18 Ridgewood; Oct. 25 at West Chicago

Worth noting: Farrell is returning to the head coaching position with the Bison after 15 seasons. In his four-year tenure from 2005-09, Farrell finished with a 21-17 record and helped Fenton to two Class 6A playoff appearances. Since his departure, the Bison’s fortunes have changed. Not only have they not appeared in the playoffs since 2013, but the program has only eclipsed the two-win mark three times since then, with the last instance coming in 2018. The Bison will hope to use a combination of an experienced line and backfield duo of quarterback Nate Stewart and running back Omar Diaz to get back in the win column early with a Week 2 matchup against Streamwood, which they defeated 24-22 in Week 8 of 2022 for their last win. But for the most part, Farrell expects his first season back at the helm to be a rebuilding season to help bring the numbers of the program back to where they used to be.

“We have had great buy in by the kids this summer and we are improving everyday,” Farrell said. “This year we are preaching accountability, maturity, hard work and doing the little things right. Every close game will come down to five plays. Which team does those five plays better usually comes out on top.”

Glenbard East Rams

Coach: John Walters

2023 record: 10-2, 8-1

Schedule: Aug. 30 at Willowbrook; Sept. 6 West Aurora; Sept. 13 Bartlett; Sept. 20 at Elmwood Park; Sept. 27 at Ridgewood; Oct. 4 Fenton; Oct. 11 West Chicago; Oct. 18 at Glenbard South; Oct. 25 at Riverside-Brookfield

Worth noting: Coming off a season that saw them match a program record for wins and an appearance in the Class 7A state quarterfinals, the Rams will be heading into the season with a “next man up” mentality to try and reclaim their conference title and make it back to the playoffs for the sixth straight season. The Rams lost several key pieces on both offense and defense to graduation, including the backfield duo of Blake Salvino and Matt Larson, who are both playing at North Central College, but still have some good core pieces to build off. The senior wideout duo of Amonte Cook and Chris Renford will be expected to be key threats for new quarterback Michael Nee. On defense, the Rams return more starters and experience to fill in holes left by players like Augustus Winkler and Dan Zlatonov. Senior lineman Cooper Conliss and edge rusher Nick Payne will be the leaders on the line, while senior Stevyn Fox will man the secondary once again on what Walters expects to be a very physical defensive squad.

“Our expectations are high every year. Our guys know what is expected of them from a preparation and compete standpoint,” Walters said. “At this point it’s about getting on the field and playing.”

Glenbard South Raiders

Coach: Ryan Crissey

2023 record: 9-2, 8-1

Schedule: Aug. 30 at Wheaton Warrenville South; Sept. 6 East Aurora; Sept. 13 West Chicago; Sept 20 at Fenton; Sept. 27 Elmwood Park; Oct. 4 at Riverside-Brookfield; Oct. 11 at Ridgewood; Oct. 18 Glenbard East; Oct. 25 at Larkin.

Worth noting: Glenbard South enjoyed one of its most successful seasons under Crissey a season ago with a 9-2 record, a shared conference title with Glenbard East and South Elgin and a visit to the Class 5A quarterfinals. While the Raiders are returning 15 of their 22 starters from a season ago, they also lost three key starters in quarterback Michael Campagna, offensive and defensive lineman Jack Anderson and, most notably, wide receiver and safety Cam Williams, who’s at Notre Dame. While the loss of two Suburban Life first-team All-area players and an honorable mention is a big blow, Crissey has confidence in his returners on offense (senior running back Devontae Clark, senior linebacker and wideout Zach Hyzy) and defense (senior linebacker Joey Villa, lineman Saif Kokozska) to get the Raiders back to the playoffs for the 13th straight season.

“Glenbard South is looking forward to a strong season,” Crissey said. “With 15 returning starters, the Raiders are looking to make a run at another conference championship.”

Ridgewood Rebels

Coach: Vince Fanelli

2023 record: 6-4, 4-3 Chicagoland Prairie

Schedule: Aug. 30 at Schurz; Sept. 6 Clemente; Sept. 13 at Riverside-Brookfield; Sept. 20 West Chicago; Sept. 27 Glenbard East; Oct. 4 at West Aurora; Oct. 11 Glenbard South; Oct. 18 at Fenton; Oct. 25 at Elmwood Park.

Worth noting: Much like Elmwood Park, the Upstate 8 will be the Rebels’ third different conference in three seasons after leaving the Chicagoland Prairie and Metro Suburban Blue the year before. But Ridgewood is coming into the Upstate 8 riding a hot streak under Fanelli with back-to-back winning seasons and playoff appearances in his first two seasons manning the sidelines. While the Rebels did lose a majority of their main offensive stars, including quarterback Jaden Rodriguez, they still have senior utility man Luke Melendez, who had 843 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns across the offense and special teams and two interceptions a year ago, and senior lineman Gil Mendoza, who’s leading a tight-knit offensive line group. With the two players being excellent building blocks for the future, Ridgewood hopes to build off of the talent to make it three-for-three in winning seasons and playoff appearances under Fanellli.

Riverside-Brookfield Bulldogs

Coach: Sam Styler

2023 record: 7-3, 5-2 Southland

Schedule: Aug. 30 Niles West; Sept. 6 at Hinsdale South; Sept. 13 Ridgewood; Sept. 20 at Elgin; Sept. 27 at Fenton; Oct. 4 Glenbard South; Oct. 11 at Elmwood Park; Oct. 18 at West Chicago; Oct. 25 Glenbard East.

Worth noting: Much like the other newcomers in the conference, the Bulldogs will be in new conference territory for the third straight season after jumping from Metro Suburban - Red to Southland and now to the Upstate 8. But while the team will be new to the conference, the players on the starting roster will also be new to some of the fans. The Bulldogs graduated 27 seniors from last season, including familiar faces like quarterback Diego Gutierrez, tight end and defensive end Luke Kumskis and offensive lineman Manny Garcia-Rivera. But even with a much younger team, the third-year head coach has confidence in his new senior leaders like linebacker and running back duo Max Strong and JuJu Espinoza, lineman duo Kaleb McCottry and Carter Shelby, and tight end and defensive end Nick Rivera, to go for a title and make the playoffs for the fourth straight season.

“After a strong 7-3 season in 2023, we’ve been working toward another great year,” Styler said. “We are a younger team in 2024, but we still feel we are in a great position to compete for the Eastern Division conference championship.”

West Chicago Wildcats

Coach: Adam Chavez

2023 record: 5-5, 5-4

Schedule: Aug. 30 Round Lake; Sept. 6 at Joliet Central; Sept. 13 at Glenbard South; Sept. 20 at Ridgewood; Sept. 27 South Elgin; Oct. 4 at Elmwood Park; Oct. 11 at Glenbard East; Oct. 18 Riverside-Brookfield; Oct. 25 Fenton.

Worth noting: West Chicago is set to make the next step with an expanded roster and some momentum in Chavez’s third year at the helm. The Wildcats snapped a 21-year playoff drought after qualifying for the Class 7A playoffs, marking just the third time they’ve made the playoffs since winning the Class 3A title in 1974. Junior quarterback Carter Naranjo will be back to lead the flexbone triple option offense that picked up 1,776 rushing yards last season. While they lost their top rusher in Vincent Muci, the Wildcats still have options like senior backs Robert Lee and Louis Zeitler to step in as the main back, or senior Tommy Doyle out wide as a player to catch defenses off guard. Either way, Chavez is excited to see if the Wildcats have what it takes to make back-to-back playoffs for the first time in school history.

“We return starters in several key positions on both sides of the ball,” Chavez said. “This is year three of our offense and year two of our defense and the kids have a good grasp of what we are doing. We feel really good about where we are at.”

5 players to watch

Amonte Cook, Glenbard East, sr., WR: A speedy wide receiver with the ability to make some huge plays down the field, Cook will be crucial in making sure the Rams can fill up the holes on offense, and maybe even on defense.

Devontae Clark, Glenbard South, sr., RB/DE: With the Raiders losing their top three rushers from last year, Clark is expected to get a majority of the carries and will get a chance to show off some of his power on both sides of the ball.

Saif Kokoszka, Glenbard South, sr., OL/DL: A true impact player from both sides of the line, Kokoszka will look to fill in some of the gaps on the Raiders offensive line while acting as a leader on a highly-experienced defense.

Luke Melendez, Ridgewood, sr., WR/KR/PR/S: A true all-around player, Melendez was a key part of the Rebels’ offense, secondary and special teams success a season ago and should be a threat once again in the new conference.

Carter Naranjo, West Chicago, jr., QB: While on the smaller side compared to the average quarterback, Naranjo proved to be an excellent fit for the Wildcat’s triple option offense, and should be even more effective with a year of experience with the playbook under his belt.

5 games to watch

Week 1 — Glenbard South at Wheaton Warrenville South: The start of Glenbard South’s 2024 schedule might come with some difficulties compared to last season. The Tigers are bringing back multiple offensive weapons from a season ago and while the Raiders do as well, they lost some key weapons in Campagna and Williams, so the Raiders’ new offense will be thrown into the fire early to see if they can outscore Wheaton Warrenville South.

Week 3 — Ridgewood at Riverside-Brookfield: Both Ridgewood and Riverside-Brookfield will be making their conference debuts in this contest and will be hoping to make a good impression early on. Both teams finished third in their old conferences and have some big changes in some key places, so there’s a chance that this matchup will be fairly competitive.

Week 4 — West Chicago at Ridgewood: This contest will be a good baseline to see where each team could potentially end up in the conference standings by season’s end. The Wildcats finished right in the middle of the Upstate 8 standings a season ago with a 5-4 record, while Ridgewood went 4-3 in the Chicagoland Prairie. Either way, this game could decide who’s made the jump over the past year, and who will most likely stay around the middle of the pack.

Week 8 — Glenbard East at Glenbard South: After finishing atop the Upstate 8 standings a season ago, both programs have a solid shot of entering the matchup being undefeated in conference play, and in turn play for the overall title. The Rams handed the Raiders their only conference loss last year in a 28-14 final. But will the Raider’s large return from last season be enough to take down a newer looking Rams team?

Week 9 — Glenbard East at Riverside-Brookfield: The Bulldogs will face a tough task to end their first season in the Upstate 8 when they take on the Rams. Riverside-Brookfield enters the season with the best record of the newest Upstate 8 schools, but also with the newest looking lineup, so it should be interesting how they stack up against one of last year’s conference champions.

STEVE SOUCIE’S PREDICTED FINISH

(* - Projected playoff qualifier)

1. Glenbard South*
2. Glenbard East*
3. Riverside-Brookfield*
4. West Chicago*
5. Ridgewood
6. Fenton
7. Elmwood Park