Kane County notes: Wide receivers put on a show in Week 2

It’s been a good first few weeks for wide receivers across the Kane County area.

Through four weeks of the season, four receivers have already eclipsed the 100-yard receiving mark in a game. And from the way that receivers are looking, that number is sure to grow by season’s end.

Leading the way among receivers was Geneva standout Talyn Taylor. After putting up 74 receiving yards and two touchdowns in a quarter in Week 1, the Georgia commit followed up with a 175-yard showing where he found the end zone three times in the Vikings’ 41-7 victory over Lemont.

Also passing the 100-yard mark last week was Batavia’s Isaiah Brown, who finished the Bulldogs’ 42-14 victory over South Elgin with 110 receiving yards and two scores in the first half before being subbed out. It was only his second time hitting triple digits and having multiple touchdowns since transferring in from Yorkville, with his first coming in last season’s state quarterfinal game against Hononegah.

St. Charles North’s Keaton Reinke and St. Charles East’s Sheko Gjokaj both reached triple digits in their Week 1 contests, but Reinke still managed a solid week in the North Stars’ win against Crete-Monee. After starting off the game with a 78-yard kickoff return touchdown, the junior found the end zone on a 6-yard receiving touchdown, as well as a 35-yard passing touchdown to fellow receiver Braden Harms.

Burlington Central, Kaneland kickers come up big

It was a good week for Burlington Central’s David McCoy and Kaneland’s Sam Bruno.

In their matchups against Dundee Crown and Wauconda, respectively, the two kickers ended up playing a crucial role in their team’s Week 2 victories.

McCoy’s game-winning kick came with three seconds left on the clock and the Rockets down by one. With the time winding down, the kicker nailed a 37-yard field goal to give the Rockets a 24-22 victory for their first win of the season.

“The pressure was on a little bit,” McCoy said Friday after the win. “I was pretty confident I could make the kick. I’m thanking my team for putting me in the position to finally do that.

“I make those kicks all the time, so I knew I just had to go out there and be confident.”

In the Knights’ case, it wasn’t just one kick that Bruno made that helped secure a 2-0 record. In fact, it was three.

After scoring on their first offensive drive, Bruno was the Knights’ only source of points for the rest of the game. His kicks of 26, 26 and 23 yards helped them to a 16-7 victory over Wauconda.

Marmion off to perfect start in new era

There were a lot of questions about how the Cadets would look entering the season.

The Cadets have put up two solid showings in their first two games under Guerra, who was a coach at St. Patrick from 2017 to 2021 before stepping away from coaching for a bit. After scoring 21 unanswered points for a 21-15 victory over Oak Forest in Week 1, the Cadets put the hurt on The Noble Academy, shutting them out in a 56-0 showing.

After relying on senior quarterback Kam Tolliver in Week 1 to bring them back, it was senior running back Sean Dahlman who jump started the offense early with a kickoff return touchdown on the first play of the game and a rushing touchdown on the Cadets’ first offensive play.

They also had two pick-sixes in the game from Michael Roche and Bryan Scales, who also caught the game-winning pass in Week 1.

With a senior-heavy roster performing to his expectations, it wouldn’t be surprising if Guerra can help the Cadets make some noise in conference play – and potentially in the playoffs, as well.

“I am proud of the hard work the team has put in,” Guerra said. “We have gotten better every week and are excited to start conference play this upcoming week against St. Viator. The senior leadership and contributions have been outstanding.”

DuKane teams off to a hot start

The DuKane conference has been known as one of the premier football conferences across the state since its debut season in 2018. And this season is looking to be no exception.

With conference play starting Friday, the teams will be heading into their matchups with a combined 13-3 record, which is the best overall record heading into league play since 2021, when teams also were 13-3. The 2021 season also happened to be the only season where a team from the DuKane finished with a state championship after Wheaton North took home the Class 7A title.

Out of the 13 wins this season, 12 of them came from teams who went 2-0 in nonconference play. Geneva and Lake Park won both of their games in blowout fashion. Batavia and St. Charles North had great offensive showings in Week 2 after close first games. Glenbard North has relied on good defensive showings. And Wheaton North has won both of its games on the last play.

And while Wheaton Warrenville South (1-1) and St. Charles East (0-2) don’t fall under that same category, all three losses came against teams who made it to at least the second round of the playoffs last season and have not lost by more than two touchdowns.

With all this being lined up, expect to see some great football games over the next seven weeks between these eight teams.