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Southwest Prairie West
Oswego (3-4, 1-2) at Oswego East (4-3, 1-2)
When: 7 p.m. Friday
Last matchup: Oswego 38, Oswego East 14 (2021)
About the Panthers: Oswego kept its playoff hopes alive with last Friday’s 45-22 win over West Aurora. Cruz Ibarra threw two touchdown passes to both Jordan Katzenbach and Deakon Tonielli. Braedon Hellinger ran for a TD, set up another score with a long run and blocked a punt. Ibarra has thrown for 1,051 yards with 11 TDs and three interceptions on the season. Tonielli has 28 catches for 422 yards and five TDs. The Panthers have been hit hard by injuries this season, but did get a key player back recently with the return of all-conference defensive end Taiden Thomas. Establishing the run with Alex Magana and Noah Vera, and containing Oswego East QB Tre Jones are top priorities for the Panthers. Oswego has won 16 of the first 17 crosstown meetings, the lone Oswego East win in the spring of 2021.
About the Wolves: Oswego East has dropped back-to-back games to Minooka and Yorkville. With a Week 9 game at unbeaten Plainfield North looming, the Wolves – like their crosstown counterparts – badly need a win here to keep their playoff hopes on track. QB Tre Jones, a Navy recruit, leads the Wolves in both passing and rushing yards, and is a dynamic dual threat – but Oswego East needs to get its running game rebooted to keep the heat off of him. It would also alleviate the pressure on a defense which has been stout for the most part but ran out of gas against Yorkville. The Wolves’ only two scores against Yorkville was a Michael Parrott kickoff return for a touchdown and a Mike Polubinski TD catch in the final minute. Injuries have also affected the Wolves, with two-way standout Oshobi Odior out since Week 1 with an ankle injury.
Friday Night Drive Pick: Oswego
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Minooka (5-2, 2-1) at Yorkville (6-1, 2-1)
When: 7 p.m. Friday
Last matchup: Minooka 20, Yorkville 17 (2021)
About the Indians: Minooka has improved leaps and bounds defensively since being run around in circles by Bolingbrook back in Week 1. It’s become the team’s hallmark, but it will have a tall task here against a team that has been equally if not more stingy than the Indians on that side of the ball. Offensively, Minooka has had a true grinder mentality but actually benefitted more from big plays in its near-upset of Plainfield North in Week 7. Ideally, Minooka’s offense would be a blend of both. RB Joey Partridge has developed into a reliable runner for the Indians and he’ll probably be a critical piece to whatever success Minooka has offensively.
About the Foxes: Yorkville has leaned heavily on its fierce defensive line and its defense as a whole all year, and its offense rejoined the party in the second half of last Friday’s 28-14 win over Oswego East. Junior Josh Gettemy, starting in place of the injured Gio Zeman, ran for 187 of his 249 yards in the second half and the Foxes scored TDs on three consecutive drives after going 10 quarters without an offensive TD. Yorkville’s first-team defense has not been scored upon the last two weeks. The matchup between the Foxes’ defensive line against a Minooka offense that prefers power football is a steel-on-steel slugfest that bears watching. Andrew Laurich (30 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, 12 hurries), Jake Davies (27 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 3 sacks) and Blake Kersting (38 tackles, 9 tackles for loss) are ringleaders of the Foxes’ defense.
FND Pick: Yorkville
Kishwaukee River/Interstate 8 Blue
Rochelle (6-1, 3-0) at Plano (3-4, 1-2)
When: 7 p.m. Friday
Last matchup: Rochelle 28, Plano 20 (2021)
About the Hubs: Rochelle is co-leaders of the Kishwaukee River/Interstate 8 Blue with Richmond-Burton, and the two programs could decide the title with a Week 9 game in Rochelle provided the Hubs take care of business here. “We want to throw a monkey wrench in those plans,” Plano coach Rick Ponx said. The Hubs’ wing-T offense has put up massive numbers in its six wins, averaging 46.5 points in those games. Senior Garrett Gensler, a Class 5A All-Stater last year and a third-year starter, has rushed for 1,270 yards at an 11.3 yard per carry average with 16 touchdowns, going over 100 yards in six of Rochelle’s seven games. Senior Trey Taft has rushed for 640 yards and nine TDs. Rochelle has great size up front, with three 6-foot-6 players. Junior Brock Metzger, with 39 tackles, is a leader of the Hubs’ defense.
About the Reapers: Plano kept its playoff hopes alive last week with its 40-14 win over Harvard. Waleed Johnson ran for 222 yards on 28 carries, and is now over 1,000 yards rushing on the season. Plano also had success throwing the ball in a limited capacity, Armando Martinez 5-for-6 passing for 173 yards and two TDs. The Reapers badly need to sustain ball-control drives to take the pressure off a defense that will be tested severely by a high-powered Rochelle offense that can wear on it with its ground game. “The key to our success is our defense being able to slow down our offense which means our offense needs to stay on the field,” Ponx said. “We had some success last year. Holding them to 28 points is an accomplishment.” Plano did play Rochelle to within a score last season, so a measure of confidence could be taken from that.
FND Pick: Rochelle