Herald-News Prep Football Semifinal Playoff Capsules

Class 8A

Glenbard West (11-1) at Lincoln-Way East (12-0)

When: 1 p.m. Saturday

Last matchup: Lincoln-Way East 45, Glenbard West 0 (2018 8A playoffs)

About the Hilltoppers: Glenbard West has had to break from its mold as a defense-first program over the past few weeks, enduring an offensively explosive game against Maine South. But the Hilltoppers have demonstrated that they have some offensive capabilities of their own if they need to get into a shootout to survive. After initially believed to be a fill-in for injury at the RB position, Julius Ellens has entrenched himself in the backfield rotation, getting the lion’s share of the carries. He ran for 135 yards in the Maine South win. Ellens’ emergence has allowed Joey Pope to move primarily to the defensive side of the ball, but the speedster still checks in on offense from time to time. QB Korey Tai is sort of a mirror image of Lincoln-Way East’s Braden Tischer with the ability he has to make things happen with a limited number of passing attempts, and if that fails he is able to tuck the ball and slash up a defense for big gains.

About the Griffins: Lincoln-Way East continues to be a case study on how good a team can be when everyone is in unison. The Griffins aren’t flashy, but they absolutely know how to extract the most out of the talent they have and are merciless at exposing opponents’ weaknesses. Offensively, Lincoln-Way East seems to be able to plug in whatever type of offensive attack that will net the best results on a given day. With its typically potent rushing attack slowed a bit from its usual exceptional production, Lincoln-Way East switched gears and got most of its success through the air in its quarterfinal win over Warren, as QB Braden Tischer threw three touchdown passes, including an 80-yard strike to WR Jimmy Curtin. The defense continues to be excellent and was tossing a shutout against Warren until a pair of special teams miscues allowed Warren to score a pair of late touchdowns. The defense has some standouts, notably LB Jake Scianna and DE Caden O’Rourke, but quite possibly the best thing about this defense is its ability to play as one cohesive unit that rarely has anyone out of place.

Friday Night Drive Pick: Lincoln-Way East

Class 6A

East St. Louis (10-2) at Lemont (12-0)

When: 2 p.m. Saturday

Last matchup: East St. Louis 42, Lemont 21 (2021 6A playoffs)

About the Flyers: East St. Louis has played exactly like you’d expect a favorite to play, as it has steamrolled through the first three rounds of the playoffs recording three shutouts and piling up 156 points in those three running-clock wins. Even without the state’s player of the year, Luther Burden, now at Missouri, the Flyers offense is extremely dynamic and has multiple players capable of the home-run at any time. Engineering the offensive attack is Robert “Pops” Battle, who has thrown for just less than 2,000 yards and 21 scores to date. Sophomore running back TaRyan Martin has just eclipsed 1,000 yards rushing and has 17 scores as well. East St. Louis’ offensive stats aren’t as gaudy as they could be, as many of the contests get out of hand rather quickly. The offense gets deserved headlines, but the defense might be even better. Dominic Dixon is the anchor of the defense and is closing in 150 tackles on the season. Dixon is also one of three players who have recorded 10 sacks on the season, along with Antwon Hayden and KeShawn Hayden. The Flyers have a couple of ballhawks in the secondary, as Sael Reyes and Jaion Jackson lead a secondary with five interceptions each.

About Lemont: Lemont had to break its seasonal mold a bit in grinding out a 14-0 win over Kenwood in the quarterfinals. Lemont’s offense was kept reasonably in check by the Broncos, but the largely unheralded piece of the Lemont juggernaut, its defense, stepped into the spotlight. Lemont held Kenwood to just more than 100 yards of total offense on a night when it needed to considering Lemont’s powerhouse offense was kept largely in check. Lemont’s first touchdown actually was an offensive fumble recovery set up by a blocked punt, and it was forced to lean a little bit more heavily on running back Nathan Wrublik than usual. QB Payton Salomon was held without a touchdown pass for one of the few times in his high school career and will look to get back to his high-percentage passing ways against an opponent that will make that quest extremely difficult. The biggest key for Lemont will be limiting mistakes to the smallest level possible while affording East St. Louis as little possession of the football as possible.

FND pick: East St. Louis

Class 5A

Morris (10-2) at Peoria (11-1)

When: 2 p.m. Saturday

Last matchup: Peoria 43, Morris 35 (2016 Class 5A playoffs)

About Morris: Morris has specialized in getting off to solid starts this season, and when they happen, Morris tends to set the tone for the rest of the game. A quick start might actually be a must for Morris this week against an opponent that also doesn’t have any problem playing at a quicker pace. A versatile offensive attack that tends to be led by RB Ashton Yard, who joined the 1,000-yard club in last week’s win over Mahomet-Seymour, is the centerpiece. Morris has stacked up over 2,700 yards rushing over the course of the season, but by no means is it one-dimensional. QB Carter Button has thrown for more than 1,000 yards and has 16 touchdowns as well. Morris has done a nice job on defense in general, but the focus will be placed squarely on the team’s run defense. It has been sturdy, allowing about 150 yards a game to opponents on the ground, but Peoria’s offense is heavily centered on that mode of attack, and it will be absolutely critical for Morris to try to tamp down the Lions.

About the Lions: Peoria likes to set the pace in its games, and the pace it prefers is fast. Peoria’s postseason success has been slightly different than some of its success stories of the past, as the Lions are heavily reliant on their ground game for moving the football rather than the wide-open spread attack of previous years. Either way, the end goal is to have teams tired of having to deal with the Lions by the end of the game, and the frustration has set in for multiple postseason opponents. In last week’s quarterfinal win over Mascoutah, Peoria just went to its battering ram over and over again. Malachi Washington finished with 40 carries, 268 yards and four touchdowns to key a victory that was close early but eventually turned into a comfortable Lions’ win. Defensively, Peoria has a relentless spirit as well, as lineman Landon Newby-Holesome and Tejuan Smith have a knack for causing all sorts of problems for opponents who don’t pay them the proper amount of attention.

FND pick: Morris

Class 4A

Providence (8-4) at Wheaton St. Francis (11-1)

When: 2 p.m. Saturday

Last matchup: First meeting

About the Celtics: It has been a fantastic run for the No. 13-seeded Providence Celtics, who seem to be branding new heroes on a week-to-week basis. It’s been almost impossible to single out a player or two for kudos, as so many are contributing to Providence’s success. QB Lucas Proudfoot had arguably the best game of his season in throwing for 240 yards on 8-of-11 completions as the Celtics ousted top-seeded Richmond-Burton in the quarterfinals. Proudfoot spread the ball around nicely and provides an enigma for opposing defenses, as he doesn’t key on any one player to move the ball downfield. RB Jamari Tribett also has been a consistent source of offense but sometimes disappears as a focal point as others have proved capable of shouldering the load. On defense, it is even harder to detect who might lead the way. But one thing is for certain, someone is likely to step up and make a play when Providence needs it most. Special teams have been a particular source of success for Providence, and any place the Celtics can grab even the slightest edge they will take it willingly.

About the Spartans: St. Francis finally met a little bit of resistance in the playoffs after back-to-back shutouts to start the postseason. Obviously, Providence presents an interesting challenge for St. Francis with its ability to piece together productivity for all over the roster, but St. Francis also has some weapons all over the field to use in an attempt to put the shoe on the other foot in regards to this week’s opponent. Two-way lineman TJ McMillen is a terror for opposing teams to have to deal with, while St. Francis has had few problems on offense as QB Alessio Milivojevic tends to put them in great position to succeed. Kent State-bound WR Dash Dorsey is a game-breaker that needs to be attended to, and while it is far from his only responsibility, long snapper Nick Duzansky is an Oregon commit who contributes in as many ways as St. Francis can find for him. Neither team in this matchup tends to make a lot of mistakes, so if the Spartans can be the team that either eliminates them entirely or is able to neutralize them, that should put them in good stead and possibly into the school’s first title game since 2008.

FND pick: Providence