What did we learn week 3!?!?!?!

LakeCtyNewt

All-Conference
Nov 13, 2002
8,150
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I’ll admit, I am not a believer in Friday the 13th curses and all that. After this last Friday, I may have to change my stance.

1 - That Libertyville deserves our attention.
2 - That ok Lake Forest, we see you.
3 - That the gap between LWE, ESL and everyone else is growing.
4 - That Sandburg, once a year does that Sandburg thing…….
5 - That DG North is scary
6 - That Mt Carmel’s offense is elite. The defense?
7 - That Althoff is making small schools great again.
8 - That Fremd football looks to be back.
9 - That weirdness extended to small schools - the NUIC Friday - weird.
10 - That Providence could be in real danger of missing the playoffs.

Stay well
 

johnndoe

Senior
Oct 19, 2019
1,221
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On the Sandburg point, their mere 10-point loss at Rita Week 1 gains some extra attention. We will see this Friday when the Eagles go down to untested 3-0 LW West. Who actually is H-F also has bearing on the Sandburg resume so far.
 
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LWN_Pheonix

Senior
Oct 30, 2023
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Main South needs to make some adjustments

Lincolnway Central is on the upswing
 
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McEvergreen

All-Conference
Oct 29, 2019
1,135
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That ESL is the best team in the state.
That Loyola is not just fine.
That whatever is going on at Warren and Maine South needs to be fixed.
That defending state champs Byron and Wilmington continue to steamroll whoever steps on the field with them.
That the Neuqua Valley football program continues to disappoint. They have the talent. Could it be the water?
 

McCaravan

All-American
Feb 1, 2016
4,846
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I know I look at MC through rose colored glasses but in defense of the defense, their secondary was exposed vs Hun and Naz but Hun was Hun, and Naz QB is a 4 year starter with 2 State Rings so nobody expected a shut out. They shut out Rita. So if you have an elite QB your going to score against MC, you just have to have a good defense too because you’re going to go punch for punch with them for 4 quarters
 
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Kevin JCHS 81

All-Conference
Jul 16, 2005
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I’ll admit, I am not a believer in Friday the 13th curses and all that. After this last Friday, I may have to change my stance.

Friday the 13th is more of a lucky day for me (odd, I know) and JCA would essentially be fighting for their playoff lives. So, I started watching on JCA YouTube and invited my daughter's black cat up on the table with me, trying to give the Hillmen all the luck I could muster. The cat laid on my laptop for almost the entire game.

Well, it worked. ;)
 

Kevin JCHS 81

All-Conference
Jul 16, 2005
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Friday the 13th is more of a lucky day for me (odd, I know) and JCA would essentially be fighting for their playoff lives. So, I started watching on JCA YouTube and invited my daughter's black cat up on the table with me, trying to give the Hillmen all the luck I could muster. The cat laid on my laptop for almost the entire game.

Well, it worked. ;)
Sorry Newt if I'm kind of derailing your post.

But having a Black Cat laying on my keyboard made it impossible to post during the game, which is probably a good thing, I was a little hard on the Hilltoppers last week. Even to the the point where a fellow JCA poster told me "get a grip". :oops:

I suppose that's the price for conjuring up some luck for the Hillmen. Back to your regular scheduled thread.
 

caravan8

Senior
Aug 23, 2014
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I know I look at MC through rose colored glasses but in defense of the defense, their secondary was exposed vs Hun and Naz but in their defense Hun was Hun, and Naz QB is a 4 year starter with 2 State Rings so nobody expected a shut out. They shut out Rita. So if you have an elite QB your going to score against MC, you just have to have a good defense too because you’re going to go punch for punch with them for 4 quarters
I don’t think anyone expected shut outs, and you’re correct that both teams had very good QB’s. My concern is that the QB’s weren’t fitting throws into small windows or threading any needles. They were big throws to wide open receivers way behind the secondary. If the defense can clean up the secondary play, I like their chances.
 

LakeCtyNewt

All-Conference
Nov 13, 2002
8,150
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Sorry Newt if I'm kind of derailing your post.

But having a Black Cat laying on my keyboard made it impossible to post during the game, which is probably a good thing, I was a little hard on the Hilltoppers last week. Even to the the point where a fellow JCA poster told me "get a grip". :oops:

I suppose that's the price for conjuring up some luck for the Hillmen. Back to your regular scheduled thread.
All good. Appreciate the Friday the 13th reference - I tried not to get corny but couldn’t help myself.
 

PowerI66_

All-Conference
Oct 11, 2012
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I know I look at MC through rose colored glasses but in defense of the defense, their secondary was exposed vs Hun and Naz but in their defense Hun was Hun, and Naz QB is a 4 year starter with 2 State Rings so nobody expected a shut out. They shut out Rita. So if you have an elite QB your going to score against MC, you just have to have a good defense too because you’re going to go punch for punch with them for 4 quarters
High expectation problems are good problems to have
 
Aug 7, 2024
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That ESL is the best team in the state.
That Loyola is not just fine.
That whatever is going on at Warren and Maine South needs to be fixed.
That defending state champs Byron and Wilmington continue to steamroll whoever steps on the field with them.
That the Neuqua Valley football program continues to disappoint. They have the talent. Could it be the water?
Until ESL meets Cary Grove lol
 

4Afan

All-Conference
Sep 15, 2001
4,074
3,647
113
My theory has always been that ESL schedule wears them down come playoff time.
The level that they play against is incredibly high and with that comes banged up players… especially in November
Wholeheartedly disagree. These are 15-18 year old kids, they're not worn down. Were they worn down when they beat up on PR a few years ago?

The option offense is an annoying offense to defend and no one does it better than CG. It has nothing to do with ESL being worn down.
 

LWN_Pheonix

Senior
Oct 30, 2023
863
708
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Wholeheartedly disagree. These are 15-18 year old kids, they're not worn down. Were they worn down when they beat up on PR a few years ago?

The option offense is an annoying offense to defend and no one does it better than CG. It has nothing to do with ESL being worn down.
I will say that you would know better than I would

I just look at some of the easier teams on a schedule as a game to rest some of the starters that get banged up throughout the season.

ESL schedule is the absolute toughest in the state.
Pops looked burned out in the game and was replaced by a freshman last year against CG
 

4Afan

All-Conference
Sep 15, 2001
4,074
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I will say that you would know better than I would

I just look at some of the easier teams on a schedule as a game to rest some of the starters that get banged up throughout the season.

ESL schedule is the absolute toughest in the state.
Pops looked burned out in the game and was replaced by a freshman last year against CG
I may be mistaken, but I think Pops was replaced because he got hurt.
 

PhilsBurner

Redshirt
Nov 29, 2023
26
33
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On the Sandburg point, their mere 10-point loss at Rita Week 1 gains some extra attention. We will see this Friday when the Eagles go down to untested 3-0 LW West. Who actually is H-F also has bearing on the Sandburg resume so far.
Yes 10 point loss doesn’t tell the whole story. Was 27-3 with 4 minutes left in the game. Rita took their starters out and they scored and went for two and got the onside. Then did the same thing. Rita put the 1’s back in and finished the game.

if Sandburg put their qb in space to make plays the entire game I think it would have been a lot closer. Sandburg thought with their size upfront they would have success running the ball. That wasn’t the case.

If they get past LWW, 8-1 is definitely a possibility. A though I think they split with the Naperville schools and finish 7-2
 

Wittymoniker1

All-Conference
Aug 6, 2007
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I know I look at MC through rose colored glasses but in defense of the defense, their secondary was exposed vs Hun and Naz but in their defense Hun was Hun, and Naz QB is a 4 year starter with 2 State Rings so nobody expected a shut out. They shut out Rita. So if you have an elite QB your going to score against MC, you just have to have a good defense too because you’re going to go punch for punch with them for 4 quarters
Yes 10 point loss doesn’t tell the whole story. Was 27-3 with 4 minutes left in the game. Rita took their starters out and they scored and went for two and got the onside. Then did the same thing. Rita put the 1’s back in and finished the game.

if Sandburg put their qb in space to make plays the entire game I think it would have been a lot closer. Sandburg thought with their size upfront they would have success running the ball. That wasn’t the case.

If they get past LWW, 8-1 is definitely a possibility. A though I think they split with the Naperville schools and finish 7-2
I think McCaravan was onto something when he typed Rita's front seven is solid. Both Sandburg and BR boast big O-lines (and I get "big" doesn't always mean good), but that front seven did quite well. Good blend of underclassmen, seniors, quick and big. Facing Sandburg-MC-BR, I believe is a very good prep for the remainder of the season.
 

colin2229

All-Conference
Jul 23, 2005
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I will say that you would know better than I would

I just look at some of the easier teams on a schedule as a game to rest some of the starters that get banged up throughout the season.

ESL schedule is the absolute toughest in the state.
Pops looked burned out in the game and was replaced by a freshman last year against CG
I’d say playing in the Catholic Blue and then 7a/8a playoffs is a tougher schedule over 14 weeks than ESL.
 
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colin2229

All-Conference
Jul 23, 2005
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We learned that Maine East is not invincible 😉

Sarcasm aside - Major props to their program thus far this season! 👏 👏
 

UlbKA91

Junior
Sep 22, 2015
1,037
309
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Speaking of ESL, a higher round 5A playoff game could resemble yesterdays Giants Redskins game. Giants forced into AGNB mode when they lost their kicker in the 1st Q and the Redskins had 7 FGs to win 21-18.
 
Aug 7, 2024
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Right! Given the history, ESL doesn’t stand a chance against CG!! In fact, I’ve wondered why CG is never included in the traditional conversation of Best Team in the State?
I have a question for ya. How is it your conference lets you fly around playing ranked teams throughout the United States yet they wont let you play up 2 classifications??? How is that even friggin possible. I would think the conference wouldn't let y'all play out of state or something assine like that. I personally think its Chicago Mt Carmel but that's just my and a few catholic Caravan brothers belief.
 

LHSTigers94

All-Conference
Oct 25, 2004
3,184
2,466
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I have a question for ya. How is it your conference lets you fly around playing ranked teams throughout the United States yet they wont let you play up 2 classifications??? How is that even friggin possible. I would think the conference wouldn't let y'all play out of state or something assine like that. I personally think its Chicago Mt Carmel but that's just my and a few catholic Caravan brothers belief.
The petitioning up rule was to eliminate playing conference opponents in the playoffs.
 

dcaudle68

Senior
Oct 13, 2011
754
432
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I have a question for ya. How is it your conference lets you fly around playing ranked teams throughout the United States yet they wont let you play up 2 classifications??? How is that even friggin possible. I would think the conference wouldn't let y'all play out of state or something assine like that. I personally think its Chicago Mt Carmel but that's just my and a few catholic Caravan brothers belief.
All the conference cares about is ESTL not beating there weaker schools come playoff time. Most of them are 7 and 8A.