In the aftermath of Plainfield`s 16-14 upset of Morris Friday night in Plainfield, Morris coach Dan Darlington`s thoughts drifted back to 1980.
That year, the Redskins, who had finished second in the Class 3A state playoffs the year before, were upset by Geneva during the regular season. They bounced back to win the Class 3A state title.
”It was a tough loss, but these kids are okay,” said Darlington of the loss that snapped his team`s 17-game winning streak Friday. ”They didn`t have their heads down, moping, they were thinking ahead.”
At Plainfield, they are also thinking ahead. The Wildcats, who dropped their first two games to nonconference foes Romeoville and Bolingbrook, are 3-2, 3-0 in the Little Seven Conference.
Plainfield won the game when Mike Hammond kicked a 25-yard field goal with 57 seconds left. Morris (4-1, 2-1), the defending Little Seven and Class 4A champion, was stopped at the 2-yard line with nine seconds left when Randy Ralls fumbled after catching a pass from Dennis Maskel.
”Morris is a great football team,” said Plainfield coach Wayne DeSutter. ”We just felt what we accomplished has given a boost to our program, has given us the confidence that we can play with these people.
”But we can`t let our exuberance for one win overshadow what`s ahead of us. Our kids realize what we have to do and what everyone else will try to do to us.”
What does lie ahead?
This Friday, Geneva (5-0, 3-0) plays at Morris. Geneva, with Derek Swanson rushing 23 times for 173 yards and 2 touchdowns, defeated Kaneland 48-19 Friday in Geneva.
”We didn`t expect, necessarily, that Morris would win that game,”
Geneva coach Jerry Auchstetter said of Plainfield`s victory. ”We thought that was pretty much a toss-up. Those are two powerful teams.”
Plainfield, which plays at Kaneland Saturday, plays at Geneva Oct. 18. The two nonconference losses mean the Wildcats probably cannot afford another loss if they hope to make the state playoffs.
”Wayne DeSutter, he`s a little behind the 8-ball, too, and I`m sure he knows it,” Darlington said.
West Suburban Conference–Last year, York started out 5-1 and ended with a 5-4 record. That`s why Dukes` coach Gary Grouwinkel is cautious when speaking of his team`s 4-1 start.
”Two out of the three years that I`ve been here, we went down the drain in the last three games,” Grouwinkel said. ”We`re hoping this year we can get out of that rut and try to make the playoffs.”
Grouwinkel was particularly optimistic after the Dukes defeated Hinsdale Central 40-17 Saturday in Elmhurst to run their conference record to 2-1. The Red Devils are 1-4, 0-3.
”We dominated a game for a change,” Grouwinkel said. ”We haven`t had a chance to do that too much here.”
York quarterback Bill Lech completed 6 of 10 passes for 172 yards and 2 touchdowns, a 2-yarder to Scott Boyke and a 25-yarder to Jim Nutof. Nutof also scored on runs of 7 and 3 yards.
The Dukes remain one game behind Glenbard West (5-0, 3-0), which defeated Downers Grove North 33-0 Friday in Downers Grove. Lyons (3-2, 2-1), which defeated Proviso East 35-21 Saturday in Maywood, and Oak Park (4-1, 2-1), which downed Proviso West 29-0 Saturday in Hillside, are tied with York.
”Right now, I guess we`re in an enviable position,” said Glenbard West coach Jim Covert, who isn`t ready to compare this team with the 1983 squad that won the Class 5A state title. ”The only comparison you can make between this team and the 1983 team is they were both 5-0 at this point.”
Glenbard quarterback Scott Planz hit 7 of 11 passes for 171 yards and a touchdown against Downers North.
”In my 11 years, I feel he has the ability to be the best we`ve ever had,” Covert said of Planz. ”I think he`s a really good one, I really do.” Private School League–One of the first decisions Bob Williams made last season, his first as head coach at Aurora Central Catholic, was to elevate Jeff Watkins from the sophomore team to the varsity. Watkins gained 901 yards and was all-conference.
This season, Watkins, a junior tailback, has been reunited with classmates and backfield mates Kevin McCabe and Joe Berenyi. The trio accounted for 202 yards rushing and five touchdowns Saturday in a 48-20 victory over Nazareth Academy in La Grange.
They are among 13 junior starters for Aurora Central (4-1, 2-0), which plays defending league champion Providence (4-1, 3-0) Saturday in Aurora.
Are the Chargers ready or are they a year away?
”I guess we`ll find out this week,” Williams said. ”It`s the ultimate test. If you expect to win the thing in our conference, you`ve got to beat Providence. Our kids understand that.”
Quarterback Jeff Pawlowski, a senior, completed 15 of 28 passes for 247 yards and 2 touchdowns for the Chargers against Nazareth (4-1, 2-1).
For the season, Berenyi has rushed for 405 yards, Watkins 312 and McCabe 209. Pawlowski has completed 45 of 86 passes for 813 yards, many of them to Lamar Mason, who has 15 catches for 393 yards and 6 touchdowns.
Du Page Valley Conference–It was supposed to be a big year for quarterback Burgess Watts and Wheaton Central. It still could be.
The Tigers forfeited their first two games because of a teachers` strike. Their second game back, they lost to Wheaton North, meaning they cannot afford to lose another game if they expect to make the playoffs.
”We won`t be able to win the conference outright. Our chances are very slim for that,” said Wheaton Central coach John Thorne, whose team ran its record to 2-3, 2-1 Friday with a 20-0 victory over visiting West Chicago (2-3, 2-1).
Watts completed 8 of 10 passes for 121 yards against West Chicago. He has close to 500 yards passing for the season.
”We`re just starting to put things together like we felt we could do since the beginning,” Thorne said. ”The kids handled it (the strike) pretty well, but it definitely left them down in the dumps. When we came back, it was pretty obvious we had to start all over.”
Wheaton North (3-2, 3-0), which also began the year with two forfeits because of the strike, defeated Naperville North 20-17 Friday.
