Goss: Playoff underdogs can have their days
October 18, 2012 8:00PM
Lincoln-Way East's Sean Doherty celebrates with his teammates. | Allen Cunningham~For Sun-Times Media
Football Standings
CATHOLIC BLUE
Conf. Overall OW
Loyola 3-0 7-1 44
Providence 2-1 7-1 36
Mount Carmel 2-1 7-1 37
Brother Rice 1-3 4-4 50
St. Rita 0-3 4-4 52
EAST SUBURBAN CATHOLIC
Conf. Overall OW
Marist 5-1 7-1 42
Benet 4-1 7-1 36
Joliet Catholic 4-2 5-3 46
St. Patrick 3-2 5-3 45
Notre Dame 3-2 5-3 38
St. Viator 2-3 5-3 36
Carmel 2-4 2-6 xx
Nazareth 1-4 4-4 31
Marian 0-5 1-7 xx
INTERSTATE EIGHT LARGE
Conf. Overall OW
Coal City 4-1 7-1 33
Sandwich 4-1 6-2 40
Plano 2-3 5-3 35
Manteno 2-3 5-3 35
Herscher 2-3 4-4 43
Peotone 1-4 4-4 37
INTERSTATE EIGHT SMALL
Conf. Overall OW
Wilmington 5-0 6-2 33
Seneca 4-1 4-4 32
Lisle 3-2 4-4 32
Westmont 2-3 2-6 xx
Reed-Custer 1-4 1-7 xx
Dwight 0-5 0-8 xx
NORTHERN ILLINOIS BIG 12 EAST
Conf. Overall OW
Morris 4-0 8-0 37
Kaneland 4-0 8-0 39
Sycamore 2-2 5-3 47
Rochelle 1-3 5-3 38
DeKalb 1-3 1-7 xx
Yorkville 0-4 3-5 39
SOUTH SUBURBAN BLUE
Conf. Overall OW
T.F. South 5-0 7-1 41
Lemont 4-1 7-1 30
Oak Forest 4-1 7-1 33
Tinley Park 2-3 4-4 43
Bremen 2-4 4-4 40
Hillcrest 1-4 1-7 xx
T.F. North 0-5 1-7 xx
SOUTHWEST PRAIRIE
Conf. Overall OW
Oswego 6-0 7-1 34
Plainfield North 5-1 6-2 32
Plainfield Central 4-2 6-2 30
Minooka 3-3 3-5 43
Oswego East 2-4 4-4 32
Plainfield South 2-4 3-5 37
Plainfield East 2-4 2-6 xx
Romeoville 0-6 0-8 xx
SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN BLUE
Conf. Overall OW
Lincoln-Way East 6-0 8-0 34
Sandburg 5-1 7-1 34
Bolingbrook 4-2 6-2 31
Homewood-Flossmoor 4-2 6-2 35
Lincoln-Way Central 2-4 3-5 41
Joliet West 2-4 3-5 34
Lockport 1-5 1-7 xx
Joliet Central 0-6 0-8 xx
SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN RED
Conf. Overall OW
Thornton 6-0 7-1 34
Andrew 4-2 5-3 38
Bradley 4-2 6-2 33
Lincoln-Way West 4-2 5-3 35
Lincoln-Way North 4-2 5-3 31
Thornwood 1-5 2-6 xx
Stagg 1-5 2-6 xx
Thornridge 0-6 0-8 xx
OW: Opponent wins
Updated: November 20, 2012 6:20AM
If the Joliet area has any favorite to win a state football championship this season, unbeaten and highly ranked Lincoln-Way East may be it.
But when you review the teams that likely are to be in Class 7A with the Griffins when the brackets are announced Saturday night, you may find reason to reconsider.
Before you spread the word that ol’ Goss is predicting doom for East and all our other qualifiers, however, there are more considerations.
Match-ups matter. So does health. Weather may come into play, putting even more emphasis on solid defense. For whatever reason, our teams overall have been more consistent defensively than offensively this season.
Granted, everything else being equal, many of our teams will be underdogs, even in Round 1 match-ups. We are accustomed to having multiple teams reach the quarterfinals and semifinals and at least one or two in championship games. Furthering the trend will not be easy.
But the intent here is to cite positives. Our projected 12 qualifiers will receive postseason invitations — and can compete in the playoffs — because they have something to offer.
Let’s take a look.
8A
Bolingbrook (6-2): The defending 8A champion Raiders should have All-State quarterback Aaron Bailey back from injury. The Raiders are a different animal with No. 15 on the field. Even without him, the offense under sophomore Quincy Woods had a revival last week, and the defense is quick and can play with anyone.
7A
Lincoln-Way East (8-0): Quarterback Tom Fuessel continues to impress everyone who sees him, especially with his legs. The Griffins, as always, are solid defensively, and coach Rob Zvonar’s team, which always is in the discussion, is due for a nice, long playoff run.
Providence (7-1): The Celtics are still battling through injury problems, but they’ve kept winning. Love their defense and the job Dominic Lagone has done at quarterback. Kudos to coach Mark Coglianese and his staff. The Friday night battle against visiting Mount Carmel will be a doozy. If they can avoid any further injuries, both teams will come out of it even better prepared for the playoffs.
Plainfield North (6-2): The misstep is the 35-7 loss to Oswego in Week 7. The Tigers are capable of playing much better than they did that night. Kurt Palandech is an excellent quarterback, perhaps underrated outside this area, and North can control the ball on the ground against lots of defenses.
Plainfield Central (6-2): The Wildcats have played well the past two weeks. If they continue that trend Friday night at Oswego, they will hit the playoffs in the best frame of mind possible. Jordan Ellingwood is a tough running back. He needs to have his hands on the ball 20 to 25 times for Central to have a shot in any playoff game.
6A
Lemont (7-1): The Indians are hard to figure from one standpoint. Their relatively light schedule supposedly hurts them at playoff time, yet they have advanced to no worse than the quarterfinals for five straight years. Defense continues to be a strength for coach Eric Michaelsen’s team, and running back Chris Giatras can be a workhorse.
5A
Morris (8-0): All eyes are on Kaneland for the Friday night showdown between unbeatens. Having this game in Week 9 should send the Redskins into the playoffs well prepared. Their defense, led by Collin Grogan, Danny Friend, Nik Countryman and Jeff Perry, has been excellent. If it continues to play as it has, 5A beware.
Joliet Catholic (5-3): The Hilltoppers are regaining their health at the right time. The northern bracket in 5A, their destination, will be a tough road with Marian Central and Montini, among others, lying in wait. Then again, if Ty Isaac, Tyler Reitz and the other wounded survive Friday night against Benet and are back at something close to full strength by next week, is there anyone in 5A that really wants to see the Hilltoppers coming?
Lincoln-Way West (5-3): Sycamore scored 19 points against the Warriors in Week 1, and nobody has scored that many since. Maintaining that consistent defensive effort will make West a threat.
4A
Coal City (7-1): From the standpoint of points allowed, the Coalers’ veteran defense is second-best in the area behind Wilmington, allowing 7.9 per game. Coach Lenny Onsen’s team hitched the wagon to the defense all season, and there’s no reason it can’t help produce postseason success.
Peotone (4-4): The thought is the Blue Devils will beat Westmont in their regular-season finale and thus enter the playoffs on a two-game winning streak. Close losses to Plano and Manteno in September indicate they can play with good 4A teams.
3A
Wilmington (6-2): The Wildcats have yielded a mere 43 points all season. Unfortunately, 24 were in last week’s 24-20 loss to Plano. Being in the Interstate Eight Small, which Wilmington dominates annually, probably is a detriment at playoff time, but these Wildcats still can be a force. Quarterback Sean Liaromatis is a competitor.
