CS8
1) SHG (2-0) – It took them until the final few minutes to flip the switch on the running clock but the Cycs extended their 40+ point regular season streak against Eisenhower in Week 2. They’ll be heavy favorites to beat Jacksonville, but a clock, on the road, against a Crimsons team with a ton of offensive firepower will be tough. Even though the Cycs get Avery Andrews back this week.
2) Rochester (2-0) – Avante’ Cox has been shredding opposing defenses in his first two weeks in the Central State 8 and the Rockets will add his twin brother D’Ante to the mix as they head to Memorial Stadium to meet Lanphier. It’s hard to tell them apart. Not just because they’re twins, but because they’re both equally capable on the field, which spells serious trouble for opposing CS8 defenses.
3) Glenwood (2-0) – All you can do is deal with the team standing in front of you and the Titans have done that for two weeks. But even with wins over MacArthur and Lincoln, the two teams at the very bottom of this list, we’re still not sure exactly what Glenwood is. We’ll get a better idea this weekend when they unleash their 12-headed backfield monster against Southeast.
4) Jacksonville (2-0) – There became a clear separation in CS8 tiers after Jacksonville manhandled Southeast on the road last week. The Crimsons sit somewhere near the top of Tier 2, with Tier 1 containing SHG and Rochester. This week Mark Grounds and Company can jumble that order once again if they “shock the world” and beat SHG. Based on past results, there are two teams in the CS8 aren’t intimidated by the Cyclones. This team is one of them.
5) Lanphier (1-1) – The Lions rebounded from a Week 1 loss to Jacksonville with a lopsided win over MacArthur in Week 2. They did it with Andrew Powell at quarterback after Joe Varela suffered an injury in practice last week. Powell is more than capable but he’s also a very valuable commodity as a linebacker on the defensive side of the ball. So if Varela is out again, Jason Nikson’s depth takes a hit and that’s one thing he can’t afford much of.
6) Eisenhower (0-2) –
Bad News: The Panthers have given up 153 points over two weeks.
Good News: Their offense has scored 79 points.
Context: Both happened against the defending 4A & 5A state champs.
Analysis: There will be fireworks, but Eisenhower might just be able to outscore most of their remaining opponents.
7) Southeast (1-1) – They take great pride in their Spartan Defense on the Eastside, but on Friday Joe Brannan and his Crimsons’ offense marched up and down the field with ease against Southeast. Don’t overreact to that. The Jacksonville offense is legit. But it’s a gut check for the Spartans and we’ll see how they react to it with another tough matchup in Week 3 at Glenwood.
8) Springfield High (0-2) – We’re genuinely excited to find out how good this team is after they took a couple one sided losses to SHG and Rochester in Weeks 1 & 2. The problem is, we might not get a real feel for it for another week as the Senators suddenly find themselves as considerable favorites for a Saturday tilt with the yet to score Lincoln Railers.
9) MacArthur (0-2) – The season can go one of two ways for MacArthurs starting this Saturday when they travel across town for their rivalry game with Eisenhower. Either they upset the Panthers and get things headed in the right direction or they start to settle in for the long haul. And in the CS8, the last six weeks when your 0-3 is a LONG haul.
10) Lincoln (0-2) – The Railers nearly posted their first points of the season last week against Glenwood but the touchdown was called back for a penalty. Put points on the board this week and that’s a step in the right direction.
Sangamo
1) Williamsville (2-0) – It’s Speed Inc. vs. the Big Sexies this weekend in a battle of two unbeaten Sangamo teams. The Bullets are coming off a huge win against a perennial 4A stalwart in Breese Mater Dei. If there were doubts about what this largely youthful Williamsville team was capable of this season, they answered some of them with that win. Most importantly, they answered them for themselves. They’ll take a boatload of confidence into Virden.
2) Pleasant Plains (2-0) – Beat Riverton on the road? Cool. Nice win. Beat Auburn on the road? Ok, we’re paying attention. In a conference where you have to beat somebody to be somebody, the Cardinals beat the Trojans and proved they’re more than just a nice “middle of the pack” story. The Pleasant Plains community takes it to another level when the football team is a player in the conference and Cardinals are certainly that.
3) Athens (2-0) – The Warriors fall a spot this week despite their 2-0 start. Frankly, they’ve been less impressive through two weeks than we expected against the 9th and 7th ranked teams on this list. Athens has great talent but they also lack depth and some of the playmakers have had to carry a heavy chunk of the load. Their ultimate success hinges on whether or not they get some young guys to step up take some of that burden. This week would be a good time for it to start as they host a desperate 0-2 Auburn.
4) North Mac (2-0) – Full disclosure. There’s a split in the office over whether North Mac should be 4th or 5th on this list. Chase and Derek both leaned on the Panthers' 2-0 record while lobbying for the 4-hole they now occupy. With wins over New Berlin and Pittsfield, Kerker is holding out to see how the Big Sexies stack up against a top tier team like Williamsville. Majority rules, but the debate still sits on the table.
5) Auburn (0-2) – So if Kerker thought North Mac should be No. 5, that means he thought these 0-2 Trojans should be No. 4. The Trojans have lost to Williamsville and Plains, the top two teams on this list, by a combined four points. That’s hardly cause for panic, but it does mean Friday’s game at Athens carries even more weight. Either way, North Mac and Auburn play in Week 4, so we’ll get a definitive answer soon enough.
6) New Berlin (1-1) – The Pretzels got in the win column in Week 2 with a victory over PORTA and they’ll travel to Pittsfield for what is another winnable game this Friday. The Pretzels need to quietly get on a little roll here and immediate schedule makes that a possibility.
7) Riverton (0-2) – We mentioned Ryan Roscetti last week who popped off for a couple big plays against Plains in Week 1. In Week 2 it was Josh Gabriel who proved a legit threat for the Hawks in a tight loss to Athens. At this level, a couple playmakers of that caliber can make a team instantly relevant. The Hawks schedule has been tough to this point and we’re nowhere close to writing off 0-2 Riverton.
8) Pittsfield (0-2) – The Saukees certainly had higher hopes than another 0-2 start but here they sit. They went toe to toe with North Mac, taking a 0-0 tie to the half in Week 2, but they were ground down to the tune of 41 points allowed after the break. It will take a full four quarters effort to beat New Berlin on Friday.
9) PORTA (0-2) – The Bluejays are still looking for their first win of the season, but so is Riverton, who PORTA hosts on Friday. We all know how hard an 0-3 start is to climb out of. Both the Bluejays and Hawks will try to avoid that fate tomorrow.
