High school football coaches focus on the present. They don’t say much publicly about anything beyond the next game. That’s understandable. Assembling 50 to 70 teenagers into a cohesive unit is a monumental organizational task.
But Lyons coach Jon Beutjer made a point of highlighting his thoughts on Fremd quarterback Johnny O’Brien on Friday. His team had just lost to the Vikings, and O’Brien made an impression.
“I’ve been watching high school football for a long time,” Beutjer said. “His accuracy, his timing, his ability to extend plays. He’s very, very good. He’s going to do very well at Northwestern and I think he has the gift to play beyond Northwestern as well.”
Beutjer has done more than coach and watch high school football. He threw for a state-record 60 touchdowns for Wheaton-Warrenville South in 1998, played quarterback at Iowa and Illinois, and had stints in the CFL and Arena Football. The 1998 Wheaton-Warrenville South team was one of the best in state history and finished the season ranked No. 16 in the country by USA Today.
O’Brien was 21-for-33 for 299 yards against Lyons in the second round of the Class 8A playoffs on Friday. The Northwestern recruit threw four touchdown passes and ran for 40 yards.
Fremd is more than just O’Brien. The Vikings have a strong run defense led by Northwestern recruit Owen Jakubzcak and other offensive weapons in wide receiver Marquan Brewster (WIU) and running back Jayden Faulkner.
Fremd will play at Bolingbrook in the Class 8A quarterfinals.
Maine South survives
The shocking score opening eyes Saturday afternoon was Hinsdale Central’s 16-point lead over Maine South at halftime. It looked like the Hawks were finished, but they mounted a second-half comeback to beat the Red Devils 33-29 in the second round of the Class 8A playoffs.
Maine South quarterback Jameson Purcell threw for 272 yards and a touchdown and ran for two TDs. The junior has committed to Indiana.
The Hawks were No. 4 in the preseason Super 25 but lost 40-0 at home to Lincoln-Way East in Week 1. That calmed most of the excitement around Purcell and Maine South’s state championship hopes this season.
But the resume since then is very solid. The Hawks have beaten Warren, Palatine, Barrington and Glenbrook South. There isn’t a huge, marquee win in the bunch, but Dave Inserra’s squad has a nice draw in the bracket and is favored in the quarterfinals against Oswego and against either team it could play in the semifinals, Barrington or Lockport.
WCIU will televise the big one
Lincoln-Way East is at Mount Carmel on Saturday. It’s the biggest game of the season and is the Class 8A state championship by many fans.
Weigel Broadcasting’s Fred Weintraub confirmed on Sunday that the matchup will be televised live on WCIU at 4 p.m.
Two Public League teams still rolling
Kenwood, the Public League’s best hope for a deep run in the state football playoffs, lost to Lincoln-Way West in the Class 7A quarterfinals on Saturday but two Public League schools are still alive.
King beat Ag. Science in the first round of Class 5A and Corliss in the second round. The Jaguars are massive underdogs against St. Francis in the quarterfinals, but however that goes, it has been a terrific season for King, which beat Amundsen and Payton in the regular season.
Simeon took down Normal West 31-26 in the second round of Class 6A. The Wolverines were likely disappointed with their regular season after losing to Morgan Park and Kenwood, but this playoff run will give coach Sinque Turner some great momentum heading into next season.
It’s extremely unlikely that Simeon will hang with East St. Louis in the quarterfinals. The Flyers may be the best team in the state.