Each week, Quincy Notre Dame football coach Bill Connell and I will sit down to discuss that week’s opponent, the challenges his team faces and any news surrounding his program. This week, we were talking about the Northwest Academy Hornets, who the Raiders will play host to at 7:30 p.m. Friday at 10th and Jackson.
Enjoy watching.
Brian Lewton’s assistant coaches needle him occasionally because the West Hancock football team’s playbook is constantly evolving — in the head coach’s mind.
Lewton loves offense. High-powered, fast-paced offense. He wants the Titans to take as many snaps and score as many points as possible. He wants to make the game exciting. His passion for the game is infectious. He played for a powerhouse at Monroe City and went on to play quarterback in college. He served as an assistant with the Quincy High School program and was the head coach of the Quincy Spartans, a member of the 8FL.
Now, Lewton finally has his own program and he wants the West Hancock communities to be proud to call it their own.
Here’s what Lewton had to say about his influences and his hopes this season …
Flinn Stadium isn’t the only facility that received a facelift.
Western Illinois University’s Hanson Field also installed a turf surface during the offseason. The $1.3 million project involved the laying of a Matrix Turf brand artificial surface, installed by Hellas Construction. Matrix Turf is one of the field surfaces used at Cowboys Stadium by the Dallas Cowboys. Hellas Construction also installed Matrix Turf at Baylor University’s stadium and indoor facility, the University of Texas El Paso, Texas Tech’s practice complex and the Alamodome.
The Leathernecks play their home opener at 3 p.m. Sept. 10 against Jacksonville.
“The players are excited by it,” WIU coach Mark Hendrickson said. “They’ll be very excited for that first home game.”
It’s going to impact how the WIU coaching staff recruits in the future now that it is no longer the only Missouri Valley Football Conference with a natural grass surface.
“In the past, when we played all the other games on turf, we still were recruiting speed,” Hendrickson said. “But I believe now you know every home game is going to be on turf and most years every game is going to be on turf. So there’s no doubt foot speed at all positions is going to make a difference, more of a difference than on the grass. So that will be even more of a consideration in recruiting down the road.”
Each week, Quincy Notre Dame football coach Bill Connell and I will sit down to discuss that week’s opponent, the challenges his team faces and any news surrounding his program. This week, we were talking about the Hannibal Pirates, who will play host to the Raiders at 7:30 p.m. Friday at E.A. Porter Stadium.
Enjoy watching.
The season kicks off Friday night with the hope the Quincy Notre Dame-Hannibal matchup can live up to last year’s tale of twists.
Helmet courtesy Missouri Helmet Project
Hannibal led 32-21 with 1:50 to play when the Raiders scored twice, thanks to recovering an onside kick, and completed the most improbably and stunning comeback with a 36-32 victory at the QND field. The scene shifts to E.A. Porter Stadium in Hannibal this year with a 7:30 p.m. kickoff, and many think the Pirates are primed to get their revenge.
So what will it take for the Raiders to kickstart their season with a road victory before coming home to play three straight games?
Here are three keys to victory for QND:
1. Get physical
Although undersized if you matched them up pound-for-pound, the Pirates were more physical in the trenches last season. The Raiders return two linemen in starting tackles Nick Reichert and Brad Wellman, but the interior of the line needs to get nasty. And they have to grow up quick. This is a chance for those underclassmen to prove they can hold their own by being stout, tough and physical. If the Raiders get manhandled, they’ll have a tough time winning. If they push the Pirates around, it should be a pleasant short ride home.
2. Run, Raiders, Run
The QND coaching staff isn’t ready to ditch the spread offense just because of the graduation losses. Yet, the Raiders won’t operate the way they have in the past. The spread will be suited more toward a ground game with quarterback Evan Roush using his speed and agility to run an option-style attack. The Power-I formation will still be a staple of any Bill Connell team, and the playbook is more wide open now. Expect a lot of unique looks that accentuate the ability to run the ball.
3. Make it special
One thing the Raiders always pride themselves on is the ability to make plays on special teams. That’s means stopping big plays as well as providing them. Connor Reis has a big leg and is a bona fide threat to boot all kickoffs into the end zone. The key will be finding quality return men. If QND finds a couple of guys with quick feet, shifty moves and good field vision, the special teams may indeed be special.
It’s difficult to imagine the Quincy Notre Dame boys soccer team would run into a Class 1A opponent with as much experience. Heck, there aren’t many teams at any level that return 14 seniors and 10 of 11 starters. Half the senior class made their varsity debut by their sophomore year and have been anticipating this season all along.
“We’re comfortable,” senior sweeper Luke Mayfield said. “We’ve all meshed. We’re one big team.”
And they have one goal in mind — get back to the state tournament for the first time in six years.
What will it take to do that? Here are five keys to the Raiders’ success:
1. Stay healthy
QND endured a 13-game stretch last season in which both Alex Rinella and Connor Reis were injured and combined to score just one goal. The Raiders were shut out four times and averaged barely a goal per game. If they avoid injuries — both have looked healthy so far — this team has the capabilities of scoring at will. The more dynamic this offense is, the less likely a repeat of last year’s regional semifinal outcome is.
2. Play with a sense of urgency
Experienced teams sometimes get lackadaisical. The Raiders can’t afford to do that. The program’s regional drought should be motivation enough to keep that from happening, but the Raiders have to play with a purpose. Make up a reason if need be, but keeping it lively and interesting will eliminate the chance this team takes any games for granted.
3. Weather the storm
Look at the collective resume of QND’s first four opponents. Four state championships. Five other state trophies. Eighteen sectional titles. No one is taking it easy on the Raiders. It’s a great opening stretch to test QND for what lies ahead. Included on this year’s schedule is the Mid-State Classic, featuring the likes of St. Viator and Peoria Notre Dame, and two season-closing games against Class 3A opponents in Normal Community and East Moline. It all is meant to prepare the Raiders for the postseason, but the first four games set the tone.
4. Share and share alike
With so many scoring options, the Raiders can’t fall in love with just one or two targets. Whoever is open gets the glory. At some point, it should be every attacker the Raiders can throw at a goal. Rinella and Reis are the top returning scorers, but they don’t have to do it alone. The more versatile the Raiders are offensively, the more likely they are to steamroll a postseason opponent.
5. Have fun
Expectations are high. The Raiders have built for this season, and the memories of last year’s loss to Riverton in the regional semifinals linger. Still, the Raiders can’t get caught up in meeting everyone else’s expectations. They have to play for themselves. The collective attitude of this group is fun-loving. So stay that way. Enjoy it. Get your kicks. It will make it more memorable.
Want to know why the Quincy High School boys soccer team’s coaching staff believes this team has the potential to do what its predecessors couldn’t?
It’s this simple – Commitment.
“You go by Baldwin School on a weeknight or a summer day and who is always out there?” QHS coach Matt Longo said. “It’s Felix Bruner. Dylan Hoschar was out there. Brett Stiles was too. That’s what they have to do if they want to play at the level we play.”
The Blue Devils haven’t won a regional title since 2007 despite averaging better than 17 victories per season each of the last three years.
So what changes things come late October this season?
Here are five keys to the Blue Devils’ success:
1. Defend the home turf
The Blue Devils open the season with seven straight home games, beginning with Monday’s season opener against Macomb. It will be the first contest played on Flinn Stadium’s new artificial turf, which is expected to give Quincy quite an advantage considering the Blue Devils are blessed with speed.
“Every coach has to adjust the system of play,” Longo said. “Now we have to adjust to our field and what it’s capable of doing. This year it’s a perfect match. A fast field. A fast team.”
The players echoed that.
“We’re a fast team,” senior midfielder Felix Bruner said. “The turf couldn’t have come at a better time.”
2. Share and share alike
With Bruner and senior Alan Sieck in the middle, distribution of the ball shouldn’t be a problem. Still, for the Blue Devils to enjoy a consistent attack, everyone needs to get in the mix. That means sharing the ball. Quincy has three extremely quick forwards in Dylan Hoschar, Bronson Melvin and Blake Herman, and they all need to touch the ball. Each is capable of finishing and should wind up with 10 or more goals apiece.
Sieck and Bruner are capable scorers, too. Same goes for Brett Stiles, who will come off the bench. I expect Quincy to have at least four players, maybe five, with double digits in goals. And as exciting as that may be, the more important number is the assists. If Quincy has five or more players with six or more assists apiece, it could be a banner year.
3. Play with your head
There’s a mean streak running through the Blue Devils’ defenders. They can be rugged and tough. They can be intimidating. And they can be physical. Above all, though, they have to be smart. Quincy can ill afford to lose any players to suspension for racking up too many yellow cards. That doesn’t mean the Blue Devils should back down. They simply need to keep their wits when they attack.
4. Run, Devils, Run
OK, that was the basketball slogan back in the glory days of the late ’70s and early ’80s, but it applies here. With speed and depth up front, Quincy needs to run teams ragged. Longo talked about taking the attack to the defense and not letting the defense dictate the attack. That’s key. Quincy can afford to be aggressive, especially since there are quality attackers coming off the bench. If the Blue Devils push, push, push the attack, it’s going to lead to a bevy of easy goals.
5. Play for the moment
The Blue Devils’ goal is to win a regional. That can’t happen until October, so they can’t afford to get caught worrying about the regional now. Granted, each game the Blue Devils play could influence their regional seed and their chances of winning a title, but the team has to play without that looming pressure. It’s cliché to say take things one game at a time, but in a way, that’s what the Blue Devils need to do. They have to put their focus on delivering a quality effort night in and night out. If they do that, it should lead to regional success.
Quincy University product Josh Kinney was dominant in his debut with the Chicago White Sox in Friday’s 7-4 loss to the Texas Rangers.
Called up to replace Philip Humber, who was put on the disabled list, Kinney worked three scoreless innings, struck out six, walked one and allowed one hit in relief of Jake Peavy.
To read more about Kinney’s outing, check out the coverage from ESPN Chicago, the Chicago Tribune and other outlets.
Click here for a story by ESPN Chicago’s Sahadev Sharma.
Click here for a White Sox notebook by the Tribune’s Dave van Dyck.
Click here for note from the Tribune’s Mark Gonzales.
Click here for the White Sox notebook with two items about Kinney on mlb.com.
Click here for a White Sox notebook by the Sun-Times’ Toni Ginnetti.
Don Bigley took over as the head coach of the Pittsfield football program in 2003, and in his first seven seasons, the Saukees reached the playoffs in all but one season. They won no fewer than four games and averaged 6.5 victories per season in his.
To a certain degree, winning became expected. Then came last season.
Riddled by injuries, the Saukees finished 2-7 and nowhere near the playoffs. Pittsfield hadn’t finished with two or fewer victories since 2001, and for a program with such a rich history, it was unsettling.
“I’ll give our seniors credit,” Bigley said. “They decided as soon as the season was over they were not going to go through that again.”
Last season ended Oct. 23 with a 68-14 loss at home to Orion. On Nov. 1, the Saukees were in the weight room with the 2011 season in mind.
“They really worked hard at it,” Bigley said.
It shows. The Saukees expect to be one of the biggest teams in the area, boasting an offensive line that averages around 260 pounds and is anchored by 6-foot-5, 290-pound senior Colton Pease. He is one of eight starters returning on defense and seven on defense. It’s a wealth of experience the Saukees are counting on.
“With the way last year went, with all of the injuries we had, we were forced into playing a lot of sophomores and juniors that maybe wouldn’t have seen as much playing time,” Bigley said. “The maturity level of the kid who is not going through his first varsity experience is important. We’ve seen that it’s very good.”
The Saukees need a mature approach to improving defensively. Pittsfield allowed 339 points last season, the second most in the West Central Conference. During a five-game losing streak to end the season, the Saukees allowed 41 or more points four times. If that doesn’t improve, a return to the playoffs is out of the question.
“How good we are going to be is going to be determined by how much better we are defensively,” Bigley said.
The Saukees believe they can be considerably better. Watch what they have to say …
Brett Cox realizes the stakes are high for the Pleasant Hill football team.
Come October, only two things matter in this community — deer hunting and football playoffs. Last year, the Wolves were left out of the postseason party, finishing with a 4-5 record a year after winning seven games and making the Class 1A playoff field for the first time since 1998. The Wolves have been on the cusp of the playoffs each of the last four years and want to make playing in the postseason a perennial endeavor.
“It’s what this town is made of,” said Cox, a senior wide receiver. “Football is this town. There is no basketball. There is no baseball. I mean we have that, but it’s not the best. Football is all we have, and it impacts the town.”
The Wolves have reason to believe they can energize the community.
All-state quarterback Matt Gunterman returns to guide an offense blessed with speed and sure-handed wideouts in Cox and Avery Gregurich. Here’s what Gunterman had to say about this team, its offense and the chance to enjoy a special senior season.
Gunterman’s teammates echo his sentiments.
“We have a lot of heart,” Cox said. “We have the leadership this year that we really needed. You have to have 110 percent every day. Everybody has to be a part of it. It goes from meat squad to varsity.”
Up and down the roster, the Wolves have speed and size. What they’re working on is building depth by getting many of the underclassmen up to speed.
If it all comes together, another playoff appearance seems possible.
