by Steve Dunford 

From several conversations with Coach Detering over the year, and watching them play three times, I am very familiar with the Wildcats.

The three prong offense of RB Jase Turner, who is their leading linebacker, WR/RB Arieh Hart, and QB Bryce Osman is the most underrated QB in Southern Illinois.

Sheldon McGrath and Kyle McMachan helps carry the load as well offensively.

MaxPreps has the Wildcats ranked #8 in the state.

This is what Greenville Advocate had to say about the Hilltopers, Hillsboro is the only team in the SCC that can matches Geeenville’s physicality. They are huge and have a top notch defense. They have a strong dual rushing attack and have athleticism at the qb position. There current quarterback started out as an OL as a freshman and transitioned to a running back last year, this is his first year at qb. I really think they could upset AJ. The SCC is very underrated and tends to fly under the radar. 

Start time is 2:00 at The Pit.

by Steve Dunford 

The Eldorado Eagles, who finished in third in the Black Diamond, behind undefeated Fairfield, and 8-1 Sesser-Valier-Waltonville-Woodlawn, has the the only 618 match-up today with the Red Bud Musketeers.

Here is what Eldorado Coach Joe Clark, who has been very good to talk to during the season, had to say about this afternoon’s game.  “They have a pretty good QB in Griffin Zebold and his favorite target is Alex Bircher.”, (who looking at stats and clips is an all purpose guy who they run the wildcat at times).

“Their defense is pretty solid and hope we can jump on top early and pick up a W.” 

 I am getting ready to stream WEBQ as we speak for a 1:00 p.m. start.

by Steve Dunford 

In two teams that were slated to be 2A, the DuQuoin Indians will be traveling to the Decatur area to face the Pana Panthers.

Coach Trevor Higgins had this to say about his team.  Their everything is QB Jacob Beeson.  He has not thrown an interception all season.   He leads the team in rushing with 848 yards.  He has thrown for 1934 yards, and 26 TD’s from the air.  He has punched it in nine times.

Their two main running back are Ian Herbert and Jack Clark.  Beeson’s three main targets are Cody Klein, Jack Armstrong, and Jared Byars.

Coach Higgins has this to say about the Indians.  “They are a mirror image of us.  Hank Stewart can throw the ball, and they have a good core of running backs.”

This is what Kyle Cunningham of the Greenville Advocate had to say about the team, They tied Carlinville for the share of the SCC Title (they do not using tiebreakers in the conference) it’s their second straight SCC title. They have many dangerous weapons on offense. They led the league with 441 total points including four games with at least 50 points. 

by Steve Dunford 

The Fairfield Mules host the Vandalia Vandals this afternoon at  at 2:00 P.M at the Train Yard.

Fairfield Coach Justin Townsend had this to say about last weeks SVWW game. “Sesser is a solid team but I felt that we just made a few more plays down the stretch.  Our defense tackled really well in space with the exception of their one scoring drive.  I also felt that we were able to control the clock and the temp of the game by running the ball well. ”

Here is what he had to say about the Vandals.  “Vandalia will be the best offensive team we have faced this year.  They have a 1,000 yard receiver (Zimmerman) and a 1,000 yard rusher (smart).  Both are very good and are game breakers.  We have to know where those 2 are at all times.  Offensively we must be able to run the ball and take away possessions from Vandalia.  rKicking game will be huge this week also.

Kyle Cunningham, sports editor for of the Greenville Advocate, shared a few words about Vandalia.  “‘They have a prolific offense. They do give up a lot of points but usually have no problem matching their opponent. You might think at 15 vs 2Fairfield Should have no problem beating the Vandals. However, I don’t think they have seen an offense like this. Greenville beat them er in the year 40-36 but it was tight the whole way”

With the South Central conference in the bottom bracket it seems like a college basketball shootout between conference.  I am interested how things turn out.

by Steve Dunford 

The Carmi-White County Bulldogs will make the 166 mile trip up Route 1 to face the Bismark-Henning-Rossville-Alvin Blue Devils.

In the early days of the website I shared a story on Rossville-Alvin discussing reactivating their high school.  The school closed in 2005.  The district was paying tuition for students to either attend Hoopeston East Lynn or Bismarck Henning.  The long name results from the two districts forming a cooperative agreement.

They play in the Vermilion Valley conference which is mainly 1A-2A

Here is what coach Mark Dodd said about his Devils.  It is a team that experienced a lot of hardship.  He sent the story in all caps.  I would like to share it all.  Say a prayer for this team. “ITS BEEN A SEASON OF HEARTBREAK FOR OUR TEAM.  ONE OF OUR SENIORS’ MOTHER PASSED AWAY IN LATE JULY”.

“IZAACK KITCHENS, OUR RETURNING ALL STATE RUNNING BACK (1800 YDS LAST YEAR UNTIL HE TORE HIS LEFT ACL IN WEEK 10) TORE HIS RIGHT ACL IN HIS FIRST CARRY OF THE SEASON.  SENIOR TIGHT END AND DEF END THOMAS SAVAGE BROKE HIS ELBOW IN WEEK 7.  IN WEEK 8 SOPHOMORE RUNNING BACK CALEB LAHEY (1700 YDS, 21 TDS IN 7 GAMES) TORN HIS ACL ON HIS FIRST CARRY.  SENIOR GUARD AND LINEBACKER JD FINNEY TORE HIS ACL IN THE SAME GAME ON THE OPENING KICKOFF.  IN OUR WEEK 9 LOSS TO WEST HANCOCK, JUNIOR RUNNING BACK AND LINEBACKER WADE EDWARDS BROKE HIS LEG.  THIS LAST WEEK OUR QUARTERBACK WYATT EDWARDS, WHO HAS PLAYED WITH A CAST ON HIS BROKEN LEFT THUMB SINCE WEEK 3,”

“HE LOST HIS GRANDFATHER SUDDENLY.  THE TEAM ATTENDED THE VISITATION ON FRIDAY”

“THAT’S BEEN OUR SEASON.  WE HAVE BATTLED THROUGH ADVERSITY EVERY WEEK, EVERY GAME AND ARE EXCITED TO STILL BE PLAYING IN WEEK 10.  WE HAVE 6 SOPHS AND 1 FRESHMAN NOW STARTING FOR US.”

Here is what Carmi-White County Coach Kurt Simon said about the matchup,  “They are very big and physical.  Their three losses are against 3 teams that have 2 losses between them.  We will have to limit turnovers and try to maintain good field position and make some big plays we can do that, we might be in a position in the 4th quarter to win. “

tjeI am not picking point spreads.  Out of the BDC, I think the Bulldogs and  and Eldorado are most likely to pick up a win.  I will be monitoring the scores on WRUL.

by Steve Dunford 

The Chester Yellow Jackets recieved a tough draw in the first round against Tuscola, who has been state ranked most of the year.

I spoke with Tuscola Coach Andy Romine this week.  One thing that he told me that was interesting was he drag races at I-57 Dragstrip over the summer.  He told me a little bit about the Warriors.

First of all let me start with Senior OT/DE Hunter Woodard, he is going to continue his football career in the Big 12, playing for the Oklahoma State cowboys.

He told me their QB is Luke Sluder.  He is a Junior.  He has passed for over 2,000 yards this year, and 6,000 for his career.  I watched some clips on Hudl and he can move out of the pocket vertically.  He reminds me of Hamilton Page.

His favorite target is Dalton Hoel.  Coach Romine called him a dynamic kid.  When I pulled him up on Hudl, all that was available was basketball highlights.  He is a lightning quick guard.  Their gym is a spitting image of Gallatin County.

This is his thoughts on Chester coming into tomorrow’s game.  “There quarterback Nick Meyer is intelligent, can rush it in the gap, ant intellgent.”  They run quite a few formations at you that are simple, but effective.”  

“Defensively, we can not think how they line up.  We just have to go out and get a big stop right off the bat”

Here is what Chester Coach Billy Belton had to say about the match-up with Tuscola.  “They are power run team, with some big play guys.  #7 L. Sluder 6’2 195 QB is their main running threat.  They have a big o-line.  Their leading receiver . Hoel 5’6 150 SR, is their big play guy.  He started as a freshman the last time Chester played Tuscola in the playoffs.  They are well coached and will be ready to play”  

”

Rains today will usher in a much cooler weather pattern that will last through the weekend. Expect a widespread freeze Saturday night. (NWS Paducah)

Freeze Watch

…FREEZE WATCH IN EFFECT FROM LATE SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY
MORNING…

The National Weather Service in Paducah has issued a Freeze
Watch, which is in effect from late Saturday night through Sunday
morning.

* TEMPERATURE…Most locations will fall into the 25 to 30 degree
range by sunrise Sunday morning.

* IMPACTS…Sensitive vegetation may be damaged or killed.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…

A Freeze Watch means sub-freezing temperatures are possible.
These conditions could kill crops and other sensitive vegetation.

Special Weather Statement

…Areas of frost possible later tonight into Saturday…

Cold Canadian air will begin to filter into the quad state region
today, behind a cold front that will pass from west to east across
the area this morning. Rain is expected to occur after the front
passes, but skies should clear tonight in many locations, allowing
temperatures to fall into the lower and mid 30s.

Some of the colder, sheltered locations may even experience a light freeze.
Winds staying up in the 5 to 10 MPH range are expected to
preclude a widespread frost at this time.

Hazardous Weather Outlook

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of southern
Illinois, southwest Indiana, western Kentucky, and southeast
Missouri.

.DAY ONE…Today and Tonight

Areas of frost will be possible later tonight into early Saturday.
Some sheltered, normally colder locations may even experience a
light freeze, especially over portions of southeast Missouri and
southern Illinois.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN…Saturday through Thursday

Widespread freezing temperatures are expected Saturday night into
early Sunday. Many locations will fall into the mid 20s to near
30 by sunrise Sunday.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT…

Spotter activation will not be needed.

Seven Day Forecast

by Steve Dunford 

I am just touching base to letting you know where I am at on things.

First each playoff game in Southern Illinois will be previewed by mid morning tomorrow.  I have had a great responses from coaches, especially from out of the area.  I have also had a few media outlets outside the area give me some information.

Second,  I am sorry I have to push the season in review’s back for Benton and West Frankfort.  I will have them out after the dust settles.

I will be monitoring all playoff games tomorrow.  I will have a running scoreboard posted.   If you are somewhere tomorrow, I would appreciate any scores you would pass along.

Steve

by Steve Dunford 

I have been back and forth what to do all week where I would end up.  This is how I will be handling coverage tonight.

I am going to be staying home.  I will be closely monitoring the Fairfield-S-V-W-W game streaming online.  Here is a link if you want to pay $10 for a 30 day subscription, which will include a lot of playoff games around the state, and possibly the selection show  After this, click on the Fairfield Mules icon.

https://my15news.com/    

I will be also monitoring Benton/A-J and West Frankfort/Nashville closely also.  I will take a couple peeks of what is going on over in McLeansboro to see if the Bearcats can grab a win as well.

I will also be keeping an eye on Harrisburg/Carbondale, DuQuoin/Murphysboro and Mt. Vernon/Mt. Carmel locally as those games can have huge bearings on the Class 3A bracket in the southern half of the state.

I will be checking on several games in the Southwest Conference as well, as several games will have a likely impact on the Class 3A parings that will be coming down tomorrow night.

Instead of using Twitter, I will be making updates on the website’s Facebook page, that way you can grab scores quickly where ever you are at in Southern Illinois watching what will be a great night for High School football.

As far as previews for tonight, I will be posting them shortly.  I will not have Facebook access for a few hours this morning, so check the website periodically.

As far as posting the pairings I will be posting 2A-5A as soon as the IHSA posts them on the Facebook page.  I will then post a page on the website just with the Southern Illinois schools.

I hope you have a great day.  I am looking forward to giving you the best HS football coverage to my ability during the next 36 hours.