By: Ryan Plinske
Tuesday, November 25, 2008 at 10:08pm
For the very first time in history, an Aurora high school is making the trip down state to Champaign! The Eagles of Aurora Christian finished off the season undefeated with a record of 13-0 and clinched the Private School League title. Their opponents Bloomington Central Catholic, also undefeated (13-0), made it to state last year against Driscoll Catholic and lost.
Aurora Christian: Aurora Christian’s high-powered offense is led by All-State quarterback Jordan Roberts, All-State wide out Matt Morse, and running back Lewis Gaddis. This year Roberts has broken the IHSA career records in passing yards and touchdowns. Morse has been huge for (Don) Beebe’s offense this year. In his first game back after injury (mono), he scored 4 touchdowns and 243 yards receiving. He has primarily been Roberts’ go-to guy through the air this season. However, he hasn’t been the only one to step it big for Roberts and the passing game. Senior wide out/defensive back David Zielke has been Beebe’s x-factor all season on both sides of the ball. He filled in big when Morse was out for the first 4 games, and even though he’s been pushed to the side a little since then, his production has still been there with 43 receptions, 523 yards receiving, and 9 touchdowns. When it comes down to it, defense wins championships and Aurora Christian’s defense has been tops in all areas. Their defense is led by a plethora of seniors. Peter Kariotis, Andru Ubert, Eric Andersen, and Braxton Warner all take care of the defensive line. Ryan Perik, Lewis Gaddis, and Luis Solario are all linebackers huge at shutting down the opponents’ rushing and passing attacks. At the defensive back position, Zac Copple, David Zielke, Marcus Schmidt, and Brandon Oest all are exceptional tacklers in the open field, exceptional at pass coverage, and able to read the pass extremely well. The defense will rely on the senior leadership to stop the offense of the Saint’s.
Bloomington Central Catholic: Last year the Saints finished as state 4A runner-up to Driscoll. This year they had some reloading to do if they wanted to repeat after graduating their star RB Ryan Waldron (1,970 rushing yards and 26 touchdowns). They have done just that with a strong nucleus of returning offensive starters lead by QB Adam Rebholz (124-170 attempts, 1954 passing yards, 22 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions), RB Brad Connor (146 carries, 696 yards, and 12 touchdowns), and TE Dylan Johnson (31 receptions, 563 yards, and 7 touchdowns). Other Saints players to watch for are OT Joe Ring, OG Jack Wombacher, LB David Murray, DB Dan Curran, LB Sean Stokes, and LB Austin Sherwood, all mainstays on the offensive and defensive sides. Bloomington Central Catholic has out scored their opponents with a margin of 528 to 150.
The Saints are hoping to reroute the Eagles’ chances of winning Friday night with their superb offense and outstanding defensive attack. Bloomington Central Catholic will be Aurora Christian’s first big test so far in the playoffs.
I believe that both teams will have enough fire power to keep them in the game, but it depends on whose defense wants it more this week. In the Eagles’ playoff games this year, they’ve allowed 57 points while scoring 122. Both defenses will be the deciding factor for the game.
Prediction: Aurora Christian 24, Bloomington Central Catholic 21
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
IHSA State Semi-Finals: Aurora Christian vs. Richmond-Burton
By: Ryan Plinske
Friday, November 21, 2008 at 6:05pm
This week’s IHSA Class 4A semi-final match-up is between the Eagles of Aurora Christian and the Rockets of Richmond-Burton. The Eagles have proven to many doubters why they deserve the number 1 seed they were given. However, the Cinderella team of this bracket lies in their opponent. Richmond-Burton Community High School is the 14th seed with a record of 5-4 coming into the playoffs. The game is Saturday November 22, 2008, at 1pm at Richmond-Burton High School.
Last year Aurora Christian lost to Plano (14-8) in the state semi-finals, but they are hoping to change that with the team they have this year. Last week, the Eagles defeated Driscoll 24-17 en route to their second consecutive trip to the IHSA state semi-finals. The Eagles are the first Aurora high school to accomplish that feat, and are trying to become the first ever team to advance to Champaign for the state title.
Aurora Christian’s high octane offense is lead by all state quarterback Jordan Roberts and all state wide-out Matt Morse. However they also feature running back Lewis Gaddis and wide-out/corner-back David Zielke. Zielke has emerged as one of Aurora Christian’s more deadly weapons on both sides of the ball. Offensively, Zielke has caught 43 passes for 523 yards and 9 touchdowns. On the other side of the ball, he has emerged as one of the top corners in the area with 6 interceptions and is one of the team’s most prolific tacklers. His numbers have proven to be one of the best compliments to Matt Morse.
The Cinderella story of this year’s 4A playoffs has been the 14th seed Richmond-Burton Rockets. They had a 5-4 record in the regular season, but 3 wins in the playoffs have brought them to 8-4 with wins over #3 seed Reed Custer (35-24), #6 seed Genoa-Kingston (48-14), and #7 seed Geneseo (21-0). The Rockets are known as mainly a running team with a dual set of backs in junior Justin Russell (104 attempts, 779 yards, and 8 touchdowns) and junior fullback Kenneth Riordan (103 attempts, 783 yards, and 13 touchdowns).
Prediction: Aurora Christian 28, Richmond-Burton 7
Friday, November 21, 2008 at 6:05pm
This week’s IHSA Class 4A semi-final match-up is between the Eagles of Aurora Christian and the Rockets of Richmond-Burton. The Eagles have proven to many doubters why they deserve the number 1 seed they were given. However, the Cinderella team of this bracket lies in their opponent. Richmond-Burton Community High School is the 14th seed with a record of 5-4 coming into the playoffs. The game is Saturday November 22, 2008, at 1pm at Richmond-Burton High School.
Last year Aurora Christian lost to Plano (14-8) in the state semi-finals, but they are hoping to change that with the team they have this year. Last week, the Eagles defeated Driscoll 24-17 en route to their second consecutive trip to the IHSA state semi-finals. The Eagles are the first Aurora high school to accomplish that feat, and are trying to become the first ever team to advance to Champaign for the state title.
Aurora Christian’s high octane offense is lead by all state quarterback Jordan Roberts and all state wide-out Matt Morse. However they also feature running back Lewis Gaddis and wide-out/corner-back David Zielke. Zielke has emerged as one of Aurora Christian’s more deadly weapons on both sides of the ball. Offensively, Zielke has caught 43 passes for 523 yards and 9 touchdowns. On the other side of the ball, he has emerged as one of the top corners in the area with 6 interceptions and is one of the team’s most prolific tacklers. His numbers have proven to be one of the best compliments to Matt Morse.
The Cinderella story of this year’s 4A playoffs has been the 14th seed Richmond-Burton Rockets. They had a 5-4 record in the regular season, but 3 wins in the playoffs have brought them to 8-4 with wins over #3 seed Reed Custer (35-24), #6 seed Genoa-Kingston (48-14), and #7 seed Geneseo (21-0). The Rockets are known as mainly a running team with a dual set of backs in junior Justin Russell (104 attempts, 779 yards, and 8 touchdowns) and junior fullback Kenneth Riordan (103 attempts, 783 yards, and 13 touchdowns).
Prediction: Aurora Christian 28, Richmond-Burton 7
Friday, November 14, 2008
End of a Dynasty
By: Ryan Plinske
Friday, November 14, 2008 at 10:59pm
This Saturday the game that most of the Chicagoland area had hoped for has finally arrived. The Eagles of Aurora Christian face the 8 time IHSA state champion of Driscoll Catholic. The Highlanders won the title in 1991 and 7 consecutive since - 2001-2003 in class 4A, again in 2004 but in 3A, and again in 2005-2007 in class 4A. This hard-nosed match-up is scheduled to take place Saturday night at God’s Field (Aurora Christian’s new field) at 6pm.
Aurora Christian will feature stud Quarterback Jordan Roberts who has broken nearly every IHSA record a quarterback can break. On the last game of the regular season Roberts passed Will Lunt (Rochester) on the career passing yards (8,383) and against Chicago Christian he took sole possession as the IHSA’s all-time career passing touchdown leader with 96. On the other hand, the Eagles will heavily rely on running back Lewis Gaddis, who has stabilized the Eagles run game this year. This is after AC had graduated the two starters at the position last year in John Smith and Sean O’Boyle. Gaddis’ hard-nose style of play has won the hearts of many Eagle fans. Gaddis has the ability to run right through you if necessary or slide right past the defense. He has racked up nearly 1000 yards rushing and 7 touchdowns this year. After missing the first 4 games due to mono, Aurora Christian’s Matt Morse has made maybe the biggest contribution this season. In his debut against Chicago Christian he had 11 catches for 245 yards, and 4 touchdowns. Morse hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down since, averaging 142 yards a game which places him 2nd in IHSA single season history and 17 touchdowns which puts him tied for 24th all-time in a single season. It’s hard to believe the Eagles may have two of the most dominating players in IHSA football this year on the same team, yet alone the same side of the ball. Look out for a high flying air attack against the Highlanders secondary with the combo of Roberts and Morse.
Like many years past, Driscoll almost rolled through the regular season undefeated but with losses to Montini (14-13 at the end of the year) and St. Francis (27-7 in week 3) the Highlanders finished the regular season with a 7-2 record and went into the playoffs with a 37 game playoff winning streak to defend their title as 7 consecutive time state champs. When asked how this team can repeat Senior Quarterback Steve Schwabe said, “This may not be our best team overall, but we know what it takes to win the big games.” Driscoll has a “Calvin Johnson” sized receiver in Austin Baker who stands tall at 6’5’’ and 210 pounds. Aurora Christian however has had practice in the past with a receiver that big, (Michael Friend) a former wide out for the Eagles was similar in size. Driscoll came into this season with a new coach and a new quarterback. Now this is when most programs go into a rebuilding year but not the powerhouse Driscoll. Brandon New stepped into the position after being with the program for all 7 championships as an assistant coach and one as a standout player. Quarterback Steve Schwabe is stepping into the role left by his brother, David, who graduated last year and was awarded the title of all-state quarterback. However, Coach New and Schwabe may be new to the roles they’re in now but that in no way means that Driscoll will be giving up the reins of control in 4 A football anytime soon.
What do Aurora Christian players think of this upcoming matchup with Driscoll? Matt Morse said, “For them to be able to come in here is obviously going to be the biggest game of my career and I can’t wait, it’s going to be huge.” Aurora Christian’s Jordan Roberts had some very similar feelings to that of Morse, “We’ve been waiting for this and it’s going to be fun. We’re going to have to work hard this week, more than we ever have, and it’s going to be a big battle out here.”
The Eagles hope Driscoll’s trouble on the road continues this week. Driscoll is 5-0 at home and 4-2 on the road.
The program for Aurora Christian is growing into the one that (Don) Beebe had envisioned when he took the job 5 years ago. With a win this week over Driscoll, it may be just the respect AC needed to make a name for themselves with the coming of a new conference next year with Driscoll and the rest of the Suburban Catholic Conference.
Prediction: Aurora Christian 31, Driscoll 24
Friday, November 14, 2008 at 10:59pm
This Saturday the game that most of the Chicagoland area had hoped for has finally arrived. The Eagles of Aurora Christian face the 8 time IHSA state champion of Driscoll Catholic. The Highlanders won the title in 1991 and 7 consecutive since - 2001-2003 in class 4A, again in 2004 but in 3A, and again in 2005-2007 in class 4A. This hard-nosed match-up is scheduled to take place Saturday night at God’s Field (Aurora Christian’s new field) at 6pm.
Aurora Christian will feature stud Quarterback Jordan Roberts who has broken nearly every IHSA record a quarterback can break. On the last game of the regular season Roberts passed Will Lunt (Rochester) on the career passing yards (8,383) and against Chicago Christian he took sole possession as the IHSA’s all-time career passing touchdown leader with 96. On the other hand, the Eagles will heavily rely on running back Lewis Gaddis, who has stabilized the Eagles run game this year. This is after AC had graduated the two starters at the position last year in John Smith and Sean O’Boyle. Gaddis’ hard-nose style of play has won the hearts of many Eagle fans. Gaddis has the ability to run right through you if necessary or slide right past the defense. He has racked up nearly 1000 yards rushing and 7 touchdowns this year. After missing the first 4 games due to mono, Aurora Christian’s Matt Morse has made maybe the biggest contribution this season. In his debut against Chicago Christian he had 11 catches for 245 yards, and 4 touchdowns. Morse hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down since, averaging 142 yards a game which places him 2nd in IHSA single season history and 17 touchdowns which puts him tied for 24th all-time in a single season. It’s hard to believe the Eagles may have two of the most dominating players in IHSA football this year on the same team, yet alone the same side of the ball. Look out for a high flying air attack against the Highlanders secondary with the combo of Roberts and Morse.
Like many years past, Driscoll almost rolled through the regular season undefeated but with losses to Montini (14-13 at the end of the year) and St. Francis (27-7 in week 3) the Highlanders finished the regular season with a 7-2 record and went into the playoffs with a 37 game playoff winning streak to defend their title as 7 consecutive time state champs. When asked how this team can repeat Senior Quarterback Steve Schwabe said, “This may not be our best team overall, but we know what it takes to win the big games.” Driscoll has a “Calvin Johnson” sized receiver in Austin Baker who stands tall at 6’5’’ and 210 pounds. Aurora Christian however has had practice in the past with a receiver that big, (Michael Friend) a former wide out for the Eagles was similar in size. Driscoll came into this season with a new coach and a new quarterback. Now this is when most programs go into a rebuilding year but not the powerhouse Driscoll. Brandon New stepped into the position after being with the program for all 7 championships as an assistant coach and one as a standout player. Quarterback Steve Schwabe is stepping into the role left by his brother, David, who graduated last year and was awarded the title of all-state quarterback. However, Coach New and Schwabe may be new to the roles they’re in now but that in no way means that Driscoll will be giving up the reins of control in 4 A football anytime soon.
What do Aurora Christian players think of this upcoming matchup with Driscoll? Matt Morse said, “For them to be able to come in here is obviously going to be the biggest game of my career and I can’t wait, it’s going to be huge.” Aurora Christian’s Jordan Roberts had some very similar feelings to that of Morse, “We’ve been waiting for this and it’s going to be fun. We’re going to have to work hard this week, more than we ever have, and it’s going to be a big battle out here.”
The Eagles hope Driscoll’s trouble on the road continues this week. Driscoll is 5-0 at home and 4-2 on the road.
The program for Aurora Christian is growing into the one that (Don) Beebe had envisioned when he took the job 5 years ago. With a win this week over Driscoll, it may be just the respect AC needed to make a name for themselves with the coming of a new conference next year with Driscoll and the rest of the Suburban Catholic Conference.
Prediction: Aurora Christian 31, Driscoll 24
Sunday, November 9, 2008
MVPedroia
By: Ryan PlinskeSunday, November 9, 2008 at 8:06pm
On November 6th Dustin Pedroia became only the second Red Sox second baseman to win the gold glove award. The last one to do it was Doug Griffin back in 1972.
Dustin Pedroia has lived up to all the hype and expectations after an extraordinary rookie season. Pedroia’s fielding percentage was second behind Oakland Athletics Mark Ellis. Ellis had a .993 fielding percentage and Pedroia followed with a .992 fielding percentage. Even though Ellis had a higher fielding percentage the award was unanimously given to Pedroia for his superb range, agility, and sure hands for fielding double plays. Pedroia also had 6 errors in 157 games with a total of 733 chances. Pedroia ranked third in assists (448), fourth in total chances (733), fifth in double plays (101), and sixth in putouts (279). The last time Red Sox Nation saw this kind of play at this position was back in the day of Hall of Famer Bobby Doerr.
Dustin Pedroia better have enough room in his trophy case because he just may also inherit the 2008 AL MVP award as well. Pedroia may not be the biggest guy in the big leagues at 5’6” but he sure hits with the best of them. Pedroia was second in the American League with a .326 batting average, led the league with 118 runs, 54 doubles, and tied for first place in hits (213) with the free swinging outfielder in Seattle, Ichiro Suzuki. He has at times been called the catalyst of the Red Sox offense with his numerous clutch at-bats and hits but what makes this guy more valuable than any other player in the game is the size of this kids heart. Throughout his whole life people have been telling him he’s too small to play baseball or just too small to do anything...Ozzie Guillen once called him a jockey when he batted cleanup against the pale hose late in the season and tallied 9 straight hits without recording an out.
Slowly he is becoming one of the most feared hitters in the league and a fan favorite all over the city. If he keeps this going he'll be a hall of famer for sure and achieve many gold gloves and MVP's in his time.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
IHSA 4A playoffs Round 2: Aurora Christian vs. Coal City
By: Ryan Plinske
Saturday, November 8, 2008 at 3:08pm
Both fans and players of Coal City may have more to worry about than the frigid temperatures (game time feel: 36 degrees) that are going to be surrounding tonight’s IHSA class 4A matchup of the Eagles of Aurora Christian and the Coalers of Coal City.
Aurora Christian offensively: Lenny Onsen and Coal City players have to come up with a game plan to slow down one of the most dynamic offenses in the 4A playoffs this year. Aurora Christian has one of Illinois’ most prodigious passers all-time, in Quarterback Jordan Roberts but that doesn’t mean that all of the focus will be on him tonight. Aurora Christian has the two-headed monster at wide out in Matt Morse (36 receptions for 748 yards and 16 td’s) and David Zielke (33 receptions for 457 yards and 6 td’s). Matt Morse has come on strong this year after missing the first 4 games of the season with mono and in his season debut scored 5 touchdowns and hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down. Zielke on the other hand has been pushed to the side a little bit since then but that still doesn’t stop his explosiveness, great hands and even better instincts after the catch. Lewis Gaddis has stepped up when AC needed it most this year at the running back position. Last year AC graduated both of their top backs (Smith and O’Boyle) but Gaddis has picked up right where they left off. Gaddis is one of those power backs that isn’t afraid of running right through you if necessary. Gaddis has piled on 835 yards on 108 attempts and 5 td’s averaging just under 8 yards per carry. Many people had many questions when they found out last year that Aurora Christian was bumped up to 4A, whether their lines could hold their own and if they had enough offense coming back to compete with the likes of Driscoll, Chicago Christian, and Walther. The Eagles have answered all of the questions this year beating Chicago Christian (42-28) and Walther Lutheran (39-33). The defensive line is anchored around 317 pound Peter Kariotis who takes over in the Eagles 3-5 defensive scheme. The offensive line has done an exceptional job this year only allowing the defense to get to the prize of the Eagles, Jordan Roberts with 5 sacks all year. I also expect Luis Solario (FB/LB) to be a big contributor to the Eagles running and passing attack and providing some big hits on defense.
Coal City offensively: Coal City might not have the offensive machines like Aurora Christian has but they have many weapons that have been there all year in junior quarterback Colt Smith (58-of-105, 756 yards, 7 TDs who many in Coal City like to compare to the gunslinger manner of Brett Favre. They have a double threat at running back with juniors Bobby Kroeger (92 carries, 495 yards, 4 TDs; 8 catches, 111 yards) and Rankovich (45 carries, 208 yards; 8 catches, 123 yards, 1 TD) and Smiths favorite receiver in Junior Kevin Gabehart (20 catches, 205 yards, 3 TDs). He also is part of the Coalers special teams with 12 punt returns for 151 yards and a touchdown much like that of Devin Hester.
I expect this game to be a pretty explosive one in the air for the Eagles but if the weather begins to play a factor with the frigid temperatures expected to be around 38 degrees, be on the lookout for Lewis Gaddis to just transform into a beast out there and rack up huge numbers against Coal City’s defense which is weak against the run. Another thing in AC’s favor is the right foot of newly found kicker, Jake van Gilse. van Gilse this summer went to many kicking camps to improve and be able to contribute when (head coach) Beebe called on him. Last week Jake booted an astonishing kick of 43 yards and then another one of 40 yards. Looks like the Eagles are a never ending offensive powerhouse, but don’t tell the defense that.
With that all said I expect Aurora Christian to capitalize on the weather condition and the home field atmosphere at their newly finished state of the art field.
Prediction: Aurora Christian 35, Coal City 7
Saturday, November 8, 2008 at 3:08pm
Both fans and players of Coal City may have more to worry about than the frigid temperatures (game time feel: 36 degrees) that are going to be surrounding tonight’s IHSA class 4A matchup of the Eagles of Aurora Christian and the Coalers of Coal City.
Aurora Christian offensively: Lenny Onsen and Coal City players have to come up with a game plan to slow down one of the most dynamic offenses in the 4A playoffs this year. Aurora Christian has one of Illinois’ most prodigious passers all-time, in Quarterback Jordan Roberts but that doesn’t mean that all of the focus will be on him tonight. Aurora Christian has the two-headed monster at wide out in Matt Morse (36 receptions for 748 yards and 16 td’s) and David Zielke (33 receptions for 457 yards and 6 td’s). Matt Morse has come on strong this year after missing the first 4 games of the season with mono and in his season debut scored 5 touchdowns and hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down. Zielke on the other hand has been pushed to the side a little bit since then but that still doesn’t stop his explosiveness, great hands and even better instincts after the catch. Lewis Gaddis has stepped up when AC needed it most this year at the running back position. Last year AC graduated both of their top backs (Smith and O’Boyle) but Gaddis has picked up right where they left off. Gaddis is one of those power backs that isn’t afraid of running right through you if necessary. Gaddis has piled on 835 yards on 108 attempts and 5 td’s averaging just under 8 yards per carry. Many people had many questions when they found out last year that Aurora Christian was bumped up to 4A, whether their lines could hold their own and if they had enough offense coming back to compete with the likes of Driscoll, Chicago Christian, and Walther. The Eagles have answered all of the questions this year beating Chicago Christian (42-28) and Walther Lutheran (39-33). The defensive line is anchored around 317 pound Peter Kariotis who takes over in the Eagles 3-5 defensive scheme. The offensive line has done an exceptional job this year only allowing the defense to get to the prize of the Eagles, Jordan Roberts with 5 sacks all year. I also expect Luis Solario (FB/LB) to be a big contributor to the Eagles running and passing attack and providing some big hits on defense.
Coal City offensively: Coal City might not have the offensive machines like Aurora Christian has but they have many weapons that have been there all year in junior quarterback Colt Smith (58-of-105, 756 yards, 7 TDs who many in Coal City like to compare to the gunslinger manner of Brett Favre. They have a double threat at running back with juniors Bobby Kroeger (92 carries, 495 yards, 4 TDs; 8 catches, 111 yards) and Rankovich (45 carries, 208 yards; 8 catches, 123 yards, 1 TD) and Smiths favorite receiver in Junior Kevin Gabehart (20 catches, 205 yards, 3 TDs). He also is part of the Coalers special teams with 12 punt returns for 151 yards and a touchdown much like that of Devin Hester.
I expect this game to be a pretty explosive one in the air for the Eagles but if the weather begins to play a factor with the frigid temperatures expected to be around 38 degrees, be on the lookout for Lewis Gaddis to just transform into a beast out there and rack up huge numbers against Coal City’s defense which is weak against the run. Another thing in AC’s favor is the right foot of newly found kicker, Jake van Gilse. van Gilse this summer went to many kicking camps to improve and be able to contribute when (head coach) Beebe called on him. Last week Jake booted an astonishing kick of 43 yards and then another one of 40 yards. Looks like the Eagles are a never ending offensive powerhouse, but don’t tell the defense that.
With that all said I expect Aurora Christian to capitalize on the weather condition and the home field atmosphere at their newly finished state of the art field.
Prediction: Aurora Christian 35, Coal City 7
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Eagle Nation has high hopes this year against Reaper Nation!
By: Ryan Plinske
Saturday, November 1, 2008 at 1:03pm
This is the day both Eagle fans and players have been waiting for almost a year now. Last year Plano defeated the Eagles of Aurora Christian 14-6 en route to return to Champaign to defend for their second straight IHSA Class 3A state title. However this year is entirely different. Both teams moved up to Class 4A with the likes of the 7 time champion powerhouse of Driscoll.
However Aurora Christian maintained their second straight undefeated regular season 9-0, just dominating their conference that has Chicago Christian, Walther Lutheran and their non-conference games against Mendota and Immaculate Conception.
Plano survived this season with a record of 5-4 with losses to Coal City, Sandwich (which those two teams are meeting this week against each other in 4A playoffs), Peotone, and Wilmington. Plano's coach has always had a few tricks up his sleeve whether its with his wing-t offense, wearing the all black jerseys like last year against Aurora Christian, or the many trick plays in his offensive playbook. Now with that said this season was far from acceptable for their fans after having gone 13-1 last year and winning state 2 years in a row.
The game last year was held at Plano High School but this year the #1 seed of 4A, Aurora Christian gets their chance to hold their first ever home playoff game on their newly finished, state of the art athletic field turf facility. This field was finished early into the season but it is slowly becoming one of the nicest to play at with their pro-style locker room, the family friendly yet competitive atmosphere and the hopes of becoming a powerhouse under 5th year head coach Don Beebe.
This game will feature the weapons of Aurora Christian's highly talented 4th year starting quarterback Jordan Roberts, the x-factors at wideout Matt Morse and David Zielke, and the very powerful running back Lewis Gaddis. The defense is anchored around defensive lineman Peter Kariotis and linebacker Ryan Perik. One thing that will be different this year is the kicking game AC has finally found in the right foot of Jake Van Gilse. I expect this game to be close but in the end AC has just too much fire power and the Reapers won't have enough to stop them. Aurora Christians hopes of their first ever state championship lies in close sight with this years football team.
Saturday, November 1, 2008 at 1:03pmThis is the day both Eagle fans and players have been waiting for almost a year now. Last year Plano defeated the Eagles of Aurora Christian 14-6 en route to return to Champaign to defend for their second straight IHSA Class 3A state title. However this year is entirely different. Both teams moved up to Class 4A with the likes of the 7 time champion powerhouse of Driscoll.
However Aurora Christian maintained their second straight undefeated regular season 9-0, just dominating their conference that has Chicago Christian, Walther Lutheran and their non-conference games against Mendota and Immaculate Conception.
Plano survived this season with a record of 5-4 with losses to Coal City, Sandwich (which those two teams are meeting this week against each other in 4A playoffs), Peotone, and Wilmington. Plano's coach has always had a few tricks up his sleeve whether its with his wing-t offense, wearing the all black jerseys like last year against Aurora Christian, or the many trick plays in his offensive playbook. Now with that said this season was far from acceptable for their fans after having gone 13-1 last year and winning state 2 years in a row.
The game last year was held at Plano High School but this year the #1 seed of 4A, Aurora Christian gets their chance to hold their first ever home playoff game on their newly finished, state of the art athletic field turf facility. This field was finished early into the season but it is slowly becoming one of the nicest to play at with their pro-style locker room, the family friendly yet competitive atmosphere and the hopes of becoming a powerhouse under 5th year head coach Don Beebe.
This game will feature the weapons of Aurora Christian's highly talented 4th year starting quarterback Jordan Roberts, the x-factors at wideout Matt Morse and David Zielke, and the very powerful running back Lewis Gaddis. The defense is anchored around defensive lineman Peter Kariotis and linebacker Ryan Perik. One thing that will be different this year is the kicking game AC has finally found in the right foot of Jake Van Gilse. I expect this game to be close but in the end AC has just too much fire power and the Reapers won't have enough to stop them. Aurora Christians hopes of their first ever state championship lies in close sight with this years football team.
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