Griffins' Van Gennep ready for his turn

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There are successful high school football programs, and then there is Lincoln-Way East.

To say the first decade of the 21st century has belonged to coach Rob Zvonar's team would be nothing short of accurate.

The Griffins began their life as a varsity program in 2001, and with no seniors on board, they stunningly qualified for the playoffs. They have not missed landing a postseason berth since.

Competing in the state's largest class, they won a state championship in 2005 with a 30-24 victory over Maine South in two overtimes. They reached the semifinals in 2004 and 2006 and have been quarterfinalists two other times.

Last year, in a classic second-round matchup, East fell to Mount Carmel 34-31.

The Griffins' regular-season record is 58-14, and they are 16-7 in playoff games for a 74-21 overall mark. When you consider the caliber of competition that appears on the East schedule year after year, and the powerhouses everyone faces throughout the Class 8A playoffs, what Zvonar and his staff have accomplished is remarkable.

Of course, as Zvonar will tell you, it is the players who deserve the credit for what has occurred at the Frankfort campus. And when the bell rings in the fall, a senior who has been biding his time will be under center, prepared to lead East on another playoff run.

Ryne Van Gennep threw all of eight passes last season as the understudy to all-area quarterback Spencer Stanek. He completed six for 92 yards and a touchdown.

Otherwise, he did everything possible to prepare for his senior year.

"A stable program is predicated on having good seniors," Zvonar said during last Saturday's University of St. Francis 7-on-7 football passing camp at Pershing Grade School. "You hope that each year you have enough experience back to keep things going.

"And so far, it has been a positive summer."

Especially where Van Gennep is concerned.

"Ryne a lot of years would have been the starter as a junior," Zvonar said. "It's just that he had an all-state caliber guy in front of him in Spencer.

"I'm proud of Ryne that he just didn't sit around and wait for his opportunity. He has been a great leader and has performed well this summer."

"It was a good learning experience last year playing under Spencer," Van Gennep said. "I learned a lot from the way he went about doing things last year."

Stanek threw for 1,937 yards and 18 touchdowns a year ago, completing 64.3 percent of his passes. He also rushed for a net of 399 yards and averaged 5.3 per carry.

For Griffins fans accustomed to watching Stanek scramble and ad-lib, things may be different this fall.

"Ryne has a strong arm and is more of a dropback passer," Zvonar said. "That's probably his strength."

"Situations will come up where I will be given the chance to run," Van Gennep said. "But if possible, I would rather sit in the pocket and see if I can get our receivers the ball."

The East receiving corps has the earmarks of a strong group.

Wideout Alex Evans, also a baseball standout and a college prospect in both sports, is the leading returning receiver. He caught 25 passes last season for 374 yards, a 15.0 average, and 3 touchdowns.

Speedy Brandyn Jackson appears primed for a big season on the outside, wingback Kevin Starke caught 24 passes for 304 yards a year ago, fullback Colin Sabal figures to have a few screens and short passes thrown his way, and baseball pitcher/outfielder Matt Hartmann provides another target on the outside.

Starke is the leading returning rusher, coming off a junior season where he gained 604 yards and averaged 5.5 per carry. He scored 17 touchdowns, 13 rushing and four receiving.

"Our skill positions are up there with the best we have had," Zvonar said. "We don't want to put pressure on one person. We want to prevent defenses from keying on one individual."

Evans said he already has developed a good relationship with Van Gennep.

"Ryne throws a nice ball," Evans said. "We have been together since sophomore year. Sometimes we'll go out and throw the ball around together.

"He did learn a lot from Spencer last year, and I would say he is filling his shoes quite well."

The strong arm will come in handy when the time is right to get the ball deep to Evans.

"I've been timed at 4.5 in the 40, and I've been going to the Bo Jackson Dome to work more on my speed," Evans said.

So, the weapons are in place.

"The bar here has been set high," Zvonar said. "We are going to continue to keep our goals high.

"Right now, we want to have the best summer we can and try to improve. We open against Providence. That will be the last time we play them, and we want to be ready to give it our best."