Minooka, Plainfield South ready to entertain

Updated: March 22, 2011 4:10PM

More often than not in a football-rich area such as ours, you have the opportunity to see one those matchups made in heaven.

Not to exclude any other weekend games in the area, but Plainfield South will entertain Minooka in Friday's featured attraction.

Both teams are 4-0. They share the Southwest Prairie lead with Plainfield North and Oswego at 2-0. The winner naturally will be much closer to the conference championship than will the loser, although the loser certainly will not be eliminated.

But the records are not all that make this matchup attractive. It is more how they have gone about building their 4-0 starts.

Minooka, under coach Bert Kooi, has attracted enough attention to be ranked in the top 10 in the state in Class 8A. The Indians' double-wing attack has been devastating. They are rushing for 356.3 yards per game, easily the best in the area, and are averaging 38.3 points.

South, operating from the spread, does not take a back seat. Former Minooka coach Mike Briscoe has the Cougars flying high thanks to an abundance of athletes whom he can line up in various positions. South leads the area in scoring at 46.5 points per game and in total offense at 437.5 total yards. That comes from 243.3 rushing and 194.3 passing.

Minooka wingbacks Kyle Banks and Kalvin Hill have combined to rush for 882 yards and more than 9 yards per carry. And quarterback Mitch Brozovich, who is fully capable of hurting an enemy defense with the pass, has rushed for 362 and an 11.7 average.

South's Dondre Adams rushed for 241 with a 9.6 average before being sidelined with a twisted knee. He said during last week's game against Romeoville that he was hopeful of returning for Minooka.

Sheldon Magee has rushed for 298 yards and is averaging 12.4 a pop. John Magee has tacked on 245. Austin Howarth is 22-for-37 passing, Sheldon Magee 25-for-40. They have combined to throw for 790 yards, and both can motor, especially Magee. With Brozovich and Magee involved, this could be a keeper in more ways than one.

It does appear to be one of those games where someone's defense will have to step up and at least slow down the other's offense. And, yes, these teams do play defense.

Minooka, featuring defensive end Todd Colvin, who has committed to Bowling Green, is allowing 9.3 points per game, best in the area. South is right there at 10.0. The Cougars allow 192 yards per game, the Indians 202.5. South is plus 5 in turnover margin, Minooka is plus 3.

If you believe strength of schedule means something, Minooka's opponents have combined to win 3 games so far, while South's have won 4.

Minooka, the defending Southwest Prairie champion, probably ranks as a slight favorite. Then again, South is at home. I am picking Minooka in a tight one, but as you know, I have been wrong before.

vNo matter where your loyalties lie, this is one that may well go down to the wire. The stadium at South may not be the place for a weak ticker.

Saturday specials

Fans of the two Joliet Township football teams have an opportunity to see their favorites on homecoming - both in the same day.

Joliet Central, under coach Mike Maloney, will entertain Lockport in a SouthWest Suburban Blue matchup at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at Memorial Stadium. You can watch that one, then hop in your car and take the short ride to Joliet West for coach Jason Aubry's Tigers' 1 p.m. SouthWest Suburban Blue game against Bolingbrook.

That is, if you do not want to stay at the stadium all day for a tripleheader - University of St. Francis is home at 1 and Joliet Junior College is home at 6.

Central, which has not yet played a home game this season, and West both have shown improvement of late, but both have drawn tough homecoming opponents. Lockport has lost two straight and is primed to get back into the win column. Bolingbrook beat the Porters a couple of weeks ago and appears headed toward another typically strong season.

But sometimes on homecoming, things happen. With the Central at West battle looming next Saturday, I would not be surprised if both look better Saturday than they have previously this season.

© 2012 Sun-Times Media, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be copied or distributed without permission. For more information about reprints and permissions, visit www.suntimesreprints.com. To order a reprint of this article, click here.