Super 25 countdown: Maine South

Updated: May 9, 2012 9:44AM

The destination was what Maine South was looking for last season, but the route left something to be desired.

The Hawks won their third consecutive Class 8A title in dominant fashion, beating Mount Carmel 28-7 in the ­final. They didn’t look at all like the team that started 0-2, including a ­nationally televised 44-7 loss to Wheaton Warrenville South that ended with a running clock.

It’s a memory that has yet to fade for the Hawks, who are No. 1 in the Sun-Times’ preseason Super 25.

“We talk about it in terms of motivation,” said Dave Inserra, who has coached Maine South to three titles and three runner-up finishes since 2003. “  ‘Do we really want to go there again?’ None of us liked it. You quickly drop out of the rankings and the newspapers. You don’t want to spend too much time reading [that], but [being in the rankings] is fun for the community.”

And it apparently was good for the Hawks’ psyche for Inserra and his staff to stay positive after the losses and a run of health issues.

“We had more injuries last year than I’ve seen in my coaching career,” Inserra said. “It was almost three seasons’ worth.”

But the Hawks persevered, and the lessons they learned might pay off this fall.

“The coaches helped us out,” senior wide receiver/safety Jimmy Frankos said. “They never gave up on us. They told us they were sticking with us, and we stayed within the program.”

There are key members of that 12-2 club back on both sides of the ball. Leading the way on offense are junior quarterback Matt Alviti and pint-sized running back Paul Preston. Recruiting interest is heating up in the strong-armed Alviti, who threw for 3,066 yards and 24 touchdowns with just seven interceptions last season. Preston ran for 1,140 yards and finished with a team-high 21 touchdowns.

“Matt looks awesome,” ­Inserra said.

The plan for Preston is to get him more touches in the passing game.

“We’re just trying to get him the ball in any way, shape or form,” Inserra said.

Senior right tackle Pat Barrett, another returning starter, and left tackle Pat Maloney, a junior who wears a size-17 shoe, will anchor the line.

Tyler Fahey, a senior linebacker, is the only returning defensive starter from the state championship game. But there’s another big-­timer in the linebacking corps in ­senior Luke Lenti, who missed more than half of
last season with an ankle ­injury.

What it all adds up to ­remains to be seen. But as last year demonstrated, it’s never a good idea to count out the Hawks too soon.

“It seems like every year Maine South loses kids and everyone wonders how we’ll come back,” Frankos said. “We never want to have a down year.”

Lately, they haven’t.

© 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.