Major 4-year conference impact players and 2021 QB’s Hank Beatty, Rashad Rochelle, and Brylan Phillips have all moved on.
Two new coaches this season (Jon Hebb-Springfield and DaJuan Johnson-Eisenhower). Both were promoted after having been assistants.
Ken Leonard’s last season. A 6th state title is very possible.
With Lincoln returning to the CS8 in 2023, this is the last year of closed conference play.
A major overhaul of the Lanphier campus and Memorial Stadium will result in both Springfield and Lanphier playing all their home games at Southeast. This also gives Southeast six games at their stadium this season.
Predictions
1-SHG (12-2 in 2021, lost in 4A final)
Will they go 9-0 and blitz the rest of the conference? Quite likely, barring injuries. SHG averaged almost 50 points per game last year and return QB Ty Lott, RB Bill Sanders, WR’s Keshon Singleton, Jake Hamilton, and Maddox Morris, and three OL. Lott was amazing as a Junior. He seems to be fine after injuring his knee during basketball season. The defense will be good, though not spectacular. They are experienced at LB and in the secondary. A big D-lineman or two could help them improve their run defense, which was not great last year against Rochester and Joliet Catholic. This is a team which could definitely win the 4A state title and will badly want to send Ken Leonard into retirement with a 6th championship.
2-Rochester (11-2 in 2021, lost in 4A semi-final)
The Rockets may be facing the most questions going into this season since 2015. Keeton Reiss is an unlikely looking QB at around 6’0” and 220. He is a tough straight ahead runner with a big arm. The most returning experience is at the OL, where three solid starters are back. Could this squad actually run more than pass, at least early on? But RB, WR (except for Parker Gillespie), LB (except for Ian Lichtenberger) and especially DB are looking at nearly complete turnover from 2021. Derek always develops new players but it’s unrealistic to think that Rochester is anything but a big underdog Week 1 at SHG. One pleasant surprise: Junior Jack Swaney who was a TE-LB at Springfield the last two seasons is now at Rochester.
3-Chatham (6-4 in 2021, lost in 6A first round)
Chatham has QB Jack Knudson back after he was injured and lost for the season in Week 7 last year. He is a pure passer and has three returning Receivers who are all solid. Knudson put up very good numbers last year before being hurt. Unlike previous Titan QB’s Luke Lehnen and Jake Burris, he is not a running threat. Chatham is moving a speedy WR from last year to be their main RB. The OL and DL should be bigger and more physical than last season. If the defense plays more like the 2018-19 squads, 7 or more conference wins are possible. This could be the best Rocket-Titan game since 2018.
4-Jacksonville (5-5 in 2021, lost in 5A first round)
The Crimsons have the top two returning rushers from 2021 in QB Elijah Owens and RB Cam Ron Mitchell. Owens played some as a Freshman and has started since his Sophomore season. He has committed to Indiana State. If they can mix the run and pass successfully, their offense should score plenty. Not sure who Owens has returning at WR. Can their defense hold down the better teams enough for 5 to 6 wins in conference? The Crimson are on the road against all the better teams this season.
5-Decatur MacArthur (4-5 in 2021 including 2 COVID losses, last in playoffs in 2019)
COVID kept Mac out of the playoffs last year, as one of their forfeits was a very winnable game vs Southeast. Mac upset Springfield in Week 8 to go to 4-4 but then was upset by 4-4 Jacksonville in a very close one in Week 9. Mac graduated all their significant offensive talent, including 4 year QB Brylan Philips. Usually their defense is big and physical, but they gave up 40+ points twice last year. Mac could be anywhere from a 4 to 6 win team. They are probably the team I know the least about at this time.
6-Springfield (7-4 in 2021, lost in 2nd Round of 6A playoffs)
Springfield lost QB Rashad Rochelle, RB Tyree Coleman, WR Mitchell Logan, and many others to graduation. They also have a new coach, Jon Hebb, as Roy Gully stepped down after taking the Senators to the playoffs 4 years in a row. Hebb had been the team’s Offensive Coordinator. Like Mac, Springfield is a wild card at the beginning of this season. In 2021, their defense gave up 42+ points 5 times, and Rochelle was asked to make big plays too often. The Senators have a new QB who is big and fast, Paul Hartman, and some experience on the OL. Will Hartman have enough weapons at WR and RB to have success? Springfield might be the team with the widest potential outcome this year, 3 to 6 wins.
7-University High (3-6 in 2021, last in playoffs 2015)
U High did well against the bottom conference teams last year but was not competitive against any of the Top 6 teams. They have been a good addition to the conference in everything, except football. Their 2nd year Coach is young and had success with a different school. The Pioneers QB returns as well. Could they give Springfield or Mac a tough game if those schools have less success this year or could U High fall to an improved Southeast? 2-4 wins probable.
8-Southeast (3-6 in 2021 with one win a forfeit, last in playoffs 2014)
Southeast was young last season and mostly took their lumps. They were starting Sophomores at QB and RB later in the season, and I thought they played fairly well against the Rockets. The Defense really struggled, giving up over 40 points 6 times. 2 to 4 wins probable but Week 1 at home against Mac will be a really good test for where both teams are at.
9-Decatur Eisenhower (1-8 in 2021, last in playoffs 2016)
Eisenhower competed well against Southeast in Week 1 last season and beat Lanphier in Week 9. In between, it was pretty rough going, with no close games and three shutout losses. For the second year in a row, Eisenhower has a new head coach, DaJuan Johnson. He was an assistant coach last year. It will be tough to get more than 1-2 wins, as it seems most of the football talent in Decatur goes to either Mac or Saint Teresa.
10-Lanphier (0-9 in 2021, last in the playoffs 2004)
Lanphier lost two games to COVID last year and were beaten handily by everyone except Eisenhower. It’s hard to believe that they were one of the better teams when the CS8 was formed in the early 1990’s. The Lions are in the same situation as Eisenhower was last year. Try to build program numbers, make some modest gains, and hope to win a game.
Biggest Games
1-Week 1 Rochester at SHG. The last regular season Leonard Bowl.
2-Week 1 Jacksonville at Chatham. Huge game for both teams. Winner likely to get a home playoff game.
3-Week 5 Chatham at Rochester. There hasn’t been a really good game between these two since 2018. This could be a good one, particularly if Rochester struggles early in the season.
4-Week 6 Springfield at MacArthur. The winner has a good chance of getting 5 wins. The loser may not make the playoffs.
5-Week 7 Chatham at SHG. Can Chatham be competitive at SHG after blowouts in the 2021 spring and fall seasons?
Best Schedules
SHG gets Rochester, Chatham, Jacksonville, and Mac at home.
Mac gets Rochester, Chatham, Jacksonville, and Springfield at home.
Southeast gets 6 games at their home stadium.
Worst Schedules
Jacksonville is on the road against SHG, Rochester, Chatham, Mac, and Springfield.
Springfield and Lanphier both have to play all their home games at Southeast due to remodeling of Memorial Stadium.
Two new coaches this season (Jon Hebb-Springfield and DaJuan Johnson-Eisenhower). Both were promoted after having been assistants.
Ken Leonard’s last season. A 6th state title is very possible.
With Lincoln returning to the CS8 in 2023, this is the last year of closed conference play.
A major overhaul of the Lanphier campus and Memorial Stadium will result in both Springfield and Lanphier playing all their home games at Southeast. This also gives Southeast six games at their stadium this season.
Predictions
1-SHG (12-2 in 2021, lost in 4A final)
Will they go 9-0 and blitz the rest of the conference? Quite likely, barring injuries. SHG averaged almost 50 points per game last year and return QB Ty Lott, RB Bill Sanders, WR’s Keshon Singleton, Jake Hamilton, and Maddox Morris, and three OL. Lott was amazing as a Junior. He seems to be fine after injuring his knee during basketball season. The defense will be good, though not spectacular. They are experienced at LB and in the secondary. A big D-lineman or two could help them improve their run defense, which was not great last year against Rochester and Joliet Catholic. This is a team which could definitely win the 4A state title and will badly want to send Ken Leonard into retirement with a 6th championship.
2-Rochester (11-2 in 2021, lost in 4A semi-final)
The Rockets may be facing the most questions going into this season since 2015. Keeton Reiss is an unlikely looking QB at around 6’0” and 220. He is a tough straight ahead runner with a big arm. The most returning experience is at the OL, where three solid starters are back. Could this squad actually run more than pass, at least early on? But RB, WR (except for Parker Gillespie), LB (except for Ian Lichtenberger) and especially DB are looking at nearly complete turnover from 2021. Derek always develops new players but it’s unrealistic to think that Rochester is anything but a big underdog Week 1 at SHG. One pleasant surprise: Junior Jack Swaney who was a TE-LB at Springfield the last two seasons is now at Rochester.
3-Chatham (6-4 in 2021, lost in 6A first round)
Chatham has QB Jack Knudson back after he was injured and lost for the season in Week 7 last year. He is a pure passer and has three returning Receivers who are all solid. Knudson put up very good numbers last year before being hurt. Unlike previous Titan QB’s Luke Lehnen and Jake Burris, he is not a running threat. Chatham is moving a speedy WR from last year to be their main RB. The OL and DL should be bigger and more physical than last season. If the defense plays more like the 2018-19 squads, 7 or more conference wins are possible. This could be the best Rocket-Titan game since 2018.
4-Jacksonville (5-5 in 2021, lost in 5A first round)
The Crimsons have the top two returning rushers from 2021 in QB Elijah Owens and RB Cam Ron Mitchell. Owens played some as a Freshman and has started since his Sophomore season. He has committed to Indiana State. If they can mix the run and pass successfully, their offense should score plenty. Not sure who Owens has returning at WR. Can their defense hold down the better teams enough for 5 to 6 wins in conference? The Crimson are on the road against all the better teams this season.
5-Decatur MacArthur (4-5 in 2021 including 2 COVID losses, last in playoffs in 2019)
COVID kept Mac out of the playoffs last year, as one of their forfeits was a very winnable game vs Southeast. Mac upset Springfield in Week 8 to go to 4-4 but then was upset by 4-4 Jacksonville in a very close one in Week 9. Mac graduated all their significant offensive talent, including 4 year QB Brylan Philips. Usually their defense is big and physical, but they gave up 40+ points twice last year. Mac could be anywhere from a 4 to 6 win team. They are probably the team I know the least about at this time.
6-Springfield (7-4 in 2021, lost in 2nd Round of 6A playoffs)
Springfield lost QB Rashad Rochelle, RB Tyree Coleman, WR Mitchell Logan, and many others to graduation. They also have a new coach, Jon Hebb, as Roy Gully stepped down after taking the Senators to the playoffs 4 years in a row. Hebb had been the team’s Offensive Coordinator. Like Mac, Springfield is a wild card at the beginning of this season. In 2021, their defense gave up 42+ points 5 times, and Rochelle was asked to make big plays too often. The Senators have a new QB who is big and fast, Paul Hartman, and some experience on the OL. Will Hartman have enough weapons at WR and RB to have success? Springfield might be the team with the widest potential outcome this year, 3 to 6 wins.
7-University High (3-6 in 2021, last in playoffs 2015)
U High did well against the bottom conference teams last year but was not competitive against any of the Top 6 teams. They have been a good addition to the conference in everything, except football. Their 2nd year Coach is young and had success with a different school. The Pioneers QB returns as well. Could they give Springfield or Mac a tough game if those schools have less success this year or could U High fall to an improved Southeast? 2-4 wins probable.
8-Southeast (3-6 in 2021 with one win a forfeit, last in playoffs 2014)
Southeast was young last season and mostly took their lumps. They were starting Sophomores at QB and RB later in the season, and I thought they played fairly well against the Rockets. The Defense really struggled, giving up over 40 points 6 times. 2 to 4 wins probable but Week 1 at home against Mac will be a really good test for where both teams are at.
9-Decatur Eisenhower (1-8 in 2021, last in playoffs 2016)
Eisenhower competed well against Southeast in Week 1 last season and beat Lanphier in Week 9. In between, it was pretty rough going, with no close games and three shutout losses. For the second year in a row, Eisenhower has a new head coach, DaJuan Johnson. He was an assistant coach last year. It will be tough to get more than 1-2 wins, as it seems most of the football talent in Decatur goes to either Mac or Saint Teresa.
10-Lanphier (0-9 in 2021, last in the playoffs 2004)
Lanphier lost two games to COVID last year and were beaten handily by everyone except Eisenhower. It’s hard to believe that they were one of the better teams when the CS8 was formed in the early 1990’s. The Lions are in the same situation as Eisenhower was last year. Try to build program numbers, make some modest gains, and hope to win a game.
Biggest Games
1-Week 1 Rochester at SHG. The last regular season Leonard Bowl.
2-Week 1 Jacksonville at Chatham. Huge game for both teams. Winner likely to get a home playoff game.
3-Week 5 Chatham at Rochester. There hasn’t been a really good game between these two since 2018. This could be a good one, particularly if Rochester struggles early in the season.
4-Week 6 Springfield at MacArthur. The winner has a good chance of getting 5 wins. The loser may not make the playoffs.
5-Week 7 Chatham at SHG. Can Chatham be competitive at SHG after blowouts in the 2021 spring and fall seasons?
Best Schedules
SHG gets Rochester, Chatham, Jacksonville, and Mac at home.
Mac gets Rochester, Chatham, Jacksonville, and Springfield at home.
Southeast gets 6 games at their home stadium.
Worst Schedules
Jacksonville is on the road against SHG, Rochester, Chatham, Mac, and Springfield.
Springfield and Lanphier both have to play all their home games at Southeast due to remodeling of Memorial Stadium.
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