Can someone explain the MSL to me?
- Thread starter mc140
- Start date
Yes someone please enlighten all of us....and is the East better than the West this year?
Hoffman Estates is the class of the league and the only team with a realistic change to win more than one game.
Barrington is going to be a horrible draw for some 9-0 team in 8A.
East is better but would still argue the HE puts the west in better stead.
Barrington is going to be a horrible draw for some 9-0 team in 8A.
East is better but would still argue the HE puts the west in better stead.
Conant will win the MSL West. Hoping Schaumburg, Barrington and Fremd can find a way to join Conant and Hoffman in the playoffs. Would be awesome to get 5 teams in. Not all that likely though. Palatine is a dangerous team at the bottom of the conference.
Hersey and Rolling Meadows are good teams. I don’t think they’ve really beaten anyone though. I wouldn’t be shocked if they both lose in the 2nd round of the playoffs. The rest of the MSL East is pretty bad. Throw Palatine in the East and they finish 3rd.
Hersey and Rolling Meadows are good teams. I don’t think they’ve really beaten anyone though. I wouldn’t be shocked if they both lose in the 2nd round of the playoffs. The rest of the MSL East is pretty bad. Throw Palatine in the East and they finish 3rd.
West is impossible to figure out this year..Overall level of play is way down from last couple of seasons.
Barrington - If not for a kick return and trick play at Maine South they're sub 500 overall. Their lower levels used to blast thru everyone and go 8-1, 9-0 routinely but have not done that the last few years and the varsity it starting to reflect that. They have been lucky in having three straight 2 year starting, high impact QBs, but I think the latest kid is not in the Niro/Davidson mold. From watching JV games the past two years I didn't think they'd be an 8-1, 9-0 kind of team again. They probably win out the rest of the way and finish 6-3.
Palatine - No one has fallen faster and harder than my beloved Pirates. I think everyone around knew this would be a down year as the senior class had about this much success a frosh/sophs, but that a strong junior class might buoy them like the 2014 squad..hasn't happened. The defense is very, very young and doesn't tackle well, and they're giving up big play after big play that Palatine's defenses were always known for shutting down. That said, it appears to be a temporary blip. Peak Palatine occurs again when this season's sophomores are seniors. RT3 (running back Ronald Todd III), the varsity starting tailback who ran for 200+ yds Friday night is a sophomore, twin brothers starting at OLB and SS for the varsity are sophomores, as is OL/DL Russchenberg. Soph QB Ayala looks to be a future star and was backing up Garnmeister on varsity but has been the QB for the JV squad since MSL West play started. Results? Palatine 49, Fremd 19 ; Palatine 39, Hoff Estates 26; Palatine 42, Schaumburg 14. JV squad has alot of playmakers on offense and defense besides - guys like Charles Harris, Alex Clue and Noah Strickland are all names you should be hearing alot about the next two years. That all said, for this year, sadly, I think they wind up 1-8.
Hoffman Estates- It's always been hard to see what they have coming since they have so many sophs on varsity. That said it seems to be working for them as they started this year where they left off last year. They seem to have some really good athletes who can do alot individually but seem to rely on a few key guys alot. Their defense seems to have sprung a leak the last two weeks as they've given up 40+ pts two games in a row. The did have a full JV squad this year and they did look pretty good, so I could easily see HE continuing what they've done the last few years. TRULY, it looks like the MSL West will come down to Conant vs Hoff Estates week 9 -- and no one would have predicted that preseason - so I think Hoff Estates goes 7-2 or 8-1 depending on who wins that game and will do well in 6A again. Playing mostly 7A-8A competition during the season will help them like it did last year. State semifinalist again? Probably not; but quarter finals is possible.
Schaumburg - To me the biggest head scratcher. They have some incredible individual athletes(Trotter, DiGioia) but I've seen a couple of their games now including the 30-29 win over Palatine in the rain Friday night and they just seem lackluster. That reeeally surprises me because one thing Schaumburg always had was a chip on their shoulder and even when they were down and 1-8 in 2014 they still played smashmouth football. How Hoff Estates shut them out when they gave up 85 points combined in the next two games I think says more about Schaumburg's offense than HE's defense. My gut tells me they lose to Barrington and Fremd and finish 4-5, which is stunning from a team I thought would win the MSL West and be just like the 2013 Stacy Smith/Sadariss Patterson led team.
Fremd - Honestly better than I had anticipated. I didn't think they'd go 1-8 again, but I did see them as a 3-6 kinda team. I was wrong. They lost the Fremd swagger last year but seem to be getting it back, led primarily by their defense. It's easy to forget, but three time state champ Brent Pearlman is DC over there and it seems to have taken him a couple of years to right the ship, but their defense is lights out good. (Wonder if he's be interested in shifting to the other side of P'ville?). My gut though is they split their last two games and finish 4-5, keeping both Palatine based teams out of the playoffs this year.
Conant - WOW! After 0-9 and 1-8 seasons, you figured a guy as successful as Stortz has been would turn things around, but not this quickly. Just like Fremd, they're winning with a stellar defense and just enough offense. And based on what they did yesterday to win in the last 78 seconds they're really believing in themselves. Their JV squads were small(numbers wise) but highly competitive the last couple of years, so what he's got there he's getting the most out of. They beat Palatine next week and then it all comes down to the battle of Hoffman Estates in week 9. I think Conant takes it and finishes 7-2.
Some good and bad observations overall:
Good - Hoff Estates and Palatine lower levels...LOTS of kids
Bad - Fremd and Schaumburg JV squads, each around 25-30 kids
Tackling - Getting the head out of tackling is absolutely necessary, but it seems they're not teaching good fundamentals at all...terrible tackling all over the place.
West Vs East - East is the beast this year. I don't know how Rolling Meadows and Hersey are doing it? Seen these year's juniors and seniors at both schools when they were Frosh/Soph and, frankly, neither were very good. Whatever they're doing I wish they'd bottle it and send some over to 1111 N Rohlwing Rd in Palatine
I NEVER miss a Palatine game, but tempted to go watch the RM-Hersey contest this week instead!
Barrington - If not for a kick return and trick play at Maine South they're sub 500 overall. Their lower levels used to blast thru everyone and go 8-1, 9-0 routinely but have not done that the last few years and the varsity it starting to reflect that. They have been lucky in having three straight 2 year starting, high impact QBs, but I think the latest kid is not in the Niro/Davidson mold. From watching JV games the past two years I didn't think they'd be an 8-1, 9-0 kind of team again. They probably win out the rest of the way and finish 6-3.
Palatine - No one has fallen faster and harder than my beloved Pirates. I think everyone around knew this would be a down year as the senior class had about this much success a frosh/sophs, but that a strong junior class might buoy them like the 2014 squad..hasn't happened. The defense is very, very young and doesn't tackle well, and they're giving up big play after big play that Palatine's defenses were always known for shutting down. That said, it appears to be a temporary blip. Peak Palatine occurs again when this season's sophomores are seniors. RT3 (running back Ronald Todd III), the varsity starting tailback who ran for 200+ yds Friday night is a sophomore, twin brothers starting at OLB and SS for the varsity are sophomores, as is OL/DL Russchenberg. Soph QB Ayala looks to be a future star and was backing up Garnmeister on varsity but has been the QB for the JV squad since MSL West play started. Results? Palatine 49, Fremd 19 ; Palatine 39, Hoff Estates 26; Palatine 42, Schaumburg 14. JV squad has alot of playmakers on offense and defense besides - guys like Charles Harris, Alex Clue and Noah Strickland are all names you should be hearing alot about the next two years. That all said, for this year, sadly, I think they wind up 1-8.
Hoffman Estates- It's always been hard to see what they have coming since they have so many sophs on varsity. That said it seems to be working for them as they started this year where they left off last year. They seem to have some really good athletes who can do alot individually but seem to rely on a few key guys alot. Their defense seems to have sprung a leak the last two weeks as they've given up 40+ pts two games in a row. The did have a full JV squad this year and they did look pretty good, so I could easily see HE continuing what they've done the last few years. TRULY, it looks like the MSL West will come down to Conant vs Hoff Estates week 9 -- and no one would have predicted that preseason - so I think Hoff Estates goes 7-2 or 8-1 depending on who wins that game and will do well in 6A again. Playing mostly 7A-8A competition during the season will help them like it did last year. State semifinalist again? Probably not; but quarter finals is possible.
Schaumburg - To me the biggest head scratcher. They have some incredible individual athletes(Trotter, DiGioia) but I've seen a couple of their games now including the 30-29 win over Palatine in the rain Friday night and they just seem lackluster. That reeeally surprises me because one thing Schaumburg always had was a chip on their shoulder and even when they were down and 1-8 in 2014 they still played smashmouth football. How Hoff Estates shut them out when they gave up 85 points combined in the next two games I think says more about Schaumburg's offense than HE's defense. My gut tells me they lose to Barrington and Fremd and finish 4-5, which is stunning from a team I thought would win the MSL West and be just like the 2013 Stacy Smith/Sadariss Patterson led team.
Fremd - Honestly better than I had anticipated. I didn't think they'd go 1-8 again, but I did see them as a 3-6 kinda team. I was wrong. They lost the Fremd swagger last year but seem to be getting it back, led primarily by their defense. It's easy to forget, but three time state champ Brent Pearlman is DC over there and it seems to have taken him a couple of years to right the ship, but their defense is lights out good. (Wonder if he's be interested in shifting to the other side of P'ville?). My gut though is they split their last two games and finish 4-5, keeping both Palatine based teams out of the playoffs this year.
Conant - WOW! After 0-9 and 1-8 seasons, you figured a guy as successful as Stortz has been would turn things around, but not this quickly. Just like Fremd, they're winning with a stellar defense and just enough offense. And based on what they did yesterday to win in the last 78 seconds they're really believing in themselves. Their JV squads were small(numbers wise) but highly competitive the last couple of years, so what he's got there he's getting the most out of. They beat Palatine next week and then it all comes down to the battle of Hoffman Estates in week 9. I think Conant takes it and finishes 7-2.
Some good and bad observations overall:
Good - Hoff Estates and Palatine lower levels...LOTS of kids
Bad - Fremd and Schaumburg JV squads, each around 25-30 kids
Tackling - Getting the head out of tackling is absolutely necessary, but it seems they're not teaching good fundamentals at all...terrible tackling all over the place.
West Vs East - East is the beast this year. I don't know how Rolling Meadows and Hersey are doing it? Seen these year's juniors and seniors at both schools when they were Frosh/Soph and, frankly, neither were very good. Whatever they're doing I wish they'd bottle it and send some over to 1111 N Rohlwing Rd in Palatine
I NEVER miss a Palatine game, but tempted to go watch the RM-Hersey contest this week instead!
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The MSL is the Big Ten Conference. Solid programs, but no one really a threat to win a 7A or 8A title.
It appears that even the teams in the MSL can’t explain what’s going on in their own conference.
West is impossible to figure out this year..Overall level of play is way down from last couple of seasons.
Barrington - If not for a kick return and trick play at Maine South they're sub 500 overall. Their lower levels used to blast thru everyone and go 8-1, 9-0 routinely but have not done that the last few years and the varsity it starting to reflect that. They have been lucky in having three straight 2 year starting, high impact QBs, but I think the latest kid is not in the Niro/Davidson mold. From watching JV games the past two years I didn't think they'd be an 8-1, 9-0 kind of team again. They probably win out the rest of the way and finish 6-3.
Palatine - No one has fallen faster and harder than my beloved Pirates. I think everyone around knew this would be a down year as the senior class had about this much success a frosh/sophs, but that a strong junior class might buoy them like the 2014 squad..hasn't happened. The defense is very, very young and doesn't tackle well, and they're giving up big play after big play that Palatine's defenses were always known for shutting down. That said, it appears to be a temporary blip. Peak Palatine occurs again when this season's sophomores are seniors. RT3 (running back Ronald Todd III), the varsity starting tailback who ran for 200+ yds Friday night is a sophomore, twin brothers starting at OLB and SS for the varsity are sophomores, as is OL/DL Russchenberg. Soph QB Ayala looks to be a future star and was backing up Garnmeister on varsity but has been the QB for the JV squad since MSL West play started. Results? Palatine 49, Fremd 19 ; Palatine 39, Hoff Estates 26; Palatine 42, Schaumburg 14. JV squad has alot of playmakers on offense and defense besides - guys like Charles Harris, Alex Clue and Noah Strickland are all names you should be hearing alot about the next two years. That all said, for this year, sadly, I think they wind up 1-8.
Hoffman Estates- It's always been hard to see what they have coming since they have so many sophs on varsity. That said it seems to be working for them as they started this year where they left off last year. They seem to have some really good athletes who can do alot individually but seem to rely on a few key guys alot. Their defense seems to have sprung a leak the last two weeks as they've given up 40+ pts two games in a row. The did have a full JV squad this year and they did look pretty good, so I could easily see HE continuing what they've done the last few years. TRULY, it looks like the MSL West will come down to Conant vs Hoff Estates week 9 -- and no one would have predicted that preseason - so I think Hoff Estates goes 7-2 or 8-1 depending on who wins that game and will do well in 6A again. Playing mostly 7A-8A competition during the season will help them like it did last year. State semifinalist again? Probably not; but quarter finals is possible.
Schaumburg - To me the biggest head scratcher. They have some incredible individual athletes(Trotter, DiGioia) but I've seen a couple of their games now including the 30-29 win over Palatine in the rain Friday night and they just seem lackluster. That reeeally surprises me because one thing Schaumburg always had was a chip on their shoulder and even when they were down and 1-8 in 2014 they still played smashmouth football. How Hoff Estates shut them out when they gave up 85 points combined in the next two games I think says more about Schaumburg's offense than HE's defense. My gut tells me they lose to Barrington and Fremd and finish 4-5, which is stunning from a team I thought would win the MSL West and be just like the 2013 Stacy Smith/Sadariss Patterson led team.
Fremd - Honestly better than I had anticipated. I didn't think they'd go 1-8 again, but I did see them as a 3-6 kinda team. I was wrong. They lost the Fremd swagger last year but seem to be getting it back, led primarily by their defense. It's easy to forget, but three time state champ Brent Pearlman is DC over there and it seems to have taken him a couple of years to right the ship, but their defense is lights out good. (Wonder if he's be interested in shifting to the other side of P'ville?). My gut though is they split their last two games and finish 4-5, keeping both Palatine based teams out of the playoffs this year.
Conant - WOW! After 0-9 and 1-8 seasons, you figured a guy as successful as Stortz has been would turn things around, but not this quickly. Just like Fremd, they're winning with a stellar defense and just enough offense. And based on what they did yesterday to win in the last 78 seconds they're really believing in themselves. Their JV squads were small(numbers wise) but highly competitive the last couple of years, so what he's got there he's getting the most out of. They beat Palatine next week and then it all comes down to the battle of Hoffman Estates in week 9. I think Conant takes it and finishes 7-2.
Some good and bad observations overall:
Good - Hoff Estates and Palatine lower levels...LOTS of kids
Bad - Fremd and Schaumburg JV squads, each around 25-30 kids
Tackling - Getting the head out of tackling is absolutely necessary, but it seems they're not teaching good fundamentals at all...terrible tackling all over the place.
West Vs East - East is the beast this year. I don't know how Rolling Meadows and Hersey are doing it? Seen these year's juniors and seniors at both schools when they were Frosh/Soph and, frankly, neither were very good. Whatever they're doing I wish they'd bottle it and send some over to 1111 N Rohlwing Rd in Palatine
Excellent work KP
Yeah, when I look at the years teams like Glenbard North, Lyons and Naperville North are having I don't feel so bad about the Pirates. Then I look at how someone like WW South has rebounded and I'm hopeful.
The top 2 teams in the East are better than anyone in the West. BG might have been there as well, but the injury to Trieb really hurt the Bison.
Hersey and Meadows are the class of the league. They both play very well and should get rewarded with high seeds in the tourney. They are fun to watch and love to hit. Should be a great game on Friday.
As I said before the season, the West is a mess.Even when Hoffman went 6-0 and a punduit took Edgy and all the papers to task for not ranking them, I knew he just didn't understand how average the conference is this year.
To show you how far I have been off, I took Palatine first and Conant last in my preseason pick. I also said that the winner of the conference could finish 3-2 and that could still happen. It is mediocrity at best.
Palatine hasn't played a lick of defense all season. If they had, they would be near the top.
Conant has done a superb job in overachieving with a small roster of players with many on them going both ways. But we are now in week 8 now and football is a game of attrition. Any way you shake it though, Stortz has done a phenomenal job of getting his kids to buy in.
Barrington has struggled with early season injuries and juniors in key spots. They have been
uncharacteristically better on defense than they have been on offense this year.
Hoffman started out 6-0 and there were those out there clamoring for the Hawks to be ranked among the top 30 on the state. They must have missed the fact that Hoffman barely squeaked by Elk Grove in overtime. Those people really need to get out and see more games.
Just like Hoffman, Schaumburg is super athletic. But something is just missing there and just can't put my finger on it.
There was a point this year when I actually though Fremd would go winless this year. They rebounded quite nicely for 3 weeks and then couldn't stop a Conant team that ran 13 consecutive plays to the right in the final 78 seconds.
Hersey and Meadows are the class of the league. They both play very well and should get rewarded with high seeds in the tourney. They are fun to watch and love to hit. Should be a great game on Friday.
As I said before the season, the West is a mess.Even when Hoffman went 6-0 and a punduit took Edgy and all the papers to task for not ranking them, I knew he just didn't understand how average the conference is this year.
To show you how far I have been off, I took Palatine first and Conant last in my preseason pick. I also said that the winner of the conference could finish 3-2 and that could still happen. It is mediocrity at best.
Palatine hasn't played a lick of defense all season. If they had, they would be near the top.
Conant has done a superb job in overachieving with a small roster of players with many on them going both ways. But we are now in week 8 now and football is a game of attrition. Any way you shake it though, Stortz has done a phenomenal job of getting his kids to buy in.
Barrington has struggled with early season injuries and juniors in key spots. They have been
uncharacteristically better on defense than they have been on offense this year.
Hoffman started out 6-0 and there were those out there clamoring for the Hawks to be ranked among the top 30 on the state. They must have missed the fact that Hoffman barely squeaked by Elk Grove in overtime. Those people really need to get out and see more games.
Just like Hoffman, Schaumburg is super athletic. But something is just missing there and just can't put my finger on it.
There was a point this year when I actually though Fremd would go winless this year. They rebounded quite nicely for 3 weeks and then couldn't stop a Conant team that ran 13 consecutive plays to the right in the final 78 seconds.
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