ICE week 6

[Wilmatucky]

Getting to the point in the year where a lot of the games play are huge. I see 2 potential GOTW options. Heck, even the Streator/Lisle game could be one just because I honestly have no idea who will win, however the postseason implications is not an issue in that one. Either way should be a fun week!

Coal City (4-1) @ Reed-Custer (2-3) - After week 1 the Coalers have been rolling. Reed-Custer played Wilmo better than I anticipated. I actually think next week is the biggest matchup for the COMETS. RC will give a great effort this week, but CC will be too much for them. Next week is also huge for the green and gold. Maybe a little look ahead will come into play but not enough to change the outcome. Close at first then CC pulls away comfortably. CC 35 - RC 20

Wilmington (4-1) @ Herscher (1-4) - Easiest game to pick this week. Herscher won't be able to hang. Cats 42 - Tigers 14

Manteno (3-2) @ Peotone (2-3) - Manteno has lost to a good team, and an above average team. They then proceeded to rip off 3 wins in a row against the bottom of the ICE. Peotone and Manteno had similar results against Plano so not much intel there (just based on the score, maybe someone who watched both games has more insight). I'll be honest and say that I have no idea what to expect. I think this game can be lost by the 'tone and they still have a shot at playoffs because their last third of the season is in their favor. If Manteno can pull this off I think they have a solid shot at playoff berth. I'm rambling because I have no idea......Let's say things get crazy in the Route 50 Rumble..........Manteno with the upset 28-26

Streator (1-4) @ Lisle (1-4) - I have no clue in this one either. Playoffs is bye-bye for both. I'm not sure why I always think higher of Lisle than they show. For some odd reason I think Streator will score. Lisle has given up a lot of points to everyone except a putrid week 1 opponent. Bulldogs in a shootout 49-38

 

[doctor_d]

CC will do the same thing to R-C as Wilmo did. R-C has some decent skill, but will get dominated up front and worn down. CC wins comfortably.

Wilmo should have little problem with Herscher.

I’ll pick Lisle over Streator for no reason other than someone has to win. I think I’ve gotten Streator games wrong at an alarming rate over the years.

GOTW is definitely the Rumble on Route 50. Manteno is hot and Tone has been in a tailspin, so I’ll go oppo and pick Tone to get back on track.

 

[FCHS2019]

The conference is just awful this year... throw Herscher, Manteno, Lisle and Streator in a bag, all about the same...

Mac 14 Herscher 7

Aurora Christian 51 Mac 0...

 

[Coalertown44]

Wilmington (4-1) @ Herscher (1-4) - Wilmo got some payback last week against Braidwood. Herscher is a year away from being a player in the ICE. Reents calls off the dogs early. Cats 42 Tigers 6

Coal City (4-1) @ Braidwood(2-3) - CC jumped all over Tone early and never looked back. Braidwood needs this win but it won't be close. Coalers way too physical. Next week with WIlmo is for the ICE championship belt. Coalers 41 Comets 8

Streator (1-4) @ Lisle (1-4) - Ummmmm not sure what to think about this. Streator has a few more playmakers then Lisle. Bulldogs 49 Lions 28

Manteno (3-2) @ Peotone (2-3) - GOTW- Gig game for both. A win here and against Braidwood would get Manteno in the playoffs. Tone didn't put up much fight against the Coalers last week. I think they get back to basics and get the big Homecoming win and should cruise through the rest of their schedule. Blue Devils 28 Panthers 24

 

[siu47]

Wilmington over Herscher

CC over RC

Streator over Lisle

Peotone over Manteno. Peotone got through the meat of their schedule and that horrible tragedy and are still standing They certainly didn’t look like themselves last week and Coalertown you are correct, they didn’t put up much of a fight vs CC. They looked god awful actually. But those kids have been through a ton of emotions recently. I suspect Coach Tolle gets them back on track this week.

 

[McEvergreen]

Really looking forward to next weeks Coal City vs. Wilmington championship feast. Starting with a R-B vs. Morris appetizer this week.

Wilmington (4-1) @ Herscher (1-4) - The Wildcats looked a little sluggish last week vs. RC, but shouldn't have a problem dominating Herscher. Cats 38 Tigers 7

Coal City (4-1) @ Braidwood(2-3) - CC imo playing some really good ball right now. Final tune-up for all the marbles next week. CC 42 RC 20

Streator (1-4) @ Lisle (1-4) - I'm more interested in what the attendance is. Dogs 27 Lions 13

Manteno (3-2) @ Peotone (2-3) - This could be a very interesting game. If Peotone lines up and runs right at Manteno like they did against RC, no problem. If they lay an egg like they did against Wilmington, Manteno could pull off the upset. I say Peotone gets physical. Devils 28 Panthers 13.

 

[Wilmatucky]

Streator (1-4) @ Lisle (1-4) - I'm more interested in what the attendance is.

I'm setting the o/u at 200 people.

 

[McEvergreen]

I'm setting the o/u at 200 people.

I will take the under. Some schools aren't letting anyone 17 and under in unless they're accompanied by an adult. IDK if Lisle is one of them.

 

[Wilmatucky]

I will take the under. Some schools aren't letting anyone 17 and under in unless they're accompanied by an adult. IDK if Lisle is one of them.

Dang, I had heard of no junior high students, but no high school students is kind of crazy. If hadn't played and I wanted to go to a game a a high schooler and needed a parent, mine would have said too bad lol.

I do think that attendance is down all over though. The games don't draw like they quite used to. And that's at Wilmo. I can't imagine a Streator/Lisle matchup

 

[McEvergreen]

With all the post game extracurricular's this season, and not just in Illinois, I'm betting some schools move varsity games to Saturday mornings at 11:00. Maybe as soon as next year.

 

[MIKEFTB]

I will take the under. Some schools aren't letting anyone 17 and under in unless they're accompanied by an adult. IDK if Lisle is one of them.

Lisle is a community that supports the Lions. They used to play at Lisle Jr High but moved over to Benedictine U so there is always plenty of room. I'd say 200+ is pretty accurate.. That's a haul from Streator in LaSalle County up to Lisle. .

The far western edge of town feeds into Naperville North. The LHSD is not that big . No one will be turned away based on age. They don't have the kind of problems that other schools do..

 

[SouthofI80FootballFan]

Coal City @ Reed-Custer - RC is coming off a thumping from Wilmington and Coal City is running on all cylinders. RC puts up some points but Coalers keep the ball on the ground and control the game. CC 34 RC 22

Wilmington @ Herscher - Herscher got a win last week but they look like a team still trying to figure things out. Wilmington is on a roll and nobody seems to be able to stop their run game. Wilmington 38 Herscher 12

Lisle @ Streator - both teams are struggling and playing for pride and experience for next year. As usual, any game involving Streator is totally unpredictable. Lisle tends to slow the game down and I think that plays out in their favor. Lisle 30 Streator 25

Manteno @ Peotone - the Rumble as people call has more meaning than it has on a long time. Both teams need a win to get to week 10. Manteno has put together a few wins but against weaker opponents and Peotone has got through the top 2 or 3 teams in the ICE. Peotone 35 Manteno 22

 

[doctor_d]

Finals

Wilmington 49, Herscher 0
Coal City 35, Reed-Custer 6
Peotone 47, Manteno 15
Streator 54, Lisle 21

 

[MIKEFTB]

Finals

Wilmington 49, Herscher 0
Coal City 35, Reed-Custer 6
Peotone 47, Manteno 15
Streator 54, Lisle 21

Should be a doozy of a game next week in down in CC when the Purple "Cats come to town

 

[doctor_d]

Should be a doozy of a game next week in down in CC when the Purple "Cats come to town

Yeah that should be a battle.
I can’t get over how far Lisle has fallen. I wonder if they had a bunch of injuries or something.

 

[MIKEFTB]

Yeah that should be a battle.
I can’t get over how far Lisle has fallen. I wonder if they had a bunch of injuries or something.

Yes, they had to replace a lot of talent and have really fallen off fron last season and aside from their 1 win at Harvard thus far, they have been averaging about 1 TD a game. With remaining games with Herscher, Peotone and Reed-Custer it's not looking too good. Sadly the DuPage Daily Herald hardly covers them as Benet Academy is THE team in Lisle .

 

[Wilmatucky]

Yes, they had to replace a lot of talent and have really fallen off fron last season and aside from their 1 win at Harvard thus far, they have been averaging about 1 TD a game. With remaining games with Herscher, Peotone and Reed-Custer it's not looking too good. Sadly the DuPage Daily Herald hardly covers them as Benet Academy is THE team in Lisle .

And Harvard is atrocious

 

[MIKEFTB]

And Harvard is atrocious

When a team is struggling that's the best type of team to play

 

[Wilmatucky]

When a team is struggling that's the best type of team to play

Agreed. Just hard to get a gauge on what. you have week 1

 

[CCfan]

Lisle's QB suffered a season ending injury against CC. He was also a defensive necessity for the very small numbers on the team. They have no JV or Frosh team as well. Hopefully for them that next year brings a better turnout.

 

[MIKEFTB]

Lisle's QB suffered a season ending injury against CC. He was also a defensive necessity for the very small numbers on the team. They have no JV or Frosh team as well. Hopefully for them that next year brings a better turnout.

Wow..that's too bad about the QB and good point as is the case with many small schools, an injury to a 2 way player is double jepordy especially if the team itself has small numbers to begin with.

 

[doctor_d]

Makes more sense about Lisle. That’s too bad about the QB. He’s a good player.
Too bad about their numbers also. Lisle is in such a weird spot, being a small district surrounded by very large ones on each side. There are a bunch of private school options close by also.

It looks like the ICE will get a max of 4 teams in the playoffs. CC and Wilmo are locks. Tone should be pretty heavily favored in their remaining games to finish 6-3. R-C will be in very good shape if they can get past Manteno in what should be a good matchup and would be a real good GOTW if not for the Wilmo/CC obvious one.

 

[McEvergreen]

And Harvard is atrocious

In six games ... Harvard has scored 44 pts and given up 230

 

[McEvergreen]

They have no JV or Frosh team as well.

They cannot survive in the ICE like this. Will forfeits be "a thing" in the ICE next season? I hope not.

 

[MIKEFTB]

They cannot survive in the ICE like this. Will forfeits be "a thing" in the ICE next season? I hope not.

You know.. this might be a far-fetched idea.. But is it possible we could see a Lisle/Westmont Co-op type deal just for football? ..the two towns are really not that far apart although Westmont is east of Downers Grove and Lisle west of DG
.Both seem to be dealing with the same issues and are about the same size.

 

[circletrack32]

You know.. this might be a far-fetched idea.. But is it possible we could see a Lisle/Westmont Co-op type deal just for football? ..the two towns are really not that far apart although Westmont is east of Downers Grove and Lisle west of DG
.Both seem to be dealing with the same issues and are about the same size.

Mike that’s not a bad idea, but has there ever been a coop let’s say north of I80 and east of 39? (That’s my definition of Chicago area) It just seems that the suburbs have a better draw than those of us in the rural areas. IDK how these schools do in other sports so would this hypothetically be for football only? Like I said this doesn’t sound bad. Some teams south travel coop 10 or so miles if not more.

 

[Wilmatucky]

Crazy thing with Lisle is, they have not been awful under this coach. Not including COVID year, he has gotten them to the playoffs 5/7 years. They play at Benedictine which I think is kind of cool. I'm not sure what the issue is? It's kind of far from the Wilmo culture so maybe I don't see what the issue is. I hope they can get back on track and continue to be a player in the ICE.

 

[MIKEFTB]

Mike that’s not a bad idea, but has there ever been a coop let’s say north of I80 and east of 39? (That’s my definition of Chicago area) It just seems that the suburbs have a better draw than those of us in the rural areas. IDK how these schools do in other sports so would this hypothetically be for football only? Like I said this doesn’t sound bad. Some teams south travel coop 10 or so miles if not more.

To my knowledge I do not know of any schools from completely different school districts in the Chicago suburban area that Co-op for sports much less football. I know that Dwight and Gardner South Wilmington way down in the southern Will/ Livingston County areas were and maybe still are Co-oping for football but that's miles from even the far south suburbs. Those two schools do have separate basketball, baseball teans.

Lisle and Westmont do have basketball and baseball programs and soccer as Lisle won a state title a few years ago, so yes this would be a football Co-op only but I think the fact that they are in completely different school districts could pose an issue especially when it comes to finances.

 

[CC434]

Crazy thing with Lisle is, they have not been awful under this coach. Not including COVID year, he has gotten them to the playoffs 5/7 years. They play at Benedictine which I think is kind of cool. I'm not sure what the issue is? It's kind of far from the Wilmo culture so maybe I don't see what the issue is. I hope they can get back on track and continue to be a player in the ICE.

They have a new coach this year. Lisle grad Cory Dillard has taken over for Parpet who went to Metea Valley to coach with his nephew.

 

[MIKEFTB]

Crazy thing with Lisle is, they have not been awful under this coach. Not including COVID year, he has gotten them to the playoffs 5/7 years. They play at Benedictine which I think is kind of cool. I'm not sure what the issue is? It's kind of far from the Wilmo culture so maybe I don't see what the issue is. I hope they can get back on track and continue to be a player in the ICE.

Well the thing is they are a real small school district surrounded by large school districts like Downers Grove to the east, Naperville to the west, Glen Ellyn to the north and each of those districts has multiple schools.. Then there's Benet Academy which is not far from LHS.
They used to play their home games at Lisle Jr High whuch was a small field but was adaquate for the I-8 schools that came there but there were no lights and although it was discussed installing them they opted to begin playing their home games at Benedictine which is a huge facility for their contingent but they don't have the small town hype like Wilmington, Coal City, Reed Custer and Peotone down in South Will County do.

At one time Lisle was a very competitive team particularly in the 70s and into the '80s when they were in the old Northeast Conference if anyone can remember that. They were with Plano, Yorkville, Sandwich, Minooka Wilmington, Dwight Marseilles, and their biggest rival Lemont and all of those schools were much smaller at the time than they are now . They would qualify for the playoffs on a regular basis and had some seasons where they were in double-digit wins.

Yes when long time Addison Trail football coach Paul Parpet cane to Lisle it wasn't long until they were in postseason play. Based on the record last year what's going on now I would just say that it's a situation where they're having a down year? the starting quarterback was injured early in the season and that's not good. I've been to boys and girls basketball games at Lisle It's a nice atmosphere and a really nice gym .

 

[doctor_d]

Fairly unique situation for Lisle for all the previous discussed reasons. Only similar schools I can think of are Westmont, Ridgewood and Elmwood Park.
Hopefully their down year and numbers issue is a one off, but considering they did not field lower level teams, that is concerning.

 

[FCHS2019]

Well the thing is they are a real small school district surrounded by large school districts like Downers Grove to the east, Naperville to the west, Glen Ellyn to the north and each of those districts has multiple schools.. Then there's Benet Academy which is not far from LHS.
They used to play their home games at Lisle Jr High whuch was a small field but was adaquate for the I-8 schools that came there but there were no lights and although it was discussed installing them they opted to begin playing their home games at Benedictine which is a huge facility for their contingent but they don't have the small town hype like Wilmington, Coal City, Reed Custer and Peotone down in South Will County do.

At one time Lisle was a very competitive team particularly in the 70s and into the '80s when they were in the old Northeast Conference if anyone can remember that. They were with Plano, Yorkville, Sandwich, Minooka Wilmington, Dwight Marseilles, and their biggest rival Lemont and all of those schools were much smaller at the time than they are now . They would qualify for the playoffs on a regular basis and had some seasons where they were in double-digit wins.

Yes when long time Addison Trail football coach Paul Parpet cane to Lisle it wasn't long until they were in postseason play. Based on the record last year what's going on now I would just say that it's a situation where they're having a down year? the starting quarterback was injured early in the season and that's not good. I've been to boys and girls basketball games at Lisle It's a nice atmosphere and a really nice gym .

I remember the NEC with Lisle, Lemont, Evergreen Park, Elmwood Park, Minooka, Herscher, Westmont

 

[doctor_d]

Is Lisle the only conference school that doesn’t have a JV/sophomore team?

Which schools have all 3 levels? Must be quite a few that don’t have freshman ball. I know CC and Wilmo do. Wilmo freshman had Rich Township and Lockport on their schedule and I think Coal City twice.

 

[Wilmatucky]

Is Lisle the only conference school that doesn’t have a JV/sophomore team?

Which schools have all 3 levels? Must be quite a few that don’t have freshman ball. I know CC and Wilmo do. Wilmo freshman had Rich Township and Lockport on their schedule and I think Coal City twice.

As I get older, I geek out more about stats and numbers. I think it would be interesting to see which schools have freshman ball across the entire state.

 

[MIKEFTB]

Fairly unique situation for Lisle for all the previous discussed reasons. Only similar schools I can think of are Westmont, Ridgewood and Elmwood Park.
Hopefully their down year and numbers issue is a one off, but considering they did not field lower level teams, that is concerning.

Good point.. Ridgewood. now there's another small school program that used to be a regular playoff participant. Real tough hard nosed kids that would battle for four quarters.. Their rivals south of Norridge, Elmwood Park, never has had the success that Ridgewood did but did have some competitive teans back in the 80s .

And then there's Westmont. the small school surrounded by Elmhurst, Hinsdale and Downers Grove
The Sentinels I believe since the school opened in 1977 have been to the playoffs maybe two or three times and have had coaches like high school football TV analyst Jack McInerney and Otto Zeman who never had great success. One of the best players in Westmont football history was Joe Morganfield Jr '81 a great RB who is the Son of Blues legend Muddy Waters. I belueve he was also an outstanding basketball player too. I kniw like Lisle the community supports the program. They renovated their field installing lights and I believe they installed field turf . I do know that about a decade ago there was a discussion about closing Westmont high and sending a majority of students depending on residency off to Hinsdale Central which does draw students that reside in the Westmont portion of Hinsdale District 86 and a small portion to Downers Grove North and turning WHS into a muddle echool but that never came to fruirltion as of now.

What the future holds for these programs tine will tell.

The fact that these programs have little to no lower class teams competing is very concerning for the future of the varsity teams.

I remember the NEC with Lisle, Lemont, Evergreen Park, Elmwood Park, Minooka, Herscher, Westmont

 

[MIKEFTB]

I remember the NEC with Lisle, Lemont, Evergreen Park, Elmwood Park, Minooka, Herscher, Westmont

Yes. that was in the last seasons before the Conference disbanded..maybe in 90?

 

[FCHS2019]

Is Lisle the only conference school that doesn’t have a JV/sophomore team?

Which schools have all 3 levels? Must be quite a few that don’t have freshman ball. I know CC and Wilmo do. Wilmo freshman had Rich Township and Lockport on their schedule and I think Coal City twice.

Herscher has a freshmen schedule, but think only about 6 games.. with about 8 sophs playing only varsity, I am sure some freshmen play a lot of JV..

 

[FCHS2019]

Yes. that was in the last seasons before the Conference disbanded..maybe in 90?

Herscher was in the NEC for 7 years, went like 40-2 in that time and was asked to leave before it disbanded.. but somewhere around there.. then we met up with them again in the SPC several years later..