SF 35IC 34 Final

[stl705]

Murph, SIU - the narrative for 2 straight seasons for SF was stupid penalties and undisciplined plays. Just curious what the big change seems to be, as what I am reading this seems to all been cleaned up??

5A North looks to be absolutely loaded, but St. Francis is not just in the mix, but a big time contender and may be favored in my estimate until the final 4. Think maybe PR and JCA only teams that would be a favorite with Carmel and Glenbard South right there. I got SF over Sycamore.

As far as IC, I think they are best team in 4A with or without Morris.

 

[630Villain]

Murph, SIU - the narrative for 2 straight seasons for SF was stupid penalties and undisciplined plays. Just curious what the big change seems to be, as what I am reading this seems to all been cleaned up??

5A North looks to be absolutely loaded, but St. Francis is not just in the mix, but a big time contender and may be favored in my estimate until the final 4. Think maybe PR and JCA only teams that would be a favorite with Carmel and Glenbard South right there. I got SF over Sycamore.

As far as IC, I think they are best team in 4A with or without Morris.

Maturity.... SF has 7-8 starters on offense who've started 2-3 years.. The past 2 years they had a very young team... But it appears playing them as freshman and sophomores has paid off.

 

[JCHillmen]

Murph, SIU - the narrative for 2 straight seasons for SF was stupid penalties and undisciplined plays. Just curious what the big change seems to be, as what I am reading this seems to all been cleaned up??

5A North looks to be absolutely loaded, but St. Francis is not just in the mix, but a big time contender and may be favored in my estimate until the final 4. Think maybe PR and JCA only teams that would be a favorite with Carmel and Glenbard South right there. I got SF over Sycamore.

As far as IC, I think they are best team in 4A with or without Morris.

I am not in the know on how their season has gone, but didn't I read about an implosion against Fenwick in week 4? Not sure how the week 1 loss to DGN played out but I don't think I heard about too many self inflicted wounds there.

But regardless, if what I read about Fenwick is true, that means that they shot themselves in the foot week 4 and were able to hold it together for weeks 5 and 6. Perhaps trending in the right direction, but I don't know if they can say those demons are exorcised until they hold firm in a high leverage playoff situation.

Moreso than the young kids maturing, it's a real blessing for this program that they are in the CCL/ESCC and getting the weekly tests to see how they hold up in high leverage situations. They seem to be passing the test the last few weeks. But if they were in their old league and winning games by 40, they would be at a disadvantage come playoff time. As it is, they are clearly one of the favorites in 5A.

SF-PR would be a fun one to watch.

 

[DMurph11]

I am not in the know on how their season has gone, but didn't I read about an implosion against Fenwick in week 4? Not sure how the week 1 loss to DGN played out but I don't think I heard about too many self inflicted wounds there.

But regardless, if what I read about Fenwick is true, that means that they shot themselves in the foot week 4 and were able to hold it together for weeks 5 and 6. Perhaps trending in the right direction, but I don't know if they can say those demons are exorcised until they hold firm in a high leverage playoff situation.

Moreso than the young kids maturing, it's a real blessing for this program that they are in the CCL/ESCC and getting the weekly tests to see how they hold up in high leverage situations. They seem to be passing the test the last few weeks. But if they were in their old league and winning games by 40, they would be at a disadvantage come playoff time. As it is, they are clearly one of the favorites in 5A.

SF-PR would be a fun one to watch.

I read an article where McMillen talked about the staff emphasizing this off-season that the team needs to clean up penalties / silly mistakes, and for the most part they have done that (with the exception of Fenwick…up double digits *with the ball* with 4 minutes left and end up losing that game).

Agree with you 100% on playing in the CCL is a great motivator for the team to clean things up. The last few years they could be sloppy, and on talent alone still go out and win by 40+…that doesn’t teach you anything and it’s tough to get better as a team during the season in that situation.

DGN game was a good football game, SF took the lead 22-21 with about 3 minutes left and the D just couldn’t quite come up with the key stop. DGN earned that win.

I also think it’s important to be measured with this SF team. They’re a good football team and it’s hard not to overreact after two undoubtably massive wins that has catapulted them into the playoff picture…but they were still down double digits in each of the last two games. I am sure the message the staff is preaching is that there is still a lot to clean up, and much to improve on.

 

[JCHillmen]

I read an article where McMillen talked about the staff emphasizing this off-season that the team needs to clean up penalties / silly mistakes, and for the most part they have done that (with the exception of Fenwick…up double digits *with the ball* with 4 minutes left and end up losing that game).

Agree with you 100% on playing in the CCL is a great motivator for the team to clean things up. The last few years they could be sloppy, and on talent alone still go out and win by 40+…that doesn’t teach you anything and it’s tough to get better as a team during the season in that situation.

DGN game was a good football game, SF took the lead 22-21 with about 3 minutes left and the D just couldn’t quite come up with the key stop. DGN earned that win.

I also think it’s important to be measured with this SF team. They’re a good football team and it’s hard not to overreact after two undoubtably massive wins that has catapulted them into the playoff picture…but they were still down double digits in each of the last two games. I am sure the message the staff is preaching is that there is still a lot to clean up, and much to improve on.

Agree about being measured. While it was nice for SF to see them not implode against JC and IC, it still remains to be seen how much of a litmus test those teams are. JC's offense has had struggles and had to sneak a comeback to knock off a 1-5 Marist team. So are they the top 15 team some thought at the start of the year or an above average 5A team? IC appears really good but we will likely know a lot more after they play LA. I don't expect them to win, but if they can keep it a game for a while then that victory last week gains some more luster.

Regardless of if SF is the team to beat or just one of the contenders in 5A, this year's 5A should be a whole lot of fun.

A heck of a lot more fun than a class or two higher where there is already a predetermined champion.

 

[630Villain]

I am not in the know on how their season has gone, but didn't I read about an implosion against Fenwick in week 4? Not sure how the week 1 loss to DGN played out but I don't think I heard about too many self inflicted wounds there.

But regardless, if what I read about Fenwick is true, that means that they shot themselves in the foot week 4 and were able to hold it together for weeks 5 and 6. Perhaps trending in the right direction, but I don't know if they can say those demons are exorcised until they hold firm in a high leverage playoff situation.

Moreso than the young kids maturing, it's a real blessing for this program that they are in the CCL/ESCC and getting the weekly tests to see how they hold up in high leverage situations. They seem to be passing the test the last few weeks. But if they were in their old league and winning games by 40, they would be at a disadvantage come playoff time. As it is, they are clearly one of the favorites in 5A.

SF-PR would be a fun one to watch.

Implosion might be an understatement regarding week 4 lol. But you are 100% correct, these battles will definitely help come playoff time. They have shown that they can play from behind and wont fold which is a good sign. Still have another huge test this Friday though..

 

[pjjp]

The CCL/ESCC competition should definitely help them in the playoffs, as long as they don't sustain any key injuries in the next few weeks. Their QB and the weapons around him are very good. Probably the most explosive offense in 5A. If things play out as it's looking, 5A this year could present a very strong argument for 1-32 seeding. It's looking like 5A North could possibly have: Prairie Ridge, St. Francis, Morgan Park, Sycamore, Carmel, Glenbard South, Antioch etc. That would be a much stronger field than the South with Peoria, SHG, JCA, Provi etc.