Football Fanatic

Surprises/highlights from week 2: • Memorial stifles North’s hyped run O - Memorial line opens some eyes • Castle blows out MD - Harris and the O with big time stats • Reitz holds Hunt and VL to 7 points - Kicker (Sanderson) with 51 yard FG • Bosse blows out Central - Bulldogs have some great skill guys

Yeah doesn’t look good, might be out awhile. They lost another starting OL during the game too but don’t think it was as serious. Down some starting OL plus apparently the cramps were hitting Vera and the Panthers really hard which partly may be why they struggled on offense. Vincennes is also just a good team. Physical, well-conditioned team with a QB who makes their offense dangerous every time they have the ball. They will definitely win some games and compete with the best around. Did Jasper seem to come out of the Harrison game healthy? Heard they were down a few going into it. If they’re healthy they could definitely give Reitz a scare at home or maybe even upset them.

What's the word today? All games are on for tonight at this point I assume? It looks like there will be a big drop in temp/index by 8:00 when the sun is down (makes sense) so they should all be kicked off by then I would guess.

The app I use is showing the index below 105 by 7:00 and below 100 by 8:00, which means they should be good to play.

And now Mt. Vernon @ South Spencer has moved to Saturday at 7pm. Seems odd they would wait until the middle of gameday. Another outlier or will more games choose to follow? I just figured at this point everybody would be trying to play tonight.

Looks like 7:30 will be close but 8:00 for sure. Unless the turf temp comes into play additionally. I forget how all that works.

I thought it needed to be below 100 to play in full pads, but maybe it is 105. Also have to factor in the turf heat index being hotter.

Not sure what the best or official weather app is, but I'm seeing a heat index high of 114 tomorrow. I'm guessing by 7:30 it'll be low 100s and not quite playable. I think all the games will be lucky to kickoff by 8:00 and it'll be more like 8:30. Jasper and Vincennes might be in for a late night.

Exactly. Reitz does look really good but it's just not looking good for the Warriors. They do have some threats they can rely on. Their QB Brown and the big RB Sutton will cause problems for some teams but not sure it'll be enough for them to win any games.

I would be shocked if the heat index drops below 100 by 7:30. I understand they're trying to accommodate Jasper and Vincennes for the longer travel (it's Friday night, big deal), but eventually they'll either delay until 8:00 anyway or move all games to Saturday.

Bosse at Central - This one should be close, probably a 1-2 score game that could go either way. I think Bosse has more talent overall but Central may be a bit more motivated. Central will have trouble dealing with the Bosse skills players which will be the difference. Bulldogs win 36-26. Mater Dei at Castle - This one will probably be close at halftime but I think the Knights will be a bit too much and MD will have trouble scoring. Knights win 28-14. North at Memorial - This one should be close throughout and maybe a bit low scoring. The Huskies obviously have an advantage in the trenches but I like Memorial's skill players better which is often the difference. Tigers win 24-21. Jasper at Harrison - I think Jasper handles this one comfortably. Although, heard that one of their top players got hurt in week 1, any word on that? I think the Warriors are in for a long, tough season though. Wildcats win 28-7. Vincennes at Reitz - This is a tough one to call. Possible game of the week but could also see Reitz winning comfortably. I do think Reitz will take care of business, especially at home. Vincennes is legit and will give teams fits this year. I just think Reitz is too much and their defense should be good enough to slow down Hunt. Panthers win 35-17.

I would assume some teams will be practicing in the mornings or late in the evening. As far as the games go, personally I am hoping they just push them back to 7:30/8:00 to allow the temp to cool down rather than move them to Saturday.

I heard the lights are being replaced/upgraded already or soon. Not sure how much better, if at all, they are supposed to be.

ONE day away! 🤓

Thanks for sharing. I enjoy seeing other perspectives. We can sit on here all day and evaluate from the outside looking in, it is definitely fun for us to do. But when it comes down to it, the kids are the ones who make it all happen on the field which surely adds variables. Normally I would say the returning champ (Reitz in this case) is the one with the big target and will get everyone’s best shot which could result in a loss or two. I won’t argue with that logic. But I have a feeling they’ll be even hungrier after how their season ended. I also won’t argue that the conference should be stronger overall. Looking forward to seeing how it shakes out!

The unsuspected rise of Xander Hunt was a big part of their success last season. Teams didn’t have film on him. There are a handful of great coaches in the SIAC. They will be much more schemed and prepared going into that matchup. Sure, he’s good enough a player that he will still make plays and keep them in games, but I would be shocked if he has as much success and stays at full strength for another whole season. Also, they seemed to struggle with confidence and discipline later in the season as they started to lose more games. They do return a lot though, so I expect them to be very competitive. Would not be shocked by a 7-2 season but I predict 5-4. I think they will beat Harrison, Bosse, Central, Mater Dei, and either North or Castle.

Out of curiosity, what makes you think that? I agree there may be a little more parity overall but I would bet a lot that Reitz is at least winning the conference again and maybe even running the table again. They are loaded with returning upperclassmen that have size, speed, and skill. However, even with that, I will not count out Memorial or Jasper. North, Castle, and Vincennes could easily make more noise too but not sure they will get over the hump.

Agreed. Last season was an outlier as they dealt with injuries to their two best players (Young and Bair) but still had a good season. They had their FB filling in at QB, and we all know that the QB play (smooth handoffs, timing, ball security, ability to run, etc.) is very important in that type of offense. They were playing their best football at the end of the season when they got healthy. They always reload pretty well. System offenses like that are very beneficial to the program as the lower levels know it in their sleep by the time they reach the varsity level. I expect them to go 6-3 at worst. I think the SIAC will definitely be on notice.

Jasper at Memorial - This one could go either way. Great matchup to kick off the season. I expect Jasper to be better this year but Memorial gets revenge on them from week 1 last season. Tigers by 1 score. Bosse at Vincennes - Bosse should be improved this season but the Alices will be too and that's a tough place for any team to go play. Will be a great test for the Bulldogs to see if they've improved at all. Alices by 4 scores. Central at Mater Dei - I think MD will struggle early in the season until their QB and offense gets more comfortable, so this one may be closer than most think. But I don't expect the Bears to win much, if at all, even though their competitiveness level should definitely increase. Wildcats by 3 scores. North at Castle - Great first week matchup to see where these teams are at. I think North will be a bit better than Castle this season overall, but I think the Knights win this matchup on their home grass in a close one. Knights by 2 scores. Reitz at Harrison - Not sure what kind of talent Harrison will have after losing a lot. I think their QB could be a really good playmaker if its the one from late last season. But not sure if they are much if any better than Central overall. Reitz may come out of the gate slow but should end up rolling in this matchup. Panthers by 5 scores.

It's officially game week and only 4 days until game day! The best time of the year is here! Week 1 matchup discussions and predictions coming soon!

Awesome! I think that's a big time pick up for SIU. It seems like Boeke keeps getting bigger and with his grades he probably could of went to a lot of really good D1s.

Some other scrimmages I know of: Bosse and Linton Mater Dei and Reitz Vincennes and North Knox Boonville and North Memorial and Castle Harrison and Mt. Vernon

Any chance Mt. Vernon can pull off a week 1 home upset? I do expect big things from the Vikings this year but not sure how much better (if at all) MV will be. I'm sure there will be some early season hype around the new coach and returning starters, but expect it to fade.

I had heard it was a bit over 1 million, which ended up being a bit more than they originally planned.

Yes, also heard he won't be around or able to play until week 3 and that's if he honors certain requirements which are unknown but probably easily guessed. Sounds like not a guarantee.