Thursday, October 30, 2014
Sunday, October 26, 2014
Saturday, October 25, 2014
Week #10 | Tweets | Playoffs
St. T vs New Berlin. Saturday 1:30. #GoDawgs #WinTheDay
— Tim Brilley (@Tim_Brilley) October 26, 2014
New Berlin leggo #playoffs
— Ryan Fyke (@RFyke) October 26, 2014
Week #10 | IHSA Football Playoffs: Class 3A Pairings | CSN Chicago Video | Oct. 25, 2014
CSN and the IHSA partnered up on Saturday night for the official IHSA Playoff Pairing Show to unveil the brackets for Class 1A-8A.
Dates and times of first-round games will be posted about 3 pm on Monday.
First Round
Game 1 — #8 Aurora (A. Christian) (5-4) at #1 Sterling (Newman Central Catholic) (9-0), TBA
Game 2 — #5 Chicago (Raby) (5-4) at #4 Oregon (5-4), TBA
Game 3 — #7 Byron (5-4) at #2 Chicago (Bowen) (8-1), TBA
Game 4 — #6 Poplar Grove (North Boone) (5-4) at #3 Chicago (Harper) (6-3), TBA
Game 5 — #8 Paxton (P.-Buckley-Loda) (5-4) at #1 Wilmington (9-0), TBA
Game 6 — #5 Monticello (6-3) at #4 Elmwood [E.-Brimfield Coop] (7-2), TBA
Game 7 — #7 Peru (St. Bede) (6-3) at #2 Tolono (Unity) (8-1), TBA
Game 8 — #6 Erie [E.-Prophetstown Coop] (6-3) at #3 St. Joseph (S.J.-Ogden) (8-1), TBA
Game 9 — #8 Hillsboro (5-4) at #1 Williamsville (9-0), TBA
Game 10 — #5 New Berlin [Coop] (7-2) at #4 Decatur (St. Teresa) (7-2), TBA
Game 11 — #7 Pleasant Plains (6-3) at #2 Carlinville (8-1), TBA
Game 12 — #6 Auburn (7-2) at #3 Sullivan [S.-Okaw Valley Coop] (8-1), TBA
Game 13 — #8 Newton (5-4) at #1 Robinson (8-1), TBA
Game 14 — #5 Fairfield (6-3) at #4 Marshall (6-3), TBA
Game 15 — #7 Vandalia (5-4) at #2 Nashville (7-2), TBA
Game 16 — #6 Anna (A.-Jonesboro) (5-4) at #3 Mt. Carmel (7-2), TBA
Week #9 | St. Teresa 2014 Season Results | Oct. 24, 2014
CIC Conference Schedules, Standings & Results
Click link above to visit IHSA site
Click link above to visit IHSA site
Friday, October 24, 2014
Week #9 | Jarrett/Bulldogs Run Past Cardinals, Claim CIC Title | WDZ AM Video | Oct. 24, 2014
Click link above to watch video
Jarrett/Bulldogs Run Past Cardinals, Claim CIC Title
St. Teresa got a monster 249 yards rushing, 4 TD performance from Sophomore Zach Jarrett to beat Warrensburg-Latham 42-14. St. Teresa moves to 7-2 on the season and claimed a share of the inaugural Central Illinois Conference title. The Bulldogs surrendered 2 late TDs to the Cardinals, but were dominant for most of the game. Warrensburg-Latham fell to 4-5 on the season, just missing out on the playoffs.
Week #9 | Tweets | Oct. 24, 2014
#CIC Conference Champs!!!!! Boom!! #WinTheDay
— Tim Brilley (@Tim_Brilley) October 25, 2014St. Teresa ran past Warrensburg-Latham to clinch a share of the CIC title (Video) http://t.co/RZPki6GkTJ pic.twitter.com/ML7Br2onVe
— Matt Hall (@matty6750) October 25, 2014Post by Channel1050.com.
Thursday, October 23, 2014
Week #9 | Key Matchups | HR Preps | Oct. 23, 2014
HR PREPS: Week 9 key matchups : Preps
The HR Preps team picks the six biggest high school football games for week 9 of the season.
St. Teresa (6-2, 5-1 Central Illinois) at Warrensburg-Latham (4-4, 3-3)
The HR Preps team picks the six biggest high school football games for week 9 of the season.
St. Teresa (6-2, 5-1 Central Illinois) at Warrensburg-Latham (4-4, 3-3)
LAST WEEK: St. Teresa lost to Shelbyville 23-15; Warrensburg- Latham lost to Tuscola 37-20.
LAST MEETING: St. Teresa won 7-0 in 2012.
KEYS TO THE GAME:
St. Teresa needs another win to have a shot at a first-round home game in the playoffs. It would also give the Bulldogs a share of the Central Illinois Conference title in its initial season. The Bulldogs had won five straight before stumbling last week against Shelbyville without Jake Handley in the lineup. He could be back for tonight’s game but then the Bulldogs will have to deal with missing quarterback Ryan Fyke, who was ejected from the loss.
Warrensburg, which has already doubled last year’s win total, needs another win – and then some other things to go right – to make the playoff field. Warrensburg, no doubt, again will rely heavily on running back Austin Tucker. He has reached 200 yards in four games this season and at 1,387 for the season, already as the school’s single-season rushing record, according the H&R records.
LAST MEETING: St. Teresa won 7-0 in 2012.
KEYS TO THE GAME:
St. Teresa needs another win to have a shot at a first-round home game in the playoffs. It would also give the Bulldogs a share of the Central Illinois Conference title in its initial season. The Bulldogs had won five straight before stumbling last week against Shelbyville without Jake Handley in the lineup. He could be back for tonight’s game but then the Bulldogs will have to deal with missing quarterback Ryan Fyke, who was ejected from the loss.
Warrensburg, which has already doubled last year’s win total, needs another win – and then some other things to go right – to make the playoff field. Warrensburg, no doubt, again will rely heavily on running back Austin Tucker. He has reached 200 yards in four games this season and at 1,387 for the season, already as the school’s single-season rushing record, according the H&R records.
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Week #9 | Preps Preview Video | HR Preps | Oct. 22, 2014
Aren Dow and Justin Conn talk preps football. Featuring MacArthur, Olney, Casey-Westfield, Jerseyville, Warresnburg-Latham, St. Teresa, Pana, Hillsboro, Newton, Sangamon Valley, Nokomis, Cumberland, Monticello, Mt. Zion, Maroa-Forsyth, and more.
Monday, October 20, 2014
Week #7 | Tweets | Oct. 20, 2014
Congrats to Ryan Fyke @RFyke on being named Aquafina Prime Time Performer last week! The nominations are up now at @channel1050com.......
— Matt Hall (@matty6750) October 20, 2014
Saturday, October 18, 2014
Week #8 | Rams Grab Their Signature Win | H&R Sports Section B7 | Oct. 18, 2014
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| St. Teresa's Ryan Fyke tries to get past the Shelbyville defense Friday. |
DECATUR -- After a tough week, Shelbyville recovered to put the brakes on St. Teresa.
The Rams, looking for a big win after losses to Tuscola and Sullivan-Okaw Valley, held down the
Bulldogs for a 23-16 win. It's been no small feat as St. Teresa has wriggled away for comeback wins against those same two teams.
But Shelbyville scored all they needed in a wild second quarter where the Rams scored on a Tice Robinson run, two Lucas Duckett passes and a safety.
The Rams defense played more consistently. While the run game showed flashes, Shelbyville limited the St. Teresa passing game as Ryan Fyke went 7-for-19 on the night.
"I thought defensively we played pretty solid," Rams coach Mark Ramsey said. "We created a couple turnovers. I thought that was a big key.
"We kind of stopped ourselves on some drives with big penalties. Our offensive line played pretty well."
The Bulldogs split 19 carries between Fyke, Chris Hein and CJ Stuart for 140 total yards between the three of them
The win locked up Shelbyville's first playoff berth since 2005.
The Rams, looking for a big win after losses to Tuscola and Sullivan-Okaw Valley, held down the
Bulldogs for a 23-16 win. It's been no small feat as St. Teresa has wriggled away for comeback wins against those same two teams.
But Shelbyville scored all they needed in a wild second quarter where the Rams scored on a Tice Robinson run, two Lucas Duckett passes and a safety.
The Rams defense played more consistently. While the run game showed flashes, Shelbyville limited the St. Teresa passing game as Ryan Fyke went 7-for-19 on the night.
"I thought defensively we played pretty solid," Rams coach Mark Ramsey said. "We created a couple turnovers. I thought that was a big key.
"We kind of stopped ourselves on some drives with big penalties. Our offensive line played pretty well."
The Bulldogs split 19 carries between Fyke, Chris Hein and CJ Stuart for 140 total yards between the three of them
The win locked up Shelbyville's first playoff berth since 2005.
Friday, October 17, 2014
Week #7 | Aquafina Prime Time Performer of the Week | WDZ AM | Oct. 17, 2014
Week #8 | Key Matchups | HR Preps | Oct. 17, 2014
The HR Preps team picks the six biggest high school football games for week 8 of the season.
Shelbyville (5-2, 3-2 Central Illinois) at St. Teresa (6-1, 5-0)
Shelbyville (5-2, 3-2 Central Illinois) at St. Teresa (6-1, 5-0)
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| Photo: Herald & Review, Lisa Morrison. St. Teresa quarterback Ryan Fyke kept his composure and led the Bulldogs to another late-game comeback on Friday. |
LAST WEEK: Shelbyville lost to Sullivan-Okaw Valley 47-14; St. Teresa beat Tuscola 28-21.
LAST MEETING: St. Teresa won 43-27 in 2013.
KEYS TO THE GAME:
Shelbyville is coming off a tough loss in a game in which it finally couldn't outscore its opponent.
Shelbyville had been giving up 25.2 points going into last week but scoring 48.5 per game. Tic Robinson (749 yards rushing) and Lucas Duckett (1,738 yards passing, 20 TDs) give the Rams good options on offense. Shelbyville has 32 opponents' wins going in and finishes with 0-7 Central A&M but would like to regain some momentum in hopes of a decent seed in the first round.
St. Teresa is on a six-game win streak since opening with a lopsided loss to Tolono Unity and could wrap up at least a share of a Central Illinois Conference title win one more win. The Bulldogs have been playing with fire the past two weeks, winning back-to-back games in the final minutes.
LAST MEETING: St. Teresa won 43-27 in 2013.
KEYS TO THE GAME:
Shelbyville is coming off a tough loss in a game in which it finally couldn't outscore its opponent.
Shelbyville had been giving up 25.2 points going into last week but scoring 48.5 per game. Tic Robinson (749 yards rushing) and Lucas Duckett (1,738 yards passing, 20 TDs) give the Rams good options on offense. Shelbyville has 32 opponents' wins going in and finishes with 0-7 Central A&M but would like to regain some momentum in hopes of a decent seed in the first round.
St. Teresa is on a six-game win streak since opening with a lopsided loss to Tolono Unity and could wrap up at least a share of a Central Illinois Conference title win one more win. The Bulldogs have been playing with fire the past two weeks, winning back-to-back games in the final minutes.
Thursday, October 16, 2014
Week #8 | Fyke leading St. Teresa's late-game heroics | H&R Sports Section B5 | Oct. 16, 2014
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| St. Teresa quarterback Ryan Fyke kept his composure and led the Bulldogs to another late-game comeback on Friday. |
There isn't much secret to St. Teresa not getting flustered in late-game situations.
Between the Sullivan-Okaw Valley comeback and now the Tuscola comeback last week, St. Teresa coach Tim Brilley said he's seen plenty of growing up since Week 1. But between the two, the one against Sullivan may have had a bit more significance.
"We've grown a lot as a team, and I feel like once you do it once, you're never out of it," Brilley said.
It's not rare for a sophomore quarterback to come in and start, but the way that St. T quarterback Ryan Fyke has let mistakes roll off his back is a notch above of normal expectations. Wide receiver JD Mattingly said there's not one person who rallies in the huddle to boost morale, it's a team effort.
And Fyke said he's learning how to handle himself not only in the huddle, but around the opposition when things aren't going the Bulldogs' way.
"First, I probably keep my mouth shut around those guys. I keep my calm," Fyke said about . "When I come back out, I just try to pick everybody back up."
Mattton crumpled that idea up with its 40-34 win against Effingham, setting up a four-way tie atop the conference.
Now four teams will have a chance to win a share of the conference title on Friday as Effingham hosts Mount Zion, and Taylorville hosts Mattoon.
In the Little Okaw Valley Northwest, Arcola can close out a perfect run through the division with a win against Cerro Gordo-Bement.
And Casey-Westfield can knock Marshall out of the four-way tie that they share with Lawrenceville and Robinson, which all sit at 6-1.
But it's worth looking at who is on the bubble for each of the classes, which fluctuate from week to week.
The current cutoff for Class 1A is 308 students. That makes Maroa-Forsyth (312) the third-smallest school in Class 2A and Tuscola tied for the fourth-smallest.
While Arcola is the only undefeated team left in the H&R area, what’s happening in central Illinois isn’t exactly indicative of what’s happening around the rest of the state.
After hitting a low of 24 undefeated teams in the regular season in 2011, the number of unbeaten teams has risen to 29 the past year.
There are 37 undefeated teams right now, and that number will drop with six games between teams without a loss. That still leaves a chance for 31 undefeated teams at the end of the year, showing parity is at an all-time low in recent history.
The Vandals were coming off a 1-8 season, the lowest mark in a decade. But after the last three weeks, it’s hard to deny Vandalia has shown what it takes to make the postseason.
In Week 5, they won an epic 50-48 2OT game against Litchfield where they converted their two-point conversion for win No. 3. Then in Week 6, they edged out Hillsboro after
For the Vandals fifth win, and to give them playoff eligibility, they scored twice in the fourth quarter for a 28-21 comeback win against Piasa Southwestern.
There are 11 teams still searching for that fifth win and eight can get it Friday.
Mattoon, Warrensburg-Latham, Sangamon Valley, Cumberland, Maroa-Forsyth, Monticello, Olney East Richland and Nokomis are all at 4-3.
There are three that need a two-week sweep to grab playoff eligibility -- Cerro Gordo-Bement, Newton and Pana.
Maroa's defense allowed five touchdowns to the Bulldogs in the Trojans' 39-36 loss, then three weeks later allowed six touchdowns in a 44-38 loss to Tolono Unity.
But in Maroa's other five games, it's held all its opponents to 17 points or less – including the No. 1 team in Class 3A during last week's 20-17 loss to St. Joseph-Ogden.
“We've gotten a lot better defensively, especially these last couple weeks, and hopefully that continues to take some pressure off the offense,” Maroa coach Josh Jostes said.
There are times, though, that there are still holes in Maroa's secondary. Against Monticello, Brandon Wildman found some open receivers early until the weather got worse and Maroa's blitzers started getting home against Wildman. And while SJO quarterback Eli Oltean was just 7-of-18 for 101 yards, no touchdowns and an interception, he was able to find a big receiver in Connor Janes (6-1, 215 pounds) against smaller Maroa defenders in key situations to set up both of SJO's touchdowns.
“They were crowding a lot of people in the box, and Eli came up with some nice throws to give us some crucial first downs,” SJO coach David Duval said. “I would liked to have thrown more, but we were in good shape on field position and I didn't want to put any more pressure on them than we already were.”
Between the Sullivan-Okaw Valley comeback and now the Tuscola comeback last week, St. Teresa coach Tim Brilley said he's seen plenty of growing up since Week 1. But between the two, the one against Sullivan may have had a bit more significance.
"We've grown a lot as a team, and I feel like once you do it once, you're never out of it," Brilley said.
It's not rare for a sophomore quarterback to come in and start, but the way that St. T quarterback Ryan Fyke has let mistakes roll off his back is a notch above of normal expectations. Wide receiver JD Mattingly said there's not one person who rallies in the huddle to boost morale, it's a team effort.
And Fyke said he's learning how to handle himself not only in the huddle, but around the opposition when things aren't going the Bulldogs' way.
"First, I probably keep my mouth shut around those guys. I keep my calm," Fyke said about . "When I come back out, I just try to pick everybody back up."
Conference champs
Parity has reigned this year in the conference play, and nowhere was that stronger than the Apollo. After Mount Zion beat Mattoon, then Taylorville beat Mount Zion, and then Effingham beat Taylorville, it seemed like there might be a clear pecking order.Mattton crumpled that idea up with its 40-34 win against Effingham, setting up a four-way tie atop the conference.
Now four teams will have a chance to win a share of the conference title on Friday as Effingham hosts Mount Zion, and Taylorville hosts Mattoon.
In the Little Okaw Valley Northwest, Arcola can close out a perfect run through the division with a win against Cerro Gordo-Bement.
And Casey-Westfield can knock Marshall out of the four-way tie that they share with Lawrenceville and Robinson, which all sit at 6-1.
Playoff picture
This is the time of the year where people trying to sort out the playoff picture two weeks in advance can start to lose their sanity.But it's worth looking at who is on the bubble for each of the classes, which fluctuate from week to week.
The current cutoff for Class 1A is 308 students. That makes Maroa-Forsyth (312) the third-smallest school in Class 2A and Tuscola tied for the fourth-smallest.
Still perfect
The number of undefeated teams has risen in the past three years, and that number may hit a new high again this year.While Arcola is the only undefeated team left in the H&R area, what’s happening in central Illinois isn’t exactly indicative of what’s happening around the rest of the state.
After hitting a low of 24 undefeated teams in the regular season in 2011, the number of unbeaten teams has risen to 29 the past year.
There are 37 undefeated teams right now, and that number will drop with six games between teams without a loss. That still leaves a chance for 31 undefeated teams at the end of the year, showing parity is at an all-time low in recent history.
Vandals rising
After a down year, Vandalia has certainly showed resilience this season.The Vandals were coming off a 1-8 season, the lowest mark in a decade. But after the last three weeks, it’s hard to deny Vandalia has shown what it takes to make the postseason.
In Week 5, they won an epic 50-48 2OT game against Litchfield where they converted their two-point conversion for win No. 3. Then in Week 6, they edged out Hillsboro after
For the Vandals fifth win, and to give them playoff eligibility, they scored twice in the fourth quarter for a 28-21 comeback win against Piasa Southwestern.
There are 11 teams still searching for that fifth win and eight can get it Friday.
Mattoon, Warrensburg-Latham, Sangamon Valley, Cumberland, Maroa-Forsyth, Monticello, Olney East Richland and Nokomis are all at 4-3.
There are three that need a two-week sweep to grab playoff eligibility -- Cerro Gordo-Bement, Newton and Pana.
Still a concern
Maroa-Forsyth's defense was deemed questionable after its loss to St. Teresa, but has recently emerged as the team's strength.Maroa's defense allowed five touchdowns to the Bulldogs in the Trojans' 39-36 loss, then three weeks later allowed six touchdowns in a 44-38 loss to Tolono Unity.
But in Maroa's other five games, it's held all its opponents to 17 points or less – including the No. 1 team in Class 3A during last week's 20-17 loss to St. Joseph-Ogden.
“We've gotten a lot better defensively, especially these last couple weeks, and hopefully that continues to take some pressure off the offense,” Maroa coach Josh Jostes said.
There are times, though, that there are still holes in Maroa's secondary. Against Monticello, Brandon Wildman found some open receivers early until the weather got worse and Maroa's blitzers started getting home against Wildman. And while SJO quarterback Eli Oltean was just 7-of-18 for 101 yards, no touchdowns and an interception, he was able to find a big receiver in Connor Janes (6-1, 215 pounds) against smaller Maroa defenders in key situations to set up both of SJO's touchdowns.
“They were crowding a lot of people in the box, and Eli came up with some nice throws to give us some crucial first downs,” SJO coach David Duval said. “I would liked to have thrown more, but we were in good shape on field position and I didn't want to put any more pressure on them than we already were.”
Numbers
14 -- Number of years Casey-Westfield has made the playoffs, the longest streak in the H&R areaMonday, October 13, 2014
Week #7 | Prime-Time Players | WICS ABC Newschannel 20 Video | Oct. 11, 2014
Week 7 Prime-Time Players
Monday, October 13 2014, 10:49 PM CDT
We honor a St. Teresa QB, Rochester RB, and SHG QB as our Prime-Time Players of the Week
Saturday, October 11, 2014
Week #7 | Bulldogs Stay Perfect in CIC | WDZ AM Video | Oct. 11, 2014
Click link above to watch video
St. Teresa used a 21 point second half to down Tuscola and stay perfect in the CIC. St. Teresa trailed 21-7 at halftime, but stormed back in a big way in the 2nd half. The defense shut down the Warrior offense, while the offense picked them up in the win. St. Teresa is now 6-1 on the season, 5-0 in conference.
Week #7 | Bulldogs find a way -- again | H&R Sports Section B1 | Oct. 11, 2014
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| JD Mattingly hauled in this pass for St. Teresa on Friday, but it was brought back due to a flag on the play. The passing game did come up huge as the Bulldogs ran their record to 6-1. |
DECATUR -- St. Teresa certainly isn't making it easy on themselves.
After putting together 14 unanswered points last week to narrowly beat Sullivan-Okaw Valley, the Bulldogs decided to make it a little tougher on Friday.
Coming out of halftime 14 points down, St. Teresa was a different team on both sides of the ball, scoring 21 unanswered to stun Tuscola 28-21 on Friday night and almost secure the Central Illinois Conference title.
It's a far cry from when the Bulldogs opened their season with a brutal loss to Tolono Unity. Now, St. Teresa morphed into a team that embraced the adversity.
"Between this week and last week, it's just been unreal," Bulldogs coach Tim Brilley said. "The amount of heart our kids have, there's no quit in them. From Week 1 to now, we've gotten so much better. We're just competitors."
Part of the reason is the emergence of sophomore Ryan Fyke at quarterback. After a 7-for-21 performance in Week 1 and then Patrick Althoff stealing the passing spotlight in Week 2, Fyke has shown the ability to craft late drives by himself.
After a tipped pass was intercepted, Fyke finished the second half 8-for-11 for 113 yards and two touchdowns. That comes after the sophomore helped lead the comeback last week with nearly the same numbers.
"It's skyrocketed," receiver JD Mattingly said of Fyke's improvement. "He's been doing great. His accuracy is doing better every time. He keeps hitting receivers right in the chest."
But St. Teresa showed it can still run the ball -- and did it for the final touchdown where it ran seven of the eight plays. Fyke, CJ Stuart and Jake Handley all had carries before Handley scored. The Bulldogs leading rusher -- Zach Jarrett -- caught a pass for a 13-yard gain.
It's been a bit of a change the past two weeks when St. T has run more of a balanced offense instead of relying heavily on Jarrett. But the Bulldogs have seemed to arrive where Brilley wanted them to go.
"That's always been the idea," he said. "You've got to respect both if you want to be good and win games against good teams. You can't be one-dimensional any more, not with the schedule that we play.
"You know, Zach's going to get his, and so is CJ and Jake, but Ryan's proved two weeks in a row now that he can lead us as a sophomore."
Through 24 minutes, though, it looked like Tuscola was going to dethrone the only undefeated team in CIC play. The Warriors looked dominant, and the only touchdown they allowed came after a cornerback tried to jump a route and Taylor came up with a 56-yard gain.
Bates was 5-for-8 for 154 yards and a touchdown while his line barely let any St. T linemen through. Dalton Hoel was electric in the passing game and came up with an interception off a tipped pass.
But the Warriors couldn't have looked any different in the second half. Part of that was Nick Bates leaving the game for a drive and the line not quite having the same protection as before. After the second drive of the game, where Tuscola had a touchdown called back for illegal motion, the Warriors couldn't close out a score from St. T's 9-yard line and never came that close again.
"We didn't execute," Tuscola coach Rick Reinhart said. "The bottom line is they made plays and we didn't. If we play like we did -- the key is we're down on the nine yard line to go up three scores and we don't score, and they made some plays."
In the standings, it's clear St. Teresa's at the top.
Now 5-0 in the CIC, they can wrap that up with a win against Shelbyville next week. The Rams can make it interesting by beating Sullivan-Okaw Valley today to stay in contention.
Freshman Dalton Hoel was a bright spot for the Warriors, coming up with two interceptions and finding openings on defense time and time again at receiver. He's brutally hard to take down for someone who's 5-foot-6, 145 pounds. It's no wonder he's back to field kicks.
But Hoel is a threat at punter at well. Sure he can take off, but he showed off his leg with a 50 yard coffin corner punt to the six yard line in the third quarter.
It nearly all fell apart as they faced fourth-and-1 at the 3 yard line.
Not seeing what he liked, Brilley called timeout. Tuscola followed suit after they saw St. T's formation.
Fyke saved the drive by rolling out to his right, hitting Mattingly in the end zone for a score.
"Before they called timeout, it was originally going to be me running the ball," Fyke said. "And then they saw what we were going to do, so we ran that back and it ended up working."
"I've got to give coach (Nick) Blackburn credit," Brilley said, "because I wasn't going to call it. He's our offensive guy and he called the play. We knew they were going to be aggressive and we didn't want to run the same play coming out of the timeout. That was a run-pass option, and (Fyke) probably could have ran it. He gave me a heart attack."
Penalties.
The Bulldogs had 9 for 96 yards -- helped contribute to a first-and-36 in the first quarter and erased a first-half touchdown. The possession ended in an interception.
After putting together 14 unanswered points last week to narrowly beat Sullivan-Okaw Valley, the Bulldogs decided to make it a little tougher on Friday.
Coming out of halftime 14 points down, St. Teresa was a different team on both sides of the ball, scoring 21 unanswered to stun Tuscola 28-21 on Friday night and almost secure the Central Illinois Conference title.
It's a far cry from when the Bulldogs opened their season with a brutal loss to Tolono Unity. Now, St. Teresa morphed into a team that embraced the adversity.
"Between this week and last week, it's just been unreal," Bulldogs coach Tim Brilley said. "The amount of heart our kids have, there's no quit in them. From Week 1 to now, we've gotten so much better. We're just competitors."
Part of the reason is the emergence of sophomore Ryan Fyke at quarterback. After a 7-for-21 performance in Week 1 and then Patrick Althoff stealing the passing spotlight in Week 2, Fyke has shown the ability to craft late drives by himself.
After a tipped pass was intercepted, Fyke finished the second half 8-for-11 for 113 yards and two touchdowns. That comes after the sophomore helped lead the comeback last week with nearly the same numbers.
"It's skyrocketed," receiver JD Mattingly said of Fyke's improvement. "He's been doing great. His accuracy is doing better every time. He keeps hitting receivers right in the chest."
But St. Teresa showed it can still run the ball -- and did it for the final touchdown where it ran seven of the eight plays. Fyke, CJ Stuart and Jake Handley all had carries before Handley scored. The Bulldogs leading rusher -- Zach Jarrett -- caught a pass for a 13-yard gain.
It's been a bit of a change the past two weeks when St. T has run more of a balanced offense instead of relying heavily on Jarrett. But the Bulldogs have seemed to arrive where Brilley wanted them to go.
"That's always been the idea," he said. "You've got to respect both if you want to be good and win games against good teams. You can't be one-dimensional any more, not with the schedule that we play.
"You know, Zach's going to get his, and so is CJ and Jake, but Ryan's proved two weeks in a row now that he can lead us as a sophomore."
Through 24 minutes, though, it looked like Tuscola was going to dethrone the only undefeated team in CIC play. The Warriors looked dominant, and the only touchdown they allowed came after a cornerback tried to jump a route and Taylor came up with a 56-yard gain.
Bates was 5-for-8 for 154 yards and a touchdown while his line barely let any St. T linemen through. Dalton Hoel was electric in the passing game and came up with an interception off a tipped pass.
But the Warriors couldn't have looked any different in the second half. Part of that was Nick Bates leaving the game for a drive and the line not quite having the same protection as before. After the second drive of the game, where Tuscola had a touchdown called back for illegal motion, the Warriors couldn't close out a score from St. T's 9-yard line and never came that close again.
"We didn't execute," Tuscola coach Rick Reinhart said. "The bottom line is they made plays and we didn't. If we play like we did -- the key is we're down on the nine yard line to go up three scores and we don't score, and they made some plays."
Aren's take
Jarring to watch
It's strange to watch two teams flip as wildly as St. T and Tuscola. But in a season where it's obvious there's no clear, dominant team, it's almost become the norm.In the standings, it's clear St. Teresa's at the top.
Now 5-0 in the CIC, they can wrap that up with a win against Shelbyville next week. The Rams can make it interesting by beating Sullivan-Okaw Valley today to stay in contention.
Watch out for
Nick Bates took Tuscola by storm as a sophomore, but they have someone even younger who has the same ability to steal the show.Freshman Dalton Hoel was a bright spot for the Warriors, coming up with two interceptions and finding openings on defense time and time again at receiver. He's brutally hard to take down for someone who's 5-foot-6, 145 pounds. It's no wonder he's back to field kicks.
But Hoel is a threat at punter at well. Sure he can take off, but he showed off his leg with a 50 yard coffin corner punt to the six yard line in the third quarter.
Play of the game
Late in the third quarter, after Patrick Althoff corralled in another interception, the Bulldogs put together the first signs of life from the offense.It nearly all fell apart as they faced fourth-and-1 at the 3 yard line.
Not seeing what he liked, Brilley called timeout. Tuscola followed suit after they saw St. T's formation.
Fyke saved the drive by rolling out to his right, hitting Mattingly in the end zone for a score.
"Before they called timeout, it was originally going to be me running the ball," Fyke said. "And then they saw what we were going to do, so we ran that back and it ended up working."
"I've got to give coach (Nick) Blackburn credit," Brilley said, "because I wasn't going to call it. He's our offensive guy and he called the play. We knew they were going to be aggressive and we didn't want to run the same play coming out of the timeout. That was a run-pass option, and (Fyke) probably could have ran it. He gave me a heart attack."
One thing
There's an area St. Teresa can work on to help the first-half woes right away.Penalties.
The Bulldogs had 9 for 96 yards -- helped contribute to a first-and-36 in the first quarter and erased a first-half touchdown. The possession ended in an interception.
Quotable
"We want to lead in the first half. It's way better than getting yelled at at halftime." -- JD MattinglyFriday, October 10, 2014
Week #7 | Key Matchups | HR Preps | Oct. 10, 2014
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| Photo: Herald & Review, Jim Bowling Sullivan-Okaw Valley vs. St. Teresa at Sullivan High School Friday October 3, 2014 |
HR PREPS: Week 7 key matchups
Tuscola (5-1, 3-1 Central Illinois) at St. Teresa (5-1, 4-0)
LAST WEEK: Tuscola beat Clinton 49-21; St. Teresa beat Sullivan-Okaw Valley 20-17.
LAST MEETING: Tuscola won 14-2 in 2012.
KEYS TO THE GAME:
The two programs have been involved in some real battles as members of the Okaw Valley and their first matchup in the Central Illinois promises to be more of the same. St. Teresa has a one-game lead on Tuscola and two other teams for the first place in the new conference. The Bulldogs are in the middle of the toughest stretch on their schedule as they play Shelbyville (5-1, 3-1) next week. St. Teresa did give up nearly 300 yards rushing to Sullivan, but kept the Redskins out of the end zone for the final three quarters.
Tuscola’s Nick Bates continues to get better at the quarterback spot and was 13-of-18 for 258 yards last week. He’s had plenty of help moving the ball as four different players have topped the Warriors in rushing in the past four weeks. A win would put Tuscola in good shape for a conference title as it finishes with two teams in the bottom half of the conference.
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Sunday, October 5, 2014
Week #6 | H&R Sports Section C5 | Oct. 5, 2014
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| St. Teresa's Ryan Fyke releases a pass before being tackled by a Sullivan defender during the Bulldogs' win on Friday, which was a major step in the right direction toward winning the Central Illinois Conference title. |
Second down: Conference leaders shuffled up
The conference races became much more interesting Saturday morning.In a year where much of the conference makeup is different, there's been a close fight at the top of nearly every conference.
Nowhere is that more apparent than the Little Illini, where Robinson recovered to beat Lawrenceville and send the conference into a four-way tie at the top with Casey-Westfield and Marshall. After Lawrenceville beat the Warriors last week, it looked like this might be the year Casey would be dethroned. The Warriors have won eight of the last 10 conference titles.
Robinson's win put them back in the position to take the conference, and they have a great shot for at least a share of the title. The other three might beat on on each other as Marshall still has to play Lawrenceville and Casey.
St. Teresa's victory over Sullivan-Okaw Valley was the first big step to the first Central Illinois title, but they'll have to get through Tuscola and Shelbyville in consecutive weeks to lock that up.
Effingham put themselves in a great position for their first outright Apollo title since 2007 after beating Taylorville on Friday. The Hearts' last conference test will be Week 8 at home against Mount Zion.
Pass, pass, pass
As more and more teams have switched to the spread in recent years, the natural thought would be that the passing game would expand with it.
But in the last several years, the number of 1,000-yard passers has actually declined after it hit a peak of 13 quarterbacks in 2010 and '11, to just eight the past year.
That's back on the rise. Mount Zion's Payton Grinestaff, Monticello's Brandon Wildman, Shelbyville's Lucas Duckett and Mattoon's Braden Smith are hit that through five weeks. Tuscola's Nick Bates became the fifth area QB to hit that checkpoint after Friday's game, and five other QBs are within 170 yards with at least three games left to play.
Big-time runner
Warrensburg-Latham's Austin Tucker jumped back into the lead for the race for the rushing title. The Cardinal tailback ripped off another huge game -- 296 yards, the most for any back this season -- to edge ahead of Effingham's Zach Miller. For the season, Tucker has 1,103 yards and Miller has 1,086.
St. Teresa's Zach Jarrett is in third with 907 yards.
Nearly for the Broncos
Cerro Gordo-Bement's luck hasn't been the greatest this season.
Friday's one-point loss to ALAH was the latest in a season that hasn't gone the Broncos' way. It makes three losses by one or two points this year between the Week 1 overtime 21-20 loss to Tri-County and Week 2's 26-24 loss to Pawnee. Not only that, the Broncos have given up the final score each week.
Breakout year
Last year, Shelbyville's Devin Peterson finished with four catches for 70 yards.
He's already bettered that in four different games this season.
It's been quite the breakout season for the Rams senior wideout who turned in his fourth 100-plus yard performance on Friday. Peterson caught five passes for 122 yards against Meridian, and that's only his third-highest total this season behind the 207-yard day against Tuscola in Week 4. So it's no surprise Peterson leads the H&R area with 726 yards and 11 touchdowns this year.
History lesson
The short wait is over in Arcola.
The Purple Riders secured their sixth win on Friday, the only team in the H&R area to do so, with a 41-7 win against LSA.
That'll punch their ticket to the playoffs after a two-year layoff. It's the first year since 1999 where the Purple Riders started 6-0, and Sangamon Valley, Cerro Gordo-Bement and Tri-County now stand in the way of the first undefeated regular season since 1995. Arcola took second at state that year.
It also keeps them in the hunt for third place all-time for Illinois high school football teams for wins, which should change hands this year. The Purple Riders caught Wheaton Warrenville-South as both have 675 total wins. But Arcola is still a bit short of long-standing rival Tuscola, which is in third place with 677.
Saturday, October 4, 2014
Friday, October 3, 2014
Week #6 | Tweets | St. Teresa Bulldogs | #wintheday #sttfb
So proud of this #RELENTLESS team! #WinTheDay
— Tim Brilley (@Tim_Brilley) October 4, 2014The singing on this bus ride home is BAD!! Haha #WinTheDay
— Tim Brilley (@Tim_Brilley) October 4, 2014@RFyke to @palthoff10 with the game winner 💯💯💯🏈🏈#STTFB🏈🔥🔥
— Zach Lewis (@ZLewis35) October 4, 2014What a team win!! Let's keep it going boys #bya http://t.co/jMYvq6W5Ke
— The Left Hander (@RFyke) October 4, 2014Week #6 | St. Teresa beats Sullivan-Okaw Valley | HR Preps | Oct. 3, 2014
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| St. Teresa's Brannan Taylor makes a reception in the second quarter of Friday's game at Sullivan. |
Oct. 03, 2014 10:20 pm
SULLIVAN – In a battle for first place of the Central Illinois Conference, it came down to the final seconds. St. Teresa pulled out a 20-17 football win over Sullivan-Okaw Valley on Sullivan’s homecoming Friday night.
The Bulldogs scored with just 17.2 seconds left when Ryan Fyke hooked up with Patrick Althoff for an 11-yard touchdown pass. The play occurred after Fyke suffered a loss of 2, but an illegal motion penalty stopped the clock with 21 seconds left as the Bulldogs were out of timeouts.
"It just just came down to us making plays and us executing," said St. Teresa coach Tim Brilley. "I am so proud of our guys. We don't play that type of football (passing to the flats mainly). We are a smashmouth team, but we have the weapons on the field and can throw it when we need to.
"Obviously the situation called for us throwing the ball and put together a good two-minute drill. We made plays when we had to. I can't say enough about Patrick Althoff. he had a huge interception and the touchdown there. You have to go to guys you trust in game situations like that."
The loss was the first of the season for Sullivan (5-1, 3-1).
“Our kids battled their rear ends off and unfortunately we came up short,” said Sullivan coach Gerald Temples. “We had opportunities and both teams battled the whole way through. Our defense stopped them when we had to except for at the very end.
"Offensively we had good field position and didn’t get it in on a couple of occasion. When you are playing another team sometimes it comes back to haunt you."
Sullivan led 17-6 after Dylan Hart’s 35-yard field goal with 8:46 left in the third quarter. On its next possession, Althoff intercepted a Redskins pass and returned it 32 yards to set up a 5-yard run by C.J. Stuart. Chanley Heykoop knocked down the two-point conversion pass attempt leaving the Redskins ahead by five.
On the ensuing drive, Sullivan marched from its own 9 to the Bulldog 22, but St. Teresa stopped a fourth-down and 6 to end the threat.
The Bulldogs took over on its own 11-yard line and went to the air, moving the ball 89 yards on 15 plays.
Nick Frerichs finished with 27 carries and 154 yards and threw for 81, while Fyke was 11-of-22 for 113 yards and a touchdown. He was 8-of-10 in the final quarter for 79 yards.
The first quarter saw the Redskins outgain the Bulldgos 154-95. The second quarter saw the defenses take over as the two teams combined for 71 yards.
"We killed ourselves with penalties early," said Brilley. "We had a lot of drive-killing penalties. I think we settled down defensively after the first quarter. We missed a tackle on the 68-yard pass play. I think teams are going to have a tough time driving the entire field on us if we just settle down and don't give up the big plays."
Week #6 | St. T. @ Sullivan | Radio Broadcast | WSOY AM | Oct. 3, 2014
WSOY - St T @ Sullivan 1000314 Seg 1
WSOY - St T @ Sullivan 1000314 Seg 2
WSOY - St T @ Sullivan 1000314 Seg 3
Click links above to listen to the game broadcast
WSOY - St T @ Sullivan 1000314 Seg 2
WSOY - St T @ Sullivan 1000314 Seg 3
Click links above to listen to the game broadcast
Oct. 3, 2014
By WSOY AM
Week #6 | Key Matchups | HR Preps | Oct. 3, 2014
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| Photo: Herald & Review, Lisa Morrison St. Teresa safety Patrick Althoff has intercepted four passes in four weeks and has scored six TDs in four different ways -- passing, catching, fumble and interception returns. |
St. Teresa (4-1, 3-0 Central Illinois Conference) at Sullivan-Okaw Valley (5-0, 3-0)
LAST WEEK: St. Teresa beat Clinton 54-18; Sullivan-Okaw Valley beat Meridian 47-7.
LAST MEETING: St. Teresa won 42-7 in 2013.
KEYS TO THE GAME: St. Teresa has turned its season around since a disappointing loss to Tolono Unity in Week 1. But the Bulldogs have not really been challenged the past three weeks. In that span, the Bulldogs have outscored opponents 149-30. In those games, running back Zach Jarrett has rushed 49 times for 612 yards (12.5 ypc). It gets a lot tougher as 4-1 Tuscola and 4-1 Shelbyville follow.
Sullivan already has a 28-22 won over Tuscola but the rest of the opponents have a combined record of 4-15. The wins have allowed the Redskins to get a lot of people in involved. Four different players scored a week ago and five scored in a win over Warrensburg-Latham. The Redskins defense has shown it can hold the top backs, yielding just 66 (on 27 carries) to Warrensburg's Austin Tucker. The five victories are already the most for Sullivan since 2001 – the last time it made the playoffs.
LAST WEEK: St. Teresa beat Clinton 54-18; Sullivan-Okaw Valley beat Meridian 47-7.
LAST MEETING: St. Teresa won 42-7 in 2013.
KEYS TO THE GAME: St. Teresa has turned its season around since a disappointing loss to Tolono Unity in Week 1. But the Bulldogs have not really been challenged the past three weeks. In that span, the Bulldogs have outscored opponents 149-30. In those games, running back Zach Jarrett has rushed 49 times for 612 yards (12.5 ypc). It gets a lot tougher as 4-1 Tuscola and 4-1 Shelbyville follow.
Sullivan already has a 28-22 won over Tuscola but the rest of the opponents have a combined record of 4-15. The wins have allowed the Redskins to get a lot of people in involved. Four different players scored a week ago and five scored in a win over Warrensburg-Latham. The Redskins defense has shown it can hold the top backs, yielding just 66 (on 27 carries) to Warrensburg's Austin Tucker. The five victories are already the most for Sullivan since 2001 – the last time it made the playoffs.
Thursday, October 2, 2014
Week #6 | Preps Preview Video | HR Preps | Oct. 3, 2014
Oct 2, 2014
Aren Dow and Justin Conn talk preps football.
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