CCL/ESCC notes: St. Francis braces for conference grind; Leo starts 2-0

St. Francis coach Bob McMillen knows what he’s getting into.

Coming off a trip to the Class 4A semifinals last season, the Spartans move from the Metro Suburban Red to the CCL/ESCC Orange this fall.

“It’s playoff football every week pretty much,” McMillen said. “You’re going to get a good football team every week. They’re going to be well-coached.

“The Chicago Catholic League is by far the best league in Illinois.”

St. Francis (1-1) prepped for the CCL/ESCC schedule – which opens with a crossover trip to St. Laurence this week – by playing a pair of tough nonconference games.

The Spartans lost 27-22 to Downers Grove North in Week 1 before rolling to an impressive 42-28 win at Sterling last week. The Sterling game was scheduled before the conference switch, but adding Downers North was a deliberate move to gear up for the new league.

“We wanted to play a competitive game,” McMillen said. “The size and speed is going to be so much different (in the CCL/ESCC). It’s going to be a challenge.”

The Spartans did more than compete against Sterling, a perennial power coming off a 9-3 season and trip to the 5A quarterfinals.

No surprise the passing game – aided by a veteran offensive line with four senior starters – was the spark for the Spartans. Senior quarterback Alession Milivojevic, a Ball State commit, was 16 of 19 for 266 yards, and he also ran for a TD.

“I am biased,” McMillen said. “I think he’s the best quarterback in Illinois if not one of the best quarterbacks in the Midwest.”

Milivojevic’s favorite target was junior Ian Willis, who had nine catches for 137 yards and three scores.

“He’s a special kid,” McMillen said. “He’s tough to cover in a phone booth. I was waiting for Ian to have a breakout game. He’s so dynamic.”

McMillen has been working to get college recruiters interested in Willis, a 5-9, 170-pounder.

“It’s all about the measurables (for colleges),” said McMillen, who believes Willis has the intangibles to be successful at the next level.

Willis isn’t the only quality receiver Milivojevic can look to. DeShaun Williams has offers from Central Michigan and Miami (Ohio), while Zach Washington also has a Miami offer. Also in the mix is Milivojevic’s younger brother Dario.

“We’ve got some kids that are very special,” McMillen said.

Leo’s fast start

In coach Marques Stevenson’s first season, Leo is 2-0 for the first time since 2013.

The most recent win, 49-2 over short-handed Walther Christian, wasn’t a surprise. More memorable was the Lions’ 20-19 opening victory at Bishop McNamara on a Hail Mary – on an untimed down, no less.

Down 14-13 with 18 seconds left, McNamara pulled off an 89-yard hook-and-ladder TD to Minnesota recruit Jaydon Wright.

Leo returned the kickoff to its own 33. After an incomplete pass, Lions quarterback Marshawn Durr was pushed out of bounds at the Leo 49 on what appeared to be the last play of the game. But McNamara was called for a hands-to-the-face penalty, giving the Lions an untimed down

Durr threw up a Hail Mary, the ball was batted around in the end zone and senior tight end Joshua Burke came down with the improbable TD catch.

“It was a phenomenal moment,” Stevenson said. “It brought the culmination of all the hard work (the players) had all the offseason.

“(But) it was just the beginning for us. It was an announcement to the world that they’ve finally arrived as a senior class.”

Leo, which goes to Marmion for a CCL/ESCC crossover this week, has had good offensive line play from Xavier Robinson, Garry Brown, Aman Swain, Keshawn Colbert and Amir Abdul-Shakur.

“Obviously it starts with the big boys up front,” Stevenson said.

Leo hasn’t qualified for the IHSA playoffs since going to the 1A semifinals in 2013. Stevenson expects that drought to end this year.

“I think that we’re a seven-win team,” he said. “Everybody kind of laughed, ‘You guys won two games the year before.’

“But there’s a reason God gave me the vision and not you.”

Caravan pass another test

A week after knocking off East St. Louis in a battle of defending state champions, Mount Carmel opened a 22-0 halftime lead en route to a 22-12 victory against Public League power Morgan Park.

Senior linebacker Parker Startz, an Ohio commit, loves coach Jordan Lynch’s philosophy of loading up the nonconference schedule.

“We’re coming off a 14-0 state-championship (season),” Startz said. “Everybody’s saying, ‘Mount Carmel’s not going to be the top dog again, they lost everybody.’

“We’re not scared of the competition. We know who we are. We know how hard we work. We could play anybody in the country and I’m confident in our team coming through.”