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Eight weeks into the regular season, Montini coach Mike Bukovsky was still waiting for the breakout game from his team.
The Broncos opened the season in impressive fashion, winning five straight games but were in the midst of a three-game losing skid at the wrong time of the season. Bukovsky, a veteran coach, wanted his team to build some momentum for the playoffs, especially since the program was slated to end a dubious playoff drought dating back to 2019.
The Broncos closed out the regular season with a solid 24-17 victory over St. Laurence, which won six games in the regular season. The Broncos recorded a 48-6 win over Eureka in a Class 3A first-round playoff game last weekend.
Montini senior right tackle Mick Ranquist said the tough schedule prepared the team for the playoffs, the first playoff appearance for the senior class.
“The win at St. Laurence showed us the kind of team we know we can be,” Ranquist said. “I’ve never been to the playoffs before this year, but so far, it’s been one of the best experiences of my life. There’s a different feeling in the locker room this year. I don’t think this team has reached our potential yet.
“Our schedule has prepared us for a long playoff run. Playing and competing against schools that are bigger gave us an underdog mentality. We learned that we are never out of a game and that every play could be the most important play of the game. We had a lot of players step up when some of our key players went down, which is key with such a tough schedule.”
Bukovsky said his team is reaping the benefits in the Class 3A playoffs from playing a grueling regular schedule.
“We’ve been through a couple of phases as a football team,” he said. “We like the phase we are in right now. We’ve got a little bit of consistency at the end of the season and put it all together in Week 9 against St. Laurence, which was probably our best-played game of the year and we carried that into last week.
“Basically, they realized they’ve been prepared because our Catholic League schedule is not one a lot of Class 3A teams are fortunate enough to play. We feel we’re not going to be surprised. Right now, we’re focused on being able to do things we need to do individually to go toward our team effort.”
The Broncos (7-3) play at Prairie Central (5-5) on Saturday at 2 p.m. The Hawks, who finished with an 11-1 record last season, lost their last two regular season games before beating North Lawndale in the first round.
“I got a chance to see them play live last week,” Bukovsky said. “They’re a solid football team and do some offensive things pretty well. Their quarterback is a good athlete and makes plays with his feet and arm and is a dual quarterback. They got some size on the offensive line and get off the ball pretty well and are a pretty well-coached team. They will be a solid opponent.”
Ranquist, a captain and three-year starter, credited the Broncos’ recent improvement to solid play on the O-line.
“We’ve all played together as a unit and we definitely understand everyone’s assignments on each play,” Ranquist said. “We approach practice as a competition and that gives us an edge in games. With the push we’ve been getting recently, the entire offense is opened up and that allows our skills guys to make some great plays.”
“Saturday is going to be a test for us against a team that we are unfamiliar with. We need to stay locked in at practice and dominating the line of scrimmage is the key to victory for us every game. We know we have the speed and size advantage, so it’s just a matter of putting that to use.”
Bukovsky said Ranquist is one of several players who have stepped up on the team.
“I think the offensive line has really improved throughout the season,” he said. “We have a couple of guys who are doing a really good job, but our offensive line, as a whole, is playing much better. We also found some other offensive weapons, and other guys are stepping up in the last part of the season. We’re playing with a lot of confidence and are ready to explode offensively. Defensively, we’ve been very steady all year and had a really good effort last week. Overall, it’s been a team effort.”
Willowbrook making a run again?
In recent years, the playoffs have been Willowbrook time.
The Warriors (8-2) have become a staple in the late rounds of the playoffs, recording impressive victories in October and early November.
Willowbrook junior wide receiver KJ Rhodes, who set the program record for most catches in a season, hauled in 11 receptions for 206 yards, in a 21-13 win over Yorkville in a Class 7A playoff game last week.
Willowbrook senior quarterback AJ Palicki, who passed for 350 yards and ran for 91 yards in the victory over the Foxes, said Rhodes is a big-time weapon in the receiving game.
“(AJ) may be slightly underestimated because of his size but his speed and shiftiness make him a great player with the ball in his hands and that doesn’t even bring into the fact his ability to run routes and flip defenders’ hips before breaking on them is top-notch,” Palicki said. “He’s the type of player every quarterback wants to play with.
“We’ve watched a lot of film every week during the season, and this week wasn’t any different. As a team, we knew that if they would not double KJ that he would have another great game. Our offensive coordinator, Mike Marotta, put in a great game plan for slinging the ball around and getting our playmakers into space against them.”
The Warriors, who have won six games in a row, travel to Rockton Hononegah (10-0) for Saturday’s 2 p.m. second-round playoff game.
Palicki said the Warriors are aiming to add another chapter to the program’s recent playoff success.
“We have to come into practice ready to work on our craft,” he said. “We have to do the little things outside of practice to make sure our bodies are in the top shape for the game and keep watching film to see where we can exploit their weaknesses, and to see what they are most likely going to run defensively given the situation.”
Tidbits: Downers Grove North senior Noah Battle contributed in many ways in his team’s win over Kenwood last weekend. Battle, a running back, ran for two touchdowns, scored on a 76-yard TD pass and returned an interception for a touchdown in the 7A first-round victory…Nazareth is following a similar path to last season, when they barely made the 5A playoffs but ran the table. The Roadrunners (5-5) host Glenbard South on Saturday at 1 p.m.