Heart of Central Illinois crossover

Fieldcrest (0-1) at El Paso-Gridley (1-0)

When: 7 p.m. Friday at Titan Stadium

About the Knights: Fieldcrest’s challenging two-week stretch of the schedule to open the season continues with a visit to archrival El Paso-Gridley. After last Friday’s 52-12 loss to state-ranked Tri-Valley that saw the Knights commit six turnovers, it’s a second consecutive 2024 playoff team on tap. The Knights did have some successes in Week 1, most notably with a running game centered on Lucas Anson, who put in a two-touchdown, over 200-yard performance. Finding a way to get the defense to complement that running game could make things turn around in a hurry.

About the Titans: El Paso-Gridley won its opener 28-14 over Reed-Custer last Friday, a nice continuation of the success last year’s Titans enjoyed on their way to a 6-3 regular season and brief Class 2A playoff appearance. QB Owen Adams led the Titans in their Week 1 doubling-up of the Comets, throwing for all four EPG touchdowns as part of a 234-yard performance. Jayvion Maxon was his favorite receiver, hauling in five receptions for just under 100 yards, two of those TDs.

Friday Night Drive pick: El Paso-Gridley

Nonconference

Streator (1-0) at Ottawa (1-0)

When: 7:15 p.m. Friday at King Field

On Shaw Local radio: Love 98.5 FM

About the Bulldogs: Friday brings the 104th meeting in the state of Illinois’ third-oldest football rivalry, one dating back to 1894. It’s not one the Bulldogs have done especially well in of late, having lost the last three Week 2 meetings of the Route 23 Rivalry by a combined score of 117-21, including last season’s surprisingly lopsided – especially considering where the teams’ seasons went from there – 34-7 Pirates victory. Like last year, Streator comes in off a win, although this time the victory over Decatur Eisenhower was a little more decisive and impressive, 36-14. Streator’s option offense led by QB Sharonn Morton (127 yards rushing, 0 yards passing) and RBs Leodies Jordan (138 yards rushing) and LA Moton (45 yards rushing) gained all of its 393 yards on the ground, while the Jordan (2⅓ sacks) and DL/LB Riley Stevens (2 sacks, 1½ TFLs, 1 FR)-led defense limited Eisenhower to only 83 yards of offense.

About the Pirates: Like Streator, Ottawa – which leads the all-time series against the Bulldogs 63-38-2 – recorded an impressively decisive Week 1 victory over an opponent that gave them trouble the previous fall. In the Pirates’ case, it was a 35-6 handling of Plano in which Ottawa scored on its first three offensive possessions with an attack led by RB Archer Cechowicz (136 yards, three TDs rushing), QB Mark Munson (67 yards, one TD on 4-for-4 passing) and a strong showing from the O-line. Ottawa’s lines – a strength in the win over Plano – will be going against Streator lines that were just as impressive in the Bulldogs’ home win. This is the first of back-to-back home, fierce rivalry games for the Pirates, who host La Salle-Peru in a nonconference meeting come Week 3 before diving into Interstate 8 Conference play.

Friday Night Drive pick: Ottawa

Madison (0-1) at Marquette (0-1)

When: 7 p.m. Friday at Gould Stadium

About the Trojans: An independent without a conference home, Madison lost 48-32 to Sparta/Steeleville in Week 1. The loss carried some historical significance, as it was the first win since 2019 for the Sparta/Steeleville co-op. Marquette made the trip down to the St. Louis suburb last year and came home with a 41-6 victory. That Madison team – which defeated Sparta-Steeleville 64-50 to open the 2024 season – managed only one more victory, a Week 5 win at fellow independent Westmont. This year’s Trojans appear to still have the ability to put up points. It’s stopping opponents from doing the same that hurts them.

About the Crusaders: Marquette comes into Week 2 off a hard-to-handle but closer-than-it-looks 43-22 loss to fellow Class 1A playoff regular Aurora Christian. The Cru led late in the second quarter before giving up two scores just before halftime, then never recovered. The Marquette running game looked strong, led by Grant Dose’s dual-threat 86 rushing/21 receiving yards performance, but the Crusaders – be it by design or more situational – noticeably seemed more willing to air it out in head coach Ken Carlson’s first game at the helm. QB Anthony Couch finished 12 of 16 for 73 yards, adding 37 yards rushing. With a game at a Wisconsin state champion next week, followed by the three Chicagoland Prairie contests on the schedule, a win here would be huge to course-correct the Cru.

Friday Night Drive pick: Marquette

Seneca (1-0) at Sangamon Valley/Tri-City (0-1)

When: 7 p.m. Friday

About the Fighting Irish: Class 2A state champion Chicago Christian lost a lot from last year’s title team to pomp and circumstance. Still, Seneca’s 47-6 dismantling of the defending champs was an unquestioned statement that the Irish have high expectations this fall and the ability to reach them. Seneca was dominant on both sides of the ball, rushing for 348 yards (RB Cam Shriey with 84 of those, QB Gunner Varland with 100, Wyatt Biffany with 60) as a team and limiting the Knights to 47 yards from scrimmage, including less than half a yard per rushing attempt. The Irish bulked up their schedule with the ongoing erosion of the Chicagoland Prairie, but surprisingly, those nonconference opponents went just 1-5 in Week 1.

About the Storm: Coming off a six-win season and 2A playoff appearance (its first since 2016), Sangamon Valley/Tri-City did not start the 2025 campaign the way fourth-year coach Carl Spath was hoping for, getting handed a 43-13 road defeat at Arthur-Lovington-Atwood-Hammond. Standouts for the co-op include dual-threat QB/LB Hill Muir and FB/LB Hunter Martin. This game was a late addition to the schedule, with Seneca needing a willing opponent to replace Lisle, and the Storm a team to replace Cerro Gordo.

Friday Night Drive pick: Seneca

Dwight (1-0) at Alleman (1-0)

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday at Augustana College

About the Trojans: Dwight comes into Week 2 with a 1-0 record but no on-the-field game experience under its belt this fall due to having to accept a Week 1 forfeit from Lisle. That makes the Trojans a bit of a mystery compared with most teams around the state, but expectations are high after Dwight not only made the 2A quarterfinals last year but dissolved its co-op with nearby Gardner-South Wilmington, meaning it projects as a 1A team this coming postseason. That’s if the Trojans – led by returners such as RB/LB Evan Cox, TE/LB Joey Starks, OL/DL Jake Wilkey, QB/DB Collin Bachand and RB/LB Ayden Collom – can make it. This will be the first test on that road.

About the Pioneers: Rock Island Alleman, a small-school powerhouse in the 2000s and 2010s, did not field a varsity team last season or the season before, but came back with a vengeance last weekend by crushing Walther Christian 63-12. Dwight – until recently a conference foe of Walther Christian – will be a noticeable step up in competition for the Pioneers, but Alleman has already exhibited that it has the talent to put points up in bunches and the confidence to believe it can write its own return-to-football fairy tale, much like Sandwich did in its return to varsity football a few years ago.

Friday Night Drive pick: Dwight

Sandwich (0-1) at Wilmington (0-1)

When: 7 p.m. Friday at Reents Stadium

About the Indians: Sandwich’s offense got off to a decent enough start to the season last week against Manteno, scoring a touchdown in every quarter. It was the Indians’ defense that struggled, allowing the Panthers to score multiple touchdowns in three quarters – including on runs of 60, 48, 96, 38 and 52 yards – en route to a 54-30 defeat. Manteno’s philosophy isn’t all that different than Wilmington’s, meaning Sandwich’s defense will need a much better performance to make the most of its own strong attack that features RBs Nick Michalek (14 carries for 175 yards vs. Manteno) and Jeffrey Ashley (61 yards on 14 carries).

About the Wildcats: Moral victories don’t go in the IHSA’s official records, but Wilmington has to feel encouraged about the performance it put in against Morris, even if it was ultimately its first Week 1 loss in 13 years. The Wildcats led in the closing minutes before eventually falling 27-20 to the perennial 4A/5A powerhouse. RB Ryan Kettman looks well on his way to the huge season most are expecting, gaining 168 yards and two TDs in the defeat. He and the rest of the Wildcats will be tough to rein in again.

Friday Night Drive pick: Wilmington

8-Man Football Association

Polo (1-0) at FCW (1-0)

When: 7:30 p.m. at the Wood Shed, rural Streator

About the Marcos: An I8FA state semifinalist last season after an undefeated regular season and two-time eight-man state champion in 2019 and 2021, the Marcos picked up right where they left off by handling Bushnell-Prairie City 50-0 in this fall’s opener last Friday. QB JT Stephenson took over at quarterback and delivered the dual-threat performance expected, throwing two TD passes and rushing for 152 yards and a 71-yard score. Also back is I8FA All-State selection OL/DL Wyatt Plachno. Polo looks poised for another deep run come late October/early November.

About the Falcons: Flanagan-Cornell/Woodland learned just a handful of days before kickoff that its scheduled Week 1 opponent, Harvest Christian/Westminster, would forfeit. It left the Falcons 1-0 but also without a game under their belt coming into this showdown of two 2024 I8FA playoff teams. FCW returns 1,000-yard rusher RB/LB Leelynd Durbin and just-as-dangerous RB/QB/LB Logan Ruddy as it vies for a third straight playoff appearance, but to join the I8FA elite, FCW has to find a way to beat the eight-man’s best. This is an early opportunity to do just that.

Friday Night Drive pick: Polo