Southwest Prairie Conference crossover

Plainfield South (1-4) at Yorkville (5-0)

When: 7 p.m. Friday

About the Cougars: Plainfield South put a win on the ledger in Week 5, but still faces a very difficult uphill climb if it wants to secure a playoff berth. Not only does a date with an undefeated team loom large in Week 6, but if a loss occurs here, the Cougars would need to run the table and get help from some opponents to even have a chance at defending its conference championship for a year ago which would be the only way they could get into the field.

About the Foxes: Yorkville is off to its best start since 2019, the lone unbeaten in the SPC West after its 16-6 win at Oswego and has likely secured a playoff return after missing out last year. It’s been a consistent formula of success: the defense holds it down for at least a half, and the Foxes win games in the second half. Caleb Viscogliosi (40 tackles), Dillon Viscogliosi (30 tackles) and Daniel Kraus (27 tackles) are leaders of a defense that’s allowed just 39 points. Jack Beetham has thrown for 777 yards and eight TDs as the Foxes’ steady quarterback – and notably, has yet to throw an interception in five games. T.J. Harland has rushed for 453 yards and is coming off his second 100-yard game of the season. Yorkville lost to Plainfield South 3-0 in last year’s season opener, extra motivation for the Foxes.

Friday Night Drive pick: Yorkville

Joliet West (2-3) at Oswego (4-1)

When: 7 p.m. Friday

About the Tigers: A young Joliet West team seems to be growing up in a hurry. The Tigers took a pair of lopsided losses to start the season, but appear to have taken some lessons from those setbacks as they’ve looked like a different team recently, particularly on defense. Allowing just 42 points over the last three games, a stretch where they’ve gone 2-1, has allowed them to obtain the clear driver’s seat in Southwest Prairie East race as they are the only team without a divisional loss. Taking this crossover game would be a huge boon for them, but even putting forth a solid effort in a loss would likely put them in a good place for a favorable stretch run schedule.

About the Panthers: Oswego is likely champing at the bit to get back out there after its 16-6 loss to Yorkville. The Panthers, who had scored 152 points through four games, were shut out into the fourth quarter, the lone offense a Drew Kleinhans TD pass to Mariano Velasco. Turnovers and penalties are two areas to clean up. Oswego, plus-10 in turnover differential the first four weeks, committed three, all in the second half, against Yorkville, and didn’t force any. The Panthers also committed nine penalties, many of them of the pre-snap variety. A priority to get the offense restarted should be getting touches for Teddy Manikas; the standout receiver had just one catch for four yards against Yorkville.

Friday Night Drive pick: Oswego

Romeoville (3-2) at Oswego East (4-1)

When: 7 p.m. Friday

About the Spartans: After a fantastic start, Romeoville has hit something of a wall. The Spartans have given up a combined 90 points in back-to-back losses and all of a sudden their playoff prospects look a little more perilous. There’s opportunity for a rebound later in the schedule, but this game against Oswego East is probably not part of that. Romeoville was walloped in its other crossover game this season by Plainfield North, a team that Oswego East beat back in Week 3.

About the Wolves: Oswego East, which was off to its best start since 2021, saw it come to a screeching halt with a 32-7 loss at Bolingbrook. The Wolves’ defense was gashed for 197 yards rushing by Bolingbrook’s TJ Lewis, the 32 points double what it had given up in the first four weeks total. But the offense, too, needs to get back on track. The Wolves totaled just 160 yards of offense against Bolingbrook with three turnovers. Oswego East’s playoff fortunes would be well-served by a win here against an SPC East opponent because the stretch run – Yorkville, Oswego and what could be a desperate Minooka team – is quite tricky.

Friday Night Drive pick: Oswego East

Kishwaukee River Conference

Woodstock (3-2, 1-2) at Plano (0-5, 0-3)

About the Blue Streaks: Woodstock has lost two straight since starting the season 3-0. The Blue Streaks lost to Richmond-Burton 42-7 last week, after getting beat by Marengo 35-14 in Week 4. QB Caden Thompson was 11-of-20 passing for 104 yards, including a 15-yard TD pass to Jared Kay. The Blue Streaks average 23 points a game and allow 23.4 a game. After playing Plano, they return home to take on 2-3 Sandwich. Woodstock beat Plano 26-10 last year.

About the Reapers: Plano, while winless, has been quite competitive over its last four games. The Reapers dropped one-score losses to Sandwich and Woodstock North, and were within a touchdown until the last minute of a 28-14 loss to unbeaten Marengo last week. In that game Plano actually out-gained Marengo in total yardage 239-234, and ran 52 plays to Marengo’s 44. Dylan Saunders threw for 139 yards and a TD to Cam Johnson, who had four catches for 86 yards, Braylon Schmidt ran for 64 yards and defensively Isaac Uhrich had 13 tackles in the loss.

Friday Night Drive pick: Woodstock

Richmond-Burton (5-0, 3-0) at Sandwich (2-3, 2-1)

About the Rockets: Richmond-Burton hit the 40-point mark for the fourth time in five games last week, beating Woodstock 42-7 to hand the Blue Streaks only their second loss. The Rockets’ triple-option attack was complemented by QB Ray Hannemann, who threw three TD passes in the first half. The senior used play-action to hit TE Luke Robinson on scoring passes of 63 and 41 yards. Hannemann also threw a 21-yard pass to TE Jace Nelson in the corner of the end zone. RB Hunter Carley led the ground attack, rushing for 136 yards and two TDs. FB Riley Shea rushed for 43 yards and a TD, and Luke Johnson had 94 rushing yards on seven carries. The Rockets lead the KRC in points scored (213) and fewest allowed (54). R-B beat Sandwich 49-14 in Week 6 last year.

About the Indians: Sandwich got back on track last week, a 48-7 win over Harvard. Notable was the Indians’ defense, which held an opponent to fewer than 28 points for the first time this season. Jeffrey Ashley, the leading tackler for that defense, also rushed for 148 yards and three TDs. Nick Michalek rushed for 83 yards and two scores for a Sandwich offense that likely will be without senior QB Braden Behringer (broken collarbone) for the rest of the season.

Friday Night Drive pick: Richmond-Burton