Southwest Prairie Conference West

Oswego East (3-4, 1-2) at Yorkville (4-3, 2-1)

When: 7 p.m. Friday

NOTE: This game was moved from Oswego East to Yorkville this week due to ongoing prep work and construction on the Oswego East track.

Last matchup: Yorkville 28, Oswego East 14 (2022)

About the Foxes: Yorkville seems to be peaking going into the season’s stretch run. The Foxes followed up their 17-13 win over Minooka with an impressive 17-0 victory at Oswego. It puts Yorkville one win away from becoming playoff eligible for its fifth straight playoff appearance. Luke Zook is a playmaker. The junior safety intercepted two passes last week and also threw a halfback pass for a TD. Michael Dopart has thrown for 1,017 yards with eight touchdowns and five interceptions. Josh Gettemy has rushed for 453 yards and Dom Coronado has a team-high 24 catches for 303 yards and four TDs.

About the Wolves: Oswego East kept its playoff hopes alive with a come-from-behind 14-13 win over West Aurora last week. The Wolves still need to beat Yorkville and Oswego to become playoff eligible. It will be hard to top Christian Martyn’s monster 40-carry, 249-yard performance. That said, Oswego East’s success offensively needs to start with establishing the run behind an experienced offensive line anchored by Cincinnati recruit Zac Clarke and Army commit Tim Savchuk. The Wolves’ defense has been for the most part a consistent strength. It’s given up a total of 16 points in Oswego East’s three wins. Senior linebacker Andrew Wiggins received his first Division I offer from Air Force this week.

FND Pick: Yorkville

Oswego (5-2, 1-2) at Minooka (5-2, 2-1)

When: 7 p.m. Friday

Last matchup: Minooka 18, Oswego 8 (2022)

About the Panthers: Oswego has hit a bump in the road. The Panthers have lost two out of three since a 4-0 start. Worrisome going forward is Oswego was without four starters in its 17-0 loss to Yorkville last week, including stalwarts in defensive end Taiden Thomas and wide receiver/defensive back Jeremiah Cain. Cain’s absence eliminates a big-play threat on the outside, but nonetheless Oswego needs to reestablish the run. Oswego averaged just over 2 yards per carry in the loss to Yorkville. Oswego can, typically, lean on a defense led by linebackers Carson Cooney and Mikey Claycombe, and will need to bring it on the road this week.

About the Indians: Minooka’s rollercoaster season hit another upswing in Week 7, as it sprinted away from Plainfield North for a comfortable victory. QB Nathan Maul had 200 passing yards on seven completions, tossing two long TD passes to help the Indians gain separation against Plainfield North. It was another solid performance from the Minooka defense, which despite a pair of losses hasn’t allowed more than 17 points to any opponent.

FND Pick: Minooka

Kishwaukee River/Interstate 8 Blue

Sandwich (5-2, 3-2) at Marengo (3-4, 2-2)

When: 3 p.m. Saturday

Last matchup: Marengo 43, Sandwich 21 (2021)

About Sandwich: The Indians are coming off a 40-13 loss to Rochelle last week, but Sandwich coach Kris Cassie was pleased with how his kids competed for four quarters. Sandwich was limited to 19 healthy players last Friday, but Cassie reported that he expected at least three back to practice Monday and Tuesday. Despite the Rochelle loss, Sandwich is still playoff eligible for the first time since 2013 and can clinch a bid with a win. Junior RB Simeion Harris has rushed for 838 yards and seven touchdowns. Sophomore RB Nick Michalek has 558 rushing yards and five touchdowns.

About Marengo: The Indians lost to Kaneland 45-0 last week. Marengo has been hit hard by injuries in the second part of the season. RB Isaac Anthony leads Marengo with 528 rushing yards. QB David Lopez is completing 60.0% of his passes for 621 yards.

FND pick: Sandwich.

Plano (4-3, 2-2) at Rochelle (5-2, 4-0)

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday

Last matchup: Rochelle 42, Plano 22 (2022)

About the Reapers: Plano moved one win away from playoff eligibility with its 35-0 win over Harvard last week. It was the Reapers defense’s second straight shutout, third overall this season. Armando Martinez leads that defense with 35 tackles. It will take a yeoman effort to contain Rochelle’s powerful wing-T rushing attack. Plano’s offense has got back on track the last two weeks, it’s no secret why with Waleed Johnson going over 100 yards rushing in both wins with 170 yards and four TDs last week. Plano has Marengo in Week 9, what appears to be a more favorable matchup for that necessary fifth win, but the Reapers aren’t giving an inch and would love to get it done here.

About the Hubs: Rochelle is moving toward a Week 9 showdown with Richmond-Burton for the Kishwaukee River/Interstate 8 Blue title. The Hubs’ lone losses came to state-ranked Morton and Sycamore. The Hubs scored all five of their TDs in the first half of an eventual 40-13 win over Sandwich last week, and compiled nearly all of their 356 total yards in the game. Fullback Roman Villalobos had a team-high 86 rushing yards on 12 carries. Tailback Grant Gensler is another player to watch for a Rochelle team that has outscored its opponents 256-57.

FND Pick: Rochelle