Can any team beat these guys?
By Bob Sakamoto
Tribune Staff Writer
October 29, 1999
Last year Wheaton Warrenville South devastated the Class 6A
football field on its march to the title with an average
winning margin of 31 points. The Tigers beat Barrington
42-14 in the championship game.
Will No. 1-seeded Naperville Central be just as dominant
when its quest for its first state championship begins
against Sandburg?
"Wheaton South had that excellent passing game, and
defenses couldn't stop (quarterback) Jon Beutjer and
(receiver) Jon Schweighardt," said Lockport running back
Craig Duppong. "Naperville Central has a great team, but if
they let their guard down, a team like Lockport could rise
up and beat them."
Naperville Central defeated five playoff teams en route to
an unbeaten regular season, including a 44-21 victory over
Lockport.
The biggest factor in Naperville Central's surge has been
the emergence of Redhawks running back Ryan Clifford, who
has rushed for 1,684 yards and scored 35 touchdowns,
breaking open games with punt and kickoff returns and pass
receptions in addition to his breakaway runs.
Naperville Central coach Joe Bunge wisely positioned
6-foot-6-inch, 290-pound left tackle Don Baskin, left guard
Dave Hilderbrand and center Geoff Pearson side-by-side to
give Clifford maximum interference. "I don't think there's a defensive line that can go
one-on-one with Naperville Central's offensive linemen and
win," said quarterback Matt Alley, whose Wheaton South team
lost to the Redhawks 28-13.
Then again, if a defensive front becomes preoccupied with
stopping Clifford, Naperville Central's Owen Daniels could
have a fieyld day hooking up with receivers Kevin Noel and
Brad Spencer and tight end Pat Hinsberger.
That offensive balance was evident in Central's 34-19
victory over Naperville North, in which Clifford ran for
144 yards and two touchdowns and threw a TD pass to
Hinsberger and Daniels passed for 162 yards and two more
TDs. "(Hinsberger) coming across the middle really hurt us,"
said Naperville North defensive tackle Lee Robinson.
"The key to their offense is Baskin and Hilderbrand,"
Robinson added. "That's 570 pounds coming at you on every
play. Fighting off all that weight, they wear you out and
then break you down in the trenches.
"And it's very difficult to stop Clifford. Our defensive
front would make our initial push, and Ryan would simply
bounce the play outside. His feet are so quick that you
can't trip him up."
A short list of teams with the best chance of knocking off
No. 1 includes Lincoln-Way, Thornton, Hinsdale Central,
Wheaton South and Naperville North.
"I think Lincoln-Way has the best chance of beating
Naperville Central," said Lockport coach Bret Kooi, whose
Porters lost to Lincoln-Way 30-6 and to Thornton 47-29.
Naperville North's Robinson disagreed.
"No, I believe Thornton could be the team that beats them,"
he said. "They have the speed defensively to cut off
Clifford when he gets outside, and Stafford Owens is a
great quarterback.
Stevenson coach Bill Mitz figures the best way to beat
Naperville Central is to simply keep the ball away from
Clifford & Co. "We were missing six starters when we played them, so we
couldn't make that work," Mitz said about the 41-0 loss
when players were suspended because of a hazing incident.
Hinsdale Central might just be the answer with running back
Mike Mangan, who leads all Chicago-area rushers with 2,211
yards and has scored 24 TDs.
"Hinsdale has a pretty good offensive line, too, and that
Mangan keeps breaking tackles and doesn't stop," Robinson
said.
Copyright 2000 The Chicago Tribune
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