Previewing Semi Final Saturday Prospects and Teams to Watch

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>***Use Code “ScottyB30” for 30% off your annual subscription***</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Semi Final Saturday is almost here!&nbsp; By Saturday night we will know the state championship matchups.&nbsp; Let's dive into the most intriguing semifinal contests!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tolono Unity at St. Joseph Ogden – 1 PM (3A)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tolono will head on the road in this game with an offense that can put up points behind quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1001161' first='Dane' last='Eisenmenger'] and running back Crewe Eckstein.&nbsp; Defensive lineman Desmond Winfrey is a game wrecker.&nbsp; St. Joseph Ogden offensive tackle [player_tooltip player_id='1329014' first='Cameron' last='Wagner'] is one of the premier prospects in the 2027 class.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1163337' first='Kaden' last='Wedig'] is their go to offensive weapon at wide receiver.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Morris at Montini – 2 PM (4A)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Morris is built behind a strong offensive line.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1344896' first='Brogan' last='Kjellesvik'] is a top 20 junior in the state and one of the best offensive lineman in the state.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1567216' first='Brody' last='Hibner'] is another big body up front in the 2027 class.&nbsp; Montini also has a strong foundation in the junior class with top quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='611846' first='Israel' last='Abrams'], star defensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='1334146' first='Namari' last='Anderson'], and offensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='1522262' first='Gavin' last='Ericson'].&nbsp; Angelo Desensi is a mauler up front and [player_tooltip player_id='209448' first='Nico' last='Castaldo'] brings juice on the outside.&nbsp; Northern Illinois commit [player_tooltip player_id='1585203' first='CJ' last='Harkins'] is a two way star.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>East St. Louis at St. Laurence – 1 PM (6A)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>No team in the state has come close to East St. Louis all year.&nbsp; They will have to go on the road in this one, but with the fire power they have it shouldn't be much of an issue.&nbsp; They are flat out rolling on both sides of the ball even sitting several superstars for part of their quarterfinal game.&nbsp; Top 2027 prospect [player_tooltip player_id='788737' first='Myson' last='Johnson-Cook'] is fresh for a massive final two games.&nbsp; St. Laurence has a prospect with quite a bit of buzz in 2027 EDGE [player_tooltip player_id='409208' first='Sean' last='Rice'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Fenwick at Nazareth – 1 PM (6A)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Two powerhouse programs clash for the right to go downstate.&nbsp; Fenwick's heart and soul is the two way standouts in Jake Theis and [player_tooltip player_id='279386' first='Tommy' last='Thies'] (Miami OH commit).&nbsp; Junior corner [player_tooltip player_id='1345007' first='Josh' last='Morgan'] is part of the Friars no fly defense!&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='401610' first='Jamen' last='Williams'] is the director at the QB spot.&nbsp; Nazareth has some big time prospects up front in a pair of top 30 prospects with offensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='1335278' first='Luke' last='Injaychock'] and defensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='1791833' first='Chris' last='Kasky'].&nbsp; Wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='1585141' first='Trenton' last='Walker'] is a big and physical go to wide receiver that will be catching passes from Jackson Failla.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Batavia at St. Rita – 2 PM (7A)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Looking to make a run back to the state title game Batavia is in position behind junior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1598818' first='Michael' last='Vander Luitgaren'].&nbsp; He does it with both his arm and legs.&nbsp; Go to passing options are wide receivers [player_tooltip player_id='1120450' first='Darin' last='Ashiru'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1585213' first='Brett' last='Berggren'].&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1120487' first='Ryan' last='Myers'] is a Princeton commit up front that protects their star signal caller.&nbsp; St. Rita has a ton of offensive firepower as senior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1627970' first='Steven' last='Armbruster'] has had a big season along with junior running back [player_tooltip player_id='1619312' first='Brandon' last='Johnson'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Downers Grove North at Brother Rice – 4 PM (7A)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Downers Grove North is looking to pull off the upset as they have the offensive playmakers to give Brother Rice a game.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='212320' first='Owen' last='Lansu'] is a Minnesota commit that is the headliner of this group.&nbsp; The #2 quarterback in the class finds his weapons in Illini tight end commit [player_tooltip player_id='1623276' first='Will' last='Vala'] along with wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='283929' first='Oliver' last='Thulin'].&nbsp; Brother Rice will be putting a ton of pressure on Lansu with their stellar pass rush trio of Illinois commit [player_tooltip player_id='208769' first='King' last='Liggins'], top 10 junior defensive tackle [player_tooltip player_id='1334133' first='Brayden' last='Parks'], and potential #1 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='1052814' first='Kameron' last='McGee'].&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='401611' first='Jaylin' last='Green'] and [player_tooltip player_id='401612' first='Jovan' last='Green'] along with quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='801994' first='CJ' last='Gray'] put points on the board.&nbsp; Offensive tackle [player_tooltip player_id='1335452' first='Ethan' last='Posey'] is one of the better junior pass protectors in the class.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Fremd at Mt. Carmel – 5 PM (8A)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Fremd will take their shot at Goliath on Saturday evening.&nbsp; They are led by Northwestern commit at quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='499431' first='Johnny' last='O'Brien'] who is one of the star senior signal callers in the state.&nbsp; Junior wide receivers Marquan Brewster and Carter MacDonald have been making plays on the outside.&nbsp; Mt. Carmel is stacked with talent as we have talked about all year.&nbsp; Last week they were clicking on all cylinders with their defensive line dominating with [player_tooltip player_id='1538329' first='Joey' last='Quinn'] racking up the sacks and top 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='1682021' first='Caleb' last='Tucker'] wrecking the game in the middle.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Lockport at Oswego – 5 PM (8A)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On the offensive side for Lockport the focus will be on quarterback Brendan Meecher along with 2028 playmakers [player_tooltip player_id='1794165' first='Jaxson' last='Little'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1792234' first='Prince' last='Nartey'].&nbsp; Junior linebacker Darrell McCullough has a lot of helium late in the season on defense for Lockport.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1358093' first='Mariano' last='Velasco'] and [player_tooltip player_id='503550' first='Teddy' last='Manikas'] are the playmakers for Oswego.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->