Reavis coach Tim Zasada is well aware of the significance of Friday’s South Suburban Red showdown at Richards.
If the undefeated Rams (3-0, 1-0) can escape Oak Lawn with a victory, they’ll be sitting in the driver’s seat in conference.
And make no mistake, Reavis intends on achieving victory against Richards (1-2, 0-0) on Friday night. Kickoff is 7 p.m.
“These are two really good football teams,” Zasada said. “This is a heavyweight battle. They’re a very good team, but when the bell sounds, the Rams have to try and take it to them.
“We have a real physical team and we have skill kids. We’re not going there to hang around and make it close. We’re going there to win and we believe we have a legitimate shot at this.”
The Rams suffered a 32-6 loss to the Bulldogs last season.
Most of the same cast are back for Reavis, including quarterback Isiah Alpuche, running back Travis Liszewski, receiver Brantrell Seymore, two-way linemen Jakub Kacki (6-feet-3, 275 pounds) and James Rapacz (6-2, 250), and defensive lineman Vinny Vertucci.
While the Bulldogs graduated most of their key players, they’re always in position to reload.
Running back Pat Doyle and linebacker Anthony Quinn lead a skilled junior class that has suffered growing pains to start the season. However, Richards has played outstanding competition in the form of a pair of undefeated teams in Lincoln-Way North (30-29 loss) and Geneva (34-20) and rallied late Friday to stun perennial power Lemont 28-24.
The momentum from that victory over the Indians, along with homecoming festivities on Friday, is sure to produce quite a setting at Gary Korhonen Field.
“It’s going to be a pretty wild atmosphere,” Zasada said. “In the past we were in games that we thought were big games. But this is a big game. It’s going to have a playoff atmosphere.”
Rich Central looking to rebound: The sting from Friday’s loss was still evident Monday in the voice of Rich Central coach Terrell Alexander.
The Olympians started strong against Kaneland, opening up a 30-14 halftime lead. However, an inability to convert their extra-point kicks and two-point conversions came back to haunt Rich Central. Kaneland rallied for a 42-36 win.
“We scored six touchdowns and didn’t convert a single extra point or two-point attempt,” said Alexander, whose Olympians fell to 2-1. “We left a lot of points out there. It came back to bite us. We’ve got to find more practice time for our kicking game or we’re going to have to line up for two every time. But give Kaneland all the credit in the world, they were resilient.”
Other than that second half against Kaneland, Rich Central has played outstanding football, led by running back Deshawn Jones, free safety Franklin Hunt and strong safety Desmond Reeves.
Alexander is confident the Olympians will bounce back at noon Saturday with a home game against rival Rich South.
“This group of guys really cares,” Alexander said. “They take pride in their preparation and how they perform. You’re bound to get good results from a team that cares.”
Banged up: Stagg running back Herbert Hughes was forced out of Friday’s loss to Homewood-Flossmoor after sustaining a back injury.
According to Chargers coach Mike Fahey, Hughes will miss at least one game, probably more. Hughes had rushed for 344 yards and three touchdowns during a 42-16 win over Andrew in Week 2.
Twitter: @disabato
FOOTBALL TOP 10
1.Homewood-Flossmoor 3-0 (1)
2.Mount Carmel 3-0 (2)
3.Joliet Catholic 3-0 (3)
4.Lincoln-Way East 2-1 (5)
5.Lincoln-Way North 3-0 (6)
6.Brother Rice 2-1 (4)
7.Lincoln-Way West 3-0 (8)
8.Crete-Monee 2-1 (9)
9.Oak Forest 3-0 (10)
10.Reavis 3-0 (NR)
Player of Week: Eisenhower’s Rayshawn Graham, a senior running back, rushed for 301 yards and five touchdowns to lead the Cardinals to a 42-6 win over Shepard.
