Update, Nov. 21, 2015 / Note! Due to today’s weather, the Marist vs. Waubonsie Valley football semifinal game start time has been pushed back to 7PM.
Original Post / In the span of a week, Waubonsie Valley will have gone from the Redhawks to the RedHawks.
With the Naperville Central Redhawks having been vanquished for a second time, 30th-seeded Waubonsie Valley’s attention turns to the 23rd-seeded Marist RedHawks in the program’s first state semifinal since 1992.
For the program to reach the first state title game in its 40-year history come Thanksgiving weekend in DeKalb, it’s all about pace come Saturday night in Chicago.
Moments after watching his team finish the program’s first postseason shutout in 23 years with a 17-0 upset of the sixth-seeded Redhawks, Warriors’ coach Paul Murphy made an obvious observation.
Against the Redhawks, they were able to do something they weren’t able to do for long stretches in their victories over Edwardsville and Neuqua Valley – play with a lead.
Opposite a Marist offense that has averaged 29 points a game and has put up at least 38 points in nine games, Waubonsie Valley (8-4) can’t get behind too much or too early.
“That’s what they’ve shown in their last two games, for sure,” Murphy said of Marist’s potent offense. “But – in their first round – it was a 17-14 game and there have been other games in the regular season where they’ve scored a lot of points, but they’ve also given up a lot of points.
“So I think games in the past are just that – games in the past. They haven’t played us before, we haven’t played them and we’re just going to have to find out.”
RedHawks’ quarterback Brendan Skalitzky has thrown for 3,412 yards and 34 TDs on the year and has only been intercepted nine times over the course of throwing 372 passes.
Skalitzky has thrown at least two touchdown passes in 11 of Marist’s 12 games up to this point – with its 21-14 loss to Mount Carmel in Week 1 being the lone exception.
While Skalitzky is the guy running the show for RedHawks’ coach Pat Dunne, Murphy knows their offense has weapons all over.
Liam Keffer has hauled in 88 passes for 1,334 yards and 10 touchdowns from Skalitzky while running back Darshon McCullough has caught 59 passes for 967 yards and 12 touchdowns.
“He’s pretty darn accurate,” Murphy said of Skalitzky. “He runs their offense very well. They stretch you horizontally and they make you defend every blade of grass on the field. McCullough has got real good speed. Skalitzky’s got real good speed when he runs and if you don’t tackle them, they’re dangerous because any play they run can go for a touchdown.”
On top of Skalitzky’s 893 rushing yards and eight touchdowns, McCullough has run for 562 yards and seven touchdowns to give Marist two threats in the backfield.
For Skalitzky’s counterpart, Jack Connolly, the task in front of him is simple – try and keep Skalitzky and crew off the field.
Connolly, who has thrown for 909 yards and seven touchdowns while running for 520 yards and six touchdowns, has one big man to help him with that.
Max Ihry.
Ihry’s 1,374 rushing yards and 14 TDs, including eight 100-yard games, has helped take pressure off of Connolly throughout much of the year.
For the Warriors to be successful against the RedHawks, Ihry figures to be as big of a reason as any with their desire to play ball control.
“Yeah, it’s big,” Connolly said of the need to not fall behind early. “They’re probably the best offense we’ve played all year, so it’d be huge that we got to get up early on them because we don’t want to play from behind. And, also, even if we’re ahead – we need to keep playing and keep building the lead because they can score so quickly and keep up so many points so fast.”
In compiling its 8-4 record, which included a 4-3 mark inside the highly regarded East Suburban Catholic Conference, Marist hasn’t seen Murphy’s spin on the triple option much.
Aside from their game with Mount Carmel to open the season, Murphy estimated the RedHawks haven’t seen it since – even against Joliet Catholic, which runs some option.
Given the fact Saturday will be the first time the two programs will have ever met, a certain sense of the unknown will take over.
If the unknown eventually turns into a known where the Warriors find themselves in a higher-scoring game than they’re used to, then so be it.
“We’re going to be prepared to do whatever we need to try to do to win a football game,” Murphy said. “Obviously, ball control has been a big part of the last three weeks and we’re going to try to do that.
“But if they start scoring points, we’re going to have to find a way to score points, as well. But I’d prefer not to be in a shootout, like I think most coaches would prefer not to be in a shootout. But you need to do whatever you need to do to win.”
The program’s sixth straight season of at least eight victories in hand, these Warriors have already left their footprints in the sand with the program’s first state semifinal since 1992.
But they want to leave an even larger footprint by taking one more step.
“It’s going to be a tough game Saturday night at Marist,” Connolly said. “They’re a great team. That’s a tough place to play, but we know what’s on the line. We know Waubonsie’s never been there before and obviously getting to DeKalb is the goal. It’s been the goal all along and we’re one game away, so we just really want to get this done.”
