More than 260 SJO students named to third quarter Honor Roll

Last week St. Joseph-Ogden High School announced the third quarter honor roll recipients. Two hundred and seventy-five students achieved honor roll recognition during the third quarter as the COVID-19 virus silently spread throughout the United States.

Freshman starter Ty Pence dives for a loose ball in the Spartans' home game against Paxton-Buckley-Loda in January. In addition to being a gifted athlete, Pence earned high honor roll recognition in the classroom in the the third quarter. Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

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Students who earned a grade point average of 3.25 or higher on the school's 4.0 scale are recognized as Honor Roll students. Those whose GPA soared above 3.74 earned the added distinction a High Honor Roll student.

Click on the student's name to read more about their scholastic or athletic achievements.

Freshman

High Honor Roll

McGwire Atwood, Kaytlyn Baker, Olivia Baltzell, Tyler Burch, Maddux Carter, Yamilka Casanova, Ariana Chambers, Cale Coursey, Morgan Cramer, Aiden Cromwell, Zachary Dahman, Emily Elsbernd, Joselyn Frerichs, Alex Funk, Kennedy Greer, Andrew Guelfi, Mikyla Haley, Maya Hewkin, Taylor Hug, Peyton Jones, Jacob Kern, Aaron Lane, Collin Livesay, Aidan McCorkle, Kyle Meccoli, Teagan Miller, Allegra Pearman, Ty Pence, Jack Robertson, Kirsten Schaefer, Johanna Schmitz, Jack Setterdahl, Paige Siegmund, Trinity Tapia, Taylor Voorhees, Alayna Wagle and Maggie Ward.

Honor Roll

Alyssa Acton, Madison Adams, Sylvia Bills, Owen Birt, Ethan Blackburn, Gwen Chatterton, Bryce Collins, Aleah Dial, Leah Finley, Grace Flessner, Jessica Gadbury, Joseph Gherna, Kylie Greer, Connor Hale, Hallie Harms, Hayden Henkelman, Jonas Hutcherson, Shayne Immke, Emily Jeffries, Cameran Kelley, Hunter Ketchum, Carter Mabry, Haleigh Maddock, Katherine McDermott, Blake Morgan, Courtney Myren, Jacob Newman, Ava Northen, William Page, Emma Rydell, Isabel Sexton, Katharine Short, Mallory Wagner and Rebekah Weinmann.

Sophomores

High Honor Roll

Addison Allen, Tyler Altenbaumer, Kailyn Anderson, Ella Armstrong, Madison Atwood, Abigail Behrens, Ella Besson, Andrew Beyers, Brandie Bowlin, Mara Burkhalter, Kennedi Burnett, Angela Chahine, Braden Clampitt, Anastasia Conerty, Deanna Cummins, Benjamin Cunningham, Sidney Davis, Zander Dressen, Ashley Eldridge, Jared Emmert, Hannah Fox, Zella Fuqua, Brennan Haake, Liam Hamer, Alyssa Hamilton, Lauren Harper, Claire Huffman, Payton Jacob, Alison Kearney, Ava Knap, Ashlyn Lannert, Wyatt Loghry, Kelsey Martlage, Sophia McDade, Coby Miller, Conrad Miller, Elijah Mock, Jett Morris, Jessica Palmer, Emma Parkinson, Jackson Place, Hope Rajlich, JoLeena Reynolds, Kendra Riddle, Taryn Sexton, Alyssa Shoviak, Luke Stegall, Rebecca Steinbach, Mackenzie Trame and Taylor Wells.

Honor Roll

Nicolas Anzelmo, Alanna Bensyl, Allison Burnett, Mackenzie Fulk, Avian Gerdes, Caitlyn Holzinger, Kennedy Hudson, Kailyn Ingram, KayLeigh Kamphaus, Olivia Klotz, Jacey Lewis, Braden McElroy, Ava Meyer, Ava Miller, Keaton Nolan, Jonathan Poulter, Griffin Roesch, Grace Schmitz, Anna Snyder, Regan Uden, Ethan Vanliew and Elijah Weinmann.

Juniors

High Honor Roll

Isabelle Brooks, Crayton Burnett, David Bytnar, Taylor Campbell, Kylie Duckett, Jacob Dwyer, Hanna Eastin, Nadirah Edwards, Emily Fisher, Dakota Franzen, Atleigh Hamilton, Emmy Houston, Lukas Hutcherson, Logan Ingram, Izabellah Innes, Cailer Kellenberger, Shelby Kofoot, Ethan Lane, Aiden Livesay, Tyson Madsen, Sophia Martlage, Flannery McCorkle, Garren Meeker, Abigail Moberg, Samantha Naylor, Alec Painer, Erin Patton, Aidan Roberts, Indira Robinson, Mazie Ronk, Evan Schmitz, Max Shonkwiler, Tessa Smith, Payton Vallee, Nora Walden, Brayden Wendt and Logan Wolfersberger.

Honor Roll

Hunter Brooks, Rylee Clements, Raegan Crippen, Makayla Duckwitz, Britney Evans, Alex Frerichs, Emily Froman, Isabella Getty, Spencer Lahners, Madigan Loman, Alyssa Maddock, Brandon Mattsey, Jackson Rydell and Mitchell Whitlock.

Seniors

High Honor Roll

Lindsey Aden, Jenna Albrecht, Mallory Ames, Kendall Ayers, Taylor Barnes, Katelyn Berry, Emily Bigger, Kaylee Blackburn, Ginny Bytnar, Payton Cain, Trevon Carr, Payton Clements, Brendan Cooperider, Kristen Costa, Kathryn Cramer, Andrea Cunningham, Faith Dahman, Bailey Dowling, Hannah Dukeman, Jaiden Freeman, Payton Grimsley, Lucas Grindley, Erica Guelfi, Emily Hardimon, Cody Johnston, Danielle Kelso, Nathan Maier, Ava Mills, Carson Mills, Allison Monk, Nolan Peacock, Eric Poe, Hannah Rajlich, Jenna Schaefer, Rylee Stahl, Kenly Taylor, Stephanie Trame, Anna Tranel, Isabelle Vliet, Brayden Weaver, Sam Wesley, Zoey Witruk andJackson Wooten.

Honor Roll

Joseph Acton, Michara Allen, Kolton Batty, Ross Booker, Austin Carnes, Drew Coursey, Blake Dable, Asjah Fonner, Clay Frederick, Tristan Fuqua, Robert Gebbink, Brayden Grimsey, Ethan Hinrichs, Conner Hodge, Chance Izard, Lacey Kaiser, Aubrey Kern, Eliza Lewis, Keegan McCarty, Mason McLain, Alivia Norem, Taddy Pettit, Dyllan Price, Lexi Ribbe, Joshua Sexton, Joshua Vice, Karsyn Wetzel andJoel Wilson.

65 freshman make SJO 2nd quarter Honor Roll

Sixty-five members of the freshman class at St. Joseph-Ogden High School earn honor roll recognition during the second quarter. Forty-one of them earned High Honor Roll status.

In all, a total of 252 students made this quarter's academic list which was led by the Class of 2020 with 71 students who earned a grade point average of 3.25 or higher on the school's 4.0 scale. Students whose GPA soared above 3.74 are recognized as High Honor Roll students.

Freshman

High Honor Roll

Alyssa Acton, McGwire Atwood, Kaytlyn Baker, Olivia Baltzell, Maddux Carter, Yamilka Casanova, Ariana Chambers, Cale Coursey, Aiden Cromwell, Zachary Dahman, Emily Elsbernd, Leah Finley, Joselyn Frerichs, Kennedy Greer, Andrew Guelfi, Mikyla Haley, Maya Hewkin, Taylor Hug, Shayne Immke, Emily Jeffries, Cameran Kelley, Jacob Kern, Aaron Lane, Collin Livesay, Haleigh Maddock, Aidan McCorkle, Kyle Meccoli, Teagan Miller, Blake Morgan, Allegra Pearman, Ty Pence, Ellen Place, Jack Robertson, Kirsten Schaefer, Johanna Schmitz, Jack Setterdahl, Paige Siegmund, Trinity Tapia, Taylor Voorhees, Alayna Wagle and Maggie Ward.

Honor Roll

Morgan Cramer, Madison Adams, Canyon Alwes, Ethan Blackburn, Tyler Burch, Bryce Collins, Aleah Dial, Abigail Dow, Alex Funk, Hallie Harms, Jonas Hutcherson, Peyton Jones, Hunter Ketchum, Eleni Krall, Carter Mabry, Courtney Myren, Jacob Newman, Ava Northen, William Page, Emma Rydell, Isabel Sexton, Katharine Short, Mallory Wagner and Emma Ward.

Sophomores

High Honor Roll

Addison Allen, Tyler Altenbaumer, Kailyn Anderson, Ella Armstrong, Madison Atwood, Abigail Behrens, Ella Besson, Andrew Beyers, Brandie Bowlin, Mara Burkhalter, Kennedi Burnett, Angela Chahine, Braden Clampitt, Anastasia Conerty, Deanna Cummins, Benjamin Cunningham, Sidney Davis, Zander Dressen, Ashley Eldridge, Jared Emmert, Hannah Fox, Zella Fuqua, Brennan Haake, Liam Hamer, Lauren Harper, Payton Jacob, Alison Kearney, Olivia Klotz, Ava Knap, Ashlyn Lannert, Wyatt Loghry, Sophia McDade, Coby Miller, Conrad Miller, Elijah Mock, Jett Morris, Jessica Palmer, Emma Parkinson, Hope Rajlich, JoLeena Reynolds, Kendra Riddle, Taryn Sexton, Alyssa Shoviak, Luke Stegall, Rebecca Steinbach, Mackenzie Trame, Cole Weinmann and Taylor Wells.

Honor Roll

Nicolas Anzelmo, Alanna Bensyl, Mackenzie Fulk, Avian Gerdes, Alyssa Hamilton, Claire Huffman, Kailyn Ingram, Jacey Lewis, Kelsey Martlage, Ava Meyer, Ava Miller, Jackson Place, Griffin Roesch and Regan Uden.

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SJO Honor Roll Student-Athletes

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Juniors

High Honor Roll

Isabelle Brooks, Crayton Burnett, David Bytnar, Taylor Campbell, Kylie Duckett, Hanna Eastin, Nadirah Edwards, Emily Fisher, Dakota Franzen, Emily Froman, Bella Getty, Atleigh Hamilton, Emmy Houston, Lukas Hutcherson, Logan Ingram, Vania Kaenzig, Cailer Kellenberger, Shelby Kofoot, Ethan Lane, Madigan Loman, Tyson Madsen, Sophia Martlage, Garren Meeker, Abigail Moberg, Samantha Naylor, Alec Painter, Erin Patton, Aidan Roberts, Indira Robinson, Mazie Ronk, Evan Schmitz, Max Shonkwiler, Tessa Smith, Payton Vallee, Nora Walden, Brayden Wendt and Logan Wolfersberger.

Honor Roll

Hunter Brooks, Rylee Clements, Raegan Crippen, Makayla Duckwitz, Jacob Dwyer, Britney Evans, Alex Frerichs, Mariska Harshbarger, Camden Hesterberg, Spencer Lahners, Aiden Livesay, Alyssa Maddock, Brandon Mattsey, Flannery McCorkle, Jackson Rydell, AJ Wagner and Mitchell Whitlock.

Seniors

High Honor Roll

Lindsey Aden, Jenna Albrecht, Mallory Ames, Taylor Barnes, Katelyn Berry, Emily Bigger, Kaylee Blackburn, Ginny Bytnar, Payton Cain, Trevon Carr, Brendan Cooperider, Kristen Costa, Drew Coursey, Kathryn Cramer, Andrea Cunningham, Faith Dahman, Hannah Dukeman, Bode Gebbink, Payton Grimsley, Lucas Grindley, Erica Guelfi, Emily Hardimon, Chance Izard, Cody Johnston, Lacey Kaiser, Danielle Kelso, Nathan Maier, Ava Mills, Carson Mills, Allison Monk, Nolan Peacock, Taddy Pettit, Eric Poe, Hannah Rajlich, Jenna Schaefer, Joshua Sexton, Rylee Stahl, Kenly Taylor, Stephanie Trame, Anna Tranel, Isabelle Vliet, Brayden Weaver, Samuel Wesley, Zoey Witruk and Jackson Wooten.

Honor Roll

Joseph Acton, Michara Allen, Kendall Ayers, Kolton Batty, Ross Booker, Erin Bridgewater, Payton Clements, Bailey Dowling, Asjah Fonner, Clayton Frederick, Jaiden Freeman, Sam Gonzales, Brayden Grimsey, Ethan Hinrichs, Conner Hodge, Tyler Jones, Aubrey Kern, Eliza Lewis, Mason McLain, Alivia Norem, Dyllan Price, Luke Renfrew, Lexi Ribbe, Joshua Vice, Anna Wentzloff and Karsyn Wetzel.

30 players receive SJO varsity football letters

Nineteen seniors earned varsity football letters this fall. Six juniors, four sophomores and one freshmen player were also recognized for their contributions during the 2019 season.

Brayden Weaver received this year's Most-Valuable-Player award.

Weaver appeared in varsity games during his football career with the Spartans. During that time he carried the ball 94 times for 540 yards. His longest run was a 52 yard jaunt in SJO's 38-14 win over Unity.

Brayden carries the ball for the Spartans during their home game against Bloomington Central Catholic. This year's MVP, the senior ran for 104 yards against the Saints. On defense he was credited with three tackles in the 18-7 conference win. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

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Suffering a season-ending injury in the eight game of the season, his offensive stats boast 266 yards on 49 carries and four touchdowns.

A two-way player, Weaver was credited with 76 tackles, 49 of which were solo, at middle linebacker this season. He was also awarded the program's Defensive Award.

Drew Coursey and Jordan Kelly shared the team's Most-Improved-Player award.

Wearing #2 this season, Kelly, a 5-foot-10 wide receiver and strong safety, finished his only season of varsity football with 18 tackles and one interception.

Jordan Kelly, one of this year's two Most-Improved-Players, runs a pass route against visiting St. Thomas More. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Coursey, who earned his stripes in his first season of varsity football this year, led SJO in sacks with three. The outside linebacker had 26 stops, including four solo tackles and seven total in the Spartans' 33-13 road loss to the Hawks of Prairie Central.

The Special Teams Award went to senior Payton Cain. Like Coursey and Kelly, this was his first and only varsity football season. The senior returned 16 kickoffs. Averaging 31.1 yards per return, he amassed 498 yards this season.

In SJO's home game against Pontiac on September 27, he ran one of his two punt returns back 66 yards - a career best - and another one for 19 yards.

Towering 6-foot-4, 235 pounds, Blake Dable bagged the SJO Lineman Award.

In the five games he played on defense, Dable was credited with 15 tackles and two sacks, one against Unity and the other against Rantoul in week 2. On offense, Dable was key to opening up holes for the backfield and a solid wall protecting quarterback Crayton Burnett this season.

Sophomore Hayden Brazelton received the Scout Team Award.

Senior varsity lettermen: Ross Booker, Payton Cain, Trevon Carr, Max Chatterton, Brendan Cooperider, Drew Coursey, Blake Dable, Tristan Fuqua, Conner Hodge, Chance Izard, Jordan Kelly, Chayce Livingston, Jaden Miller, Blake Primmer, Luke Renfrew, Jarrett Stevenson, Brodie Sullivan, Brayden Weaver, and Sam Wesley.

Junior varsity lettermen: Crayton Burnett, Brady Buss, John Michael Ehmen, Zach Martinie, Xander Rieches and Max Shonkwiler.

Sophomore varsity lettermen: Coby Miller, Jett Morris, Keaton Nolan, and Ethan Vanliew.

Freshman varsity lettermen: Ty Pence

173 students earn High Honor Roll honors at SJO

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St. Joseph-Ogden's Justyn Frisby moves the ball down the field during his team's home game against St. Thomas More on September 13, 2018. Frisby was one of 173 SJO students to be recognized for their scholastic achievement during the second quarter of this academic year. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

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One hundred and seventy-three students received recognition for their exceptional scholastic achievement at St. Joseph-Ogden High School this week. Forty freshmen, 39 sophomores, 48 juniors and 46 seniors made the High Honors list after the second quarter this academic year.

Students recognized for high honors earned GPAs of 3.75 or higher on a 4.0 scale.

Another 98 students from the combined four classes secured GPAs of 3.25 to 3.74 to be listed on this quarter's honor roll.

St. Joseph-Ogden High School was one of 22 Illinois school districts was named to the 9th Annual AP District Honor Roll. The District Honor Roll is awarded to school districts that increase the number of students and advanced placement classes in combination with student performance on AP Exams. More than 370 schools in the United States and Canada were named to this year's list.

 

High Honor Roll

Freshmen: Addison Allen, Kailyn Anderson, Madison Atwood, Abigail Behrens, Ella Besson, Brandie Bowlin, Mara Burkhalter, Kennedi Burnett, Angela Chahine, Braden Clampitt, Anastasia Conerty, Deanna Cummins, Benjamin Cunningham, Sidney Davis, Zander Dressen, Ashley Eldridge, Jared Emmert, Hannah Fox, Brennan Haake, Liam Hamer, Lauren Harper, Anthony Hoang, Claire Huffman, Payton Jacob, Alison Kearney, Ava Knap, Kelsey Martlage, Sophia McDade, Coby Miller, Conrad Miller, Elijah Mock, Nathaniel Nosler, Jessica Palmer, Emma Parkinson, Hope Rajlich, Taryn Sexton, Alyssa Shoviak, Luke Stegall, Rebecca Steinbach and Mackenzie Trame.

Sophomores: Isabelle Brooks, Crayton Burnett, Josh Buttjer, David Bytnar, Taylor Campbell, Kylie Duckett, Hanna Eastin, Emily Fisher, Dakota Franzen, Alex Frerichs, Emily Froman, Atleigh Hamilton, Emmy Houston, Lukas Hutcherson, Logan Ingram, Shelby Kofoot, Ethan Lane, Aiden Livesay, Alyssa Maddock, Tyson Madsen, Sophia Martlage, Flannery McCorkle, Garren Meeker, Abigail Moberg, Samantha Naylor, Alec Painter, Erin Patton, Aidan Roberts, Indira Robinson, Kayleigh Roedl, Mazie Ronk, Evan Schmitz, Max Shonkwiler, Tessa Smith, Payton Vallee, Nora Walden, Brayden Wendt, Rachel Wilson and Logan Wolfersberger.

Juniors: Lindsey Aden, Jenna Albrecht, Mallory Ames, Taylor Barnes, Katelyn Berry, Emily Bigger, Kaylee Blackburn, Ginny Bytnar, Payton Cain, Trevon Carr, Kristen Costa, Drew Coursey, Kathryn Cramer, Andrea Cunningham, Faith Dahman, Hannah Dukeman, Asjah Fonner, Jaiden Freeman, Bode Gebbink, Payton Grimsley, Lucas Grindley, Erica Guelfi, Emily Hardimon, Chance Izard, Cody Johnston, Lacey Kaiser, Danielle Kelso, Eliza Lewis, Nathan Maier, Sara Milioli, Ava Mills, Carson Mills, Allison Monk, Alivia Norem, Taddy Pettit, Eric Poe, Hannah Rajlich, Lexi Ribbe, Jenna Schaefer, Joshua Sexton, Rylee Stahl, Kenly Taylor, Stephanie Trame, Anna Tranel, Isabelle Vliet, Madie Warfel, Brayden Weaver and Samuel Wesley.

Seniors: Sullivan Alwes, Gage Atwood, Cassidy Bagby, Erin Beyers, Nicholas Boggs, Joel Branson, Brooke Butorac, Rebecca Campbell, Kayla Cañas, Daniel Carlson, Sarah Chahine, David Cummins, Emmy Daniels, Liam Davis, Abigail Dunham, Avery Edwards, Nathan Emmert, Emory Ericksen, Jasmine Febus, Michael Foreman, Emilie Fox, Adam Frerichs, Justyn Frisby, Rachel Gherna, Mikayla Harshbarger, Zachary Hill, Kalli Ingram, Kenny Lahners, Hannah Lewis, Nathan Logan, Caroline Moore, Eve Owens, Benjamin Reitmeier, Adam Rose, Madison Rubin, Abigail Schlueter, Elizabeth Schluter, Samantha Schmidt, Benjamin Setterdahl, Jacob Shaw, Kaitlin Shoviak, Grant Siegmund, Rylee Sjuts, Brianna Suits, Maclayne Taylor and Nathan Walden.

Honor Roll

Freshmen: Tyler Altenbaumer, Ella Armstrong, Alanna Bensyl, Andrew Beyers, Allison Burnett, Zella Fuqua, Hailey Gaines, Avian Gerdes, Alyssa Hamilton, Kailyn Ingram, KayLeigh Kamphaus, Olivia Klotz, Ashlyn Lannert, Jacey Lewis, Madelyn Mabry, Braden MeElroy, Ava Meyer, Jett Morris, Keaton Nolan, Jackson Place, Jonathan Poulter, JoLeena Reynolds, Kendra Riddle, Griffin Roesch, Grace Schmitz, Ethan Vanliew, Karsten Wayland and Taylor Wells.

Sophomores: Haven Atwood, Brady Buss, Raegan Crippen, Sarah Dow, Makayla Duckwitz, Jacob Dwyer, Nadirah Edwards, Bella Getty, Carter Huffman, Cailer Kellenberger, Spencer Lahners, Alyssa Lynch, Brandon Mattsey, Brianna Reifsteck, Jackson Rydell, Lauren Trankina and Mitchell Whitlock

Juniors: Kendall Ayers, Kolton Batty, Hailey Birt, Ross Booker, Erin Bridgewater, Brendan Cooperider, Bailey Dowling, Clayton Frederick, Tristan Fuqua, Ethan Hinrichs, Conner Hodge, Julia Kaiser, Keegan McCarty, Mason McLain, Nolan Peacock, Dyllan Price and Brodie Sullivan.

Seniors: Kaylee Blanchard, Makayla Buskirk, Ripley Campbell, Aiden Coon, Amanda Craddock, Ashtyn Cromwell, Peyton Crowe, Chloe Duckett, Cole Franzen, Katilyn Hess, Michelle Jervis, Jake Juday, Sally Manalo, Kyler Master, Keely McCorkle, Isiah McCune, Erinn Miller, Ryan Miller, Megan Mitchell, Joel Orcutt, Angela Palmer, Reid Patton, Raymond Plotner, Adam Porter, Kathryn Poulter, Joseph Rajlich, Annelise Rhoads, Libby Rowland, Clare Smith, Savannah Smith, Isabella Spisok, Dillon Uken, Jack Ward, Seth Wedig, Alyssa Whitlock and Cole Zaccarelli.

Homecoming success! Spartans shutout Indians

After the final horn sounded, the Spartan football team along with student fans and cheerleaders celebrated their homecoming victory reciting, with enthusiasm, the school song. St. Joseph-Ogden picked up win number four after beating the Pontiac Indians 19-0 on Friday.

The shutout was the first for SJO since joining the Illini Prairie Conference. The last time the Spartans recorded one was nearly three years ago in a 44-0 rout over Rantoul on September 30 back in 2016. It was also the first time since their conference alliance St. Joseph-Ogden walked away from one of their gridiron confrontation with the Indians, who by the way led the series 2-0 until this weekend, victorious.

Spartan running back Brayden Weaver is wrapped up by Pontiac's Kodi Davis and Payton Cramer during on of his three touches against the Indians. Weaver was limited to 12 yards on the ground and 1-yard catch on Friday. Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

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The St. Joseph-Ogden defense rained havoc on the Indians (1-4), who started three freshman on the offensive line due to early season injuries to veteran players. Offensively, the defensive unit held the visitors to just 145 yards on the ground and an even 100 in the air.

"I think our defense is really starting to figure it out," said head coach Shawn Skinner. "They play well together. They play hard. Coach (Bob) Glazier does a great job with them."

Heading into week six, St. Joseph-Ogden has the second best defense in the league allowing just 43 points. Unity remains number one with 24.

"We've kind of figured out what our identity is," Skinner said. "We are a pretty good defensive team and we have guys who can make plays on special teams. We've got to some how, some way, shore up our offense."

He added: "We've got to do a better job on the offensive side of paying attention to detail."

SJO's offensive effort started off with a bang.

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He is an electric kid. He can make plays. You saw his speed."

~ Head coach Shawn Skinner

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The Spartans lit their half the scoreboard the earliest they have all season when Crayton Burnett unloaded floater into the outstretched arms of Brady Buss for 62-yard touchdown pass. The PAT was good, giving SJO a 7-0 lead with the elapse of just a minute and 37 seconds off the play clock.

Other than a couple of flashes of greatness, the offense stuttered and sputtered the rest of the evening.

"We made that big play at the beginning of the game, (then) our passing game kind of slowed down a little bit," said Burnett, who connected on seven of his 18 pass attempts for 120 yards. "I just got to hit my open receivers when I can."

Friday night's offensive potency is stark contrast from the season opener with St. Thomas More and the following game against Rantoul where SJO posted 24 first downs against the Sabers and 20 on the road against the Eagles. For the second consecutive week, the Spartans was held to just eight first downs the entire game.

Not satisfied and confident that his team will work toward play at their potential, Burnett added: "Once we can get our offense to the level we want it to be, we can be really good."

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks Racing past a pair of Pontiac defenders, Brady Buss makes a 68-yard touchdown run on a punt return electrifying Spartan fans and giving his team a 13-0 advantage.

St. Joseph-Ogden put another six on the board after forcing Pontiac to punt the ball away early in the second quarter. Brady Buss hauled the ball in and zipped down the visitor's sidelines for a 68-yard touchdown.

"He is an electric kid. He can make plays. You saw his speed," Skinner said. He praised his special teams coach for moving Buss into one of the two return slots. "Coach (Marshall) Schacht made that move two weeks ago. It was a great move by him. He is a threat for us."

The extra point attempt failed giving the Spartans a precarious 13-0 lead at halftime.

After a scoreless third quarter, the St. Joseph-Ogden offense marched the ball down the field in the fourth setting up a 4-yard touchdown courtesy of Jarrett Stevenson.

In his first game back after a two-week recover from an injury sustained against the Rantoul Eagles, Stevenson added 52 yards to bring his season rushing total to 324. He was happy to be back in pads and contributing.

"It's incredible stepping back on here with my brothers," he said. "It's great."

However, Stevenson was brutally honest about his performance in the first half.

"I played the worse first half of my life," he said. "I came back in the second half and enjoyed myself. I was able to run and get off that rust that I had."

Improving to 4-1, SJO needs just one more win to be playoff eligible for an at-large bid and another to guarantee themselves a spot in the IHSA postseason. Next Friday's road game at Prairie Central is critical in that regard and the coaching staff impressed upon the players the importance of practice in the week ahead.

The path to the playoff presents bigger obstacles on the Spartans' schedule after this Friday. IVC, undefeated at 5-0, and Monticello, last year's Class 3A state champions and in three-way tie for second in the conference with SJO and Unity, stand in the way.

But first, the team will enjoy the weekend homecoming gaiety.

"It's a good feeling. (I) definitely feel good about this win and will enjoy it," said senior lineman Conner Hodge. "Come Monday (we're) ready to work."

Adapt, improvise and they'll overcome, SJO can win on Saturday

Above: SJO senior Jordan Hartman celebrates his 12-yard tackle-for-a-loss on Williamsville during their 2013 home playoff game. The Spartans, after shutting out Monticello 35-0 in their second round game, won the contest after a thrilling 38-26 finish. The Spartans would win the next game and advance to the state title game in DeKalb against Stillman Valley. Below: Dylan Koss celebrates the Spartans' win with assistant coach Marshall Schacht. This weekend the pair will coach together hoping to beat the Bullets and advance to week 2 of the playoffs. (Photos: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

By conventional wisdom, the #15 seeded St. Joseph-Ogden football team faces improbable odds of winning their first-round Class 3A game on the road this Saturday. Facing the undefeated #2 seed Williamsville at Paul Jenkins Field the Bullets have a high-powered offense that has produced touchdowns, lots of them, both on the ground and in the air all season long.

In their nine games so far, thanks to the efforts of two college caliber players and supportive cast of able-bodied linemen, the team averages an impressive 48 points/game.

Against Pittsfield (1-8) back on October 18, quarterback Connor McCormick went 10-for-10 in passing, good for 178 years and four touchdown. Williamsville ran the score up to win, 55-14.

The other marquee player the Spartans have to contain is Grant Ripperda. Listed at 5 feet 10 and 210 pounds, he was a state-qualifier in wrestling back in February and is quick enough at his size to run on 4x2 and 4x4 squads in track. In Williamsville's away contest at Auburn on September 13, Ripperda scored on a 6-yard run in the first quarter and he then preceded tack on three more TDs in the second. He finished the night out with 145 yards on 14 carries in Bullet's 34-17 victory.

In the same game, McCormick passed for 240 yards on a 15-for-22 effort and produced one touchdown during the regular season Sangamo Conference game.

The Spartans must also contend with a stingy defense that has held opposing offenses to two or less scores in seven of their nine regular season contests. North Mac (5-4) was able to break the barrier with three and Maroa-Forsyth (8-1) scored six times. In both cases, both teams suffered losses contributing to Williamsville's perfect season so far.

There is only one way to shutdown a versatile, high-powered high school offense like Williamsville. It's called a blizzard.

Remember 2015 semifinal game in Tolono when SJO had a similar offense, touting a 12-0 record, that would have easily advanced to the 3A title game had it not been for that unexpected, early season snowstorm with blizzard like conditions that put two inches of slush on the ground between the goal post at Hicks Field.

In 2015 when SJO faced the Unity Rockets on the road in the infamous Class 3A 'Blizzard Bowl' semifinal. See the Big Picture special edition from the game here . . . . (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

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In more favorable conditions, the Spartans could have aired out the ball all day long against the Rockets had it not been for the sustained 20+ mph breeze out of the northwest. Freezing cold along with ankle deep muck made up of snow, wet grass and mud kept the SJO ground game in check. Throwing the ball against the variable wind direction and unexpected gusts, wasn't the answer.

Unity prevailed 30-8 in that contest ending the chance for St. Joseph-Ogden's first-ever back-to-back state championship game appearances.

That one hurt the Spartans, but Mama Nature has also been generous to SJO.

According to football alumnus Nathan Buss, St. Joseph-Ogden was #15 seed or so back during the 91-92 season. With the help of a blizzard on game day, the Spartans won their first-round game.

"We played Casey-Westfield at home," he said in a social media post. "They had to plow the out of bounds and 5-yard markers."

SJO narrowly won the game, 8-6.

"We had a punt return for a TD and a 2pt conversation," Buss wrote. "Didn’t have a lineman weighing over 200 pounds!!! Killer Dwarves !!! And a Sophomore QB! Hell of a year!!!"

After last Friday's loss to Monticello, head coach Shawn Skinner had a little trouble coming up with good things to say about the game. Despite that, he was happy that his team and coaching staff has one more game to prepare for this week.

"When the kids come in Monday, what they are going to understand is they are going to be excited and not going to have to leave with this being the last one they have in their mouth all off season," Skinner said last Friday. "They have another opportunity to fix this."

Short of divine interference from Mother Nature, the key to St. Joseph-Ogden advancing to the second round is playing smart, ball-control football.

"All we have to do is figure out how to go one and O next week," Skinner said. "That's what it's about. No matter who the matchup is we have another opportunity to play and that's good."

Brady Buss sheds one tackler and looks for more pasture while carrying the ball in the Spartans last regular season game for 2019. The Spartans (5-4) earned a first-round bid against 9-0 Williamsville. Game time is set for 1p on Saturday. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

There are four things Skinner & Co. need to reach that goal.

First, they can take a hint from Maroa-Forsyth (8-1), who nearly beat the Bullets in their week 4 game. The Trojans up on the scoreboard 41-37 late in the fourth quarter, the Bullets needed a score to win. With less than two minutes on the clock, they crafted a successful final drive for the go-ahead score and a 43-41 victory.

The takeaway is Maroa ran 71 plays and averaged seven yards per carry against the Bullets. If the Spartans can yield a little more than half that number, they will be in the position to hand out the upset the Trojans didn't. Pick up four yards per play, and SJO can be a close game.

That means coaches have to come up with some creative methods to keep the Williamsville's offense off the field and wear down their defense, which is stacked with a lot of one-way players. That won't be easy.

Jarrett Stevenson, Coby Miller and Keaton Nolan will have their work cut out for them on Saturday. However, if they can grind out those four yards on every play - nothing big, nothing fancy - they will set SJO up handsomely for the first playoff victory in the Skinner era.

Second, the offensive linemen need to become pesky gnats and force Williamsville defenders into longer engagements. The first two games of the season, SJO blocking was grade A. Opposing defenders were kept out of the play longer by Max Chatterton, Blake Dable and Conner Hodge. That allowed Stevenson to put up solid rushing numbers in those contests.

The O-line has to keep the Bullet defenders busy fighting them off longer. The 'bump and quit' will not create scoring opportunities for the SJO run or passing game. Blocking to the whistle will be key.

Third on the list, the Spartans need to capitalize on their strength as a team. St. Joseph-Ogden players are quick-thinkers, possess a combination of speed and strength, and are tenacious competitors.

The challenge for the coaching staff is to find a weakness in Williamsville's casings and exploit it using the talent they have. The bigger and strong guy doesn't win all the time. The odds are on their side, but usually it is the smarter - and there are some intelligent student-athletes at SJO, faster and most tenacious guy who wins. If coaches and can rapidly adapt, improvise and overcome as the game wears on, SJO could playing yet one more week.

Finally, the players on the sidelines must to feed the beasts on grass.

The surefire way to tell which team is going to win a football game, with 92.4% accuracy (that's the author's estimation and not exact science), is pay attention to the athletes not on the field. Players standing on the sidelines of really good teams are cheering for their teammates. They slapping pads, butting helmets and handing water when players come out. On E-V-E-R-Y play they are supplying their fellow beasts with a continuous flow of positive energy to get the job done. Those teams win almost every S-I-N-G-L-E time.