Rochester's rugged D, Sacred Heart-Griffin's surge top Week 3 takeaways in the SJ-R area

Here are the Springfield area's top takeaways for Week 3 of the 2023 high school football season.

Binion energizes Rochester defense

The Rochester defense upped its interception total to eight following a 49-21 Central State Eight Conference victory over Decatur MacArthur at the Stephen Decatur Middle School’s athletic field on Friday.

Senior linebacker Tyson Binion not only had a hand in both of the INTs against the Generals but also ushered two sacks.

“Tyson’s an animal,” senior defensive end Lance Ingold said. “When he gets mad, he turns into a different person.”

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Binion came down with Ingold’s deflection in the first quarter before assisting Parker Lyons’ diving INT with a pass breakup in the next stanza.

“We have a lot of good linebackers and he’s just another one of those seniors who’s just a heck of a football player,” Rochester football coach Derek Leonard said. “These guys are just taking turns right now — all of these seniors — on who has a big game. I think it was Tyson’s tonight and they played awesome.”

General frustration, for now

MacArthur just might be one of the best teams around the state at 1-2.

The Generals dropped a rollicking — and controversial — 35-34 CS8 loss at Jacksonville in Week 2 before meeting the 4A top-ranked Rockets.

MacArthur didn’t show any hangover and perhaps appeared even stronger against a more formidable opponent.

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Freshman phenom running back Myson Johnson-Cook’s 66-yard TD run shaved the deficit 21-7 at the start of the third quarter before finishing with 93 rushing yards on 10 attempts.

A Tyson Binion sack on a pivotal fourth down near the red zone thwarted more drama from building on MacArthur’s next possession, at least at the moment.

Nahjir Woods returned an electrifying 90-yard kickoff return the distance to trail just 28-14 with 2 minutes left.

Rochester responded with a flurry, however.

MacArthur visits Normal U-High next with possible major playoff implications for both teams. The Pioneers (2-1) are coming off a 42-26 win over Southeast.

Crimsons' backup QBs need time to get up to speed

There wasn't much for Jacksonville's fans to cheer about when the Crimsons were on offense in Friday's 51-10 Central State Eight Conference loss to Sacred Heart-Griffin at Kraushaar-Rosenberger Field.

Jacksonville's quarterback Mani Moore was injured and missed the rest of the game on the Crimsons' opening drive. Jacksonville went from three first downs on the team's first five offensive snaps to one more the rest of the game following Moore's hip injury. He was seen on the sideline icing down his hip.

Meanwhile, Jacksonville coach Mark Grounds turned to Braden Hutchison for two series before wide receiver Crucifixio Mitchell was asked to take over behind center. Mitchell was 1-for-2 for 10 yards passing — Jacksonville's lone completion — but just missed a receiver on a deep throw down the SHG sideline in the third quarter.

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Grounds said the offense's struggles without Moore weren't just a byproduct of not having the 5-foot-8 senior QB. At one time, the QB competition between Moore and Mitchell was neck-and-neck.

"It was a close race during the summer then we figured that (Mitchell) needed to play defense and wide receiver," Grounds said. "Mani kind of grew into the role at quarterback. (Mitchell) doesn’t have a lot of live game reps at (quarterback) at the varsity level — some mop-up duty last year but in mop-up duty, you’re real basic.

"He can throw and his skill set is different than Mani’s skill set. We’re going to force people to have to prepare for some different things and having a week to get those guys ready to be the varsity starter instead of the varsity backup is a huge, huge difference. You can give them some reps in practice — and you do — but game-ready reps are a different thing. We’ve got a long week ahead of us with Rochester; it doesn’t get any easier with the two best teams in the league back-to-back and we’re down people. It’s next man up."

Jacksonville (2-1) travels to Rochester to take on the undefeated Rockets (3-0) on Friday at 7 p.m.

Cyclones still scratching the surface

SHG's 579 yards of offense in a 41-point win at Jacksonville on Friday should've sent notice around the league that the 2022 Class 4A state champs aren't going away, despite heavy graduation losses and a Week 1 defeat at Normal Community.

Senior quarterback Levi Hanauer found four different receivers for 347 yards and completed 17 of 24 passes. SHG's run game accumulated 205 yards, led by Christian Pollard's 85 yards and five touchdowns on 14 carries.

"I feel like we’re all getting a lot better," Hanauer said. "Those guys made it real easy out there tonight, like Seamus (O'Brien) — all the rest of our receivers, I can trust all of them to make the plays. My line, I just had a ton of time out there. We can throw the ball to anyone and I trust all those guys to come down and make a play. It feels good knowing I’ve got guys out there that can make plays."

O'Brien, who had six catches for 128 yards and a touchdown, said the Cyclones (2-1 overall, 2-0 Central State Eight Conference) still have plenty of room for growth, too.

"We all believe we can be even better, if not one of the greatest teams SHG has ever had," O'Brien said. "We all love each other; we all play together and I think we are as confident as can be right now. But we’re going to keep our pride, we’re going to keep going and not talk much."

SHG coach John Allison said as far as the Cyclones have come, experience will continue the upward trajectory.

"We’re progressing. There were some guys early on who just weren’t ready yet," Allison said. "We do a lot of hard things with route adjustments and some of those guys, we couldn’t just roll out there and give them the full gamut of things to do Week 1.

"You’re just starting to see that happen a little bit more and this is still Levi’s third game and the more games he plays, the more the game slows down for him, the more he can take time pre-snap to look at his pre-snap reads. I hope he’s even better than this Weeks 6, 7 and 8."

Athens linebackers stand strong

Stanford Olympia nearly toppled Class 2A No. 4 Athens but ultimately dropped 14-6 in Sangamo Conference action.

That wasn’t a fluke by any means.

The Spartans, now 2-1, bowed to 3A state runnerup Williamsville 42-21 in the quarterfinals last season and returned 10 starters all together, six playing both ways. Nic Olson led Olympia with 95 rushing yards.

They host Williamsville (3-0) in Week 4. The 3A No. 2 Bullets dispatched Pittsfield 49-13.

Athens (3-0) ultimately withstood the Spartans in a traditional dogfight.

Senior linebacker Brayden Leathers starred with 13 tackles, including one for loss, while also forcing and recovering a fumble. Senior linebacker Cory Craig Jr., who rushed for 114 yards and one score, pitched in seven tackles.

Senior defensive back Grant Purchis had eight tackles while junior defensive back Davis Ishmael forced and recovered a fumble.

Athens held on for the win after Craig’s 14-yard TD run with 9:02 left in the third quarter.

Nelson strikes again for New Berlin

New Berlin junior Clark Nelson is a special teams dynamo.

He scored his second kickoff return for a TD in the Pretzels’ 56-6 Sangamo Conference win over Riverton to improve to 1-2.

Nelson went the distance 65 yards in the first quarter following Hayden Surratt’s safety for a 29-0 advantage.

Nelson started the season with a bang. He returned the opening kickoff 80 yards in a 20-13 loss to Auburn in Week 1.

Buzzsaw over for Plains

Pleasant Plains (0-3) opened the season with losses against 2A No. 1 Maroa-Forsyth (63-13), 2A No. 4 Athens (63-21) and a third potential playoff team, Auburn (48-21).

The Cardinals’ next three opponents — Petersburg PORTA, Riverton and Pittsfield — have a combined 0-9 record.

Plains previously started the season 0-3 before ending the year 4-5. The rest of the schedule includes Olympia (2-1), Williamsville (3-0) and New Berlin (1-2).

Senior QB Danny Skelton can certainly carry the Cardinals to the playoffs but the defense needs to tighten up. Skelton completed 18 of 34 passes for 124 yards and one INT while rushing for 43 yards and two scores in the loss to Auburn.

Taylorville rolls to hot start

Junior QB Baron Odam and a stout defense has sparked Taylorville back to life.

The Tornadoes, who previously went 2-7 last season, improved to 3-0 with a 15-0 nonconference win over host Columbia.

Odam threw a 29-yard TD pass to Finn Niemann for a 7-0 lead in the first quarter before Thomas Gettings punched in a 2-yard TD run in the second frame.

The defense has allowed 6.3 points per game in its sterling start. That includes a 41-6 opening win over Olney Richland County and a 35-13 win over Robinson.

Taylorville next welcomes Mount Zion (3-0) in a pivotal Apollo Conference opener for both teams.

Panthers rally to 3-0 SCC start

With a minute to go in a 22-22 game, Pana's Isaiah Harbert caught a 7-yard pass in the flat from quarterback Wyatt Kile to score the game-winning touchdown in the Panthers' 30-22 win over Piasa Southwestern in a South Central Conference game of unbeatens.

Harbert scored the two-point conversion on a reverse for the final score. Pana trailed 22-16 earlier in the fourth quarter.

It was an euphoric finish to what Pana coach Trevor Higgins said was a "frustrating" performance.

"It definitely was a very frustrating game," Higgins said. "We got dominated up front, which is disappointing for us because that's what we pride ourselves on so far this year. A lot of film to watch, a lot of things to correct but being a young team being 3-0, we'll take it."

Pana took an 8-0 lead in the first quarter after senior running back Jamarion Cobbins, who was out for the Panthers' Week 2 win at Carlinville after suffering a concussion in Week 1 against Vandalia, hit junior tight end Kamden Brown with a half-back pass for a touchdown. Cobbins took the sweep and then found Brown to kick-start the Panthers' win.

Later in the game, though, Cobbins dislocated his shoulder and left the game. His status is unknown for the Panthers' Week 4 game at North Mac (1-2).

"He's a difference-maker," Higgins said of Cobbins.

Parity abounds in SCC

Pana and Greenville remain tied atop the South Central Conference at 3-0, but just barely.

The Panthers have now won by an average of 10 points in their first three games. That includes key wins over Vandalia and Carlinville.

Vandalia senior QB Andrew Kelly ignited with four TD runs and three TD passes in a 47-22 SCC win over Carlinville to improve to 2-1 and stay in the league race.

Staunton and Litchfield picked up their first wins against a pair of playoff teams from last year. Staunton knocked off Hillsboro 35-21 while Litchfield thumped North Mac 42-21.

Greenville walloped Gillespie 33-0. The Comets draw Litchfield in Week 4 before visiting Pana in Week 5.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: IHSA football: Top takeaways from around Springfield for Week 3