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Sacred Heart-Griffin's rebound, Decatur MacArthur's phenom top Week 2 takeaways

Bill Welt, Ryan Mahan and Trevor Lawrence, Springfield State Journal- Register
·6 min read

Here are the Springfield area's Week 2 takeaways of the 2023 high school football season.

SHG gambles pay dividends

Two fourth-down calls from first-year head coach John Allison led to touchdowns as Sacred Heart-Griffin defeated Normal U-High 35-17 at Ken Leonard Field in the Central State Eight Conference.

Leonard, the retired SHG coach and all-time wins leader in Illinois, officially handed over the reins to Allison in a small ceremony before the game. Trailing 3-0 in the first quarter and facing a fourth-and-goal at the 5, Allison put the ball in the hands of his senior quarterback, and Levi Hanauer scored on a keeper to the right side to give the Cyclones a 7-3 lead.

In the third quarter with SHG clinging to a 15-9 lead, Allison again called on Hanauer to deliver on a fourth-and-4 and the QB completed a pass for a first down to Josh McClain. Christian Pollard, who finished with 70 rushing yards, scored from 1 yard out and SHG went ahead 21-9.

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Hanauer completed 11 of 17 passes and his 14-yard touchdown pass to Seamus O'Brien on a slant in the fourth quarter ended the game's scoring. Pollard had a big 56-yard run that led to SHG's first score, and Allison showed some confidence in his offense after getting off to a slow start.

The Cyclones fumbled the opening kickoff and Hanauer also fumbled in the first quarter. But SHG's defense had three interceptions — the second takeaway was returned 20 yards for a touchdown by Bryce Kraft — that gave the Cyclones a 28-9 advantage in the third period.

The special teams also recorded a safety and sophomore back Khorbin Gregory had a 1-yard TD run in the second quarter as SHG avoided its first 0-2 start since 1999.

Sacred Heart-Griffin head coach John Allison speaks to players at the end of the first official day of practice at Ken Leonard Field on Monday, August 7, 2023.
Sacred Heart-Griffin head coach John Allison speaks to players at the end of the first official day of practice at Ken Leonard Field on Monday, August 7, 2023.

Illini recruit is a generational talent

JACKSONVILLE — Decatur MacArthur phenom Myson Johnson-Cook is as good as advertised.

The freshman running back totaled 152 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries in a heartbreaking 35-34 Central State Eight Conference loss at Jacksonville on Friday.

He debuted with 230 rushing yards and three touchdowns on just five attempts in a 50-0 Week 1 win over Southeast and already touts an offer from Illinois.

Senior QB Cameron France adds to MacArthur’s dynamic offense. He also ran for 152 yards and one TD while completing 4 of 9 passing attempts for 93 yards and one score in the loss to the Crimsons.

In other words, Johnson-Cook and France combined for 304 of the team’s 307 rushing yards. Nahjir Woods had two catches for 71 yards and a score as well.

“He’s special,” Jacksonville coach Mark Grounds, when asked about Johnson-Cook. “If people in Jacksonville have never seen what an eighth grader that’s been offered a Power 5 scholarship looks like, they saw him tonight. He’s everything that they advertised.”

Jacksonville’s Moore back in the saddle

JACKSONVILLE — Jacksonville senior quarterback Mani Moore said he previously quarterbacked as a freshman on the sophomore team.

He later switched to wingback because of IHSFCA all-stater Elijah Owens, who now plays at Indiana State University.

Moore wound up with 28 carries for 413 yards and six TDs last season while current senior tailback Cam’Ron Mitchell was second in the CS8 with 844 rushing yards and eight TDs.

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He has so far led the Crimsons to a 2-0 start despite being just 5-foot-8.

Against MacArthur, he rushed for 86 yards and two scores while throwing for another TD to DaShawn Armstrong.

“He’s gotten better each week,” Grounds said. “He has unbelievable leadership. We told people to not fall asleep on his throwing. He hit some big throws at critical times for us. He ran the ball well when we needed to and made good decisions in the option. He’s a leader first and foremost.”

Moore rolled out to his right and connected with Armstrong for the 46-yard TD pass in the first quarter.

“I can’t really see (over the line),” Moore said, “but I got to make it work and look through the gaps and see where to throw the ball.”

Is Pana now the favorite in the South Central?

CARLINVILLE — Pana's two-year run atop the South Central Conference seemed precarious headed into the 2023 season after graduating most of its top producers from the back-to-back championship teams.

With just six seniors, including one who didn't play last year and another who was injured and unable to play on Friday, Pana was relying on many new faces and opening the season with two teams competing for the SCC title.

After the Panthers' Week 1 46-34 win against Vandalia, they had to travel to Carlinville for a Week 2 matchup. Pana rebounded from a scoreless first half, forced two second-half turnovers and scored four times to upset the Cavaliers 30-20 on Friday.

"I love being the underdog and it’s two weeks in a row we’ve proved people wrong; we plan to keep on doing it," said Pana's Cole File, a senior receiver who caught two touchdown passes from quarterback Wyatt Kile.

Pana faces another unbeaten league foe in Week 3 when it hosts Piasa Southwestern, which sealed a 27-21 win over Litchfield with an interception in the end zone with 51.9 seconds left on Friday.

Pana's Brayden Carlson drives into the end zone for a 2 point conversion during the game against Carlinville Friday, Sept. 1, 2023.
Pana's Brayden Carlson drives into the end zone for a 2 point conversion during the game against Carlinville Friday, Sept. 1, 2023.

"Having a young team and having to face Vandalia and Carlinville in Week 1 and Week 2, you just don’t know what’s going to happen at the beginning of the year," Pana coach Trevor Higgins said. "You could tell again in the first half we were just a little off here, a little off there — a couple of missed blocks, a misplaced ball or a dropped ball — from really getting our offense to click.

"What I’m real proud of is we go into halftime, make a few adjustments and try to widen them out defensively and you just come out in the second half and start rolling. To come back and believe in yourselves as young as we are, to do that early, that’s special. As we keep going, hopefully we just continue to get better and better."

Greenville beat Hillsboro 27-7 on Friday to join Pana and Southwestern as the three unbeaten SCC teams. Carlinville travels to Vandalia in Week 3 as the two preseason conference favorites battle to avoid a 1-2 start.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: IHSA football: Top takeaways from around Springfield for Week 2