Football: Week 3 MVPs
Here are the Daily Herald's choices for Most Valuable Players of Week 3 of the high school football season.
Offensive MVP:Matt Randolph, Naperville Central #8212; Randolph ran wild in a 48-7 DuPage Valley Conference win over Glenbard East. The 6-foot-1, 215-pound senior running back plowed for 271 yards on 24 carries and accounted for 6 touchdowns in a little more than a half of play. Randolph rushed for scores of 1, 22, 5, 3 and 55 yards and caught a 24-yard touchdown pass.
Offensive runners-up:Ray Beckman, Grayslake Central #8212; Beckman gave 'em heck, man. The Rams' 6-foot-5 quarterback threw 4 touchdown passes in a game for the second time this season in a 34-0 win over host Hampshire. Beckman completed a pair of TD strikes to both Joey Valdivia and Jon Gurchak, finishing 10-of-17 passing for 182 yards as the Rams improved to 3-0.
Drew David, Kaneland #8212; The sophomore quarterback has Kaneland's offense rolling, already with 11 touchdown passes through three games. The 5-foot-11, 165-pounder completed 15 of 27 passes for 274 yards in a 59-14 nonconference win over Dixon. David threw touchdown passes of 56, 14, 16, 6 and 25 yards without throwing an interception.
Chase Murdock, Barrington #8212; Chasing down Murdock is no easy task. The Barrington senior proved it again in last Friday's 28-19 victory at Hersey as he rebounded from a hamstring injury to rush for 248 yards and 3 touchdowns on 35 carries. His 46-yard touchdown run in the final two minutes sealed the victory for the Broncos.
Brad Walovitch, Crystal Lake South #8212; This 5-foot-11, 185-pound senior made the two biggest plays in Crystal Lake South's 10-7 victory over rival Cary-Grove. In a game defined by defense and special teams, the wide receiver hauled in a 32-yard pass to set up the Gators' only touchdown. With 6.1 seconds remaining Walovitch booted a 51-yard field goal to provide the winning margin.
Defensive MVP:Jorge Venegas, Round Lake #8212; The Panthers won a game, by Jorge. The senior linebacker helped his team snap its 26-game North Suburban Prairie losing streak by spearheading a defensive effort that blanked Wauconda's high-powered offense in the second half. He had 11 tackles, including four for loss (2 sacks), and forced 3 fumbles, as the Panthers prevailed 17-14.
Defensive runners-up:Nick Andreucetti, Bartlett #8212; This 6-foot, 180-pound junior linebacker pulled down 2 interceptions to help the Hawks defeat Waubonsie Valley 27-20 in a battle between teams that tied for the UEC Valley Division title a year ago. Andreucetti also made 2 tackles and defended 2 passes.
Dejan Basara, Elk Grove #8212; Everything Basara did on offense, defense and special teams added up to Elk Grove's special 24-18 overtime victory over Fremd. The senior had 5 tackles, 2 tackles for losses, 3 quarterback hurries and a pass breakup at linebacker. He threw for 187 yards, rushed for 75 and the game-winning touchdown and kicked the field goal to force overtime.
Sean Oroni, Batavia #8212; At middle linebacker Oroni made all the right calls for a Batavia defense that allowed only 9 first downs and 119 total yards in a 50-6 Upstate Eight Conference River Division win over Larkin. Oroni, a 5-foot-11, 205-pound senior, led the Bulldogs with 14 tackles #8212; 10 solo tackles with 2 tackles for loss and 2 quarterback hurries.
Nick Skuteris, York #8212; Led by Skuteris, the Dukes' defense dominated in a 54-6 West Suburban Conference crossover victory over Willowbrook in Villa Park. The 6-foot-1, 240-pound senior defensive lineman-linebacker paced York with 9 total tackles, 1 for loss. Skuteris notched 2 sacks and forced and recovered a fumble.