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Scouting the Elgin Maroons

Elgin aims to build on last year's 2-win campaign by mixing a handful of returning seniors and juniors with some key transfers and lots of up-and-coming prospects.

"We're really young this year," fourth-year Elgin coach Anthony Mason said. "We have a lot of sophomores who are going to play an ample amount of time."

Some of the most experienced Maroons are linemen, like senior Eric Guo. The 6-foot-2, 275-pound defensive tackle carries a 4.7 grade-point average and is interested in attending the University of Chicago or an Ivy League school. "He's a genius," Mason said.

Guo is rejoined on the offensive line by junior center David Berendt (6-1, 240). He started last year and returns a bigger, stronger player. Multisport athlete Levondrick Marshall (5-8, 205) is back at tackle. Aaron Lopez didn't see much playing time last season, but Mason called the 5-11, 260-pound junior one of the team's most improved players due to his off-season commitment in the weight room.

That line protects new quarterback Jordan West, a 6-foot-2, 210-pound senior transfer from St. Edward. West's playing time at quarterback was limited to mop-up time last year because St. Edward had an entrenched veteran at the position. In limited action, he completed 2 of 6 attempts for 55 yards and a touchdown. West also carried 21 times for 121 yards and 2 touchdowns, had 6 receptions for 37 yards and a score and made 29 tackles on defense.

"Our program really fits into what he is able to do," Mason said. "He is a dual-threat guy who can run and pass and hit the shots we need to hit and lead the offense."

West has an athletic receiving corps, led by junior Xavier Bonds. Last year, the slot receiver had 129 receiving yards while pulling double duty at safety. Also in the mix are fast sophomores Noah Mack and Gio Griffin. Mack also plays cornerback. Griffin was the quarterback of Elgin's freshman team that went 5-4 last year. He also plays free safety.

Another unproven but promising weapon is 6-foot-5 freshman David Celistin, a player Mason and staff have been tracking since he was in sixth grade. He can play free safety, running back and slot receiver.

Brandon Bridges returns in the backfield. With limited carries as a sophomore, the 5-9, 175-pound running back finished as Elgin's third-leading rusher with 209 yards.

Defensively, senior Jeremiah Alvarez plays linebacker after making the position switch from quarterback. His coach calls him a leader for his off-season commitment to get stronger. Another linebacker is Alex West, who transferred from St. Edward with his older brother. Mason calls the younger West "probably the toughest kid on our team."

With 101 total players at the freshman, junior varsity and varsity levels, many of the same faces on offense will see playing time on defense. Several sophomores defenders will see the field right away as the Maroons begin to navigate the revamped Upstate Eight Conference schedule.

"When you have a young team, how they go about things every day is going to determine how the season is going to go," Mason said. "I'm trying to instill that mentality to push yourself no matter what the situation is. I think they will persevere this year and do pretty good.

"As far as this new conference goes, hopefully, we're somewhere in the middle trying to fight to get to the top. But if we don't put that work in, if we don't grind and we don't push ourselves every single day, we can easily be at the bottom."

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