Getting Prepped

Lake Zurich's football program has definitely benefitted from David Proffitt's coaching experience the last six years. Now Profitt will use that experience as the Bears' head coach after he was named to the position to replace Bryan Stortz, who resigned last month to take the head coaching job at Rock Island.

Proffitt was the coordinator of one of the state's premier defenses during Stortz's six-year tenure which included a 7A state title. He was also the head coach at Marian Central Catholic in Woodstock for 12 years (1991-2002) and took the school to the 3A semifinals in 1995 and three quarterfinal trips. He also was the head coach in 1978 and 1979 at now-shuttered and one-time Catholic League powerhouse Weber on Chicago's Northwest Side.

Lou Sponsel was a big part in building the foundation for Fremd to become one of the state’s most succcessful football programs.
Now the 1995 all-state linebacker and assistant coach will get his chance to continue leading the Vikings to success. Sponsel was chosen Thursday to replace his former coach, Mike Donatucci, who retired after 19 years as the Mid-Suburban League’s winningest coach with a 137-63 record.
Sponsel was a Daily Herald All-Area pick when Fremd started its MSL record streak of 16 playoff appearances in 1995. He lettered as a fullback at Northern Illinois in 1997 and 1998 and spent two years as a student assistant coach before returning to his alma mater and joining Donatucci’s coaching staff.

One of the highlights of the City-Suburban Showdown near the end of every boys basketball regular season was top teams playing before big crowds at Northwestern's Welsh-Ryan Arena or the UIC Pavilion. But an NCAA rule is forcing the 17th annual event on Feb. 18 to be moved from UIC to Proviso West High School.

NCAA bylaw 13.11.1.8 prohibits "non-scholastic" organizations from hosting high school basketball events at Division I venues. This has required other events to make similar moves in Illinois and elsewhere in the country.

Warren plays Proviso East in the middle game of the tripleheader at 6:30 p.m. St. Rita plays New Trier at 4:30 p.m. and De La Salle faces Simeon at 8:30 p.m.

As a player, George Kaider was a big part of a turnaround that started at Palatine and saw a football program that had never been to the postseason become an annual playoff participant from the late 1980s into the late 1990s under Joe Petricca. Now, as the Daily Herald's Joe Aguilar is reporting, Kaider will try to turn around the program at Mundelein as he was named the new head football coach at the school's board meeting Tuesday.

Kaider, a Daily Herald All-Area linebacker at Palatine in 1987, had one-year coaching stints at Richmond-Burton in 2000 (5-4) and downstate Pekin in 2008 (1-8). He also worked as an assistant for Petricca at Palatine, for Mike Noll at McHenry and at Lake Zurich and Woodstock.

The Wheeling-Buffalo Grove football rivalry in the Mid-Suburban East just took an interesting turn today with the announcement of their new head coaches - Brent Pearlman at Wheeling and Mike DiMatteo at BG. Ironically they crossed paths in the 2002 Class 7A state semifinals when Pearman's Prospect team beat DiMatteo's Lake Zurich team 41-18.

Pearlman won three state titles in 12 years at Prospect and takes over a Wheeling program that made the playoffs in 2007 and 2008 but has won only one playoff game in its history. DiMatteo had eight playoff teams in 11 seasons at Lake Zurich and Hinsdale Central (8A state runnerup in 2008) and takes over a BG program that won a state title in 1986 and was second in the state in 1978 but has missed the playoffs the last eight years.

The wild football offseason coaching carousel got a sudden change Thursday morning when Immaculate Conception announced its decision to have alum and assistant coach Bill Krefft take over for Chris VanDyke. Krefft played on the Knights' 2002 state championship team and was part of the coaching staff for their 2008 state champions and on playoff teams the last two years.
A release from IC school officials said: "We fully believe that Coach Krefft will continue to move the football program in a positive direction and add to the storied history of IC athletics. We pledge our full support and assistance as we all move forward together in this endeavor."

It is a Brandon New era of St. Viator football as the school named him as its head coach Wednesday. New was part of all eight state titles at now-shuttered Driscoll as a player and assistant coach and led the Highlanders to the state semifinals in his one season as a head coach before the school closed. New took a year off from coaching after the school closed but spent the last two seasons as an assistant at Benet to Pat New (no relation).

"When it came available to me it was a no-brainer because it was something similar to all of my experiences," Brandon New said. "They have had a lot of success over the last few years and I hope to bring to the table a little boost to take it to the next level."

After six successful seasons at Lake Zurich, Bryan Stortz's hiring as Rock Island's new football coach has been approved at the school's board meeting tonight, according to a twitter feed from Daniel Makarewicz of the Rock Island Argus and Moline Dispatch. Stortz is at the board meeting.

Makarewicz first reported Stortz's hiring at Rock Island on Jan. 2. He replaces Vic Boblett, who was 170-60 in 21 years at Rock Island with 16 playoff appearances, 11 Western Big Six titles and a Class 5A state runnerup finish in 1997. Stortz was 62-16 in six years at Lake Zurich with a 7A state title in 2007 and runnerup finishes in 2006 and 2010.

The anticipated movement of teams in holiday tournaments has started and one of the biggest will be Stevenson heading to the expanded 32-team Proviso West tourney after more than 20 years at Wheeling's Hardwood Classic. The Patriots won Wheeling titles in 1990, 1998 and 2000 and finished second this year to Naperville Central. They have a pair of talented freshmen in Jalen Brunson and Connor Cashaw. Matt Harness of Pioneer Press is also reporting that Maine South will be leaving York for Proviso West.

Palatine resident Robert Delaney was a leader on the football field as an all-Chicago Catholic League center for Class 8A state runnerup Loyola. His on-field success combined with his leadership off the field has earned him one of three recipients of the Chicago Bears Community Champion Award for outstanding civic achievements. Three senior high school football players receive the award and Seamus Quilty of Carmel and Jake Aleck of Lincoln-Way East were also winners.