CARROLLTON - The second round of the Illinois High School Association Class 1A playoffs is here and for the folks in Carrollton this is nothing new.
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The Hawks, 9-1 overall, have gotten this far for the past four seasons and have advanced past the second round hurdle two out of three times. The one time the Hawks didn’t was when they lost to Casey-Westfield in 2013 by a score of 6-0.
The Hawks will be playing at home once again and it feels just as comfortable as staying Caesars Palace in Las Vegas because they are 7-0 at home in their four-year playoff run.
The Hawks opponent is the Pawnee Indians from the Prairie State Conference, which includes Marquette Catholic High School. Pawnee located is just 63 miles away from Carrollton, making the Indians the nearest team that Carrollton has faced in their four consecutive year playoff appearances.
The Indians most notable victory was defeating Marquette 30-7 in week 6. Since week 3 of the season, the Indians have allowed 42 points after 40 in their first two games. However Pawnee has come up against three other playoff teams that were all eliminated in the first round last week. Carrollton has played against five playoff teams and two of them are still alive in the playoffs (Payson/Unity and West Central).
Pawnee, 9-1, 7-0 in conference play, has a versatile running attack led by Austin Galloway, Jordan Hampton, and fullback Clay Winks. The Indians love to run and the audience in attendance will see plenty of it. Pawnee isn’t afraid to pass too. Quarterback Dane Moats’ favorite target is Garrett Gillette, who’s speed could cause problems for the Hawk’s secondary. However, Pawnee’s main approach is nothing new for the Hawks since they see opponents try to ground and pound it against them every week in the WIVC.
It will most defiantly be a battle in the trenches as both teams are physical, but Carrollton will have its usual air and athletic advantage.
Coming into the game, Hawks’ quarterback Wade Prough has thrown 22 touchdown passes and has been picked off eight times. He’s thrown for 1,753 yards and has 25 total touchdowns. Prough has also run for 330 yards and scored three touchdowns.
On the ground, Cole Brannan has 712 yards with 14 touchdowns and 95 carries.
His partner in crime in the backfield, Jerrett Smith has 573 yards for 9 touchdowns on 96 carries.
Brannan and Smith are just as explosive through the air. Brannan has 483 yards on 22 receptions for six touchdowns. Smith has 528 yards, 30 catches and five scores.
The Hawks have other key contributors as well. Tyler Frye has hauled in 260 yards with four touchdowns. Brody Howard has come about late on in the season and has racked up 169 yards and two touchdowns, including one last week. Finally, Alex Bowker has collected 146 yards and found the end zone three times.
The forecast is predicting a sunny day and a high of 57 degrees in Carrollton for 2 p.m., which is typical playoff weather. That means that the Hawks air attack will not be hampered by the weather this Saturday, which could be a key factor.
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