Undefeated regular season not enough for '08 Raiders

Bolingbrook's Walter Fisher carries the ball during the Raiders' victory over Sandburg on Oct. 17 in Orland Park. Fisher and the rest of his teammates know there's more to this year than just finishing the regular season unbeaten.

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Going undefeated in the regular season is a great accomplishment. It also means nothing.

The Bolingbrook Raiders can post the third undefeated regular season in school history with a win over Lockport this week. It would be the first time the Raiders have run the table since John Ivlow became their coach seven years ago.

After beating Sandburg last week to clinch a second consecutive Southwest Suburban Conference Blue championship, the Raiders didn't celebrate much.

They let out some screams. They raised their black helmets into the moist black sky in Orland Park and made their way to the team buses. The click-clack of their cleats on the parking lot was more audible than the chatter between teammates.

Winning is still a big deal. Winning that particular game was not.

"It's expected," Ivlow said. "We expected to win coming in, and our guys are used to it. They perform like they're supposed to. That's the key word. They did their job."

Their job. If their job is winning, then there's certainly work left to do. It starts this week with a Lockport team that needs to beat Bolingbrook (8-0) in order to become playoff eligible.

The Porters (4-4) haven't beaten a team with a winning record this season. They may hope to pull off a shocking victory in front of their home crowd. They may dream of defining their season with a win over big, bad Bolingbrook.

It won't happen. Mark that down.

Sure, anything can happen (insert your favorite cliche here). Great. Let's move on to reality based discussions.

"We can't take them easy," Raiders senior John Seigler said of Lockport. "Just go 9-0 and get an easy team first week in the playoffs. That's our goal."

Of course Bolingbrook must take Lockport seriously. To borrow a phrase senior Brandon Westphal used after beating Lincoln-Way East, Bolingbrook has to respect them, but not fear them.

The Raiders have a big-play offense that rarely turns the ball over. Bolingbrook gets 5.7 yards per rushing attempt and 9.05 yards per passing attempt. Pick your poison defensive coordinators.

On defense, Bolingbrook has forced 28 turnovers. The Raiders hold running backs to 2.35 yards per carry. Five opponents have been limited to seven points or less.

The season check list for the Raiders included getting playoff eligible (check), winning the conference title (check) and winning a state championship. Going undefeated is a nice bonus, but only if it means going 14-0.

I asked junior wide receiver Chris Williams if posting an undefeated season is palatable now that there was one game left on the schedule. He corrected me quickly.

"Six more games," Williams said. "We have six more games to win."

That's the point. An undefeated regular season is nice. It's something to tell the grandkids about someday, but if you are a member of the 1993 Bolingbrook team that went 13-0 before losing in the state championship game or the 1996 squad that went 10-0 before losing in the second round of the playoffs, it's a consolation prize.

The 1993 Bolingbrook team is not alone. Since 1974 there have been 107 other state runner-ups that lost their only game in the state championship game.

There have also been 117 undefeated state champions.

There have been hundreds of other teams, such as the 1996 Bolingbrook team, that went undefeated in the regular season and never made it to the championship game. Currently, there are 41 teams in Illinois that are 8-0.

"If we win, we'll go undefeated," Ivlow said. "We don't plan on losing. We never go in planning on losing."

Winning at Lockport will give the 2008 Raiders a special place in school history. It would be a great accomplishment.

To be remembered outside Bolingbrook, these Raiders must do more.

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