Let the good times roll

Wildcats hoping to maintain momentum against Hawks

Alex Lincoln called it the "funnest" game he's ever played and it came on the "funnest" weekend he's ever had.

"It" was Friday's game in which Neuqua Valley downed St. Charles East 49-42 in four overtimes behind Lincoln's school-record seven touchdown passes. Next came Neuqua's homecoming dance, making it a pair of memorable nights for Lincoln, Neuqua's senior quarterback.

The victory brought the Wildcats (3-3, 2-2 Upstate Eight Conference) back to .500 after their season appeared doomed following a 1-3 start.

But as they prepare for tonight's game against highly ranked Bartlett (6-0, 4-0), the Wildcats will try to utilize the same philosophy they had when things were bleak - keep the past in the past. Those good feelings about beating the Saints are nice, but coach Bryan Wells has reiterated all season that his team's focus should always be on the Friday night directly in front of it.

"He's right," defensive end Michael Khalil said. "We just need to focus on this Friday. We don't want to worry about anything else."

That means not worrying about the Hawks, ranked No. 4 in Class 8A by The Associated Press and No. 9 overall by the Sun-Times. That won't be easy considering how the Hawks have rolled through the season, which started with a 28-21 victory over Glenbard North and has included outscoring their opponents 152-42 since then.

The Hawks, who haven't beaten Neuqua since the 2004 playoffs, are riding high behind senior quarterback Josh Hasenberg, who has thrown for 992 yards and seven touchdowns. Meanwhile, running backs Fabien Libreri (527 yards, seven touchdowns) and Corleon Richardson (262 yards, three touchdowns) keep the offense balanced.

In fact, the Hawks have nearly a perfect split in total yardage with 1,000 coming on passes and 1,024 on the ground.

"We know they're undefeated. We know they're a very good team," said Lincoln, who also holds Neuqua's career (31) and single-season (17) touchdown passing records. "They wouldn't be ranked where they are otherwise. But it's all execution. We know when we lose, we didn't execute. If we execute and make our plays, we can win."

Indeed, the Wildcats appear to be finding their stride. Lincoln said the turnaround came against Waubonsie Valley, despite a 28-26 loss. The following week the Wildcats stormed past Larkin 38-12, and followed that with the win over the Saints. That's 87 points in two weeks.

"They have a lot of talent down there," Bartlett coach Tom Meaney said. "And as Coach Wells was saying earlier in the year, they may start out slow, but they're going to be tough by the end of the year. Well, they look like they're going to be tough at the end of the year."

Tonight marks the 12th meeting between the teams, which includes that playoff win in 2004 by the Hawks. Bartlett has won six of the 11 games overall, making it the only UEC school with a winning record against Neuqua. But the Wildcats have won three in a row in the series, including last year's thrilling 24-23 game that ended on a controversial failed two-point conversion by the Hawks.

Now the Wildcats are hoping the fun times continue.