We’ll show them.
With Yorkville coming off a 4-5 season that ended a five-year run of playoff appearances, senior quarterback Jack Beetham and his teammates knew few observers were setting the bar high.
“There were a lot of people at school who told me they didn’t think we’d do very well,” Beetham said. “Last year, we definitely struggled. We had a lot more potential than we showed.”
Amongst themselves, the Foxes (5-0, 2-0) begged to differ and find themselves alone atop the Southwest Prairie West standings.
Yorkville continued its winning ways Friday night with a 16-6 victory over highly regarded Oswego, which went undefeated last year in the regular season. It’s a result that surprised many.
According to the 6-foot-3, 190-pound Beetham, who’s in his second year as the starter behind center, other factors kept Yorkville from clicking last fall, too.
“We had a young quarterback, young running back and we were very young on the offensive line,” Beetham said. “We struggled throwing the ball deep and not getting a lot of time in the pocket.”
He said he also struggled adjusting to the speed of the game.
Last season, Beetham did end up completing 49% of his passes for 1,147 yards with six touchdowns and eight interceptions.
“It’s definitely a change from JV to junior year,” he said.
Proving himself isn’t new, however. He’s in the same position his older brother Josh played very well in leading Yorkville to back-to-back second-round playoff appearances in 2018 and 2019.
Both of those season ended with 8-3 records.
After one year as a preferred walk-on quarterback at Illinois, Josh transferred to Michigan and moved to tight end, earning a national championship ring before transferring to Georgia Tech, where he’s in his second and final season of extended eligibility due to the pandemic.
Josh, who is 6-5 and 255 pounds, has one catch for 17 yards for Georgia Tech (5-0).
“He gets good reps of their big blocking tight end and not as much as their receiving tight end,” Jack said of Josh.
Has it been a blessing or burden, following his brother?
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“It’s definitely a blessing, although sometimes you could say both,” Jack said. “More a blessing for me because he’s been a role model. He taught me the game, showed me how to play, how to slow it down.
“I do get compared to him like, ‘Who’s gonna be better?’ I take that as a challenge. I’d like to have more passing yards by the end of my high school career.”
Senior receiver Colton Spychalski, who’s in his third year on the varsity, has been good friends with Jack since seventh grade. Spychalski said Jack has made great strides this season.
“He looks much more comfortable,” Spychalski said of Beetham. “We’ve been in a lot of tight games, but he’s doing much better, reading defenses much better.
“Eighth grade was our first year in pads and Jack played mostly cornerback then. He really started picking up quarterback freshman year.”
Spychalski said the duo combined for 1,000 yards and 16 TDs that year.
This season, the numbers are improved for Beetham, who has NCAA Division II offers from Sioux Falls, Bemidji State and Upper Iowa. He has completed 56% of his passes, throwing for 777 yards with eight touchdowns and no interceptions. Four of his receivers have 10 or more catches.
His offensive line features first-year junior center Landon Jones and veteran starters in senior guards Xavion Ullea and Caden Steg and senior tackles Brennan Lackey and Gavin Delaney.
“I’ve had plenty of time in the pocket from my O-line these first five games,” Beetham said. “I’ve been known as a pocket passer, so last offseason I wanted to develop more of a running game and cut down the interceptions.”
While he has run for only 47 yards and two TDs, he’s had two long scoring runs called back.
Being more accurate has been part of the process as well.
“It’s timing,” he said. “Just constant work to be honest. Trusting your receivers and your own ability to make that throw. Know where to go with the ball, to the open space, not just to the receiver.
“Lead them. It’s just work.”
Work that’s been getting done.