Deerfield senior Luke Pollack is no different from most wide receivers. He wants the ball thrown his way.
But as the Warriors offense has worked through some kinks this season, the 6-foot-4, 195-pound Pollack has found another way to get recognized.
“I obviously love making big catches, but I love blocking too,” he said. “To see the other coaches’ reaction to me making a big block on the outside is great.”
The blocking is certainly appreciated by the Warriors (2-3, 1-0), who have a key Central Suburban North game against Highland Park on Friday, but their offensive ceiling is probably higher with Pollock helping move the chains through the air.
A week after returning a kickoff for a touchdown against Buffalo Grove, Pollack enjoyed his best game of the season in a 24-21 Central Suburban North road win against Vernon Hills on Sept. 23. He showed the many ways he can beat a defender to the ball.
Pollack, who has 12 catches for 197 yards this season, caught a touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Mac Jones in the corner of the end zone, employed comeback routes and made a circus catch on a seam route on which he went above and through three defenders for the 30-yard reception.
“That set up a score right before the half, which was a huge turning point,” Deerfield coach Steve Winiecki said. “That was the first game he and Mac really connected.”
It isn’t entirely surprising that the connection between Jones and his receivers took time to develop in his first season as the starter. Pollack lauded the offensive line’s improved protection that allowed more time for receivers to run their routes.
“It took awhile for us to adapt to Mac,” Pollack said. “But we’ve got a lot of confidence and feel like the offense is on the right track now.”
Niemczyk, Antioch apply pressure: Antioch’s list of defensive calls keeps growing, and so does the responsibility thrust upon Aiden Niemczyk.
The 6-foot, 180-pound senior has logged most of his prep snaps at linebacker, but shifting to defensive end has coincided with the Sequoits’ recent dominance.
“I’m a little smaller for a defensive lineman, so we’ve been using our speed against slower offensive linemen,” Niemczyk said. “Last week we really wanted to pressure the quarterback.”
The plan worked. Led by Niemczyk, senior defensive end Seth Gomez and rotating senior nose tackles Josh Sanchez and Logan Angus, Antioch pressured Grayslake North senior quarterback Jacob Donohue into an uncharacteristic four interceptions in a 49-6 Northern Lake County Conference win.
The Sequoits (3-2, 3-0), who will play Wauconda on Friday in a showdown for first place in the conference, didn’t stop making Donohue uncomfortable in the pocket. Since Donohue likes to get rid of the ball quickly, Niemczyk and his teammates were instructed to count to “three one thousand” in their heads, and if they hadn’t gotten home by then, they should put their hands up.
Niemczyk said Antioch changes its defense from week to week and that the number of defensive calls on their wristbands has increased from single digits in the summer to 20-plus.
“You don’t have to get a sack on every play,” Niemczyk said. “As long as you’re getting into the quarterback’s line of vision, you’re being effective.”
Blumer blooms: While Highland Park’s balanced offense has been effective keeping opposing defenses guessing, sometimes there is a hot hand to address.
That was the case in the Giants’ 29-6 Central Suburban North road win against Niles North on Sept. 23. Junior receiver Nicholas Blumer had 11 catches for 180 yards and two touchdowns.
“It just so happened that I was open and I got more targets than usual,” he said. “You get amped up when you’re doing your job like that and have extra enthusiasm to spread around.”
Blumer spread around how he did his damage. His favorite catch came on a perfectly executed combo route in which a teammate ran a 10-yard hitch and Blumer ran a wheel route underneath before sprinting into the secondary. The cornerback bit on the wheel, and junior quarterback David Finfer hit Blumer for a long touchdown.
That play highlighted several of Blumer’s many skills. He has 22 catches for 325 yards and five touchdowns for the Giants (3-2, 1-0) this season.
“I like to think I’m one of the faster guys out there, but I also like to outsmart defenders,” Blumer said. “Your quarterback has to depend on you to find open space.”
Steve Reaven is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.