GL_082318

42 | August 23, 2018 | The glenview lantern football preview guide 2018
glenviewlantern.com
Giants move step by step into 2018 season
Brittany Kapa
Contributing Sports Editor
Key returns and losses
Key Returns
QB Michael Rooney – the senior will make the
offense his own this season
RB, LB Giovanni Volpentesta – the sophomore
returns for a second season with the varsity
WR, LB Max Mauer – sophomore
OL, DL Chris Lee – sophomore
CB, RB Zion Griffin – sophomore with quick feet will
help with speed
Key Losses
QB John Sakos – 11 TD, 1,503 yards, 9.4-yard
average
CB Noah Spitz – 45 total tackles; “He was a shut
down corner, I could put him on anyone and he
would get the job done.”
RB, S Ryan Brincks – 609 rushing yards, 5
touchdowns running back and safety; “That’s a
tough kid not to have, but we do have athletes that
can fill that spot on both sides of the ball.”
OL, DL Jack Finfer – 25 total tackles, 1 sack
David Lindquist expects
his Giants to get better every
day.
That’s the mantra Highland
Park High School’s
first-year head coach repeats
to his team on and
off the field.
“If you come to work
every day and really focus
and prepare to listen
and give it your all — focus,
attitude and effort —
you’re going to get better
even if it’s by a little bit,”
he said. “We’re not measuring
day-to-day. We’re
measuring game-to-game,
week-to-week and monthto-month;
all the way
through to the end of the
year.”
The Giants saw both
success and loss in the
2017 season. They finished
5-5 and overcame a
three-game losing streak
early in the season to tie
for the conference championship.
After making
it to playoffs, the Giants
lost their first game
against St. Charles North
in the IHSA Class 7A
playoffs.
Lindquist spent the summer
preparing his team the
best way he knew how for
the upcoming nine-week
regular season. Hard work
mixed with positivity was
the name of the game for
HPHS, and those traits
will be keys for the Giants
to navigate and attack the
ups and downs of the 2018
season.
Lindquist, who was an
assistant coach for years
prior to his promotion,
intentionally incorporated
chaos into practices this
summer but for a good
cause.
“We try and put them
through moments of chaos
where they feel like physically,
and mentally, everything
might be shutting
down or going wrong and
they have to learn how to
fix it,” he said. “Adversity
will strike at any time ...
you could have a total failure
or a total success and
we have to learn how to
handle that and move on to
the next play.”
The goal is to create a
team that can overcome
the bad plays and celebrate
and move on to the next
task after the good ones.
“We want them to come
together and pick each other
up,” he said.
Offense
The offense will showcase
a team within a team
and a new go-to starting
quarterback.
Former quarterback
John Sakos, a Tulane University
walk-on freshman,
was the Giants main arm
last season. HPHS senior
Michael Rooney did
see some playing time in
2017, but that will dramatically
increase this
season.
“In any situation, with a
new player at quarterback
who has to lead, there is
going to be a growing process,”
Lindquist said.
However, the Giants
coaching staff is making
sure that Rooney and the
offense are preparing for
every situation. The main
focus with Rooney will
be his reads, and those
will be based heavily on
that week’s opponent.
Lindquist has confidence
in his starting quarterback
and knows Rooney’s confidence
will increase as
the season progresses.
A key component of
Lindquist’s offensive will
be the line, acting as a cohesive
unit.
“[The offensive] line is
more of a brotherhood, it’s
a team within the team,”
he said. “For that group
they need to work together
in all facets. There is no
Noa Morganstern (No. 7) will return this season as a key member of the Giants defense
this football season. 22nd Century Media File Photo
single person that’s more
important than anybody
else.”
Defense
Defensively, Lindquist
is happy with where his
team is at.
His core has seasoned
veterans that can effectively
focus on the little
things, which makes
Lindquist happy. That
core includes a few utility
players and an NCAA
Division-I commit. The
combination of players
should yield good results
in containing opposing
team’s offense.
Defensive ends Jacob
Bradford and Noa Morganstern
are two athletic
players that Lindquist
sees making a big impact
against tough teams.
“[Bradford is] a guy that
is a utility guy, we can put
him on the inside or the
outside regardless of his
size,” Lindquist said.
Coached right, Lindquist
sees Morganstern fitting in
seamlessly on the defense.
“He’s a very athletic defensive
end,” he said. “If I
do my job, and coach him
well, I expect good things
from him.”
Defensive tackles Kevin
Kaufman and Matt Cortes
are two important keys to
the Giants defense as well.
“[Cortes is] another big
body we can put in the
middle and try to take up
more than one blocker,”
Lindquist said.
Senior linebacker, and
South Dakota State University
commit, Tom
Motzko will be another
key player for HPHS.
“He’s a very good player
at that position and I anticipate
some very good
things from him,” the head
coach said.
Lindquist will favor a
six-man rotation, mainly
so his players can get
enough rest during the
game. The goal is to have
his core fly to the ball.
“If the ball is down
we’re getting it and we’re
taking every opportunity
from [our opponent] to
get any positive yardage.
A lot of that has to do with
flying to the football,” he
said.
Special Teams
Lindquist wants his
team to be well-rounded,
that includes experience
and time on special teams.
“It’s just as important
as [offense and defense]
and a lot of times in close
games it comes down to
what happened on special
teams,” he said.
The Giants do have
two kickers who will be
vying for playing time
this season. The team returns
Mauer, as well as
Maya Taiez, the lone female
kicker in the CSL
North.
“They’re both are very
good at kicking the football,
we’re not sure who
will do what yet,” he said