Tomlin’s .647 winning percentage ranks 12th all-time among coaches with at least 100 games. | Getty

Tomlin has excelled in his specialty (defense), while Nagy has sputtered in his (offense). By delivering what the Steelers hoped to get when they hired him, he has made them a perennial contender for 15 seasons.

The Bears like to think of themselves as an equal to the Steelers, but the similarities essentially end at the fact they’re two of the longest-standing franchises in the NFL. Beyond that prestige, the Steelers have been a model of everything the Bears wish they were.

In the last 50 years, the Steelers have won the most games in the NFL, captured six championships and had just three head coaches. The first two, Chuck Noll and Bill Cowher, are Hall of Famers. The third, current coach Mike Tomlin, has already made an overwhelming case to join them and he’s just 49.

“The way that he leads his organization is rare,” said Bears coach Matt Nagy, who has talked with Tomlin occasionally at offseason meetings, but mostly admired his work from afar. “I just really respect and love the way that he’s real with his coaches, he’s real with his players. He’s authentic.

“And he wins.”

Does he ever.

The Bears and dozens of other organizations can only dream of finding someone who checks every box in behind-the-scenes leadership and dominates on the field.

Now in Year 15, Tomlin has never had a losing season. He has made the playoffs nine times and is the youngest coach ever to win a Super Bowl, doing so at 36 in 2008.

If he beats the Bears on Monday, Tomlin will reach 150 career victories in fewer games than it took Cowher and move into sole possession of 20th place on the all-time wins list. He could reasonably pass Joe Gibbs for 18th by the end of the season.

In a century-plus of Bears football, only George Halas has won at least 150 games. In more recent history, the team has tried four coaches during Tomlin’s tenure — with Nagy at risk of opening the door for a fifth if he doesn’t show chairman George McCaskey he can get the offense on track.

And Tomlin has done it his way. He came from the outside as a defensive backs coach under Tony Dungy and Jon Gruden in Tampa Bay and a season as Vikings coach Brad Childress’ defensive coordinator, so he put his own touch on the organization.

“You feel it when you come in the building,” said Bears secondary coach Deshea Townsend, who played for Cowher and Tomlin with the Steelers from 1998 through 2009.

Tomlin exudes confidence as much or more than any coach in the NFL, and it resonates because of the on-field success. In the same way that Nagy’s nonstop optimism seems to fall flat amid the Bears’ mediocrity, Tomlin keeps strengthening his influence by stacking up wins.

“Every head coach has a certain style,” Nagy said. “His style is really good.”

Tomlin has been a constant in a league that’s always changing. He and his various offensive coordinators — from Bruce Arians in his first season to the current one, Matt Canada — have reshaped the Steelers’ offense as Ben Roethlisberger downshifted from powerhouse to barely hanging on.

His work on the other side of the ball, though, has been most vital to his longevity. Tomlin delivered exactly what the Steelers wanted when they hired him: a compelling leader at the front of their organization and a defensive mastermind.

They have been top-10 in fewest points allowed nine times under Tomlin and never been worse than 18th. Contrast that with how Nagy has done on his side of the ball with the Bears finishing ninth, 29th and 22nd in scoring, and currently sitting 31st.

The combination of the right head coach and quarterback has kept the Steelers at or near the top of the league for almost two decades. The Bears hope they’ve finally found the right quarterback in Justin Fields, but Nagy’s performance so far has been unconvincing.

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Travis Scott performs at Day 1 of the Astroworld Music Festival at NRG Park on Friday, Nov. 5, 2021, in Houston. | AP Photos

Franco Patino, a senior at the University of Dayton, was among those killed during the Travis Scott concert that left hundreds injured, according to The Associated Press.

A 21-year-old man from Naperville was killed Friday at the Astroworld music festival in Houston.

Franco Patino, a senior at the University of Dayton, was among eight killed in a crowd surge during the Travis Scott concert that left hundreds injured, according to The Associated Press.

Patino was a mechanical engineering technology major with a minor in human movement biomechanics, the University of Dayton said in a statement. He was a member of Alpha Psi Lambda, a Hispanic interest fraternity.

He was also a member of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers at UD, active in the ETHOS program and was currently working in an engineering co-op program in Mason, Ohio.

About 50,000 people attended the sold-out, two-day event in NRG Park.

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In losing two of the last three games, the constant has been huge first-half deficits thanks to slow starts on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor. Considering the schedule the next few weeks, it needs to be addressed sooner than later.

Zach LaVine knows how ugly the numbers are.

The Bulls guard just doesn’t have a definitive solution on how to fix it.

“We just have to do a better job of coming out and setting the tone,” LaVine said. “We’re playing from behind almost every game now and you keep living dangerous you are going to end up losing some of these games.”

They were, and they did in dropping two of their last three.

How far behind?

Since last Monday, facing Boston and Philadelphia twice, the Bulls closed first halves down a total of 32 points. That’s a 10.7-point first-half deficit per game. Even worse, they’ve been down in first halves a total of 38 points total in that same span.

It’s great that they’ve had a fire lit in the halftime locker room and made runs in all three games, even coming back from 19 down in the third quarter against the Celtics and winning, but good teams come ready to play at tip-off. That was LaVine’s point.

“It’s frustrating,” the All-Star said. “We are trying to figure out how to get off to a better start. We come back every game, but it’s not like we want to live like that.”

Not with the upcoming schedule they don’t.

The Bulls host Brooklyn on Monday, Dallas on Wednesday, and then are off to the West Coast to play Golden State, both Los Angeles teams, Portland and Denver.

Entering Sunday, not one of those teams was below .500, despite numerous struggles from the likes of the Lakers, Clippers and Trail Blazers. Helping them get over some early-season growing pains by falling behind early could make for a very bad next few weeks.

That’s why figuring out how to change it is an immediate priority. The Bulls went through similar lulls like this last season, but youth and then frequent lineup changes were built-in excuses. Not the case now, especially with this starting group.

LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic, and even Lonzo Ball, have years of experience under their belts. Obviously not with each other, but still …

“You understand how much firepower you have,” LaVine said, when the idea of still trying to figure it out was brought up. “But this also is a new team. I am not blaming that – we have to get off to better starts and figure out why [we’re not].”

The one starter easiest to point a finger at right now — fair or unfair? Vucevic.

Not only was the double-double machine just 8-for-20 from the field in the first half of the last three games, but was a combined minus-39 in plus/minus. Facing off against the 76ers’ Joel Embiid in the last two contests hasn’t helped, but the first nine games of the season have been a bit shaky for Vucevic.

The center was a career 49.4% shooter from the field and 35.4% from three, but will enter the game against the Nets shooting 38% from the field this season, and a dismal 25.6% from three.

Coach Billy Donovan was doing all he could to get Vucevic going, getting him familiar work in the post, but also at the top of the arch as a facilitator, and feels like it’s only a matter of time for the numbers to return to the career stats.

“I think he’s really trying to figure out how to play with a lot of different guys,” Donovan said of Vucevic. “We’ve got to all do a better job, me included, to find different ways to find him.

“He hasn’t shot the ball well. I think that’s more a comfort thing than I would be worried about that. It’s just there’s a learning curve for him playing with all these guys.”

One the Bulls better figure out quickly.

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Several NFL pregame hosts were critical of Aaron Rodgers. | Darryl Webb/AP

“Unfortunately, we’ve got players that only think about themselves and I’m extremely disappointed in Aaron Rodgers.” Fox Sports’ and Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw said.

The Green Bay Packers will face the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday without Aaron Rodgers.

The three-time MVP and Packers star quarterback said in August he’d been “immunized” against COVID-19. Turns out that consisted of not a vaccine but homeopathic treatment and medicines that scientists say don’t treat coronavirus, the quarterback said during a Friday interview on the “Pat McAfee Show” in which he cited Martin Luther King Jr.’s philosophy for not following protocols.

Since then, many have lined up to criticize Rodgers’ evasiveness and reasoning behind not receiving the vaccine, especially as he conducted himself around the media as a vaccinated player. A Wisconsin healthcare company ended its partnership with Rodgers on Saturday, and the NFL has launched an investigation despite not yet disciplining Rodgers, who can’t return to the team until next Saturday at the earliest.

The criticism continued Sunday during NFL pregame shows. Here is a roundup of who said what about Rodgers:

Terry Bradshaw, Fox — Hall of Fame quarterback

“Let me give Aaron Rodgers some advice. It’d been nice if he’d just come to the Naval Academy and learned how to be honest. Learn not to lie. Because that’s what you did, Aaron, you lied to everyone. … Unfortunately, we’ve got players that only think about themselves and I’m extremely disappointed in Aaron Rodgers.”

Jonathan Jones, CBS Sports

“I believe that Aaron Rodgers has full autonomy over his body and I’m not going to argue the merits of what he said … inherent when you say ‘I’m a critical thinker,’ ‘I’m a free thinker,’ is the implication that those of us who did get vaccinated are not critical thinkers or that we’re not free thinkers. That you’re on a higher plane of intelligence than I could even conceive. I took issue with that. But then I also took issue with him saying, ‘Hey, I followed all of the protocols everywhere. They are draconian, but I follow them everywhere. In the weight room, in the locker room.’ The one place he didn’t do it was in the public eye.

“And that’s when he quotes MLK and says ‘I don’t need to follow unjust laws’ but he followed all those unjust laws everywhere else that cameras weren’t beaming that he was unvaccinated to everyone out there. What wound up happening was: Aaron Rodgers got cute with his wording, he got caught, and he’s embarrassed and he wants it to be everybody’s fault except his.”

Jimmy Johnson, Fox — Hall of Fame coach

“I respect his attitude toward being an individual. But this is a team game. In all honesty, I’m disappointed in his play on words for his explanation. I’m disappointed in some of his selfish actions.”

Howie Long, Fox — Hall of Fame defensive end

“I agree with Aaron when he says ‘What I do with my body is a personal decision.’ But it ceases to be a personal decision when you take part in being part of a football team in a building with coaches, players, trainers, equipment managers, and you run the risk of taking something home to your wife, your children, your grandchildren. But also for a football standpoint, this team is sitting at 7-1 and they’re certainly vying for the only bye in the playoffs in the first round … putting all of that in jeopardy, and putting your team in jeopardy, that, to me, is selfish.”

Michael Strahan, Fox — Hall of Fame defensive end

“There are times to quote Martin Luther King, and this was not one of them.”

Read more at usatoday.com

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Shantel Cribbs and Melanie Loren are among the cast of “Pump Boys & Dinettes” at Porchlight Music Theatre. | Photo by Chollette

The material requires actor-musicians who can carry a show without the benefit of a plot or even a major conflict. The Porchlight Music Theatre ensemble does just that.

Should you find yourself with an empty tank of gas and a hankering for a big old plate of catfish and spaghetti, you’ll want to head for the Double Cupp.

Not to worry if catfish with noodles isn’t your thing. The titular service-station attendants and waitresses of Porchlight Music Theatre’s “Pump Boys and Dinettes” will make you feel heartily welcome. Directed by Daryl Brooks and running through Dec. 12 at the Ruth Page Center for the Arts, the energetic musical offers a slice-of-life at the down-home Double Cupp dinette/service station, conveniently located just off Route 57, somewhere in North Carolina.

There’s not much plot in the musical created by John Foley, Mark Hardwick, Debra Monk, Cass Morgan, John Schimmel and Jim Wann. Doesn’t much matter. As the six-member ensemble sings about fishing, pie, road trips, Walmart and romance, it’s as clear as a newly shined Winnebago windshield that music director Robert Reddrick knows his business.

The material might not be the deepest, but it’s a whole heap of fun. That’s thanks to the performers’ rollicking charm and — crucially — their vocals and their ability to be their own on-stage band. In addition to strings and keys, the cast plays wooden spoons, rolling pins, coffee cans, salt shakers and a foot tambourine.

Which brings us to Frederick Harris as L.M., piano-playing boss of service station attendants (aka pump boys) Jim (Ian Paul Custer, rhythm guitar), Jackson (Billy Rude, lead guitar) and Eddie (Rafe Bradford, bass). Everyone on stage is more than capable, but when Harris grooves through the woman-done-me-wrong-song “Serve Yourself,” it’s with a vocal range that basically goes from deep-sea fishing to celestial sunrise. It’s the third song in, and the number when “Pump Boys” really takes off.

Photo by Chollette
Billy Rude (from left), Frederick Harris, Ian Paul Custerm, Melanie Loren and Shantel Cribbs star in Porchlight Music Theatre’s production of “Pump Boys & Dinettes.”

The “dinettes” are waitresses/sisters Prudie (Shantel Cribbs) and Rhetta Cupp (Melanie Loren), both of whom have plenty to say about trifling menfolk and people who don’t tip. Loren’s “Be Good or Be Gone” is a straight-shooting anthem that lets badly-behaving suitors know exactly where they stand and exactly where the door is. In one of the show’s best numbers, Cribbs and Loren duet on “Tips,” a marvelously blunt, bump-and-grind manifesto about leaving something behind for your servers. The number is also a showcase for Rueben D. Echoles’ choreography, which — like the score itself — drips with attitude. Rude brings a rockabilly energy reminiscent of Jerry Lee Lewis to Jackson. Bradford’s Eddie talks mostly with his thumping bass, providing a percussive foundation for the music.

The production plays out on Sydney Lynne’s set, which so realistic you can practically smell the motor oil and the pie. The stage — half dinette and half service station, both locales rich in detail from the massive neon-lit coffee cups beckoning travelers to the dinette to the shelves of spare parts crammed into the garage.

“Pump Boys & Dinettes” is a lot tricker than it looks: It requires actor-musicians who can carry a show without the benefit of a plot or even a major conflict. Brooks’ ensemble does just that. It’s a good time worth filling up on. Heck. You might even be the lucky audience member who wins a free Road Kill air freshener to hang from your car’s rearview mirror.

Photo by Chollette
Frederick Harris and Billy Rude are shown in a scene from Porchlight Music Theatre’s “Pump Boys & Dinettes.”Read More

Cincinnati held on to the No. 2 spot in the AP Top 25. | Jeff Dean/AP

Cincinnati holds on to No. 2 as Alabama closes in.

Cincinnati held on to the No. 2 ranking by just four points over No. 3 Alabama in The Associated Press college football poll Sunday, and Oregon passed Ohio State to move up to No. 5.

Georgia is a unanimous No. 1 for the fifth straight week in the Top 25 presented by Regions Bank. The teams closest to the Bulldogs are more tightly packed after another weekend of upsets and close calls.

The Bearcats received 1,440 points from the media panel after beating Tulsa 28-20, and the Crimson Tide had 1,336 following a 20-14 victory against LSU.

Cincinnati has been ranked No. 2, best in school history, for four straight weeks.

Oklahoma, which had an open date this past weekend, stayed at No. 4.

Oregon moved up two spots to No. 5 after beating Washington 26-16. The Ducks jumped Ohio State at No. 6, taking advantage of Michigan State’s first loss of the season.

The Buckeyes won 26-17 at Nebraska. The Ducks were as high as No. 3 in the country early in the season after beating Ohio State in Week 2, but had slipped behind the Buckeyes while taking a loss.

Notre Dame moved up a spot to No. 7, and the Spartans slipped three to No. 8 after losing at Purdue.

The Boilermakers remained unranked after their second upset of a team ranked in the top five at the time. Purdue was first among other teams receiving votes Sunday.

Michigan stayed at No. 9 and Oklahoma State moved up one to No. 10.

Wake Forest’s first appearance in the top 10 lasted a week. The Demon Deacons lost for the first time this season Saturday, falling at North Carolina.

POLL POINTS

Seven more ranked teams lost this past weekend, upping the total to 68 on the season, including 42 to unranked teams.

The number of ranked teams to lose to unranked teams is the most through 10 weeks of a college football season, according to ESPN Stats & Info.

IN

The three teams to move into the Top 25 this week have all been there before.

–No. 20 Wisconsin is back in the rankings after more than a month out. The Badgers have won five straight games since a 1-3 start.

–No. 21 North Carolina State returned to the Top 25 after its second straight victory. The Wolfpack had a three-week run in the rankings in October.

–No. 25 Pittsburgh moved back in after a loss knocked the Panthers out for a week.

OUT

–Kentucky lost for the third straight week to fall out of the rankings after a five-week run in the Top 25.

–SMU’s second straight loss cost the Mustangs their ranking after four weeks in the Top 25.

–Fresno State is out again, a week after it jumped back in at No. 25. The Bulldogs lost at home to Boise State.

CONFERENCE CALL

Big Ten — 6 (No. 6, 8, 9, 19, 20).

SEC — 5 (Nos. 1, 3, 11, 12, 16).

ACC — 3 (Nos. 13, 21, 25).

Big 12 — 3 (Nos. 4, 10, 18).

American — 2 (Nos. 2, 17).

Sun Belt — 2 ((Nos. 22, 24).

Conference USA — 1 (No. 15).

Pac-12 — 1 (No. 5).

Independent — 2 (Nos. 7, 14).

RANKED vs. RANKED

No. 4 Oklahoma at No. 18 Baylor. Eighth time the Sooners and Bears will be a matchup of ranked teams, all since 2011. Sooners are 4-3 in the first seven.

No. 9 Michigan at No. 23 Penn State. Fourth time in the last five years the Big Ten East foes will both be ranked when they play.

No. 11 Texas A&M at No. 12 Mississippi. Third meeting when both are ranked. Rebels have won the first two.

No. 21 North Carolina State at No. 13 Wake Forest. The Wolfpack and Deacs have played 113 games and just one in which both teams were ranked. N.C. State won it big in 1992.

THE TOP 25

1. Georgia 9-0

2. Cincinnati 9-0

3. Alabama 8-1

4. Oklahoma 9-0

5. Oregon 8-1

6. Ohio St. 8-1

7. Notre Dame 8-1

8. Michigan St. 8-1

9. Michigan 8-1

10. Oklahoma St. 8-1

11. Texas A&M 7-2

12. Mississippi 7-2

13. Wake Forest 8-1

14. BYU 8-2

15. UTSA 9-0

16. Auburn 6-3

17. Houston 8-1

18. Baylor 7-2

19. Iowa 7-2

20. Wisconsin 6-3

21. NC State 7-2

22. Coastal Carolina 8-1

23. Penn St. 6-3

24. Louisiana-Lafayette 8-1

25. Pittsburgh 7-2

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Peres Jepchirchir of Kenya reacts after crossing the finish line first in the women’s division of the New York City Marathon. | Seth Wenig/AP

Korir and Jepchirchir made it a Kenyan sweep at Sunday’s New York City Marathon.

NEW YORK — New York sought a comeback story for its 50th marathon, and Albert Korir delivered.

And for a city whose sports fans don’t accept second best, Peres Jepchirchir came through with a memorable first.

Korir and Jepchirchir made it a Kenyan sweep at Sunday’s New York City Marathon, with Korir winning the men’s race two years after finishing second and Jepchirchir becoming the only woman to take a marathon major in the fall after earning an Olympic gold medal.

The second oldest of the world’s marathon majors returned after canceling in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. In a city where over 34,000 have died of COVID-19, organizers hoped for an uplifting celebration akin to the marathon staged two months after the 9/11 attacks.

“It was fantastic,” Korir said.

On streets emptied 21 months ago except for ambulances rushing to aid a city paralyzed by the coronavirus — and later filled with anguish and frustration in the days after George Floyd’s murder — there was simply joy Sunday as around 30,000 runners made their way through the city’s five boroughs.

Brooklynites cheered for the early rising wheelchair competitors between sips of coffee. Throngs on Manhattan’s First Avenue welcomed runners off the Queensboro Bridge. Cowbell-swinging supporters in the Bronx waved runners into the final stretch.

They clapped and hollered for the elite and the every-runner.

Shalane Flanagan, the 2017 champion, ran her sixth marathon major in six weeks — a first made possible because the Boston, London and Tokyo Marathons were pushed from spring to fall by of the pandemic. The 40-year-old American is calling her journey Project Eclipse because of how rare the opportunity was.

“I thought the fans were a whole other level today,” she said. “The enthusiasm was so infectious. I felt like everyone had this deep sense of gratitude.”

Also on the course: Dr. Jose Alfredo Jimenez Gaxiola, a Mexican ICU doctor who worked through the pandemic and survived his own bout with COVID-19; Kellie Roe Kenny from Califon, New Jersey, a survivor of the 9/11 attacks who first ran in 2001 in memory of co-workers who died; and Chris Nikic, the first athlete with Down syndrome to complete a full Ironman Triathlon.

Molly Seidel finished fourth in her first race since taking bronze at the Tokyo Games, becoming the first American woman since Deena Kastor in 2004 to earn an Olympic medal.

She revealed Sunday that she broke two ribs about a month ago, but she still finished in 2 hours, 24 minutes and 42 seconds, the fastest time ever by an American woman in New York.

“Every build up has challenges,” Seidel said. “This was an interesting one.”

Seidel said she was motivated to run New York because it would be the first time her family could see her race since the 2020 Olympic trials — international travelers were banned from attending the Tokyo Olympics.

“I hope there’s a beer waiting for me at the hotel,” Seidel said. “We will be going crazy tonight.”

In the men’s pro race, Korir overtook Morocco’s Mohamed El Aaraby and Italy’s Eyob Faniel around the 18th mile and quickly took out any drama. He won in 2:08:22.

“It was not an easy race,” Korir said. “But I enjoyed it.”

It was Korir’s first victory in one of the World Marathon Majors and his first time atop any podium since winning the Ottawa Race Weekend Marathon in 2019. The 27-year-old Korir finished second to Geoffrey Kamworor in 2019 by 23 seconds and didn’t race again until this June because of the pandemic.

El Aaraby held on for an improbable second-place finish after coming in 11th at the Tokyo Olympics. Faniel was third.

Jepchirchir was side by side with countrywoman Viola Cheptoo and Ethiopia’s Ababel Yeshaneh from the time they entered the Bronx until they got to Central Park’s entrance.

Moments after guzzling two energy gel packets, Jepchirchir turned on the jets and pulled away, winning in 2:22:39 for the third fastest time by a woman in NYC Marathon history.

“It’s not easy,” she said of the New York course. “Toward the finishing line, I felt something I’ve never felt before to finish a marathon.”

Jepchirchir, 28, took gold at the Tokyo Olympics marathon in August and came back on a short recovery to win a race once dominated by her hero Mary Keitany, a four-time winner in New York who recently retired from the sport.

Cheptoo finished second in her marathon debut and quickly found her brother, Bernard Lagat, who was broadcasting the race on ESPN. Yeshaneh was third.

Marcel Hug of Switzerland won the men’s wheelchair race for the fourth time, finishing more than 6 1/2 minutes ahead of the next racer for his first title since 2017. Australia’s Madison de Rozario won the women’s wheelchair event, holding off past champions Tatyana McFadden and Manuela Schar for her first Big Apple victory.

The field was shrunk by about 40% this year to help keep runners distanced, and participants had to provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test within 48 hours of race day. Runners registered for the 2020 race that was wiped out were given the option of a full refund or entry into the 2021, ’22 or ’23 races.

The non-competitive field had its share of famous athletes, too, including U.S. women’s national soccer team alumnae Abby Wambach, Lauren Holiday, Kate Markgraf and Leslie Osborne. Former New York Giants runner back Tiki Barber raced for the seventh time.

Tony Award-winning actress Kelli O’Hara was slated to perform the national anthem before testing her lungs on the course, while two members of British rock band Mumford & Sons also were signed up to run. The entrants also included “The Bachelor” and “The Bachelorette” contestants Matt James, Tyler Cameron, Tayshia Adams and Zac Clark.

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R-E-L-A-X. Aaron Rodgers famously said this after the Packers 1-2 start in the 2014 season but now it has a newfound purpose calming down Chicago Bulls fans about the Nikola Vucevic “problem.” I agree that Nikola Vucevic is not having a great start to the season. It’s also likely that if he was playing up […] Chicago Bulls: Everyone needs to relax about Nikola Vucevic – Da Windy City – Da Windy City – A Chicago Sports Site – Bears, Bulls, Cubs, White Sox, Blackhawks, Fighting Illini & MoreRead More

Mount Carmel’s Dennis Furlong (11) breaks a tackle against Batavia. | Kirsten Stickney/For the Sun-Times

Controversy at Mount Carmel, a Public League football solution and St. Patrick’s success.

Mount Carmel’s win against Batavia on Friday came on an untimed down with the Bulldogs leading by four.

Batavia was called for pass interference on the final play as time ran out, giving Mount Carmel one more chance at the win. Junior Dennis Furlong scampered nine yards into the end zone to give the Caravan a 16-14 victory.

There was another pass interference call on Batavia during Mount Carmel’s final drive and several holding calls on the Bulldogs during the game. Social media lit up with anger after the final buzzer and fans pored over clips of the pass interference penalties.

“It just felt like we were playing against two teams,” Batavia coach Dennis Piron said. ” I’ve never seen that in my life. I’m not a person that says things like this. I can’t make these kids feel better. It isn’t the loss. I don’t mind losing games. This is going to sound horrible in the paper tomorrow, but whatever.”

Losing your undefeated season and a playoff game on an untimed down after a penalty is rough. That’s just a harsh way for everything to suddenly end. It’s understandable that Batavia’s players, coaches and fans had a difficult time accepting it initially.

Hopefully that has passed. The officiating crew did its best. I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary during the game. I thought the final play was clearly pass interference after watching it several times.

I was standing about three feet behind the end zone on Friday at Mount Carmel and the pass interference play happened so quickly that I had no clue about the call initially. That’s how dialed-in the officials are. They make split-second decisions, usually correctly.

Public League co-ops

Chicago Public Schools, which qualified a record 24 teams for the state playoffs, is down to just one. Morgan Park and Clark lost lopsided games in the second round. Phillips beat Kewanee 48-21 and will host undefeated Richmond-Burton in the quarterfinals.

Earlier this week I spoke with Morgan Park coach Chris James. He brought up the subject of Public League schools forming co-ops for football. It’s a regular practice across the state but has only been used sparingly in CPS.

“My dream is that CPS co-ops some teams,” James said. “I wouldn’t mind combining with Julian. They are right down the street. They have a rich tradition of football but maybe 20 kids in the program right now. We could combine coaching staff and funds. I think it makes sense.”

It makes a ton of sense and is the best way forward for Public League football.

Shamrock success

St. Patrick beat Rochelle 21-14 on the road Friday to advance to the quarterfinals in Class 5A. It’s the first time the Shamrocks have ever reached the quarters, they had failed in five previous attempts.

Senior running back Alex Goworowski scored three touchdowns and ran for 155 yards.

“This was just amazing,” Goworowski told the school website. “My O-line gave me the holes and I got through them. I knew as a freshman this team could be special.”

St. Patrick (7-4) will travel to Sycamore (8-3) next week.

Up next

There are several good quarterfinal games, but a lot of the marquee names in Class 8A were eliminated in the second round. Class 7A has a monster showdown: Mount Carmel at Brother Rice. The Crusaders beat the Caravan 43-36 on the road in October.

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