What's it going to take for Morton football to make the title game? Defense
Morton will need a practically flawless defensive effort to play for a state championship.
The Potters head into Saturday’s 3 p.m. semifinal against Class 5A No. 2 Kankakee (12-0) looking for a berth in the program’s first-ever high school football state title game. But dealing with the Kankakee offense will be a big-time roadblock to making that happen.
Kankakee brings a potent offense to the field, averaging 38.3 for the season, including a 43.7 per game output in the playoffs.
“Defensively, we're going have to find a way to get off the field,” Morton coach Tim Brilley said. “Get stops and not give up big plays, which is going be a challenge.
"You know our kids have just really bought in. We know what we're doing. We're confident in what we're doing. We're not throwing a bunch of different stuff at them. It's all stuff we practice all year, might just look a little different times."
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The six-year coach says his team typically sees so many run heavy teams in the Mid-Illini Conference that the Potters are almost always in a typical 3-4 base defense. But heavy passing teams in the playoffs like Morris and Mahomet-Seymour have forced Morton to make adjustments.
Ultimately, he wants to be able to get his best 11 players on the field. This includes his quarterback Layne Kaufman along with all-stater Mac Anderson and Conner Hines playing in the secondary.
"Our safeties have done a great job all year getting involved in the run," Brilley said.
Test No. 1 comes in the form of Jyaire Hill, whose led the Kays to their first ever 12-win season. The all-state defensive back is dripping with Power Five offers — most notably Michigan, Penn State and Cincinnati.
More: Complete list of 2021 Illinois High School Football Coaches Association all-state teams
Hill, listed at 6-foot-2, 180 pounds, has seven touchdowns on 42 carries when he lines up in the backfield. Plus, he flies all over the defensive backfield in his natural position with 41 tackles and six interceptions.
If Hill can be contained, the Potters have a slew of other Kankakee skill guys to worry about with quarterback Tomele Staples running the offense.
The 6-foot, 175-pound senior’s favorite targets are 6-foot Pierre Allen (51 catches, 1,029 yards, 15 TDs) and 5-foot-10 Karson King (39 catches, 451 yards, six TDs). Staples, who has 1,841 passing yards and 26 touchdowns, can also hand the ball off to senior Nate Hill (439 rushing yards, 10 TDs) and junior Demere Turner (484 rushing yards, 10 TDs).
“It's one of those situations where their receivers are really, really fast and really, really good,” Brilley said, “so if they run around long enough, they're going to get open. The quarterback can kind of bide time … you got to bring pressure at times and kind of pick and choose when you do it …
“They can burn you one way or the other, but hopefully we can guess right and kind of go from there.”
But Kankakee better bring its best defensive game when dealing with all-state running back Seth Glatz. Running behind the dynamic offensive line of Ian Mutchler, Brayden McMillan, Broc Schmidt, Andrew Hummel and James Sauder, the 5-foot-11, 185-pounder has a ridiculous 3,064 yards and 45 touchdowns — putting him among the nation’s leading rushers, according to MaxPreps.com.
More: Why no major programs have offered Morton's all-state running back
Now, Glatz gets a taste of a defense that just last week allowed over 20 points for the first time.
“It’s definitely been fun,” Glatz said of the program’s best run in school history. “Just coming into this season, we knew we had high expectations. We knew what we could do. We got off to a rough start, just had to bounce back and come together as a team and we’ve done that throughout the postseason.
“Just got to take it one more step now — make it to the championship and hopefully, bring the championship home.”
Adam Duvall is a Journal Star sports reporter. Email him at aduvall@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @AdamDuvall.
Class 5A state semifinal
Morton (10-2) vs. Kankakee (12-0)
When: 3 p.m. Saturday
Where: Kankakee High School
Next: State championship game vs. winner of Sycamore (9-3) vs. Oak Park Fenwick (10-2)
Tickets: $8 available online via GoFan or directly here. A limited cash line will also be offered.
Prediction: Morton 21, Kankakee 20
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: IHSA football playoffs: Morton vs. Kankakee Class 5A semifinal preview
