By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
It seems like every week the Effingham Hearts face a high-powered offensive football team.
Decatur St. Teresa, Mahomet-Seymour and Mt. Zion could score on any play, anywhere on the field, and Mattoon and Lincoln also possessed the ability to rack up points.
It won’t be any different this week when the Hearts travel to Breese to face the always-tough and dangerous Mater Dei Knights.
The Knights will enter the contest with a perfect 7-0 record and a No. 2 ranking in the state’s Class 2A poll.
The Hearts are riding a three-game winning streak. They finished the Apollo Conference schedule at 4-2 and are 4-3 overall.
“Mater Dei is very, very, very talented,” EHS coach Brett Hefner said. “They run the same stuff every year, but they do it very well. They’re big, they’re physical, they’re quick and just a very good football team.”
So far this season, Breese Mater Dei has defeated Waterloo 31-13, Breese Central 21-7, Belleville Althoff 31-13, Alton Marquette 65-12, Quincy Notre Dame 28-7 and DuQuoin 50-14. Last week’s opponent, True Divine Word Academy out of St. Louis, forfeited.
The Knights have outscored their opponents 226-46. They enter the contest averaging 38 points and 382 yards per game.
They can move the ball through the air or on the ground, averaging 139 yards rushing and 243 yards passing. They are especially strong at the skill positions – sophomore quarterback Brock Revermann, senior tailback Jayce Napovanice, senior receiver Cameron Haag and junior tight end Dalton Markus.
Revermann has completed 72 percent of his passes, connecting on 89-of-123 attempts for 1,427 yards. He has thrown 16 touchdown passes and only four interceptions. Napovanice has run for 464 yards, a 77-yard average. Haag has hauled in 42 passes for 727 yards and 11 TDs, while Markus has 22 receptions for 286 yards.
“They run a lot of motion and play action,” Hefner noted. “Their sophomore QB throws it well and their tailback is a good one. They are very skilled.
“They are also big and physical up front,” the EHS coach added. “There’s a reason they’re putting up all those points and why they’re undefeated and ranked No. 2 in the state.”
The Hearts will counter with a game plan similar to the Mt. Zion game. They will try to run the ball and control the clock. To do so, the offensive line will need to open holes for running backs John Westendorf and Keegan Baker. Westendorf enters the game with 808 yards rushing, an average of 115 per game.
“We need to control the ball and limit their possessions,” Hefner said. “We’ll also need to throw it some, but we have to be able to run it and try to shorten the game. And we can’t turn the ball over.”
This is also the time of year people start thinking about the playoffs. The Hearts are just one win away from a playoff berth, although there is some speculation that a few four-win teams could qualify this year due to the number of schools that either didn’t play football or had to forfeit games due to COVID.
Kickoff in Breese is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday.
