Friday, September 9, 2011

I'll be at Glenbrook North...

...tonight, the alma mater of John Hughes (above), to watch the home town Spartans take on the Titans of Glenbrook South.

Hughes, you may remember, was the maker of such films as Home AloneThe Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller's Day Off. (While the latter two were actually filmed at Maine North High School, some exterior scenes were shot at GBN.)

Glenbrook North against Glenbrook South. Sounds like a great rivalry, doesn't it? It isn't. The fact of the matter is, other than a small group of parents (and me), no one in either town cares -- or even knows -- that there's a game tonight. After all, this isn't some small town in Texas like the one in Friday Night Lights (or even the Chicago Catholic League). No, it's the northern suburbs, where playing in the band is just as important as playing in the game. (In fact, there's always a big exodus of parents after the half. They're the ones with kids in the band. For them, the game is over.)

But at least one high school football fanatic will be in attendance -- moi. And I'll be watching the first meeting of the two teams since 2008 to see if Grant Rushing (you gotta love that name), the star running back from Glenbrook North, can establish a ground game against the Titans like Stevenson did last week. Or will GBS, led by quarterback Mac Zabriskie, build on its success in the second half against the Patriots and upset the Northbrook squad.

Both schools are 1-1 going into tonight's contest. The Titans are ranked No. 25 in the Sun-Times poll, while GBN was ranked No. 23 in the Sun-Times preseason poll. (Neither team gets any love from the Trib.) But South has played a tougher schedule, has won the last four games in the series and has the better program. Look for the Titans to pull away in the second half.

BOWG prediction: Glenbrook South 35, Glenbrook North 7.

No comments: