Tuesday, October 4, 2016

On Friday Lyons will "beat...

David Hasselhoff is a 1970 graduate of LT.
...the Hinsdale Central football team in a prime-time top ten match up."

Or at least that's what it says on the Lyons Township Wikipedia page.

But if that's true it will be only the fourth time the Lions have prevailed over the Red Devils in the last fourteen outings (home team in CAPS):

2015: HINSDALE CENTRAL 51, Lyons 21
2014: Hinsdale Central 37, LYONS 23
2013: Lyons 35, HINSDALE CENTRAL 14
2012: Hinsdale Central 24, LYONS, 20
2011: HINSDALE CENTRAL 33, Lyons 10
2010: LYONS 34, Hinsdale Central 17
2009: HINSDALE CENTRAL 56, Lyons 42
2008: HINSDALE CENTRAL 33, Lyons 7
2007: HINSDALE CENTRAL 26, Lyons 14
2006: LYONS 25, Hinsdale Central 14
2005: HINSDALE CENTRAL 35, Lyons 14
2004: Hinsdale Central 21, LYONS 6
          HINSDALE CENTRAL 22, Lyons 7 (playoffs)

Why don't I have more data? Because that's all the info they have on MaxPreps.

How many times have the schools actually met on the gridiron? Hard to say. Hinsdale Central was founded in 1879 and Lyons in 1888. When did they begin playing football? Search me, but I'll bet they've been competing for bragging rights in the western suburbs for over a hundred years.

This Friday the two will square off for the lead in the West Suburban Silver Conference. (Oak Park and River Forest is also undefeated and plays at Glenbard West on Saturday.)

Who will win this one? I'm not as confident as that hacker writer on the Lyons Wikipedia page. While the Lions are ranked No. 5 in the Sun-Times, No. 9 in the Tribune and No. 32 in MaxPreps (No. 32?), the Red Devils are rated No. 12 in the Trib and Sun-Times and No. 13 in MaxPreps. Both schools are undefeated, of course, and both took down Big, Bad Glenbard West, but other than that they've each bested only one other winning team, American Fork (whoever that is) in Hinsdale Central's case, and Leyden in Lyons's. Here are their 2016 schedules so far:

HINSDALE CENTRAL 42, American Fork, UT 12  
Hinsdale Central 26, DOWNERS GROVE SOUTH 7  
Hinsdale Central 30, DOWNERS GROVE NORTH 14  
HINSDALE CENTRAL 35, York 7  
Hinsdale Central 28, PROVISO WEST 6  
HINSDALE CENTRAL 31, Glenbard West 30  

Lyons 19, WARREN 7  
Lyons 36, MORTON 14  
Lyons 31, PROVISO WEST 6  
LYONS 38, Leyden 13  
Lyons 28, GLENBARD WEST 14  
LYONS 23, Downers Grove North 6

Lyons has already won more games this year than in any since 2012. And the last time they started 6-0 was way back in 2004, when they also beat Glenbard West, and today's seniors were in . . . kindergarten?

This is also Hinsdale Central's best start since 2004, when the Red Devils went 11-1, beating Lyons twice, and losing in the third round of the playoffs to Downers Grove North, 14-0. (The Trojans went on to win the 8A crown.)

2004 was a heck of a year for these two programs! Was there something in the west suburban water back then?

So who will emerge victorious on Friday night, and 7-0? Again, I have no idea, but it's definitely my Game of the Week.

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