Lake County Gazette

VERNON HILLS

There is no shortage of starters back on either side of the ball for Vernon Hills this season.

The defense has nine starters back, and the offense returns linemen Andrew Smith, Camden Anderson and Nick Lafleur; wide receivers Jonathan McGuire and Chris Mariella; running back/wide receiver Drew Winegardner; and quarterback/running back/receiver Kyle Hull.

“If the offensive line comes together, we can be dangerous on offense. We have some weapons at the skill positions,” head coach Bill Bellecomo told the Lake County Gazette. “Our defense should be our strength this year.”

 

GRAYSLAKE CENTRAL

The Rams go into the season looking for their first win under head coach Jason Schaal, who starts his third season at the helm.

Grayslake Central has two key returners on the offensive line.

“That alone allows us to give more opportunities to players to perform,” Schaal said. “All the players and coaches are excited for this season and have worked very hard in the offseason.”

 

WAUCONDA

The Bulldogs have a lot of experience back from their 5-5 team in 2015.

Nine seniors who started last season return this year.

 “We are a mixed group of experienced and young in experience,” Wauconda head coach David Mills told the Gazette. “We expect to be very competitive in the Northern Lake County Conference. The playoffs are the goal for this team.”

 

GRAYSLAKE NORTH

Eleven key returners from last season's 7-4 team will lead the charge to improve this season.

The top returners include running back Dami Oladamoye; tight end/defensive end Payton Campbell; wide receiver Cole West; receiver/defensive back Elliott Hochstein; linebackers William Bauman, Charlie Burr and Jerimiah Myles; linemen Jordan Speer, Justin Bock and Jared Sims; and Pete Stanfel, who is listed at three positions – hybrid (tight end/fullback) and a linebacker on defense.

Quarterback Hunter Ambre is among the key newcomers.

 

ROUND LAKE

The Panthers went 1-8 last season, but head coach Cristo Garza told the Gazette the team is heading in the right direction, as he fielded a lot of underclassmen last season.

Seven starters are back on offense, and there are also seven starters back on defense.

“This season, we will rally around the quote of 'W.I.N. the day,'” Garza told the Gazette. “Don't worry about tomorrow; just trust the process and winning will take care of itself.”

 

WARREN

The Blue Devils have eight seniors back on defense and five on offense from the team that went 6-5 last season.

Head coach Brian McNulty said the team's strength is the team's tight-knit nature.

“I feel very good about the year's group,” McNulty said. “We have great senior leadership and the ability to be explosive at certain skill positions.”

 

MUNDELEIN

The Mustangs, 4-5 last season, have nine starters back.

Head coach Larry Calhoun said the players will have to “play some ironman football again this year” because of lower numbers on the roster.

“We have great kids, and they all work hard. Our players are talented,” Calhoun told the Gazette. “However, our lack of depth will demand that we are in good physical shape and maintain our mental toughness.”

 

BUFFALO GROVE

Head coach Jeffrey Vlk's team was 1-8 in 2015, but had only five players with significant varsity playing experience. That won't be a problem this season.

“This upcoming season, we have 26 guys who either started several games or got significant playing time last year,” Vlk told the Gazette.

The offense has several starters back, and Tyler Abdishi – a starter on defense last year – moves to starting running back this season.

 

NOTE: Not all area coaches returned information before this story went to press.