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North Boone battling through up and down season
The North Boone Vikings have suffered their fair share of ups and downs throughout the 2024 Illinois High School Football season.
Competing in the Big Northern Conference is no walk in the park, and the Vikings understand that. After beginning their year with an 18-13 win over the Oregon Hawks, the Vikings suffered their first loss in a brutal 34-0 defeat to Genoa-Kingston in week two. The Vikings returned to the win column with a 20-16 win over the Winnebago Indians.
The next two weeks were a challenging period for North Boone. They faced one of the toughest opponents on their schedule in the Byron Tigers in week four. Then, they took on a resilient Stillman Valley squad in week five. The Vikings lost both games by a combined score of 119-13. Byron won their game 71-6, while Stillman Valley picked up a 48-7 victory in week five.
Following the losses, the Vikings saw their overall record drop to just 2-3 on the season. One of the most important aspects of high school football is how you get back up, and the Vikings responded in a big way in week six.
On Oct. 4, the Vikings came in as the clear favorites as they took on a winless Rock Falls team. Although North Boone was expected to win, they still had to show up and do the work. Eventually, the Vikings managed to bounce back into the win column with a big 35-14 victory over the Rockets.
The victory came at the perfect time as the Vikings were able to bounce back to 500 on the year. They are set to take on Rockford Lutheran this Friday, Oct. 11, at home.
Here are some of North Boone’s statistical leaders after six weeks of play. Connor Chamberlain handles a majority of the ground game for the Vikings. This season, Chamberlain has 392 yards and a trio of rushing touchdowns. North Boone’s next leading rusher is Eli Bryan with just 34 yards and one rushing touchdown, for perspective.
The Vikings do a majority of their work through the air, and they have had a couple of different players throwing passes this season. RJ Wolski was originally starting at quarterback, where he completed 17 of his 25 passes for two touchdowns, two interceptions, and 154 yards.
Since then, Brandon Slater has handled the quarterbacking. Slater has completed just 36 of his 82 attempts for four hundred thirteen yards, five touchdowns, and eight interceptions.
The Vikings also use some trickery to get the ball in the air. In week six, JJ Ford took a pitch before launching a deep ball for a 51-yard touchdown pass. This year, Ford is three for three with 112 yards and a touchdown. Ford also happens to be the Vikings’ leading receiver with 19 receptions for 198 yards and five touchdowns.
Azriel Dixon is right there with him, however. Dixon has 18 receptions for 246 yards and two touchdowns. Bradley Dahl also has 14 receptions for 132 yards and a score.
