Suburban Life football notes: Transfer London Leflore a big part of Wheaton Academy’s 8-1 season

Wheaton Academy’s London Leflore didn’t require a lot of time settling into his new football home late last summer.

After spending part of the summer playing football for South Elgin, Leflore transferred to Wheaton Academy before the start of the season.

“The expectations are higher here than any other program I’ve been in. Especially being a senior I knew I had to help lead the team because the coaches give us the responsibility to lead the team,” Leflore said. “When I came here, I knew I had to automatically set a tone. I really was soaking everything in, saw how everyone else was. The first couple of days I was more observing, but after that, I started being more of a leader.”

The Warriors (8-1) enter their Class 4A first-round playoff game against Sandwich aiming to make another long journey into November. Wheaton Academy hosts Sandwich (5-4) for a 7 p.m. Friday game in a rematch of a quarterfinal last season the Warriors won 42-7. Wheaton Academy is coming off a historic run to the Class 4A semifinals last season, losing to St. Laurence 31-30 to just miss a trip to the state finals.

The addition of the 5-foot-11, 190-pound Leflore, a running back and linebacker, is a big factor in the Warriors’ undefeated run through the Chicagoland Christian Conference. Leflore has 71 tackles this season.

“I think coming into the season the idea was he’s a solid running back and he is, but expectations where maybe he would see more action on the offensive side of the ball,” Wheaton Academy coach Jim Johanik said. “But London has totally shined on defense. He had to learn a new system but every week he’s been eating up the coaching and busting his tail. He plays tough and is solid and fundamentally strong. He’s come in and made a difference this season.”

Leflore said he started to become comfortable in a new offense and defense – and team – in Wheaton Academy’s win over St. Charles East on Sept. 6.

“I feel like definitely in Week 2 I started getting (comfortable) especially on the defensive side with my role,” Leflore said. “I feel things started coming to me naturally and my coaches were making sure I did everything right. It’s been amazing, compared to last year when I didn’t reach my full potential. Defense is a mental game, but I feel like with new coaches that I have and everything I need and that they push me to reach my full potential.”

Leflore, who started playing football in kindergarten, said he hopes to play football in college. He splits the duties at running back, with his defense becoming his main strength this season.

“I’m tackling better and hitting hard,” Leflore said. “Last year I hit hard but then I would miss a tackle or be out of position but this year I’m playing within the context of my defense, hitting hard and being consistent and making tackles. I’m very excited for the playoffs. This is the best time of the year, playing for something meaningful. I’m so happy to be in this position and thankful for all my coaches for helping me.”

Johanik said his players, including Leflore, are ready for the playoffs to start.

“It’s a little different than last year, when everything was new,” Johanik said. “We had made the playoffs a couple of years before, but we drew some tough teams. Last year we made the quarterfinals for the first time in school history and then the semifinals were a new territory. We now have expectations. There’s nothing new this year. It’s more about the business of making sure we’re well prepared. All the newness is gone. We’re a more mature program. We have that postseason maturity. We were disappointed with the semifinals loss last year. We still have that taste in our mouth, especially the guys who returned from last year.”

Glenbard South update

Glenbard South has a difficult task in its Class 6A first-round game against No. 3-seed Kankakee. The No.14-seed Raiders (6-3) hit the road for a 1 p.m. Saturday game against a highly ranked and motivated Kankakee team.

“Kankakee is very athletic and fast and they play very physical. We know that they have the advantage in some facets of the game, but we really like the game plan we have going into Saturday,” Glenbard South coach Ryan Crissey said. “At this point for us, it’s about executing and cleaning up things and minimizing mistakes and keeping the ball in front of us as a defense.”

The Raiders will lean on their running back duo of senior Deshawn Clark and freshman sensation Elijah Donahue.

“Deshawn has done a really nice job mentoring Elijah and teaching him more about the soft skills of the game, being patient and understanding success doesn’t always come right now,” Crissey said. “Both are studs. I would put them on almost any team in the area and both would be starters.”

Crissey said Donahue, at 5-9 and 160 pounds, is a player to watch this season, and hopefully on Saturday.

“Elijah is our multiple tool,” Crissey said. “He’s going to touch the ball at least 15 times a game (on Saturday). We’ll try and give me the ball multiple of plays. He starts at cornerback and is our main returner. It’s shocking that he’s 14 years old. He has a great head on his shoulders and is a passionate and a natural born leader. He really showed against Glenbard East, when we struggled in a lot of ways, but he stepped up and talked to the team at halftime unprovoked.”

Crissey said his team received an extra lift when two-way lineman Saif Kokoszka was ruled healthy to play in the playoffs after sustaining a potential season-ending injury at Ridgewood.

“Saif’s mobility came back and he’s the emotional leader for us and a strong defensive lineman,” Crissey said. “We’re excited to have him back.”

Three in a row?

Nazareth (7-2) embarks on his mission for a three-peat starting with Saturday’s 1 p.m. home game against Payton (5-4).

“We’re blessed to have a lot of playoff experience and our top guys understand but I can already tell the younger guys, after two days of practice, that their energy level is higher and also their focus,” Nazareth coach Tim Racki said. “The guys understand you can’t bring the 7-2 record with you. They’ve been enjoying every day together. This team really gets along with each other and has great chemistry. They have a lot of fun together and work hard.”