Crosstown Pre-Game Retrospective

Crosstown tool place on Friday, September 29 at Oswego High School.

Crosstown Game

• Oswego East came in having won their first five games, having beat Joliet West, Romeoville, Joliet Central, Plainfield South, then knocked off favorite, Plainfield North
• Oswego tripped up against Plainfield North in week two, But have since dominated their opponents. (Joliet West, Minooka, and Plainfield South)
• Theses teams are very competitive, Oswego hasn’t lost to Oswego East in twelve years! 
• There was over  7,535 tickets sold for Crosstown this year. This is a very competitive game
• East came to Oswego’s territory and had vandalized their field       
• This game features teams playing for more than just themselves, but their whole entire school
• For just the second time ever this game is played for first place in the conference
• Oswego looks to keep a seventh straight Southwest Prairie Conference title within reach

The facts above show the meaning and history of what this game means. Two teams, one city, for more than just a conference title, this for who owns bragging rights within Oswego. The closest East has come was 2015 when QB Steven Frank scrambled for a touchdown with under 10 minutes to go to win 22-19. This was an instant classic, however East was not expected to even compete. Flash forward a year later and a man by the name of Ivory-Kelly Martin transferred from Nazareth Academy to Oswego East. The number one running back prospect in the state of Illinois there was a lot of hype surrounding the star. Oswego had graduated three year starter Steven Frank, the number one QB in the state. As one would expect East was favored. Beside Martin, they had loads of division one talent on both sides of the ball. This was the most anticipated game in crosstown history, as both teams rolled in at 5-0 and this game was for sole possession of first place in conference. Oswego felt overlooked or disrespected, they had loads of talent and a 5-0 record too. The game played at East, the wolves were sure it was their year, best running back, a rolling offense that averaged over forty points a game, who would argue against them? Oswego however, came into the game with the best defense in the conference. Best offense vs best defense, and as the old saying goes “Defense wins championships”. This turned out to be true as Oswego didn’t even allow a touchdown. The panthers dominated en route to a 21-3 victory, this turned out to be enough for a conference title and bragging rights as Oswego improved to 12-0 against OE.