Palatine Pirates vs. Hoffman Estates Hawks: Game Recap and MVPs
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Despite once again coming to a high school football game underdressed for the weather, Friday night’s matchup between the Palatine Pirates and the Hoffman Estates Hawks was a hard-fought, hard-hitting, and exciting affair that left me happy and fulfilled like I had just finished a meal at my favorite bar and grill. With talent-packed rosters on both sides, some interesting story lines to enhance the rivalry, and two very fired up defenses, the game was quite intense, and despite a one-sided result on the scoreboard, I saw a ton of players ball out and even got my eyes on some new names and faces that impressed me quite a bit. To get a full recap of the game, find out who the MVPs of the contest were, and learn which young bucks or under the radar guys caught my eye, all you have to do is scroll down! Thanks for reading.
Recap
Things popped off quickly for the Pirates – who have been lethal on kick returns all season – as dynamic senior Tyler Klipowicz took the opening kickoff up the left hash and through a hole up and up near midfield to put Palatine’s offense in great field position. Next thing you know, QB Eric Pecson found B1G 2022 talent Jacob Bostick Jacob Bostick 6'3" | 170 lbs | WR Palatine | 2022 State IL on a 20-yard dig across the field and to get deep into Hawks territory, where freshman (!) Dominik Ball ran the ball up the gut of the Hawks defense, through their safety, and into the endzone for an early 6-0 lead only a couple of minutes into the ball game.
@DominikBall with the early TD for Palatine to take a 6-0 lead with 10:55 left in the first. PAT is blocked.@PrepRedzoneIL pic.twitter.com/FtQSw0uTZQ
— PrepRedzone Oliver (@OliverJamesWes1) April 10, 2021
The ensuing PAT was blocked, and Hoffman Estates took over on offense deep in their own territory after some phenomenal KO coverage by senior Pirate RB Charles Harris. The Hawks offense tried to get going but were met by the brick wall of Palatine LB Mitch Larkin Mitch Larkin 6'1" | 210 lbs | LB Palatine | 2022 State IL and DL David Katalinich, who flew around all night for the Pirates and really set the tone defensively. They forced Hoffman Estates to punt, and Palatine’s offense quickly got back to work with a nice pass from Pecson to the explosive Ronald Todd (2021) to set up a TD run from Harris. Jacob Bostick Jacob Bostick 6'3" | 170 lbs | WR Palatine | 2022 State IL added a 2pt conversion on a slant that saw him run through a couple hits, and with 5:19 left in the first Palatine held a 14-0 lead.
Eric Pecson to Ronald Todd to move the chains! @PrepRedzoneIL pic.twitter.com/dkGuz59eQQ
— PrepRedzone Oliver (@OliverJamesWes1) April 10, 2021
The Hawks offense continued to fight and would put together a nice series or two that looked promising, but flags and consistent pressure from the Palatine front-7 snuffed out the chance for Hoffman Estates to put an entire drive together. As mentioned though, there was definitely some fight from the Hawks, with the athletic and slippery senior QB Joey Ayala leading the charge. He was very elusive inside and outside of the pocket, and got some help here and there from 2022 6’1, 205 lb. WR/S Yoshua Pettis, as well as some tough running from 2021 RB 6’, 185 lbs. Mekhi Williams.
Mekhi Williams for the @HoffmanHS first down. Hawks putting together their best drive of the night pic.twitter.com/IJhXieOrMJ
— PrepRedzone Oliver (@OliverJamesWes1) April 10, 2021
As the second quarter got underway, Palatine really blew open the scoring after a beautiful reception up the seam by Favour Okhavhe (2021) set up a gorgeous pitch and catch from Pecson to Bostick in the corner of the endzone that required the standout 2022 WR Bostick to high-point the football and get his feet inbounds in an exciting display of athleticism that few preps are capable of making. Palatine added another TD before half on a sweet TD catch by Iowa Western signee Alex Clue, and Hoffman Estates found themselves in a deep hole going into the half that they never climbed out of. Bostick added another tremendous TD catch in the second half, and the very impressive 2024 recruit Ball followed it up for the final score of the game. The game ended with a Palatine 41-0 victory.
TOO EASY @JacobBostick5 @PHS_Football 34, Hoffman Estates 0@JoshBostick8 @PrepRedzoneIL pic.twitter.com/OeEcyQkqpw
— PrepRedzone Oliver (@OliverJamesWes1) April 10, 2021
MVPs
Palatine
Jacob Bostick Jacob Bostick 6'3" | 170 lbs | WR Palatine | 2022 State IL – WR. 2022. Just a tremendous overall talent with a ton of explosive ability that helps him make plays on both offense and special teams. I already knew this coming in, so I was really looking forward to getting a more in-person evaluation of his talent and see a full game of work from him. He was very impressive, and with outstanding length and top-end speed, he was a deep threat on any given play. Additionally, he showed me a lot of refinement in his releases off the LOS that showed a good ability to get DBs to open their hips, as well as some nifty footwork that had DBs off-balance and guessing all night long. I really hope my hometown Golden Gophers throw him a coveted WR offer here soon, I personally think he’s deserving of it.
Mitch Larkin Mitch Larkin 6'1" | 210 lbs | LB Palatine | 2022 State IL – LB. 2022. 6’1, 210 lbs. Ended up posting 15 tackles, 3 TFLs, 2 sacks, and a PBU in a fantastic defensive performance where he exerted every bit of energy he had on every single snap. He could go sideline to sideline impressively, showed some good burst out of his stance to make an impact behind the LOS or in coverage, and was a very strong tackler who excelled at the point of contact. I also loved how much energy he played with, and it was very obvious he was the heart and soul of the Pirates defense and made everyone around him better. Right now it looks like Army-West Point and Minnesota State-Mankato are recruiting him the hardest.
Charles Harris – RB. 2021. Talk about hustle, man. Harris isn’t the biggest prospect, but boy does he make up for it in strength and heart. I think the Hawks defense underestimated him and how hard he ran, as he kept his legs pumping and ran over more than a few defenders in the open field with some impressive lower-body strength. He fought hard for every yard he earned, and to go along with his truck stick he showed some impressive laterally agility and good footwork in the open field. All in all he was just a really hard ball-carrier to corral, and he made one of my favorite plays of the game in a really impressive display of hustle on special teams. Check out the video below. He currently hasn’t reported any interest or offers but would be a phenomenal DIII back.
Almost a big play for @PHS_Football. Nice kickoff coverage by Charles Harris@PrepRedzoneIL pic.twitter.com/TqYDWPqXtM
— PrepRedzone Oliver (@OliverJamesWes1) April 10, 2021
Ronald Todd – RB/WR. 2021. Wow, is this kid fast! Todd was lightning in a bottle and displayed some eye-popping burst that created some huge splash plays for the Palatine offense and was a nice counter to the power of fellow RB Harris. Todd is blazing fast in the open field, has good balance and can cut efficiently, and also has no problem checking off boxes in the physicality department, as I saw him bowl over multiple defenders when run-blocking. He hasn’t reported any interest or offers but would make a college program a lot better with his skill-set.
Hoffman Estates
Kyle Frymire – LB. 2021. 5’10, 175 lbs. @KyleFrymire – Although undersized for the LB position, Frymire was as tough and nails and had no problem sticking his face into the pads of Palatine ball-carriers. He was all over the field on Friday and made some really nice tackles throughout the night that showed good range and good strength. He’s visited North Park, Carthage, Roosevelt, North Central, Augustana, and Carroll. Whoever gets him nabbed themselves a grinder, that’s for sure.
Joey Alaya – QB. 2021. 5’10, 170 lbs. – @ayala_iv – The aforementioned shifty signal-caller, Alaya almost single-handily kept the Hawks offense in the game with his special ability to extend plays and make people miss inside and outside of the pocket. With great vision, he was also a dangerous runner with the ball in his hands and threw a good ball, especially when on the run. He’s a dynamic athlete who currently holds offers from Augustana, North Park, and Carthage.
Mekhi Williams – RB/DB. 2021. 6’, 185 lbs. A strong runner who also returned kicks and showed that he can run opponents over from either spot. He’s got good size and also displayed some good vision in the open field.
Mike Brown – DL. 2021. 5’10, 200 lbs. Undersized, but tough and quick out of his stance who was a good tackler and showed an ability to rush the passer as well.
New to the Scene
Dominik Ball (Palatine) RB. 2024. 5’10, 180 lbs. @DominikBall – Possesses all of the makings to become a future P5 runningback. His father is a bodybuilder, which explains why he’s so cut as only a 15-year-old. With thick shoulders and legs he had good burst for his age and was exceptional at running through contact and had the speed to run by defenders as well. He was such a balanced back to watch that it was really hard to believe he was only a freshman. Big things coming from Ball!
Freshman @DominikBall looking great tonight. Truck stick here pic.twitter.com/MgAKfSD8KV
— PrepRedzone Oliver (@OliverJamesWes1) April 10, 2021
Nathan Branch (Palatine) TE. 6’2, 215 lbs. 2023. @NateBranch810 – Well-built and physical, Branch got meaningful snaps on Friday as only a sophomore and showed he was strong enough to hold his own out there on varsity.
Edas Latanauskas (Hoffman Estates) 2022. OL/DL. 6’2, 245 lbs. @ELatin60 – Excellent run-defender with a good get-off at the snap and good size for the position.