Moline football preps for Glenbard West

Coming off of a miracle finish in the opening round of the playoffs against Benet, Moline is playing with a ton of confidence. After an 0-3 start, the Maroons have not lost a game.

They are battle-tested as well. Every team, except for one, on Moline's schedule made it into the playoffs this season.

Moline will hit the road on Saturday to take a tough Glenbard West squad.

Players credit the team's togetherness for getting through adversity, and are ready to make a statement.

"It pushes us to do more, pushes us to keep fighting after every play, and keep going on after every play. Don't let one bad play effect how you play the rest of the game, and keep stacking them. Just keep stacking the plays," said Marc Cary, a Moline senior. "(Glenbard West's) defense is physical, they're fundamental, they do all the little things, and so it is going to be really hard to find those gaps, and be able to make the right cuts, but they are beatable, like every other team, they are beatable, and I got a lot of faith in our team."

"Offensive and defensive linemen, we have progressed since we lost - like, 0-3 - it was a very tough start," said Marco Gutierrez, a Moline senior. "It wasn't how we expected it to start off, but we overcame it. Just after that we kept rolling, and it went well for us."

"Once you go through adversity, these guys (came) out of it strong and competitive still. I think that goes a long way," said Mike Morrissey, Moline football's head coach. "I mean that builds a little bit more team chemistry when you have to go through some tough times and try to persevere through that, and then make a long push through the rest of the season, and these guys have done that."

Kick-off between Moline and Glenbard West is set for 1:30 p.m. on Saturday.

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