There isn’t much mystery about what to expect from Peotone’s offense this fall.
Senior Alex Chenoweth is back for a second season as the Blue Devils’ starting quarterback. But this is not a team that plans to air it out.
“The foundation is always going to be us lining up and running the football,” coach Tolly Tsiamas said after a joint practice at Bishop McNamara earlier this month. “But (Alex Chenoweth) gives us an element where we can throw it if we have to or need to. And there’s going to be some games where we have to do that.
“But first and foremost, we’ve got to be able to run the ball and stop the other team from running the football. If we don’t do those two things, we’re going to struggle most weeks.”
Peotone didn’t have the season it wanted last fall, going 3-6 and missing the IHSA playoffs for the first time in a full season since 2018.
But with the exception of Tucker Cain, who graduated, almost every significant skill player returns with another year of experience.
Senior Nick Cronin, the Devils’ leading rusher and receiver last season, leads the way. He ran for 506 yards and six touchdowns, had 221 receiving yards and four scores and finished with 900 all-purpose yards.
Alex Chenoweth threw for 535 yards and ran for 265 more, finishing with eight total TDs. Senior fullback Eli Chenoweth (372 rushing yards, four TDs) is also back and senior Declan McMaster will be a full-time wingback after playing mostly defense last season.
“Nick Cronin is taking another step,” Tsiamas said. “Alex Chenoweth — he’s probably been our cleanest, best player this summer. Declan McMaster … has done phenomenal. And the kid who’s taken a huge step for us has been Eli Chenoweth at fullback. There is a maturity and effort from him that I’ve been looking for him from last year.
“I love what I’m seeing from all four of those guys and we will go as they go.”
Cronin welcomes that responsibility.
“I feel like this is a really talented group, especially because we’re all seniors,” he said. “I feel like we’re gonna push each other (to) the limits.”
For himself, Cronin added, “I really wanted to get my hand on my linebacker when I’m running the ball. Focus on being more patient, too.”
The Devils’ experience isn’t limited to the skill positions. Other veterans include seniors Ryan Hitzeaston, Jake Voss, Jimmy Iozzo and Kolton Koehn.
“We’ve got as many as seven guys back on each side of the ball and you can see it in practice,” Tsiamas said. “It’s looked a lot cleaner this summer.”