Team at a glance
nickname Bison
Colors Blue and Orange
Stadium Route 83 and Green St., Bensenville
Enrollment 1,596
class 6A
coach Mark Farrell (3nd year, 11-8)
2007 record 4-5
Conference 3-3, T-2nd

Top returners   
Francisco Ochoa    sr.    OL/DL
D.J. Anderson    sr.    RB/DE
Ricky Prignano    sr.    QB
Mike Nolte    jr.    G
Benjy Sciullo    sr.    C
Tony Garza    sr.    TE/LB
Carlos Gomez    sr.    LB
Andy Dexter    sr.    NT/P
Ben Weishaupt    so.    K

Promising newcomers
Nico Watt    jr.    FB/LB
Tyrell McGee    jr.    DB/RB
Mitch Ewert    jr.    DB
Kyle McCormick    jr.    TE/LB

2008 schedule
Aug. 29    Maine East 7 p.m.
Sept. 5    at Glenbard South 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 12    Waterford, WI 7 p.m.
Sept. 19    at Riverside-Brookfield 7 p.m.
Sept. 26    Ridgewood 7 p.m.
Oct. 3    at Elmwood Park 7 p.m.
Oct. 10    Riverside-Brookfield 7 p.m.
Oct. 17    at Ridgewood 7 p.m.
Oct. 24    Elmwood Park 7 p.m.

Games to watch
Sept. 26 vs. Ridgewood The Bison lost twice to their conference rivals from Norridge last year by a combined eight points. Coming out with even a split would greatly enhance Fenton’s postseason hopes.

Oct. 10 vs. Riverside-Brookfield The wide open offense of defending conference champion R-B comes to Bensenville in the second meeting of the year between the teams.

five-year record
    overall    conference    playoffs
‘07    4-5    3-3   
‘06    7-3    6-0    1st Rd.
‘05    5-4    3-2   
‘04    5-5    3-2    1st Rd.
‘03    6-4    5-0    1st Rd.


Big on experience
Ochoa is one of several key returning players, as the 6-foot-2, 250-pounder enters his third year starting on the offensive and defensive lines. Anderson started at fullback (316 yards rushing, three touchdowns) and led the Bison in tackles for losses at defensive end while ranking fourth overall in tackles.

The quarterback spot is also sound, as Prignano was 75 of 139 passing for 918 yards and rushed for 416 more yards.

The numbers game
Third-year coach Farrell likes the look of his starting units on offense and defense, but depth is a concern.

“We have some big blockers and a lot of kids back from last year with a lot of playing experience,” Farrell said. “But looking at our roster our numbers are a little light. Injuries will play a big factor. Our No. 1’s (on the depth chart) are good, but if we get four or five guys knocked out it’s going to tough for us to recover from.”

Conference rivalries, times two
 In the four-team Metro Suburban Conference, the Bison are in the unusual situation of facing each league team twice.

“That works both ways,” senior Anderson said. “Last year we played Elmwood Park the first time and won by huge numbers (55-21), then we played at their place later in the year and won 14-13. Opponents get an idea of what you can do and how they can match up.”
“You know what they do (after Game 1),” Farrell said, “but then you have to adjust to what they do. There’s a lot of coaching on the fly.”

Close calls
Fenton is looking to avenge and avoid the feeling of losing two close games in the final three weeks last season, especially a 29-26 loss to Riverside-Brookfield in Week 9.
“If we had won we would have gone to the playoffs,” Anderson said, “and we were up by double digits at one point and ended up losing. If we get on top in those situations this year we need to stay on top and avoid the little mistakes that killed us like dropped passes, missed blocks and bad snaps.”


Senior Says
D.J. Anderson
What are your team’s goals and keys for this season?
“We really want to win a playoff game. Fenton last won a playoff game in 1984, which is definitely going back a long time. We have plenty of starters back and three of our five all-conference players (of 2007) back, and I think we’re a lot more determined this year. And everyone on the team gets along a lot better. We’re definitely more of a team this year. It definitely will come down to execution. We made little mistakes at key times last year that ended up costing us. We have to stay on top of that and not let little mistakes kill us.”