Posted by 7th_son on October 20, 2007 at 7:58 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Well deserved win for the Eagles and commiserations to the Lions. Both Teams performed admirably and should be applauded for their effort and providing those of us who attended and the countless others watching on T.V. a truly entertaining evening of what has become a classic High School Football rivalry. Well done to both teams, Players and Coaches. However - the pitch invasion at the end ( the second by Oak Park fans since the rivaly began) and the toy Lion paraded among the Visitors section, suspended in a noose - all rather unfortunate. The former an affrontary to the hosts and the latter, in light of recent events in the news, highly inappropriate and in rather poor taste. Where is this headed?

Posted by Blown06 on October 20, 2007 at 11:35 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Awesome game for the ages. Saw it in person and again on TV. Both teams played hard and well with the outcome in doubt right til the end.

So come on '7th_son' complaining of a "Pitch invasion"? Isn't that what highly charged fans do at the end of most toughly fought football games? Run onto the field to show respect to their team?

And what is this 'toy Lion in a noose' nonsense. I was in the visitor’s section and saw absolutely nothing of the kind.

Let's keep this rivalry on the football field where it belongs and not with perceived 'slights'. You have to admit the comments by the Oak Park Players and coaches showed the respect THEY have for the OCHS program.

Posted by OPAv8R on October 20, 2007 at 3:16 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Keeping the rivalry on the field is a good idea.

This was a great game, the officiating was a bit suspect, it might have been nice if they would have made a few more holding and delay of game calls.

But a fun game to watch nonetheless.

Regarding the rivalry in the stands, the Oak Park stands were full so many of the Oak Park fans had to sit on the OC side where there was a lot of "friendly" banter. It was a lot of fun.

I was very surprised when many of the OC fans started to head for the exits with about a minute and half left. Maybe the OC fans can learn from their opponents fans, high school athletes need your support more when they loose than when they win.

The only thing I found remotely objectionable about the game was a helicopter hovering mid field about 50 feet from both stands. If anything would have happened to that helicopter a lot of people could have been hurt. It kind of reminded me of the episode of WKRP in Cincinnati where they dropped the turkeys from the helicopter thinking Turkeys could fly.

This is a great cross town rivalry and I'm sure we'll all be together again for the playoffs...

Posted by toobusy4alife on October 20, 2007 at 8:34 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Great game all around. Hopefully OP & OC will not be seeded in the same flight in the playoffs. A rematch in the finals would be a lot better than in an earlier round

I agree with the announcers from Time Warner and Vootage.com - you can not see the numbers on the Oak Park away jerseys

Posted by eggnog6292 on October 20, 2007 at 11:39 p.m. (Suggest removal)

A lion on a noose...i wouldnt doubt them. Last year, oak park students walked straight over to the OC cheering section (who holds up strict rules allowing only positive cheers) and waving posters in their faces, trying to pick a fight. This year, a lion on a noose. I commend Oak Park for their athletic victory and i also commend Oaks christian for their moral victory. For those who were at the game (perhaps it was shown in the broadcast as well) you will remember the oaks team lined up for several minutes waiting to shake hands with OP. I commend their one coach and one player that were there for this practice of sportsmanship. Where were the rest of the players? Were they trying to fight our players? Wait no, that was their fans. No, they were off in the stands (perhaps with the lion on a noose) and running their flag right in front of the OC crowd. Eventually a portion of the team had the courtesy to aknowledge the paitient lions. After shaking hands, the lions knelt in pray as they usually do. Where are the oak park players now? Well one of them is running the flag around the prayer circle. Coach Bill Redel is more than just a coach. He is a great example to these guys. Outside of coaching, he puts on leadership conferences and classes. Perhaps the OP team needs to take a class on respect from him. In my opinion anyways, this game had no victor. However cheesy and cliche this sounds, the eagles did not win, they simply scored more points, they were lacking in their respect playbook. The lions failed to win through the scoreboard but exhibited winning attitudes after the game.
Sorry to those OP fans who werent a part of these disrepectful acts but i felt it necessary to comment on the truth of this game.
PS OPAV8R, the helicopter is tradition however we usually dont have to battle the grass clippings. Opening game, game ball dropped from a copter...pretty cool.
*John McKittrick, Always in Our Prayers*

Posted by Blown06 on October 21, 2007 at 11:23 a.m. (Suggest removal)

THERE WAS NO LACK OF RESPECT EGGNOG!!!

If you watch the game, (8PM on CH36 again tonight) you will see opposing players ON BOTH SIDES help players back up after each play. VERY CLASSY!!!

Isn't that what mutual respect is all about after all?

And during the player congratulation line which the TV seemed to show ALL players and coaches and participating, weren't there some heartfelt hugs between players too? I even saw OP coaches hug and give verbal congrats to a couple of OCHS players. Take a look for yourself Eggnog.

Lastly, was this alledged 'Lion on a Noose' an isolated fan? Another 'urban myth'? A figment of someones vivid imagination? I sure never saw it at the game. Plus it wasn't on TV was it? Sad that it is the 'So-Called Fans' (frequently parents) who make ugly remarks about each other, and not the players doing it.

Again, let's let this rivalry play ON THE FIELD--DURING THE GAME, and not let these 'perceived slights' reduce from the joy of the game.

Posted by eggnog6292 on October 21, 2007 at 12:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Blown, you are right, there was respect between the player during the game, and some after. The parents and other crazed stduents r the problem. The most saddening thing was seeing Chris Potter walking to the locker room getting feedback from his dad while some kids in Oak Park jerseys (JV i believe) were throwing insults and comments his way. Just because you didnt see some of these things doesnt mean they didnt happen. I witnessed all of them excluding the lion on the noose. I am simply reporting what i saw

Posted by toobusy4alife on October 21, 2007 at 2:16 p.m. (Suggest removal)

We also saw tons of OC parents and fans leaving while OC was making their drive, to what they were hoping was the go ahead touch down. Not that we (OP) wanted OC to win but I am sure that OC could have used the support from their own side of the field during that drive. What? Five extra minutes in the parking lot was too much to ask for some extra fan encouragement? That was unclassy.

Our players did come to the middle to shake hands, it was just a little hard to get to the middle in a timely manner when you have 500 students jumping all over you.

BTW, the helicopter thing was cool but I think out of fairness, the golfball throw was not conductly fairly. Why wasn't my golfball picked?

Posted by toobusy4alife on October 21, 2007 at 2:52 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Correction - conducted (not conductly)

Posted by opchamp16 on October 22, 2007 at 7:54 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Well eggnog, I seem to remember last season's game between the two teams. Oaks Christian was already ahead by an extremely comfortable lead. The Oak Park quarterback happened to throw an interception on the last play of the game. The defender that picked the ball off did not just kneel it in sportsmanship, but he sprinted to the endzone to score another touchdown seemingly shoving it in the Oak Park Eagles' face. The rest of the team then proceeded to storm the field in celebration even though they were already winning by 40+ points. Despite this huge deficit, the Oak Park fans all stuck it out to the end of the game, showing respect to their team and their hard fought effort. Maybe Coach Billingsley can teach Oaks Christian a lesson about that. The fact that the entire Oaks Christian team ran on the field after yet another score shows an entire lack of respect for the Oak Park team, and they showed no class. The way Oaks Christian may have been treated this year was simply coming to them from the way they treat every other team that they have played. If anyone is classless in this case, it is Bill Redel and the rest of the Oaks Chrstian Lions. I also happen to know that after last year's Oaks Christian victory over Oak Park, Jimmy Clausen said to Coach Billingsley in a direct quote while shaking hands, "Coach, thanks for calling that timeout and leaving us enough time to score another touchdown." Who's classless now Eggnog? Don't be mad about the Oak Park fans celebrating their team beating Oaks Christian for the first time since 2003. They were simply happy and excited for the hard fought win, and they should not be ripped for their support for their team. Storming the field was just a token of gratitude to show how much the fans appreciated the team's effort. Don't be bitter.

Posted by ccdbum on October 22, 2007 at 9:03 p.m. (Suggest removal)

The reason the OC team celebrated that interception last year was not because they were piling on the points. It was because that ball was intercepted and run-in for a touchdown by a senior who had basically been a benchwarmer for four years. Despite having very little play time behind that group of "stars" he remained on the team, coming out and practicing every day like he was a starter. His teammates and coaches were just happy and excited for him that he got to make a big play in a big game. Things are not always what they appear to outsiders.

Posted by opchamp16 on October 22, 2007 at 11:29 p.m. (Suggest removal)

That's fine and all but the Oak Park team should not be criticized for their excitement at the end of this year's game. It just seems a little hypocritical that someone would watch Oaks Christian celebrate like that last year and then have a problem with the way Oak Park celebrated this year.