Chicago Public League Sports Blog

Spotlight - Joshua Cephus of Fenger

Joshua Cephus(sr) of Fenger - profile

Ht: 5-8
Wt: 140lbs
Sports: Basketball, Track and Field
School: Fenger
Roles: Starting point guard and captain of Fenger basketball team
Sprinter and jumper on track team

Spring 2011 track and field highlights:
* Ran a leg on all-state class 2A boys track 4x100 (7th) and 4x200(4th) relay teams.
* 3rd place CPS meet long jump with a leap of 20-10.
* Ran a relay leg of CPS meet championship 4x200 meter team; and 3rd place 4x100 meter team.

Joshua Cephus(sr) is one of the top returning long jumpers in the city, having finished 3rd at the CPS meet last year with a leap of 20-10. You may also see him in Fenger sprint relays and may individual sprint events as he is Fenger's top returning sprinter. Cephus is also the captain and starting point guard of the Fenger basketball team. Since basketball is a winter sport just like indoor track, you may not see Cephus in action until the outdoor season. But when outdoor opens up in April, look out for Cephus.

Fenger Transfers Ruled Ineligible to Play at CVS

During the offseason 9 Fenger football players transferred from Fenger to CVS. They expected to play this fall. It looks like that won't happen as the CPS ruled:

“The CPS Athletic Association bylaws outline very specific rules that govern transfers between schools and eligibility for student-athletes within Chicago Public Schools. The rules are in place to maintain a level and competitive playing field for all schools. The students received a fair hearing, which determined that they are ineligible to play football at their current schools this year.”

In short, the 9 players are ruled inelgible to play football this fall at CVS. They transferred to CVS citing "safety" reasons at Fenger. It is not yet determined wheter some or all of them will continue to be enrolled at CVS or go back to Fenger or another school.

Darrien Boone Picks Central Michigan University- transfers to CVS

Darrien Boone(6-4,190lbs, sr) committed to play football for the Central Michigan University Chippewas. Boone had been a mainstay at the quarterback position for Fenger the last few years before deciding to transfer to CVS.

Central Michigan University gets the athletic and tall 6-4 Boone, my top rated quarterback from the Chicago Public League.

CVS gets an immediate boost at the quarterback position. Hopefully, Boone can help bring CVS back to football prominence. CVS is a school with a rich football history. Alumni include former Chicago Bear Dick Butkus (NFL Hall of Fame), former Chicago Bear and 3 time All-American at Notre Dame Chris Zorich, and former Illini quarterback Juice Williams (class of 2006).

CVS, despite finishing last in the Illini-Red Bird conference got a reprive when it was announced that CVS will remain in the Illini-Red Bird home of Simeon, Curie, Dunbar, Lane Tech, and Whitney Young.

City Prelims looks like State Prelims!

Shavell Lucas(sr) of Fenger is the only all-city returnee in the 100 and 200, but even he is not guaranteed anything in a CPS prelim meet that is so tough across the board.

I may have a short memory, but after reviewing the meet program for tomorrow's city prelims, my first impression was that it looks like state prelims. In other words, every heet looks tough- for every school. Everyone is going to battle just to make it to the finals. There are no gimme heets in this meet.

Consider the following heats for just the 100 meter dash.

100 meter

Heat 1 of 5 Prelims
1 Thompson, Christopher 10 Austin Commu 11.64
2 Coleman, Tavaris 11 North Lawndale 11.41
3 Smith, Justin 12 Payton 11.22
4 Melto, Mac 12 Northside 10.84
5 McNeeley, Jamal 11 Kelvyn Park 11.14
6 Brackett, Martin 12 Clark 11.34
7 Dangerfield, Michael 12 Lake View 11.64
8 Finlater, Shaquille 12 Bowen 11.84

Jamal McNeeley and Mac Melto go at it. Those guys are two all-state sprinters. We'll know right away who is the fastest. Justin Smith(sr) from Payton is no pushoever either. Smith ran a 11.16 at last year's prelims. Football star, Christopher Thompson(so) has the tool to be sprint star for the CPS. You could see 2 runners break 11 seconds in this heet.

Heat 3 of 5 Prelims
1 Fredericks, Amery 11 Lane 11.64
2 Fleming, Maurice 12 Curie 11.41
3 Magee, Terry 10 North Lawndale 11.14
4 Lucas, Shavell 12 Fenger 10.74
5 Carter, Brian 12 Kelvyn Park 11.14
6 Ukaegbu, Paul 11 Epic Academy 11.44
7 Dawson, Claudis 11 Dunbar 11.64
8 Vidas, George 12 Taft 11.88

Shavell Lucas(sr) of Fenger is the city's only returning all-city returnee in the 100 and 200. Brian Carter was all-state 2 years ago in the 100. Terry Magee(so) when healthy is a city 100 contender.Paul Ekaegbu(jr) from EPIC Academy ran an 11.44 to finish 2nd at last year's frosh-soph 100 finals. He could be a dark horse to make the finals. You could see up to 4 runners run below 11.25 in this heet.     

Speedmeisters

Shavell Lucas(sr) of Fenger and Brian Carter(sr) of Kelvyn Park

City meet varsity prelims are in a mere 13 days (Wed, May 2, 2012). One of the most high profile events is the 100 meter dash. Obviously, the heet sheets are not out yet, so we do not know if the following athletes will actually run the 100,  but here is my take on the 100 meter.

Neilski's Title Contenders
Brian Carter(sr), Kelvyn Park
Jamal McNeeley(jr), Kelvyn Park
Mac Melto(sr), Northside Prep
Terry Magee (so), North Lawndale

I feel the title will come down to these 4. Jamal McNeeley(jr) was 2nd in the state last year in the 200 for class 2A, so if there is a favorite it could be him. Then again, teammate Brian Carter(sr) was all state his sophomore year. Mac Melto(sr) won the 55 meter group A indoor title by .02 seconds over Terry Magee(so) of North Lawndale. Melto is also vastly faster over last year when he finished 5th in the city. Magee, only a sophomore could really make a name of himself if he pulls out a win against this group of all state sprinters.

Neilski's All City Picks
Brian Carter(sr), Kelvyn Park
Jamal McNeeley(jr), Kelvyn Park
Mac Melto(sr), Northside Prep
Terry Magee (so), North Lawndale
Dakari Howard(sr), Whitney Young
Matt Rowe(sr), Lane Tech
Lonnie Washington(jr), Calumet
Shavell Lucas(sr), Fenger

Other contenders to make all-city
Manjaro Jackson(sr), Gage Park
Paris Ratcliff(sr), Simeon
Justin Smith(sr), Payton
Carlos SIngleton(jr), Westinghouse
Wesley Mills(sr), Kenwood
Victor Taylor(jr), King
Devon Sanders(jr), Robeson
Ben Satterfield(jr), Phillips

There is also a chance that someone out of nowhere, that is not even mentioned above, can break out. Terry Magee of North Lawndale and Christopher Dalton of Morgan Park (6th in state in 100) did it last year and Darius Smith of CVS (state runner up the last 2 years) did it 2 years ago. It seems like every single year, someone who is not really talked about breaks out at the city meet.

Relays Saturday

Relay meets will be big this Saturday for CPS teams. Although on relay meets it is hard to guage individual talent because there are few individual running events.

Where is your team running this Saturday?

Lane Tech will be at Hinsdale South Relays

Lane ventures to the suburbs. Teams like Lyons Township, Oak Park, Hinsdale Central, Morton, and host HInsdale South usually run at this meet. So expect some fast times. Lane usually does not stack all of their relays at this meet. What I'll be looking for are their individual times in field events. Lane is glaringly absent any kind of serious long or triple jumper this year. Look for Lane to test out a couple guys in the long and triple jump. Emanuel Odiase(sr) is their best high jumper. But he jumped only 5-8 at the Mather Invite. Their discus crew looks good with Timothy Pinner(jr) and Alex Mueller(sr) both throwing over 110 at the Mather Invite. Lane has a large number of shot putters but has yet not had anyone make the 39-9 needed to make the CPS Outdoor Leaderboard.

Over 23 Southside CPS teams will be at Hanson for the CPS South Relays

Southside track fans get to see their teams running in the northside. Brooks, Simeon, North Lawndale, Morgan Park, Robeson, and Calumet should be there. Robeson "the relay school" usually stacks up their 4x400. This will be sprint heavy relay meet as Brooks, Simeon, North Lawndale, or Calumet could put together a fast relay team or two. If Simeon is there look for Cywettne Brown  in field events. Brown has the top CPS indoor mark in the long jump. Look for Michael Fort(sr)  of Calumet in the shot put and discus.

Payton, Mather, and Northside will be at the Paul Gans Classic at Niles West

I was surprised Payton scored only 44 points and getting beat by Morgan Park and Lake View at the Mather Invite. Points may be even harder to come by this time as this meet features suburban teams (Niles West will be there. Yorkville, Matea Valley, Antioch, Rich Central, Fenwick,and  Plainfield East ran there last year). Mather looked stronger than I thought at the Mather Invite. They scored 122.5 points to finish 2nd. They were not far from Lane and scored double the points as 3rd place Fenger. Mather looks particularly strong in field events with thrower Jarell Smith and jumpers Shakell Rosario and Raheem Milz. Milz and Rosario finished 1-2 at the Mather Invite with triple jumps of over 41 feet. Everyone knows Northside has 400 extraodinaire Mac Melto(sr). Their success in the CPS will depend on how much their other guys step up from now until the end of the season.

Jones will be at Glenbard South

Jones, already a strong distance school prior to this season, has elevated their distance program even more. I have never seen times this fast this early in the outdoor season for Jones. Jamison Dale(jr) is the stud. But after Dale, Jones runs at least 7 deep in every distance event. It seems like their entire track team is their cross country team. This track season they have already broken school records in the 800, 1600, and 4x800. Times could be really fast at this meet at Thornwood, Glenbard South, Downers Grove North, Glenbard West, and Addison Trail usually run this meet. I got a feeling that after the meets Saturday, the headline results will come from Glenbard South.

Pictures Now- Mather Invite 2012

Photo Album

It was a bit cold,low 50's, slightly windy.Good distance weather, not optimal sprint weather.These Lane girls wait to cheer on their runner, while huddling up in a warm blanket.

The 2nd leg of Fenger's 4x100 relay team. Fenger looked strong in sprints today. Fenger's Shavell Lucas took 1st in the 100 and 200; Fenger finished 1-4 in the 100, 1-2 in the 200, 1st in the 4x100, and would have finished high in the 4x200 if it were not for a DQ.

Tavin Allen of Fenger Voted Illini-Conference Player of the Year - Rimmer of King 2nd!

Tavin Allen(sr,RB) of Fenger was a major offensive weapon for a much improved Fenger program that won the Illini Land of Lincoln conference via tiebreakers over good teams from King and Julian.

From Allen:

"If it  wasnt for my FAMILY AND FRIENDS I'll still have 37 votes. ITZ A HONOR WINNING THIS AWARD OVER ALL THESE GOOD PLAYERS I would also like to give a big shout out to first my coach for believing in me to make big plays and 2nd my OFFENSIVE LINE for making good blocks and allowing me to make plays I thank everybody for voting for me and hopefully I'll be seeing my lil bro Damarco Gilmore on there next year."
-#6 Tavin Allen

Devonte Rimmer(sr, RB) of King was second in the voting. Rimmer was a speedy playmaker for King that finished with a 4-1 conference record.

Top 10 in votes
1. Tavin Allen, Fenger - 805 votes
2. Devonte Rimmer, King- 545 votes
3. Robert Gregory, Simeon- 41 votes
4. Dae Shaun Hurley, Julian- 40 votes
5. Darvell Harris, Dunbar - 38 votes
6. Jordan Diamond, Simeon - 35 votes
7. Darrien Boone, Fenger- 32 votes
8. Kevonte McIntyre, Curie - 28 votes
9. Demarlon Morris, Julian-25 votes
10. Mikhail Dubose- 18 votes

Illini Conference Player of the Year Nominations....Part 2

 Kevonta McIntyre(sr, RB, 6-1, 205lbs)(photo courtesy K. McIntyre) voted last year as the CPSFan.com running back of the year. This year, his performance on the field deserves a nomination for the Illini-conference player of the year. He rushed for 1143 yards and 21 touchdowns. He also took over the quarterback duties for a while when star quarterback Maurice Fleming went down with an injury. McIntyre also played linebacker. McIntyre, at 6-1, 205lbs showed he is a powerful runner with some good speed. If there was a running back of the year award in the CPS, he would definitely be voted by me as one of the top 2 or 3 running backs in the city.

Tavin Allen(5-11, 195lbs, sr, RB) Instrumental player in Fengers dramatic team rise this year to a surprise conference championship and state semi-final appearance. Fenger was the only CPS team to lose to Simeon by less than 28 points. Simeon lost to Simeon by only 5 points in the city semi-finals. Fenger's all time leading touchdown leader he had 18 td's with 1400 on the ground with on 83 carries without this athlete fenger wouldve never made the playoffs he played a big role in every single game won by Fenger with 2 or more td's.

I'd also like to nominate:

Darvell Harris(sr), QB of Dunbar
Darrien Boone(jr), QB of Fenger
Jim Daniels(sr), OL of Whitney Young
Quincy Skanes(sr), QB of Hubbard
Dae Shuan Hurley(sr), QB of Juilan
DeMarlon Morris(sr), DB of Julian
Devonte Rimmer(sr), RB of King
Destry Cross(jr), LB of Harlan
Devon Sanders(jr),RB of Robeson

Jarvis Wright(sr, QB) of Robeson

Please comment for additional nominations. And if your case is strong enough, I may just put them on the final ballot.

Part 1

Harper,Simeon advance to CPS Football Finals

Great special teams play by Paris Ratcliffe(sr, RB/ATH) of Simeon helped in the Simeon win.

Harper 40 Dunbar 12
Simeon 33 Fenger 28

After Harper came up with a big upset, Fenger nearly came up with the upset of the year.

Harper avenged a 40-24 loss to Dunbar in the regular season. Harper was powered on two touchdown passes by Kweane Pipkins, and touchdown runs by Pipkins, Lorenzo Herbert, and Antoryio Barton. Darvell Harris threw two touchdown passes in the first half for Dunbar, who did not play it's best game. Maybe a shutout loss to Loyola in the first round of the state playoffs had something to do with it.

In the 2nd game, Simeon playing without starting QB Robert Gregory, who was sitting out on a team rules violation, escaped to win over Fenger. Fenger was down 21-6 in this game before playmaking quarterback Darien Boone(jr) led Fenger to several quick scores that gave Fenger a 28-21 3rd quarter lead. But a good Simeon defense combined with big special teams play by Simeon's Paris Ratcliffe (punt return for a TD, and fake punt play) led to Simeon retaking and keeping the lead.

Hats off to Harper and Fenger. Both of those teams have surpassed my expectations and will be higher on the radar for next year.

Meanwhile Harper and Simeon play this Saturday for the city championship.