{"id":104342,"date":"2026-07-16T20:15:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T20:15:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/104342\/"},"modified":"2026-07-16T20:15:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T20:15:11","slug":"geneva-with-10-starters-on-offense-back-holds-high-hopes-for-a-return-to-the-playoffs-shaw-local","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/104342\/","title":{"rendered":"Geneva, with 10 starters on offense back, holds high hopes for a return to the playoffs \u2013 Shaw Local"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two years ago, Geneva<\/a> finished its season by playing for the biggest prize in football \u2013 the state championship.<\/p>\n

The Vikings suffered a tough 42-28 defeat to East St. Louis at Illinois State University\u2019s Hancock Stadium. One year later, the Vikings missed out on the playoffs, finishing 4-5.<\/p>\n

Now, with a significant group of talented players returning, the Vikings are working hard in the summer to avoid another late regular season collapse \u2013 three losses in their last four games.<\/p>\n

\u201cSummer has been going good,\u201d Geneva coach Boone Thorgesen said. \u201cWe\u2019re out there fighting and playing hard and seen improvement as we\u2019ve gone through the summer. Our attitude has been great and work ethic has been great.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ten starters return on offense to spark optimism for another memorable season. Geneva opens its season Aug. 21 at home against Libertyville.<\/p>\n

Senior wide receiver Bennett Konkey, an Illinois recruit, is the headliner for the Vikings. After enduring a hamstring injury that limited his effectiveness last season, Konkey won the 100 and 200-meter dash at the Class 3A state track and field championships in late May.<\/p>\n

\u201cBennett really separated himself the way he practiced this summer and how hard he worked out,\u201d Thorgesen said. \u201cSeeing him progress and become the guy was special. There\u2019s nothing he can\u2019t do at the wide receiver position. We are going to ask a lot out of him. It should be a fun year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Senior quarterback Ben Peterson, an Eastern Michigan recruit, will benefit from having the fastest wide receiver in the state to throw the ball to this season.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re pretty experienced on the offensive side of the ball,\u201d Thorgesen said. \u201cBen made a big jump from last year. The jump from junior to senior year is huge. He\u2019s taken command of our offense and knows what we want and expect from him. He\u2019s ahead of the game and playing fast and has tremendous character.\u201d<\/p>\n

Senior running back Nelson Wendell is healthy after suffering a season ending injury in Week 4. Wendell\u2019s skill set makes the offense more dynamic, Thorgesen said.<\/p>\n

\u201cNelson also will play defense for us,\u201d he said. \u201cHe\u2019s a heck of a football player and pound for pound just a tough kid. When he got hurt last year, it was hard for us. He\u2019s healthy, but still getting his legs under him still. It\u2019s great to have him back. He worked really hard.\u201d<\/p>\n

Senior cornerback Tate Beran, a three-year starter, is accustomed to battling against elite wide receivers in games and during practices.<\/p>\n

\u201cTate is a heck of a football player who is very smooth and seen it all,\u201d Thorgesen said. \u201cHe started in the state championship game. He has so much experience. I\u2019m looking forward to seeing what he does this year and seeing him be a leader.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beran said the Vikings\u2019 defense is adjusting to some new starters, but noticed some positive signs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis year we have a lot of younger guys, especially at defensive back,\u201d Beran said. \u201cTherefore, it\u2019s things, such as communication, technique and trust, we continue to build as a team every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beran said he concentrated on improving his strength, speed and gaining weight, while also playing football with Midwest Boom.<\/p>\n

\u201cMidwest Boom helped me learn about my strengths as a defensive back and learn the best techniques in coverage for myself,\u201d Beran said. \u201cI was able to face the best receivers from all over the country and continue to develop my game throughout the offseason.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beran said last season\u2019s senior secondary players helped him understand the value of being a positive leader for the younger players.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe most important thing is building relationships and trust with our defense, so we can play confident and fast as a group,\u201d Beran said. \u201cI want to make sure everyone is clear with their relationships and jobs with each coverage leading us to be able to make big plays as a defense.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Two years ago, Geneva finished its season by playing for the biggest prize in football \u2013 the state…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":104343,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[7],"tags":[51320,65,29214,42198],"class_list":["post-104342","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-geneva","tag-fnd-kane-county","tag-geneva","tag-geneva-preps","tag-high-school-football"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ch\/116931495729027457","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104342","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=104342"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104342\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/104343"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=104342"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=104342"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=104342"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}