Comcast SportsNet Chicago, the television home for the most games and comprehensive coverage of the Chicago Blackhawks, Bulls, Cubs and White Sox, will once again be the home of the IHSA Football State Championship games in 2013. CSN Chicago will bring viewers all eight state championship games live in High Definition (HD) as they unfold on Friday, November 29 and Saturday, November 30 from Northern Illinois University’s Huskie Stadium in DeKalb.
Illinois prep football fans can look forward to seeing every action-packed championship battle, with coverage beginning at 10:00 a.m. on both November 29 and November 30. Friday’s Class 4A game and Saturday’s Class 8A tilt, which are both scheduled to kickoff at 7:00 p.m., will be shown on CSN Chicago Plus. Interested viewers are urged to visit the IHSA’s channel finder, CSN’s channel finder or check local listings.
IHSA TV veterans Dave Bernhard and Lee Hall return in 2013 to bring viewers play-by-play, while a mixture of veterans and newcomers make-up the remaining cast. A pair of Illinois prep stars with NFL pedigrees will be back to offer color analysis in Matt Bowen (7A/8A) and James “Boomer” Grigsby (3A/4A), while former coach and longtime IHSA TV contributor Jack McInerney (5A/6A) will be back to offer commentary as well. It will be a home game for the final analyst on the 2013 crew, as Northern Illinois University football radio color man Mark Lindo (1A/2A), a longtime contributor to IHSA basketball telecasts, makes his state football debut.
Matt Rodewald will once again anchor the coverage from the field, as the broadcast veteran will serve as the host and sideline reporter for all eight games. Joining Matt on the sidelines throughout the weekend will be CSN Chicago’s Kelly Crull and Quincy Notre Dame product Chloe Barnes.
CSNChicago.com & IHSA.tv will also be providing fans with a free live stream of every IHSA Football championship game and post-game press conference. In addition, CSNChicago.com will have a special IHSA page set up that will feature highlight packages from all games throughout the weekend, along with week-long coverage & scouting reports from veteran Illinois preps sports writer “Edgy Tim” O’Halloran (@EDGYTIM) and a Twitter module aggregating all #IHSA tweets. Plus – Comcast SportsNet viewers can look forward to a special “IHSA Football Championships” wrap-up edition of High School Lites on Saturday, Nov. 30 live at 11:00 PM for a complete rundown of every championship game, including expanded highlights and player/coaches interviews.
The 2013 Destination DeKalb State Championship Schedule:
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29
10:00 AM – Class 1A: LENA-WINSLOW vs. TRI-VALLEY
1:00 PM – Class 2A: NEWMAN CENTRAL CATHOLIC vs. STAUNTON
4:00 PM – Class 3A: STILLMAN VALLEY vs. ST. JOSEPH-OGDEN
7:00 PM – Class 4A: GENESEO vs. ROCHESTER -- (NOTE: This game will air on CSN+; please visit CSNChicago.com’s CHANNEL FINDER for the exact channel location in your area)
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 30
10:00 AM – Class 5A: MONTINI vs. SACRED HEART-GRIFFIN
1:00 PM – Class 6A: BATAVIA vs. RICHARDS
4:00 PM – Class 7A: LAKE ZURICH vs. CHICAGO MT. CARMEL
7:00 PM – Class 8A: LOYOLA ACADEMY vs. NAPERVILLE CENTRAL -- (NOTE: This game will air on CSN+; please visit CSNChicago.com’s CHANNEL FINDER for the exact channel location in your area)
Bios on each broadcaster are located below:
CHLOE BARNES – SIDELINE REPORTER - CLASS 1A, 2A, 5A, 6A
Chloe Barnes competed in track & field, volleyball, and basketball during her high school career at Quincy Notre Dame. She was a unanimous All-State selection as a senior in basketball, helping her earn a scholarship to continue her career at Ball State University. Injuries ended her career at Ball State, but she has stayed connected as an analyst for both women's basketball and women's volleyball on the Ball State Sports Network. She is also the founding partner, and creative director, of Ball State's first-ever female sports radio talk show, UNDISCLOSED with Chloe and Cariema. She is currently a graduate assistant in the Ball State Athletic Department and is in the second year of her MBA program.
DAVE BERNHARD – PLAY-BY-PLAY - CLASS 3A, 4A, 7A, 8A
Dave Bernhard has become the face of the IHSA TV Network over the course of the past decade, working the football playoff pairings show, football state finals, boys & girls basketball and baseball state final broadcasts. The Beecher High School grad has covered high school athletics in Illinois on television, the radio and in print for nearly 30 years. Dave was inducted into the Media Wing of the Illinois Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame in 2009 and has earned two local Emmy and two Cable Ace award nominations for his work on IHSA events.
MATT BOWEN – ANALYST - CLASS 7A & 8A
Matt Bowen starred at quarterback during his prep career at Glenbard West, before switching to safety after he arrived in Iowa City to play for the University of Iowa. He earned All-Big Ten and All-American honors as a Hawkeye and was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL Draft. His NFL career spanned seven seasons and included stops with the Green Bay Packers, Washington Redskins and Buffalo Bills. One of the best in the business at talking X’s and O’s, Matt is an NFL National Lead Writer for Bleacher Report and is a regular contributor to the Chicago Tribune and WSCR 670 The Score.
KELLY CRULL - SIDELINE REPORTER - 3A, 4A, 7A, 8A
KELLY CRULL is an anchor/reporter for Comcast SportsNet. Crull most recently worked for the regional sports network Fox Sports Net (FSN) San Diego covering the Padres (MLB) this season as both a beat reporter and host of "Padres Weekly." Prior to her stint in San Diego, Crull was the sideline reporter for FSN Southwest's coverage of the Oklahoma City Thunder (NBA) from 2010-12, where she was also host of the Thunder's pre-game show and weekly "Thunder Insider" show. Before heading to FSN Southwest, Crull was a weekend sports anchor/weekday sports reporter for KOCO-TV, the ABC affiliate in Oklahoma City.
JAMES “BOOMER” GRIGSBY – ANALYST - CLASS 3A & 4A
Boomer Grigsby led Canton High School to the quarterfinals of the IHSA playoffs as a junior and senior in 1998 and 1999, respectively, and then went on to an All-American career as a linebacker at Illinois State University. He was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the fifth round of the 2005 NFL Draft and would also spend time with the Miami Dolphins and Houston Texans during his NFL career. The Canton High School and ISU Hall of Famer has served as the color analyst on ISU football television broadcasts the past three seasons and previously hosted his own weekly radio show during his time with the Chiefs.
LEE HALL – PLAY-BY-PLAY - CLASS 1A, 2A, 5A, 6A
Lee Hall first joined the IHSA TV network in 1994 and has since gone on to cover IHSA state final events in the sports of basketball, football, baseball, softball, volleyball and track & field. Lee has served as the Sports Director at WEEK in Peoria since 1988 and has been a fixture on the Peoria Sports scene, calling television play-by-play for Bradley University Men’s Basketball, Peoria Rivermen hockey, Peoria Chiefs minor league baseball and Peoria Pirates arena football. Lee is an alum of Academy of Our Lady/Spalding Institute High School in Peoria, where the IBCA Hall of Famer was a co-captain on his high school baseball team with current New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi.
MARK LINDO – ANALYST – CLASS 1A & 2A
The 2013 football state finals will be a home game for Mark Lindo, although he will find himself in a different booth at NIU’s Huskie Stadium. Lindo has provided color commentary on NIU football radio broadcasts on 670 The Score for 28 seasons and will have the unique privilege of having broadcast an Orange Bowl and IHSA state championship game in the same calendar year. Lindo is a veteran IHSA TV broadcaster for state basketball and baseball, following a remarkable high school coaching career that saw him earn induction into both the Illinois High School Basketball and Baseball Coaches Halls of Fame.
JACK MCINERNEY – ANALYST - CLASS 5A & 6A
Jack McInerney has been a color analyst on IHSA football state championship contests for over 20 years and also works as an analyst on several high school football broadcasts in Chicagoland during the regular-season and playoffs. Jack coached high school football in Illinois for 36 years, making stops at Carbondale High School, Immaculate Conception, Westmont High School, Lyons Township, Oak Park High School and Downers Grove South High School along the way. The Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Famer was a part of the Downers Grove South coaching staff in 2001 when the Mustangs claimed the IHSA Class 8A title. The Fenwick graduate played college football at Southern Illinois University and later started the first 7-on-7 passing league in the state in 1984.
MATT RODEWALD – HOST, SIDELINE REPORTER FOR ALL GAMES
Matt Rodewald is an Emmy Award winning reporter and a sports radio mainstay for the last decade in Chicago. Matt has been an innovator in high school sports coverage in Northern Illinois, including the creation of the successful "High School GameNight" post-game show while at ESPN 1000. Matt is also the founder of NBC 5's "Prep Destination of the Week," a ground-breaking segment that saw unprecedented success with social media interaction. Matt is an Anchor/Reporter for WTVO-TV in Rockford and as an Anchor/Host at 670 The Score in Chicago. Matt also contributes to CN100, High School Cube, and PlayON! Sports during high school game broadcasts. An experienced play-by-play announcer with WKRS, WBIG, and ESPN 950 in Indianapolis, the Geneva High School grad has also covered high school sports for the Chicago Tribune and the Kane County Chronicle.