A rollercoaster season is how Normal West football coach Nathan Finchum described his team's 2024 7-2 campaign.

The Wildcats started the year 2-2 and after some key losses to its team, Coach Finchum explains they reflected on challenging his young team to rise to the occasion and he credits them because they won their final five games. 

Coach Finchum calls Cooper Temple a Swiss army knife and the shifting around he's done this season to go where he is needed. 

Normal West has run into East St. Louis the last two seasons in the second round of the 6A playoffs and it looks to be the projected opponent if they beat Chicago Simeon Saturday. Coach Finchum says they have to win the first one to get to the second one.

Normal West will host Chicago Simeon on Saturday.