The conference portion of the schedule has arrived as we enter Week Three of Football Friday in Illinois. The stakes have been raised with five big-time local matchups on the docket. Football Friday is sponsored by BMO.
Metea Valley vs. Naperville North
The biggest storyline in Naperville-area football thus far is the 2-0 start for Metea Valley. The Mustangs face their biggest test of the young season on the road at Naperville North. The Huskies are coming off a thrilling overtime victory at Libertyville a week ago.
Three minutes into the game, Naperville North is already on the move as William Eloe plunges over the goal line and into the end zone for the opening score of the night as the Huskies go up 7-0.
On the next drive for the blue and orange, Eloe once again takes the handoff and heads left, powering through tacklers and into the end zone for his second touchdown. The running back would add a third later in the quarter as it’s all Huskies in the first half.
Trailing 28-0 midway through the third quarter, Metea Valley quarterback Charlie Larson pushes his way into the end zone to get the Mustangs on the board, trailing 28-7.
But that is as close as the game would get. Naperville North puts the game away on a quarterback keeper from Josiah Nothacker, who helps the Huskies to a 35-14 victory over Metea Valley. The Huskies improve to 2-1 while handing the Mustangs their first loss of the year.
De La Salle vs. Benet Academy
Benet Academy is in need of a bounce-back performance following last week’s defeat at the hands of Glenbard North. The Redwings return to the friendly confines of Benedictine University to face the Comets of De La Salle.
The Redwings have a 17-0 lead late in the first quarter when quarterback Ben Clevinger keeps the ball himself and finds an opening to the right side as he scampers into the end zone for his second touchdown of the game.
In the second quarter, Luke Doyle takes the handoff on the end around and breaks multiple tackles as he races around the edge. The speedster dives for the pylon and scores from 15-yards out to add to the Benet advantage. Doyle would add a touchdown catch from Clevinger to his resume late in the first half.
Leading 31-0 in the second quarter, Joe Salvino takes the handoff and plunges into the end zone to put the Redwings up 38-0. Benet rolls over the Comets by the final score of 52-0.
Sandburg vs. Naperville Central
Naperville Central is nearing must-win territory with a matchup against 2-0 Sandburg. The Redhawks are hoping they can draw from their homecoming crowd to pick up win number one on the season.
The defenses dominate this matchup from start to finish. With Naperville Central trailing 2-0 late in the third quarter, senior kicker Gavin Ellison drills a 40-yard field goal to give the Redhawks their first lead of the season at 3-2.
Late in the fourth quarter, Central tries to run out the clock by going for it on fourth and five from the Eagles 40 yard line. Sandburg snuffs out the screen pass and takes possession, trailing by just a point.
With under 40 seconds left in the game, Drew Droznek attempts a 39-yard field goal for the lead, and it’s good. The Eagles go up 5-3.
Last chance for the Redhawks with less than 10 seconds remaining and no timeouts. The Redhawks go for the lateral, but the ball is snatched away by Jaden Weaver, who rumbles inside the 20 to run out the rest of the clock. Sandburg comes away with the 5-3 victory over Naperville Central, who falls to 0-3 on the year.
Waubonsie Valley vs. Bradley-Bourbonnais
Waubonsie Valley is off to an 0-2 start, but the Warriors have been competitive in each game against a pair of tough opponents in Neuqua Valley and New Trier. The Warriors travel south for another strong challenge from the Boilermakers of Bradley-Bourbonnais.
On the first drive of the game, Boilermaker quarterback Ellis Johnson looks downfield for receiver LyZale Edmon, who breaks free and makes a fingertip grab, and gets both feet inbounds for the first score of the game. Bradley-Bourbonnais gets the two-point conversion and leads 8-0.
In the second quarter, the Boilermakers look to add to the lead. Johnson finds tight end Calvin Kohl out in the flat. Kohl works his way through the defense and across the goal line. Bradley-Bourbonnais takes a 22-0 lead into halftime.
The Warriors trail 29-0 but are still battling. Colin Ford drives the team down the field before connecting with Jack Van Der Watt for the touchdown. That is as close as the game gets as Waubonsie Valley falls to Bradley-Bourbonnais by the score of 35-6 and drops to 0-3 to start the year.
Neuqua Valley vs. Lincoln-Way East
Neuqua Valley with a daunting road test staring the team in the face in week three. The Wildcats visit one of the top programs in the country, Lincoln-Way East, to face USC commit Jonas Williams and the Griffins, who have outscored their opponents 81-0 in their first two games.
Lincoln-Way with a 13-0 lead in the first quarter and looks to add to that advantage. Near midfield, Brody Gish takes the handoff and roars past the defense, with open field ahead of him. A 49-yard touchdown run makes it a three-score lead for the Griffins.
Near the same spot on their next drive, Lincoln-Way East adds to the early onslaught. Jonas Williams finds Matt Orban all alone. The receiver breaks two Neuqua tackles and follows his blockers. He tightropes down the sideline and eventually finds paydirt for a 48-yard score as the Griffins fly to a 27-0 lead.
Facing a seemingly insurmountable lead in the second quarter, Neuqua Valley is not ready to submit. Colton Matia enters the game for an injured Drake Mennecke and connects with Andy Barkley, who shakes free and hustles into the end zone for the touchdown. It’s the first points allowed by the Griffins all season. However, that would be the last points for the Wildcats in this one as Lincoln-Way East takes the win by the score of 56-7 over Neuqua Valley.
Standings and Schedules
There are no more undefeated teams in the Naperville area just three weeks into the year, but Naperville North, Metea Valley, and Benet all have winning records at 2-1. Neuqua is 1-2 while Central and Waubonsie have their backs against the wall after an 0-3 start.
Next Friday, we have one local head-to-head matchup once again, with Neuqua Valley hosting Naperville Central. Waubonsie Valley is on the road for a third straight week at Andrew, while Naperville North heads to Homewood-Flossmoor. Metea Valley welcomes Sandburg, while Benet Academy will travel to St. Viator.
Believe it or not, but we are quickly approaching the midway point of the regular season. We’ll be back with another exciting edition of Football Friday in Week Four. I’m Justin Cornwell, thanks for watching!
For more prep sports highlights, visit the Naperville Sports Weekly page!
