Naperville North moved up to No. 2 in the Chicago Sun-Times rankings after Friday's 35-21 victory over Naperville Central, and from here the schedule is manageable.
Up next is West Aurora (3-3, 1-3), which is 0-11 against North since joining the DuPage Valley Conference in 1997.
The Huskies (6-0, 4-0) then travel to Wheaton North (4-2, 2-2) on Oct. 17. The question then will be which Falcons are available. Quarterback Taylor Graham reportedly broke his ankle and will miss the rest of the season. Running back Mike Trumpy, a Northwestern recruit, sat out last week's 24-21 win over Glenbard East with an injury - his status will be something to monitor as the Falcons prepare for No. 3 Wheaton Warrenville South on Friday.
By Week 9 the hype will be in overdrive for another DVC showdown. WW South might come into Naperville having won its previous 27 DVC games, as well as 35 consecutive regular season games. Meanwhile the Huskies could be defending a 13-game winning streak that includes a Class 8A championship. It would have started after a 42-41 triple-overtime loss to WW South last year in the regular-season finale.
Obviously, I have an outsider's perspective being a Waubonsie student, but North has the potential to make another run at the 8A state championship. Clearly, their toughest opponent will be Wheaton-Warrenville South, but if there's one team that has a legitimate shot at ending their DVC winning streak, its North. They have the balance offensively and the defensive tenacity that just might be enough to outlast WWS in what should be another classic game.