Benet offensive lineman Patrick Flavin, Naperville Central wide receiver Hayden Daniels and Naperville North linebacker Nick Lifka are among the juniors who will be recognized Wednesday as part of the Tom Lemming Underclassman All-Area Team. Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald will be the banquet's keynote speaker.

The team's selection committee included: the recruiting expert Lemming; Taylor Bell of the Chicago Sun-Times; and ex-college coaches Randy Taylor and Bob Chmiel, who combined have worked at UCLA, Minnesota, Michigan and Notre Dame. The players -- including a few seniors -- chosen from the greater Chicago area are:

2009 All-DuPage Valley Conference
OFFENSE
Offensive Team Co-Captains: Nick Linne, Naperville Central; Leon Spears, West Aurora
Outstanding Co-Offensive Lineman: Mike Partipillo, Glenbard North; Roco Ammons, Wheaton Warrenville South

Running Back
*Evin Natick, Glenbard North senior
*Idris Hanidu, Naperville North senior
Leon Spears, West Aurora senior

Wide Receivers/Ends
Mike Carev, Glenbard North senior
*Hayden Daniels, Naperville Central junior
Richard Finley, Wheaton North junior
Greg McAndrews, Wheaton Warrenville South senior

Offensive Line
Nick Wozniak, Glenbard North senior
Mike Partipillo, Glenbard North senior
*Soern Osborne, Naperville North junior
Nolan Randall, Naperville North senior
Rocco Ammons, Wheaton Warrenville South senior
Chris Cortopassi, Wheaton Warrenville South senior

Quarterback
Jack Merrithey, Glenbard East senior
Nick Linne, Naperville Central senior
Reilly O'Toole, Wheaton Warrenville South junior

TE/Offensive All Purpose
Lee Skinner, Glenbard East senior
Cam Brate, Naperville Central senior
Mack Tracey, Wheaton Warrenville South senior

DEFENSE
Defensive Team Captain: Nick Lifka, Naperville North
Outstanding Defensive Linemen: Nick Abbate, Glenbard North

Defensive Back
Brandon Salemi, Glenbard North senior
Blake Zumpano, West Chicago senior
Carson Rajcan, Wheaton North senior
Shane Dierking, Wheaton Warrenville South senior
Caleb Bednarz, Wheaton Warrenville South senior

Linebacker
John Pullia, Glenbard North senior
Chris Wahrman, Glenbard North senior
Will Sayer, Naperville Central junior
*Nick Lifka, Naperville North junior
Jack Krejci, Naperville North senior
Jack Eshleman, Wheaton Warrenville South junior

Defensive Line
*Nick Abbate, Glenbard North senior
*Alex Schaefer, Naperville Central senior
*Matt Ives, Wheaton Warrenville South senior
*Tyler Becker, Wheaton Warrenville South senior

Specialist
Steve Jones, Wheaton North senior
Nick Immekus, Wheaton Warrenville South senior

*Represents unanimous selection

Tickets for Friday night's District 203 crosstown game at North Central College will be on sale at Naperville North and Naperville Central through Thursday of this week.

At North, tickets can be purchased at the main office. Central is selling tickets from its athletic office. Both offices will be open from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Tickets cost $6 for adults and $4 for students. No reserved seats will be sold. Gates will open Friday at 4 p.m., an hour before the sophomore game begins. The varsity game is scheduled to kick off at 7:30 p.m. This is considered a home game for North.

Throughout this week, we'll have more on the crosstown in the print edition.

Sean Payton, New Orleans Saints head coach
Alma mater: Naperville Central
Week 2: Payton has an offensive background and his Saints (2-0) are absolutely lighting up the scoreboard. Coming off a 48-22 win over the Philadelphia Eagles, New Orleans leads the NFL by a wide margin in total yards (936) and points scored (93).
Coming up: At Buffalo Bills (1-1), Sunday 3:05 p.m.

Owen Daniels, Houston Texans tight end
Alma mater: Naperville Central
Week 2: Daniels caught a one-yard touchdown pass that tied the game 31-31 late in the third quarter in Nashville, Tenn. The Texans (1-1) then completed the comeback against the Tennessee Titans and scored a 34-31 victory. Daniels finished with six catches for 72 yards.
Coming up: At Jacksonville Jaguars (0-2), Sunday 12 p.m.

Chris Brown, Houston Texans running back
Alma mater: Naperville North
Week 2: Brown is becoming a contributor out of Houston's backfield. He carried the ball eight times for 25 yards (3.1 average), though nearly half of that output came on a 12-yard gain, his longest run of the day in Tennessee. With Steve Slaton struggling, the Texans are ranked last in the NFL in rushing yards per game (50.5). That could create more opportunities for Brown.

Beacon News writer Jim Owczarski breaks down West Aurora's place in the DuPage Valley Conference and its upcoming matchup against Naperville Central. The Blackhawks are pinning their hopes on an offensive line that averages 6 feet, 3 inches and 263 pounds.

Since joining the DuPage Valley Conference in 1997, West Aurora has gone 17-67. Here is how the Blackhawks have stacked up against their rivals over the years:

6-6 vs. Glenbard East
5-7 vs. West Chicago
4-8 vs. Wheaton North
2-10 vs. Glenbard North
0-12 vs. Naperville Central
0-12 vs. Naperville North
0-12 vs. Wheaton Warrenville South

We bumped into Marty Bee on Wednesday afternoon, and the Naperville Central athletic director said the renovation of Memorial Stadium is on track for completion in October, meaning the school is still planning on hosting a boys soccer match that month and a game against Glenbard North in Week 9. The designs call for one end zone to spell "Naperville," the other "Central," with the Redhawks logo at midfield.

This week Wheaton Warrenville South enters the National Prep Football Poll at No. 25 after a 34-26 win over Hinsdale Central. The poll, which has St. Thomas Aquinas (Fla.) ranked first overall, is distributed in part by the Associated Press.

Locally, Naperville North remained seventh in the Chicago Sun-Times rankings, while Naperville Central moved up to No. 15.