With the first day of practice under their belts Wednesday, The Heat Index sees no better time to start placing your bets (so to speak) on a couple of season openers:
Naperville North vs. Neuqua Valley and Naperville Central at Waubonsie Valley on Aug. 29.
In case you didn't read the blog title, we're talking football here.
Let's get right to it. Who will win and why? Ready, type...
i'm gonna go with waubonsie valley and naperville north. waubonsie lost some great seniors but they have a great defensive line, an experienced quarterback in tyler castro, and their sophomore team was 7-2 last year. also, central lost some key players coming into this year, and i think waubonsie can win by two touchdowns.
the other game will probably be closer between neuqua and north, but north is just too good. their running game is going to punish teams this year. neuqua will be better than last year, but north wins by 7 or 10.
Neuqua will beat North on August 29th by 3 or 7 points. North will have a good team this year. However, folks will be amazed by the number of weapons Neuqua will have on their offense. The Wildcats will be putting up a lot of points this year!
I like Waubonsie and Neuqua - they both have experienced QBs, and that should make the difference in what are going to be close games.
The WV/NC game on paper favors WV, but the intangibles make this a close game. WV lost good lineman upfront to graduation and the new line will have a learning curve. NC has some good young athletes and a talented young QB and they will be better than those think that take them for granted.
WV wins by a little in a big struggle.
NN is the returning state champion with a young team with a big chip on their shoulders. The new players have something to prove, but have experience not as starters, but second team guys that had significant playing time against first team opponents due to blowouts. The offense will be powerful with many returning starters and talented athletic QB Manade. Yes, NV has some offensive weapons, but balance between the passing game and running game may be their demise. If QB Lincoln has to pass nder pressure it could be a very long day for NV. NV's defense is particularly inexperienced and will not have game time knowledge to keep up with NN offense. Tight first half, but...
NN 35 NV 21
Wow, what a great way to start the year with all four area teams playing! Both of these games should be exciting and tough throughout. With that being said, I like Waubonsie to beat Central by a field goal, and Naperville North to beat Neuqua by a touchdown.
I think WV vs. NC will be the lower scoring matchup due to the way both teams play. Waubonsie will pressure NC's young QB all night with their d-line, but Central has the edge on WV's young offensive front. I think in the end Waubonsie will pull it out by forcing turnovers and controlling the clock. 17-14 Waubonsie
In the other game, Neuqua will keep it close with a great offense. North will run the ball early and often against the Neuqua defense, and this constant pounding will wear down the Wildcats. 28-21 North
I have to go with Waubonsie and NV. Lot of pride at stake with all four teams and lot of talent also. See Waubonsie extending their development this year from good season last year. NN will have State Champ label, but that will motivate your good area teams even a notch higher on their efforts. NV defense getting much stronger and off to better start this year will be big diffence. Waub. and NV Cats by 7. Good luck to all and lets have a great showing of our Chicagoland football strength in this area again!
BC