They’re not the two-time defending Class 6A champs for nothing.
Backed against the wall and forced into a must-win situation, Wheaton-Warrenville South forced five Naperville North turnovers, turning three into 17 first-half points en route to a 38-21 upset victory over the 10th-ranked Huskies.
Matthew Weimer completed 12 of 23 passes for 217 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for a third to pace the offense. All but one of his passes was completed to junior Jonathan Schweighardt (11 catches, 199 yards).
But more important, the Tigers (5-3, 5-1 DuPage Valley Conference) stayed alive in their attempt to battle for a third straight state crown.
“We love the playoffs and we love November football,” said Wheaton South coach John Thorne. “These kids didn’t want to be the class that stops the string. I can’t say enough about their determination to keep it going.”
From the opening kickoff, the game was a horse race, with the Huskies scoring first when Chris Brown (13 rushes, 107 yards) dashed 51 yards on the game’s third play to give North a 7-0 lead just 79 seconds into the contest.
Wheaton came right back, moving 70 yards in six plays with Matt Drzewiecki (27 carries, 127 yards) scoring from 2 yards out to knot the score with 8:10 remaining.
The Tigers then stunned the favored Huskies by turning three consecutive turnovers into 17 points and a 24-7 lead. Douglas Oest intercepted a pass by Kevin Kobe (14 for 25, 164 yards, four interceptions) at the Naperville 37 and returned it to the 23. Two plays later, Weimer hit Schweighardt, who made a beautiful over-the-shoulder catch in the right corner of the end zone, to take a 14-7 lead with 6:29 left in the first.
Wheaton’s Ryan Conway then stripped the ball from North’s Jeff Recht on the ensuing series, and Nathan Kolbaba fell on the ball at the Wheaton 49. Six plays later, Barrett Diener booted a 26-yard field goal to up the lead to 17-7 with 2:02 left in the third.
The Tigers struck again on North’s next possession when Brian Schnurstein picked off a deflected Kobe pass at the Huskie 40 and returned it to the 23. Four players later, Wheaton was up 24-7 thanks to Drzewiecki’s 2-yard TD run.
Naperville slowly battled back, moving 65 yards on 10 plays, capped off by John Koranda’s 5-yard run, to make it 24-13 with 6:33 left after a failed two-point conversion. The Huskies, after blocking a 48-yard field-goal attempt, cut the lead to three by moving 78 yards on eight plays with Koranda again scoring from 5 yards out with 1:17 left. Koranda’s two-point run made it 24-21.
Wheaton snatched the momentum back in the closing seconds, moving 59 yards on seven plays in just 59 seconds with Weimer connecting with Schweighardt from 5 yards out with 13 seconds remaining for a 30-21 halftime lead.
