Weekend football previews
Naperville Central at New Trier


November 2, 2000

Naperville Central at New Trier
Kickoff: 1 p.m. Saturday at New Trier's west campus, 7 Happ Rd., Northfield.
Bob Sakamoto's pick: Naperville Central.
What to watch: Despite its emotional victory over North Shore rival Loyola last weekend, New Trier (8-2) is going to need a lot more than momentum if it plans on going toe-to-toe with the state's defending Class 6A champ. Though three starters are out for the season, Naperville, with a 23-game winning streak, still will be hard to derail. RB Kyle Griffith (952 yards, 12 TDs) and QB Phil Horvath (1,052 yards passing) will be facing a Trevian defense that contains seven junior starters. Led by junior QB Mike Duda (1,275 yards, 17 TD passes), New Trier has won eight straight. The offense has nice balance thanks to its tailback tandem of Tommy Geary (760 yards) and Ryan Spellman (693). However, solving Central's defense, which wasn't scored upon until Week 7, is going to be a tall order for New Trier. "They're the kind of team you really have to work hard against to get a drive going," said New Trier coach Dan Mortier. "We just have to be patient, not go nuts and put ourselves in a bind." However, Naperville and coach Joe Bunge, who rated his team's performance a "B" in last week's playoff opener, will be looking to school the young Trevians and raise that grade to an "A."