"It still hasn't sunk in," said the Downers Grove South defensive tackle. "It just feels like the season hasn't come to an end."

Next to him sat teammate Kent Hughes, the irrepressible wide receiver who made the game-winning 7-yard touchdown catch with 38 second remaining Saturday night in Downers South's stunning 34-31 upset of No. 1 Naperville Central for the Class 8A championship before a crowd of 10,509.

"I can't believe this is it," Hughes said. "I want to go back to practice on Monday. I don't want this to end."

Hughes and Mustangs quarterback Mike Cuzzone collaborated on a perfect ending to a season that began with the death of linebacker Sal deLuca in a car accident one week before the team's opener.

"We started out 1-2, and after losing to Hinsdale South we messed up our chance for winning a conference title," Hughes said. "We had a long team meeting and said this wasn't the way we wanted to play, especially after we had dedicated the season to Sal. You can't do that and then maybe make the first round of the playoffs. So we decided we had to run the table."

After upsetting then-undefeated Maine South 35-34 in overtime on a two-point conversion pass from Cuzzone to Hughes in the semifinals, the last hurdle was yet another unbeaten team. Maine South was champion of the state's largest class last year; Naperville Central the year before that.

"What better way to go out than beating the last two state champions?" said Hughes, who caught 11 passes for 165 yards and two touchdowns. "Who better to prove ourselves against?"

Niznik began finding a little perspective for this one-time achievement.

"This wasn't just for us," Niznik said about the school's first football state title. "This was just as much for all the guys who came before us and those still to come."

Naperville Central (13-1) spotted Downers South (12-2) a 14-0 head start when Bob Nakielny scored on runs of 1 and 2 yards. Freshmen Eric Small scored from the 1 for the Redhawks, but back came Cuzzone with a 5-yard scoring strike to Hughes. Chris Szatko's 28-yard field goal brought the Redhawks within 21-10 at halftime.

The Redhawks appeared to take control in the second half with Phil Horvath TD passes of 16 and 40 yards to Tyke Spencer and Jason Paquette's 27-yard touchdown run. The only response the Mustangs could muster was Nakielny's 2-yard score.

Trailing 31-28 with 1 minute 54 seconds left in the game, Cuzzone completed a 10-yard pass to Kent Richard and three passes to Hughes for 55 yards that set up the winning connection.

"This was an absolutely magnificent offensive display," Downers South coach John Belskis said about Cuzzone's 17-of-21 for 228 yards and two TDs. The Mustang coach could also be speaking for Horvath, who was 16-of-25 for 310 yards and two TDs, and Spencer with eight catches for 178 yards.

Naperville Central, which has scored quickly all season, had one last chance. All the Redhawks needed was a field goal to send it into overtime. Instead, Sam Carson made the biggest interception of his career with 23 seconds left.

That set off a wild celebration for a program that had come close twice, losing the 1984 6A title game to East St. Louis and the '93 title game to Loyola.