Good morning,

The first two weeks of the season generally provide excellent non-conference matchups and this season has certainly delivered. There were four games with ranked teams playing each other in Week 1 and we get another four in Week 2. 

I’ll be in Gurnee where Warren, the new No. 1 team, hosts No. 11 Maine South. But No. 4 Lincoln-Way East vs. No. 9 Naperville Central was pretty hard to pass up. 

Mount Carmel’s defense was probably the standout of the weekend for me. They were more impressive, as a group, than any other unit or player I watched. The Caravan had a new defensive coordinator and a new group of starters and really limited a very experienced St. Rita team. 

That’s an accomplishment, even if Kaleb Brown missed almost the entire game. Phillips transfer Kyle Clayton gained more than 100 yards on the ground for the Mustangs, but Mount Carmel’s defense only surrendered one touchdown. 

It will be interesting to see how St. Rita responds the next two weeks. 

St. Charles North made the biggest opening week statement of any preseason unranked team.

The North Stars knocked off Palatine and Iowa-bound receiver Jake Bostick 24-0. They check in at No. 19 this week.

The other newcomers to the Super 25 for Week 2 are Richards, New Trier, Oswego East, Bolingbrook and Homewood-Flossmoor. All of those names are familiar. The Raiders impressed with a dominant win against Minooka.

Shepard, Barrington, Morgan Park, Huntley, Palatine and Hinsdale Central all drop out. It was a busy opening week. Dropping out entirely may be a bit harsh on the Broncos and Red Devils. Both teams lost to very good, highly ranked squads. But they will have a chance to work their way back in over the next few weeks.

Check out the rest of this week’s Super 25 here.

Wheeling, which ended a 19-game losing streak with a 27-15 win against Round Lake on Friday, is the Team of the Week. 

Senior Joe Mitroi ran for 122 yards and junior Simon Micula scored two touchdowns for the Wildcats. 

First-year coach Peter Panagakis took over the team three weeks ago. The program had just 17 players at that point. The roster bloomed to 40 once school began.

“With all the people in the stands the atmosphere was like a playoff football game,” Panagakis said. “Everybody missed football. The students rushed the field. You would have thought we won the state championship.”

Want your school featured in Team of the Week? Send us an update on your team’s season, your name and hometown, and (if possible) a photo to newsletters@suntimes.com. Some answers may be lightly edited for clarity.