Glenbard N. down to playing No. 1

Three, two…one.

That's the list of seeded teams Glenbard North needs to beat in order to make its first trip to a state title football game since 2000.

The 14th-seeded Panthers (8-4) already boast victories over No. 3 Whitney Young and No. 2 Fremd. Both were unbeaten prior to playing Glenbard North.

The biggest test awaits Saturday afternoon when the Panthers travel to Chicago's Gately Stadium to play Mt. Carmel (12-0) -- top-seeded in Class 8A, top-ranked in the state and ranked 22nd nationally by USA Today.

"Beating an unbeaten team does lift your spirits a little bit," Panthers coach Ryan Wilkens said about the wins over Whitney Young and Fremd. "Now it's Mt. Carmel. The two things I think about with them are state championships and option football."

He's also thinking about ways to slow Notre Dame-bound linebacker Steven Filer, the state's top recruit, and Illinois-bound defensive end Glenn Foster, who had 3 sacks in last week's win over Maine South.

Offensively, the Caravan rely on their vaunted option game featuring junior quarterback Jordan Lynch and running backs Tim Brown and Edwin Williams, who combined for more than 200 rushing yards last week.

Glenbard North's defense, led by linebacker Adrian Leal and Justin Wahrman, will be tested again. The unit, though, keeps rising to every challenge.

On offense, 6-foot-5 junior quarterback Evan Watkins continues his rapid rise as a Division I college prospect. In the last two weeks he's thrown for 398 yards and 6 touchdowns with no interceptions. He's also rushed for 78 yards and 3 touchdowns in two games.

Junior Tyler Doll, who is up to 1,529 rushing yards on the season, needs to remain consistent if the Panthers hope to maintain ball control.

"They can hit you with a 4-yard run and then a 50-yard run," Wilkens said. "We definitely need to keep them off the field."