Five Week 5 high school football games to watch
Wauconda (4-0) at Grayslake North (4-0)
Who had this as the only 4-0 vs. 4-0 matchup in Week 5? Defending Northern Lake County Conference champ Wauconda is no stranger to this position. Grayslake North? Not so much. Just 1-8 a year ago, the Knights are rolling behind quarterback Jaylen Newkirk, who has thrown for over 600 yards, run for almost 200 and has 14 total touchdowns. Jay Kelly is another back to watch with 403 rushing yards. Cooper Karaszewski, Brody Rudolph, Brian Hart and Luke Sickmeir all have five or more touchdowns for a deep and balanced Wauconda attack.
Huntley (4-0) at Cary-Grove (3-1)
It took until the fourth quarter of Week 4 for Huntley to finally allow points in 2026. That late touchdown by Crystal Lake South brought the Red Raiders' season margin to 218-6. Perennial power Cary-Grove, always dangerous at home, has found its footing after an opening loss to undefeated Jacobs. Ty Tenopir and Leo Zavala combined for 339 rushing yards and five touchdowns last week vs. McHenry. With Jacobs up next , these two weeks will go a long way toward Huntley's bid for the Fox Valley Conference title.
Palatine (2-2) at Conant (4-0)
A number of teams are off to strong starts this year after struggling in 2025. Conant, 3-6 a year ago, is one of them, fresh off handing Buffalo Grove its first loss to improve to 4-0. The Cougars will need their solid ground game of Jackson Spizzirri, Anthony Burns and Ivan Haralanov to be at their best in this Mid-Suburban League West opener. Every Palatine game has come down to the wire so far, the Pirates a handful of plays from being 4-0 or 0-4. Three touchdowns from Jayden Evans sparked their win over Rolling Meadows last week.
Naperville North (3-1) at Metea Valley (2-2)
Can Metea Valley keep the surprises coming in the DuPage Valley? The Mustangs opened conference play last week by stunning Neuqua Valley 34-29 on Iggy Amorrortu’s 25-yard touchdown pass to Charlie Larson in the final seconds — their first win over Neuqua. The Huskies have won three straight including last week’s 21-7 victory over Naperville Central led by Jayke Collins’ 132 rushing yards and three touchdowns.
Carmel (2-2) at Montini (3-1)
This one has a tough act to follow after the Broncos pulled out a 55-54 win over Carmel in last year’s meeting. The Corsairs’ two losses have come to Hersey and Providence, a combined 8-0. Montini has rebounded from a Week 2 loss to Sandburg with high-scoring wins over Marist and Nazareth, 35-28 and 47-42. Miami-bound QB Israel Abrams had four passing and three rushing touchdowns last week.