Owens Gives Huskies Added Dimension

Coming into the season, Naperville North's football team knew it had quite a weapon in multi-purpose threat Antonio Owens.

That played out in a Week 1 narrow win over Neuqua Valley, when Owens accounted for 165 total yards.

But a hip injury suffered in that game had Owens in-and-out of the lineup for the next month, not even seeing the field in a loss to Wheaton Warrenville South.

Leading up to Friday's cross-town showdown with Naperville Central, Owens had a message for coach Sean Drendel.

"He was like, 'Coach, I'm ready,' " Drendel said. "When you tell me you're ready, we'll give you a chance to get the ball. He did a nice job."

Owens brought an offense that is still learning Drendel's new system to life in Friday's 27-24 win over the Redhawks. After passing only twice against WWS, quarterback Matt LaCosse was able to open it up for 166 yards passing with Owens available to stretch the field.

On the Huskies' game-winning drive, Owens made his presence known. A 22-yard catch on third-and-long kept the drive alive. He followed that with a 23-yard catch and a 15-yard run, showing off his versatility, which led to one of LaCosse's four touchdown runs.

"A.O. is a freak athlete, fastest kid on the field," LaCosse said. "I just threw up that ball (the third-down conversion). I knew I was going to him no matter what. He made a phenomenal play. Then, he called his own number (on the rushing play). He called, 'Hot, hot, hot,' and we handed it to him and he got 15 more yards. He's a heck of a player."

Owens' pedigree is as a track and field athlete. He was part of a school-record 4x200 relay team last spring. But that nagging hip injury robbed him of his greatest asset, his speed, sending the Huskies looking for other alternatives until he was 100 percent.

"He's a fast kid and when we can get him in the right frame of mind and he's not banged up, he can really go," Drendel said. "He can really play the game. He's a nice athlete and a nice complement to Matt."

The next goal for the Huskies is to get running back Nick Sianta going, but Drendel is quick to remind people that this team is learning a new system. But at 4-2 with undefeated DVC teams WWS and Glenbard North in the rear view mirror, the Huskies are on the right track.

"We've got to work out some things," Drendel said. "We're still a new coaching staff and we're still getting through some things. Maybe things are starting to run a little bit. That's great. We feel good about it."