Yes, Chicago, we have a winning team: National champions, in fact!

Most Chicago sports fans are well aware that last year was amongst the most brutal, in an already pretty dismal recent years sports scene, in our beautiful city.

The Bears, Cubs, White Sox, Bulls, Blackhawks, Sky, Fire, Red Stars and more have been a collective source of frustration (at best), and in the case of a few of our favorite teams (stand up and take a shameful bow, White Sox and Bears) record-setting in their dismalness or dismality. (I don't think either are actually official words, but they both fit.)

But, and more importantly, let's hold that negativity for just a moment and instead—bring out the Champagne!  Yes indeed, a huge toast and then some to the gang from Naperville, Ill.--the North Central College Cardinals–for winning, this past Sunday, the Division III National Championship!

 Oh my goodness, can this team play some football!  What a performance they put on in the championship game (and really all season long, at an undefeated 14-0) when they defeated powerhouse and D-III terror Mount Union from the great state of Ohio by the score of 41-25.

Mount Union has been the pinnacle which all D-III football teams have aspired to in recent years, but  no more. Now they have company. Our very own North Central squad has grabbed that high honor, brought it west just a bit,  and it now resides in Naperville!

The Cardinals are now at the pinnacle of Division 3 college football. How dominant have they been?

Just for appetizers, try five straight championship game appearances (it is called the Amos AlonzoStagg Bowl), and an incredible 72-3 record since 2019 when they first climbed to the top (should we call it the “Mount”?) of Division III football.

The main course?  How about National Championships in 2019, 2022, and now 2024!

The Cardinals in recent years have been there, done that, and no question have replaced the gang from Ohio, and even another D-III long time powerhouse, Wisconsin-Whitewater, as the team to beat at that level.  

Dominance with a capital D.

So, who are the names behind this steamrolling big red machine? 

It starts with understated but incredibly successful head coach Brad Spencer.  Spencer, who looks more like a sociology or maybe politics 001 professor (and also the winner of the Chuck Norris look-alike contest) has been a North Central and Naperville product for…well,seemingly forever.

Spencer grew up in Naperville, played his college football for the Cardinals (a star wide receiver), and has been on the coaching staff all the way back, since 2004.  He took over the head job in 2022 and won his first national championship back then.

Spencer and the coaching staff have done a brilliant job.  The pieces are plenty, starting with 38 seniors who have fought the football wars for all four years in Naperville.  No N.I.L. or portal kids here (couldn’t resist, sorry), just kids dedicated to playing some outstanding football for the school they love.

Amongst the defensive stars, and there are many, are BJ Adamchik, John Sullivan, Brayden Carrigan, Rahmarean Roby and Bobby Medina.  The whole defense plays in perfect sync and not a weak link in the bunch.

Side note:  Watching Roby in this championship game, all I could think of was three letters—N, F, and L. This kid can cover, tackle, and has the instincts and toughness to play at the next level. Number two was all over the field, and Roby is only a junior, so he will be back.

Offensively, the Cardinals were an absolute juggernaut all season long, nearly unstoppable. Running backs Joe Sacco, Jordan Williams, Sean Allen and Charles Coleman each give you a little something different, while receivers Jack Rummell, Thomas Skokna, Myles Walton and Jacob Paradee roam the field finding open spots and catching just about everything thrown their way.

Leading it all, folks, if you are looking for a new sports hero in our fine city, let me introduce you to one Luke Lehnen.  The two-time Division III player of the year, Lehnan was on his game and then some in the championship passing for four touchdowns and running for one.

If he doesn’t have the nickname “Laser Luke," he should. Lehnen can throw from the pocket or on the run, and does so with amazing accuracy. Even in tight windows,  Lehnen will find a way to get the ball to his intended target. He runs, he throws, he leads with an easy and natural charisma. Lehnen, in his brilliant four-year career, will certainly go down as one of the best to ever do it at the D-III level.

 Unsung heroes? They abound in red jerseys. How about kicker Sean Ryniek, who made 106 consecutive extra points!  And the offensive line?  Seniors Sam Pryor and Jeske Maples leading the crew that protected for Lehnen, and opened holes for the running backs? Solid as they come and true stars in their own right.

Put it all together, mix it in the old football blender, and you come up with one heck of a team.  

Just a phenomenal season for the Cardinals and congratulations to everyone involved in their program.  Rightful champions they are.

We are starved for a winner here in Chicago, so hopefully our good friends from Naperville don’t mind us Chicagoans messing with the geography just a bit and proclaiming that our city finally has a champion. 

A national champion!