The 2007 football season bore a striking resemblance to 2006 as the Cardinals again won a share of the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) championship and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division III playoffs.

It marked the team's first back-to-back conference titles since 1946-47 and the fifth conference championship in school history (1946, 1947, 1960, 2006, 2007). The playoff appearance was also the College's third straight.

The Cardinals routed Carthage (Wis.) 56-10 on the final weekend of CCIW action Nov. 10. Coupled with a victory by Illinois Wesleyan over Wheaton (Ill.), North Central and Illinois Wesleyan shared the conference championship with identical 6-1 league marks. The Cardinals received the conference's automatic bid to the playoffs because of their 23-7 victory over the Titans Nov. 3.

In the first round of the NCAA Division III playoffs, the fifth-seeded Cardinals traveled to Franklin, Ind. where they pulled out a dramatic, last-second 44-42 victory over the fourth-seeded Grizzlies. North Central then played at second-ranked and two-time national runner-up UW-Whitewater where the College suffered a 59-28 defeat. However, the Cardinals hung with the Warhawks for most of the game, trailing just 24-21 early in the third quarter.

North Central began the season ranked 18th in the nation, and climbed as high as No. 13 after victories over Concordia (Wis.) and Benedictine (Ill.). An upset loss to Washington (Mo.) dropped the team out of the rankings but not out of contention. The Cardinals rebounded with a victory at North Park (Ill.) before suffering another narrow loss, this time to Wheaton. North Central ended the season with victories over Elmhurst (Ill.), Millikin (Ill.), Augustana (Ill.), Illinois Wesleyan and Carthage. The victory at Augustana was the team's first in there since 1980.

Sophomore quarterback Aaron Fanthorpe (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North), in his first season as a starter, was honored as the CCIW Offensive Player of the Year after leading the league in total offense (262.9 yards per game) while finishing second in pass efficiency (150.50). In 12 games the sophomore completed 143 of 265 passes for 2,043 yards and 23 touchdowns with nine interceptions. He also was the team's second-leading rusher with 583 yards and five TDs. His season totals gave him a pass efficiency rating of 140.57, ranking him 31st in the nation. He was twice honored as the CCIW Player of the Week. 

Running back and fellow soph Dominic Sulo (Oak Forest, Ill./Mount Carmel) was again the focal point of the office, surpassing the 1,000-yard mark for the second straight season and becoming the only North Central player to ever accomplish the feat. Despite missing one conference game, Sulo still led the league in rushing and was named to the CCIW First Team for the second straight year. The 5-foot-10, 205-pound running back finished with 1,055 yards on 206 attempts (5.1 avg.) with 14 TDs. He also caught 17 passes for 127 yards and was ranked amongst the nation's leaders in rushing nearly the entire season.

Sophomores Butch Rossberg (Tinley Park, Ill./Andrew) and Pat Malek (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North) also assisted the rushing attack, combining for 534 yards and eight touchdowns.

After totaling only 15 catches and no TDs in the regular season, freshman Steve Hlavac (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North) caught fire in the two playoff games, totaling 20 catches for 282 yards and six touchdowns. His four receiving TDs against Franklin tied a school record. His season totals were 35 catches for 521 yards. Junior Michael MacIntosh (Decatur, Ill./Mt. Zion) finished with 34 catches for 373 yards and five scores in nine games played. Senior Joe Mastrino (Elmhurst, Ill./Immaculate Conception) was an All-CCIW Second Team pick after catching 18 balls for 465 yards and six touchdowns in conference play. For the season, Mastrino caught 30 balls for 626 yards and seven TDs. Although he missed five games because of injury, junior Perry Welch (Lanark, Ill./Eastland) still managed 19 catches for 184 yards and two scores.

The Cardinals' starting offensive line consisted primarily of junior left tackle Brad Trepanier (Naperville, Ill./Naperville Central), senior left guard Weston Welnack (Naperville, Ill./Naperville Central), senior center Andrew Braga (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton Warrenville South), senior right guard Don Kasper (Bridgeview, Ill./Argo) and sophomore right tackle Josh Delancey (Stuart, Fla./Jensen Beach). Junior Brian Iossi (Carol Stream, Ill./Glenbard North) and sophomores Brian Patoska (Tinley Park, Ill./Andrew) and Akwasi Ohemeng (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park-River Forest) also rotated along the offensive line.

The men in the trenches helped North Central lead the CCIW in scoring offense (40.3 avg.) and total offense (2,949 total yards, 421.3 avg.) while finishing second in rushing offense (221.1 avg.) and time of possession (32:39 avg.). Kasper and Delancey were named All-CCIW First Team, while Welnack was a second team pick.

North Central's defense was tops in the CCIW in rushing defense, yielding only 68.4 yards per game in the seven league contests. For the season, the Cardinal D ranked 18th in the nation in rushing defense (88.1 avg.). The College also ranked 11th in the nation in interceptions (21) while finishing 15th in turnovers gained (33) and 18th in sacks (3.33 avg.).

Spearheading the defensive effort were linebackers Matt Wenger (Davis, Ill./Dakota), Nick Hammers (LaSalle, Ill./LaSalle-Peru) and Wes Kostellic (Oglesby, Ill./LaSalle-Peru). Wenger and Hammers were both All-CCIW selections. Wenger, a sophomore, led the conference in tackles for most of the season and might have finished first had it not been for sitting out the second halves of several blowout victories. The 5-11, 220-pound LB finished the season with 106 total tackles (62 solo, 44 assisted) to go along with 16 tackles-for-loss of 60 yards. He was twice honored as CCIW Defensive Player of the Week. Hammers, a senior,  totaled 76 tackles in the league (39 solo, 37 assisted) in addition to five tackles-for-loss and one interception returned 44 yards. Kostellic, also a senior, finished with 54 tackles (25 solo, 29 assisted) and 11 tackles-for-loss of 49 yards. Senior Derek Coleman (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard West) also added 30 tackles.

The defensive line was led by senior Anthony Imbordino (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield Central), who led the CCIW in sacks and finished the season with 8.5 for a loss of 46 yards. He was also second on the Cardinals in tackles-for-loss with 14 in addition to 35 tackles en route to All-CCIW First Team honors. Senior John Guzaldo (Naperville, Ill./Neuqua Valley), junior David Hortsman (Crystal Lake, Ill./Crystal Lake Central) and sophomore Chris Kuhn (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield Central) all made contributions along the D line. Guzaldo finished with 29 tackles and five sacks, Hortsman 21 tackles and 5.5 tackles-for-loss, and Kuhn 23 tackles.

Junior defensive back Tyler Venier (Dixon, Ill./Dixon) was third on the team in tackles with 60 while also chipping in three sacks, three interceptions and five pass breakups. Fellow junior DB Nick Swanson (Orland Park, Ill./Sandburg) was fourth on the team in tackles with 56 while adding eight tackles-for-loss, four sacks and five pass breakups. Senior cornerback Jordan Hoffman (Dwight, Ill./Dwight) and sophomore cornerback Derek Sulo (Oak Forest, Ill./Mount Carmel) tied for the team lead in pass breakups with 11 apiece. Hoffman totaled 18 tackles and three interceptions and was an All-CCIW Second Team pick, while Sulo finished with 25 tackles and two fumble recoveries. Senior defensive back Josh Weil (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central) led the team in interceptions with four returned for 111 yards and he also added 35 tackles and two fumble recoveries.

North Central's special teams also played a major role in the team's success. Freshman Joe Schneiderbauer (Sterling, Ill./Sterling) earned All-CCIW First Team accolades after leading the league in punt returns (18 for 237 yards) and kickoff returns (16 for 395 yards). For the season, Schneiderbauer ranked 23rd in the nation for punt returns (33 for 420 yards, 12.7 avg.) and 36th for kickoff returns (27 for 671 yards, 24.9 avg.) while also contributing 24 tackles as a defensive back.

Senior kicker Ben Aguilar (Woodridge, Ill./Benet) made the most of his final season with 13 field goals made, breaking the College's single-season record. For his career, Aguilar totaled 20 to rank third on the all-time list. Junior punter Adam Pucylowski (New Berlin, Wis./Catholic Memorial) had his best season-to-date, finishing with a 40.3 punting average (third-best of all-time). Pucylowski placed 16 punts inside the opponent's 20-yard line and had 12 fair catches.

North Central returns seven starters on offense, five on defense, its top punt and kick returner and its punter for the 2008 season.