By Ray Hamill — Two weekends into the new high school football season and just five of the 17 H-DNL teams remain unbeaten.

Including the Ferndale JVs, who have arguably been the most impressive of all 17 teams on their way to a 2-0 start.

Indeed, if it’s been a challenging few years for Wildcats football, the near future appears bright.

And that makes the Ferndale JVs our Team of the Week, an award sponsored as always by College of the Redwoods Athletics.

The young Wildcats announced their presence with a huge 52-0 win at home to Fall River in their season opener two weeks ago and they followed that with another impressive win at Fort Bragg in week two, winning 37-8.

The Wildcat JVs will try to keep their fast start going when they host the Hoopa Warriors this Saturday at 11:30 a.m. before Ferndale’s varsity game against South Fork.

Under the guidance of head coach Jim Cook and this staff, which includes Landon Gomes, the Cats look like the team to beat in the H-DNL this fall.

Our Athlete of the Week, meanwhile, is a Fortuna graduate who is quickly turning some heads on the college football fields.

Daeden Taylor debuted with the Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes over the weekend and turned in a performance he won’t easily forget.

Taylor, who transferred to the NAIA school from Feather River College, enjoyed a four-touchdown day in a 31-3 win over Bethany College.

The 2020 Fortuna graduate ran for 171 yards and three touchdowns on 15 carries and also completed 4 of 9 passes for 60 yards and another TD.

Kansas Wesleyan Athletics

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK 

Daeden Taylor

Kansas Wesleyan Football

Taylor got his Coyotes career off to a perfect start with a huge day on offense against Bethany College.

The speedy quarterback is a big threat running the ball and broke free for a 76-yard TD run on just his second offensive play of the season and would also score on runs of 66 and seven yards.

For more on his big week, see Explosive Taylor enjoys four-TD day in Coyotes debut …

TEAM OF THE WEEK 

Ferndale JV Football

The Wildcats have outscored their first two opponents by a combined 89-8, showcasing their strength on both sides of the ball early in the season.

With 12 freshmen on a roster of 19, these Wildcats should be competitive for the next few years.

For more on their big week, see Three local teams remain unbeaten, Cats go to 2-0 …