The football regular season is almost halfway over, with most local teams having four games under their belts. So what have we learned so far?

Life in the new Big North Conference is rough.

Just ask Wayne Valley. After opening with two wins, the Indians got to play crosstown rivals Wayne Hills and DePaul in back-to-back games. Now at 2-2, Wayne Valley has two more brutal games ahead in the next two weeks, against Old Tappan and Ramapo, and probably must win at least one to have a shot at the playoffs.

West Milford could also tell you how tough this new super-conference is. The Highlanders are now 0-4 with losses to DePaul and Ramapo included in that total.

Or is it?

Two local teams don't seem to mind the Big North too much so far. Lakeland is off to a 4-0 start and has yet to be challenged, winning by an average of 35 points per game. And Wayne Hills is also unbeaten, and has had easy wins with the exception of the Wayne Valley game.

But both the Lancers and Patriots will face some tough tests before the regular season is over. Lakeland still must play DePaul, Ramsey and Northern Highlands; Wayne Hills has an even harder slate including Ramapo, Ridgewood and St. Joe's of Montvale.

Mountain Lakes just refuses to lose.

This year's Mountain Lakes team may not be as strong as the last couple of seasons. But the Herd is maintaining its winning streak, now at 29 games, which remains the current longest streak in New Jersey.

The Herd came literally within seconds of losing to Morris Catholic before pulling out a win in overtime. Then against Pequannock, Mountain Lakes led by only four points in the final quarter before pulling away for the victory.

It now appears the Herd will be favored to keep its streak going at least until it plays Butler in a few weeks. If Mountain Lakes can beat the Bulldogs, it may be headed for a third straight undefeated season.

Butler is doing it again.

They lost a three-year starter at quarterback and nearly all of the area's top receiving corps. And yet Butler appears to have simply reloaded, an impressive feat for a small Group I school. With their win over Pequannock, the Bulldogs stamped themselves as the most dangerous threat to the Mountain Lakes streak. Led by a strong running game, this is a different kind of Butler team, and the matchup against the Herd should be fascinating.

State playoff outlook:

Wayne Hills, Lakeland and Mountain Lakes, all 4-0, appear on solid ground as far as the state playoffs, and all have a shot at a top seed. Butler has only played three games, but its performance so far suggests it should qualify too.

DePaul is 2-2, but appears in good shape to qualify for the states. However, if the Spartans want to avoid a trip to Montvale or Absecon for their first-round game, they probably need to run the table.

Pequannock is in the exact spot it was last year, 2-2 following losses to Butler and Mountain Lakes. The Panthers appear capable of winning their next four games, which is good, because they'll probably need to do so in order to qualify.

As noted above, Wayne Valley probably needs to beat either Old Tappan or Ramapo in order to reach the states. Two other 2-2 teams in the same bracket, Passaic Valley and Montville, appear to be longshots because of their difficult schedules.

At 3-1, Hawthorne currently sits in 9th place in North 1, Group I. The Bears need to win their next two games, then at least gain a split with Emerson and Glen Rock in weeks 7 and 8. Boonton, at 2-2 in the same bracket, is in 12th, and will need to upset Butler or Mountain Lakes to have any shot. -- Paul Mencher for Jersey Sports Now