Illinois Media Ranks Top Football Teams Before Week 8 Results

Illinois high school football teams entered the next stage of the season with updated statewide rankings released Oct. 9, as sports writers and broadcasters evaluated programs across all eight classes. The Illinois Media poll ranked teams based on records, voting points and first-place selections.

According to the rankings published by thetelegraph.com and muddyriversports.com, Loyola held the No. 1 position in Class 8A with a 7-0 record and 11 first-place votes. Lincoln-Way East was second at 7-0 with one first-place vote, while Mount Carmel ranked third at 5-2.

In Class 7A, East St. Louis remained the top-ranked team after receiving 14 first-place votes with a 6-1 record. Brother Rice followed at No. 2 with a 5-2 record, while unbeaten teams Hersey and Prospect were ranked third and fourth, according to Illinois Media rankings.

Class 6A featured Geneva at No. 1 with a 6-1 record and 12 first-place votes. Normal West stayed second with a 7-0 mark and one first-place vote, followed by Harlem at 7-0 and Dunlap at 6-1, according to the published poll.

The Class 5A race was led by Mahomet-Seymour, which ranked first after going 7-0 and collecting 11 first-place votes. Providence was second with a 5-2 record and four first-place votes, while Sacred Heart-Griffin ranked third at 6-1.

Other undefeated leaders included Rochester in Class 4A, IC Catholic in Class 3A, Wilmington in Class 2A and Brown County in Class 1A. The rankings listed Rochester with a 7-0 record and 12 first-place votes, while IC Catholic had 11 first-place votes after starting 7-0.

According to the Illinois Media rankings, Brown County remained the No. 1 team in Class 1A with a 7-0 record and 14 first-place votes. Calhoun ranked second at 7-0, and Stockton was third with a 6-1 record and one first-place vote.

The rankings also tracked teams receiving votes outside the top 10 in each classification. In Class 6A, Riverside-Brookfield received 14 votes and King received 11, while in Class 7A Jacobs received 11 votes and Wheaton-Warrenville South received nine, according to muddyriversports.com.