Many readers enjoyed Loyola’s quick drop from the top of the rankings this season. All the winning the Ramblers have done over the past few years has naturally earned some enemies and detractors.
Those readers will not be happy that Loyola is up to No. 4 in this week’s Super 25.
The Ramblers didn’t blow me away in the win against Providence on Saturday, but they were quite good. So, with Downers Grove North’s loss and Geneva squeaking past Wheaton North it was an easy call to elevate the most experienced, winning team in the state up a few spots.
Kankakee is a very talented team that doesn’t play a rough schedule, so it has few chances to rise in the rankings. I haven’t seen them yet this season, but I asked a couple of reporters about the Kays and heard good things. Their only loss was a 37-30 defeat at Nazareth in Week 1.
Four teams dropped out this week: Hersey, Warren, Sandburg and Prairie Ridge. All of them lost in Week 7. I’ve been giving Warren and Hersey the benefit of the doubt for a while, it is time to give some new teams a chance.
Naperville North and Prospect make season debuts in the rankings. The Huskies, with star quarterback Jacob Bell, have only lost to Naperville Central and Lincoln-Way East.
Prospect beat Hersey in Week 7 and has won five consecutive games after opening the season with close losses to Lyons and Palatine.
York, which has been in and out of the rankings all season, is back. Palatine is back in the rankings for the first time since the preseason.
Super 25 high school football rankings for Week 8
With record and last week’s ranking
1. Lincoln-Way East (7-0) 1
Friday at Andrew
2. Mount Carmel (5-2) 2
Friday at No. 18 Fenwick
3. Nazareth (6-1) 3
Friday vs. Benet
4. Loyola (5-2) 7
Friday at Carmel
5. Geneva (7-0) 5
Friday at St. Charles East
6. Cary-Grove (7-0) 6
Friday at Crystal Lake South
7. Lyons (7-0) 19
Friday at No. 25 York
8. Downers Grove North (6-1) 4
Friday vs. Hinsdale South
9. St. Rita (5-2) 9
Friday vs. St. Patrick
10. Naperville Central (7-0) 10
Friday vs. Sandburg
11. Oswego (7-0) 11
Friday vs. Minooka
12. Kankakee (6-1) 14
Friday vs. Thornton
13. Joliet Catholic (4-2) 12
Friday vs. De La Salle
14. Marist (6-1) 13
Friday vs. Marmion
15. Batavia (6-1) 16
Friday vs. Wheaton-Warrenville South
16. Morgan Park (6-1) 17
Friday vs. Brooks at Gately
17. Libertyville (7-0) 23
Friday at Lake Forest
18. Fenwick (6-1) 24
Friday vs. No. 2 Mount Carmel
19. Brother Rice (4-3) 25
Friday at St. Laurence
20. Palatine (6-1) NR
Friday at Conant
21. Fremd (6-1) 8
Friday at Schaumburg
22. Naperville North (5-2) NR
Friday at Homewood-Flossmoor
23. Barrington (6-1) 15
Friday at Hoffman Estates
24. Prospect (5-2) NR
Friday at Elk Grove Village
25. York (6-1) NR
Friday vs. No. 7 Lyons