Illinois High School Football Games of the Week — Oct. 10-12

Illinois high school football is set to kick off the second week of October on Thursday and several ranked teams will face tough tests as the season hits the home stretch.

There are just two matchups between ranked teams this weekend, but that includes a top-10 showdown between Lyons and Downers Grove North. Chicago Mount Carmel, Geneva Community and Marist will each be challenged as well.

The On3 Massey Ratings — which were officially used during the BCS era and have generated college high school sports team rankings since 1995 — rank sports teams by analyzing game outcomes, strength of schedule and margin of victory.

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Below are the Illinois high school football games of the week.

Top high school football games in Illinois

No. 20 Joliet Catholic Academy at No. 3 Chicago Mount Carmel — Friday, Oct. 11
Chicago Mount Carmel was upset last weekend by Brother Rice 16-13. The Caravan had previously won four straight games after dropping the season opener to Hun School (N.J.). This week, they will host Joliet Catholic. The Hilltoppers are 4-2 on the year with losses to No. 18 Oswego and No. 10 Nazareth, but wins against Iowa City (Iowa), No. 22 Fenwick, No. 11 Marist and Notre Dame College Prep. They rank No. 23 in Illinois on offense but boast a top-10 defense. The On3 Massey Ratings project a 42-14 Mount Carmel victory.

No. 9 Lyons at No. 5 Downers Grove North — Friday, Oct. 11
Lyons improved to 6-0 with a 49-14 win over River Forest over the weekend ahead of its clash with No. 5 Downers Grove North this Friday. The Lions have a top-15 defense in Illinois while the offense sits outside of the top 25. Downers Grove North got out to a 5-0 start this season against a schedule that had seen no games against ranked opponents. That changed this past weekend. The Trojans blasted No. 16 York Comm 35-14 and accordingly jumped up four spots in the state rankings. Lyons beat Downers Grove North 17-7 last year, but is a two-touchdown underdog this weekend per the On3 Massey Ratings.

Wheaton North at No. 8 Geneva Community — Friday, Oct. 11
Entering this weekend 3-3 on the year, Wheaton North has played one of the tougher schedules in Illinois. The Falcons have dropped games to No. 15 St. Charles North, No. 7 Batavia and Wheaton Warrenville South; while they have wins against Providence Catholic, Lockport Township and St. Charles East. On the flip side, Geneva is undefeated after beating its first ranked opponent of the year last Friday. The Vikings knocked off previous No. 4 Batavia 30-7. Wheaton North squeaked past Geneva 25-24 last season, but the Vikings are four-score favorites this Friday.

No. 11 Marist at St. Ignatius — Friday, Oct. 11
Marist has lost one game this season, and it came by just one point to No. 20 Joliet Catholic in late September. Since then, the RedHawks have beaten Immaculate Conception and Providence Catholic. Marist may be in for a bit of a test this Friday when it travels to St. Ignatius — a top-50 team in Illinois. The On3 Massey Ratings project Marist to win 35-27.