Illinois High School Football Games of the Week: September 5-7

East St. Louis snapped top-ranked Loyola Academy‘s 22-game winning streak while Lincoln-Way East also won its top-10 matchup in an exciting first week of football in the Land of Lincoln.

A top-10 showdown between Mount Carmel and St. Rita headlines a slate that also features three additional ranked matchups.

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

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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Top high school football games in Illinois

#2 Mount Carmel at #9 St. Rita — Friday, Sept. 6
Mount Carmel fell to a top-25 team from New Jersey last Thursday, losing 42-38 to Hun School. Sophomore wide receiver Quentin Burrell came down with 139 receiving yards, including a 30-yard touchdown in the loss. St. Rita beat Carl Sandburg 27-17 in a tough Friday night battle behind a 107-yard, two-touchdown performance from senior running back Nick Herman. St. Rita battled back from a 3-0 halftime deficit to find the end zone four times in the second half. The Caravan and Mustangs clashed twice in 2023, with Mount Carmel winning both matchups.

#13 Marist at #7 Brother Rice — Friday, Sept. 6
Marist won 29-16 at home against Morgan Park last week. Lincoln-Way East transfer quarterback Jacob Ritter threw for four touchdown passes in his Marist debut. Brother Rice shut out Phillips Academy 50-0. Tyler Lofton ran for 57 yards on seven carries — three of which found the end zone. Quarterback C.J. Gray added two touchdown passes of his own. Marist beat Brother Rice 30-24 at home last season.

#8 Warren Township at #20 Maine South — Friday, Sept. 6
Warren Township won its top-25 game last week with a 55-26 blowout win over Hersey. The Blue Devils were carried by an electric rushing performance from junior Aaron Stewart. Stewart ran for 361 yards and five touchdowns on 30 carries as Warren sprinted past Hersey with 43 unanswered points. Maine South opened its season last week with a 49-22 loss to Lincoln-Way East as LWE junior running back Brady Gish ran for 203 yards and three touchdowns in his first game at the varsity level. Maine South won last season’s game at Warren Township 28-7.

#24 Naperville Central at Naperville North — Friday, Sept. 6
Naperville Central won its opening game against Hinsdale Central 24-13. Running back Aiden Clark ran for 290 yards and 2 touchdowns. Naperville North blew out New Trier 42-14 after scoring 28 unanswered points. Last year’s version of this rivalry game was a nailbiter, with Naperville Central beating Naperville North 21-14.

#4 Loyola Academy at #25 Glenbard West — Saturday, Sept. 7
Loyola Academy, previously the top team in Illinois, fell to East St. Louis 34-7 last Saturday, snapping a 22-game winning streak. The Ramblers gave up six sacks and finished with just 40 rushing yards on 19 carries despite a 50-yard run by Iowa quarterback commit Ryan Fitzgerald. Glenbard West fell to Batavia 35-28 last week. West had a shot on offense its final two drives of the game but was unable to find the end zone.