Illinois High School Football Rankings: Top 25 Teams - September 2

The opening week of football in the Land of Lincoln proved to be an exciting one, and it has resulted in a shakeup of the Illinois high school football rankings.

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

Below is the updated Illinois On3 Massey Ratings top 25, as of Sept. 2.

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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1. East St. Louis

Previous Ranking: No. 3 (+2)
East St. Louis hosted the Illinois high school football game of the week on Saturday as the Flyers played then-No. 1 Loyola Academy. After a 34-7 blowout win, East St. Louis is now the top-ranked team in the Land of Lincoln. Senior quarterback Kendrick Lyons was efficient on the night, finishing 21-of-24 passing for 261 yards, four touchdowns and an interception. The Flyers defense recorded six sacks on the Ramblers. Next up for East St. Louis will be a home game against Newton (Ga.) on Saturday.

2. Mount Carmel

Previous Ranking: No. 2
Mount Carmel fell to a top-25 team from New Jersey on 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. Mount Carmel led 38-35 late in the fourth quarter, but Charlotte quarterback commit Jack Moran led a game-winning drive top cap a 458-yard and five-touchdown performance. The Caravan will look to bounce back this week in a top-10 showdown with No. 9 St. Rita.

3. Lincoln-Way East

Previous Ranking: No. 4 (+1)
One of two top-10 games in week one, Lincoln-Way East took down then-No. 10 Maine South in dominating fashion, winning 49-22. Starting running back Zion Gist left the game after four carries, so Lincoln-Way East turned to junior running back Brady Gish in his first game on varsity. Gish ran for 203 yards and three touchdowns. The Griffons’ next scheduled game comes Sept. 13 against Amos Alonzo Stagg.

4. Loyola Academy

Previous Ranking: No. 1 (-3)
The top team in Illinois fell to East St. Louis 34-7 on 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. Another tough challenge is on deck for Loyola with a road game at No. 25 Glenbard West on Saturday.

5. Batavia

Previous Ranking: No. 5
Batavia’s ranking remains unchanged this week after downing then-No. 14 Glenbard West 35-28. Senior running back Nathan Whitwell ran for 179 yards and three touchdowns on 35 rushing attempts. The Bulldogs also held the Glenbard offense on its final two drives, spearheaded by a fourth-down sack by Jake Feller on the penultimate drive. Batavia will host South Elgin this week.

6. Joliet Catholic Academy

Previous Ranking: No. 6
Joliet Catholic Academy beat Iowa City (Iowa) 50-22 in a dominating out-of-state win last Friday. The stout Hilltoppers defense scored two touchdowns and recovered a fumble. The JCA offense ran for a staggering 333 yards despite no rushers eclipsing the 100-yard mark on the evening. Joliet Catholic will head to Oswego this week.

7. Brother Rice

Previous Ranking: No. 8 (+1)
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. The Crusaders have a big top-15 matchup on deck against Marist.

8. Warren Township

Previous Ranking: No. 16 (+8)
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. Next up is another ranked matchup, this time with No. 20 Maine South.

9. St. Rita

Previous Ranking: No. 7 (-2)
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. St. Rita will play host in a monster showdown with No. 2 Mount Carmel on Friday.

10. Downers Grove North

Previous Ranking: No. 12 (+2)
Downers Grove North beat O’Fallon 33-15 on Friday and moved up two spots in the Illinois high school football rankings. The Trojans held O’Fallon to just 58 yards of total offense. This coming Friday, it’s a crosstown showdown between Downers Grove North and Downers Grove South.

Teams 11-25 in latest Illinois High School Football Rankings

11. York Comm
12. Prairie Ridge (+5)
13. Marist (-4)
14. Cary-Grove (-1)
15. St. Charles North (NR)

16. St. Ignatius (+4)
17. Lyons (+5)
18. Wheaton North (+3)
19. Nazareth Academy (-4)
20. Maine South (-10)

21. Homewood-Flossmoor (NR)
22. Barrington (+2)
23. Edwardsville (-5)
24. Naperville Central (NR)
25. Glenbard West (-11)

Dropped from rankings: Providence Catholic, Neuqua Valley, St. Francis