St. Rita’s Ethan Middleton (84) runs 78 yards in the first quarter against Rolling Meadows. | Kirsten Stickney/For the Sun-Times
Three teams join the rankings, one making its season debut.
We’ve reached the point in the season where the rankings are pretty easy to do. At least for this week. First round losing teams drop out for good and everyone moves on. That eliminates Bolingbrook, York and Naperville North this week.
No one will be shocked that I’ve added Glenbard North back into the rankings. I haven’t seen the Panthers play this season, but I keep ranking them whenever possible. It’s because of the schedule. Glenbard North has beaten Naperville North, Geneva and St. Charles North and now Bolingbrook. Nice wins, but nothing spectacular. But the losses are intriguing. The Panthers lost 21-20 at Batavia and 21-20 vs. Wheaton North. Those are two of the area’s best teams.
Glenbard North lost at Wheaton Warrenville South 10-7 in Week 9. That dropped them out of the rankings, but doesn’t look so bad now after what the Tigers did on Saturday at Brother Rice.
Can Glenbard North finally get a major win? Beating Warren in the second round would certainly qualify.
Glenbard West is also back after beating Oswego and Crete-Monee makes its season debut.
With record and last week’s ranking
1. Loyola (10-0) 1
8A: at No. 11 Naperville Central
2. Joliet Catholic (10-0) 2
4A: vs. Wheaton Academy
3. Brother Rice (8-2) 3
7A: at Yorkville
4. Maine South (10-1) 4
8A: vs. Plainfield North
5. Cary-Grove (10-0) 5
6A: at Grayslake Central
6. Batavia (10-0) 6
7A: at No. 10 Mount Carmel
7. Warren (9-1) 7
8A: at No. 20 Glenbard North
8. Wheaton North (9-1) 8
7A: vs. Hoffman Estates
9. Neuqua Valley (9-1) 9
8A: at Palatine
10. Mount Carmel (7-3) 10
7A: vs. No. 6 Batavia
11. Naperville Central (7-3) 11
8A: vs. No. 1 Loyola
12. Hinsdale Central (9-1) 12
8A: vs. Glenbrook South
13. Fenwick (8-2) 13
5A: at Rockford Boylan
14. St. Ignatius (9-1) 14
6A: vs. No. 22 Crete-Monee
15. St. Rita (8-2) 15
7A: at Geneva
16. Lincoln-Way East (8-2) 16
8A: at Minooka
17. Lockport (9-1) 17
8A: vs. No. 25 Glenbard West
18. Lemont (10-0) 18
6A: at Springfield
19. South Elgin (10-0) 19
8A: at Marist
20. Glenbard North (7-3) NR
8A: vs. No. 7 Warren
21. Kankakee (10-0) 23
5A: at Morgan Park
22. Crete-Monee (7-3) NR
6A: at No. 14 St. Ignatius
23. Morris (10-0) 24
5A: vs. Morton, IL
24. Richmond Burton (10-0) 25
4A: vs. Stillman Valley
25. Glenbard West (8-2) NR
8A: at No. 17 Lockport
