Are we really just four weeks from the opening of the IHSA prep football season?
It’s true, at least according to our countdown. After bringing you the area’s top seven opening games, six of the best senior football recruits and five new coaches the last few weeks, we’re heading to the final stretch.
This week we’re looking at the area’s four toughest schedules. With a tip of the cap to Hersey, Batavia, Hinsdale Central and others who just missed the cut, we present the list below in alphabetical order.
Glenbard West
The Hilltoppers not only have the toughest schedule in the area, they may have the toughest in the state.
Playing in the rugged West Suburban Silver — where four of the seven teams went to last year’s playoffs and won a combined nine games — is bad enough. But this year, Glenbard West also beefed up its nonconference schedule.
The Hilltoppers open against Batavia, a perennial power in Class 7A, and then play two-time defending Class 8A champion Loyola, which eliminated Glenbard West twice in the playoffs since 2016.
Glenbard West then must survive the Silver, where York has made two straight state semifinal appearances and Downers Grove North advanced to last year’s Class 7A title game.
Through 16 straight playoff appearances, and two state titles during that span, the Hilltoppers have a history of not backing down to anyone.
This season’s schedule proves it again.
Maine South
The Hawks historically dominate the Central Suburban South, allowing them to toughen their nonconference schedule as much as they can. The combination has proved successful through 31 straight playoff berths and six state championships.
This season, they’ve outdone themselves. The schedule starts with Lincoln-Way East, the Class 8A runner-up the last two years and a state champion in 2017 and 2019.
With only five conference games, the nonconference slate continues through the first four weeks. After the opener Maine South plays Warren, a state quarterfinalist last year, followed by Hersey, which started last season 10-0.
The nonconference schedule concludes in Week 4 with Barrington, an 8A semifinalist in 2023.
St. Francis
The CCL/ESCC Green boasts four powerhouse teams with the Spartans, St. Rita, IC Catholic Prep and defending Class 5A champion Nazareth.
St. Francis survived last year, reaching the 5A semifinals before losing to the Roadrunners. But this year the Spartans have the added challenge of playing Loyola and Providence, another 2023 semifinalist, in CCL/ESCC crossover play.
There are also “who knows” games on the schedule, like against Kenwood and a road trip to St. Louis to play Lift for Life Academy.
Warren
We know the Blue Devils play Maine South in Week 2, which is a pretty good hint at what’s in store this season.
Add a season opener against Hersey, also mentioned above, and Warren will be plenty tested heading into the tough and balanced North Suburban Conference. Five NSC teams qualified for the playoffs last season, including a run by Lake Zurich to the semifinals.
And you never know when a Stevenson or Libertyville will jump up and bite you.