High school football: Michael O’Brien’s Super 25 rankings for Week 13

Four new teams join and Providence makes its season debut.

Mount Carmel’s Demarion Arrington (1) and Jimmy Deacy (9) celebrate Arrington’s touchdown against Brother Rice.

The two most awkward weeks to do rankings have arrived. I did my best to mix in the teams still playing with teams eliminated from the larger classes.

The top five has remained remarkably stable for awhile. That will likely change this weekend, as there are several clashes between the area’s elite. The semifinals should be excellent.

York’s crowd against Glenbard West was massive, and even with the lousy winter weather, the envigorated fanbase in Elmhurst should provide an interesting challenge for Loyola. There are rumors that Mount Carmel vs. St. Rita will be televised. Glenbard West vs. Lincoln-Way East is a battle of two of the state’s most successful and consistent programs. St. Ignatius at Prairie Ridge is an intriguing, unique matchup.

New additions this week are St. Ignatius, Providence, Morris and St. Francis. The Wolfpack was ranked in the preseason. This is the season debut for Providence, which has knocked off Joliet Catholic and Richmond-Burton (two of the Class 4A title favorites) so far in the playoffs.

Week 13’s Super 25
With record and last week’s ranking

1. Mount Carmel (12-0) 1
7A: at No. 6 St. Rita

2. Loyola (11-1) 2
8A: at No. 4 York

3. Lincoln-Way East (12-0) 3
8A: vs. No. 5 Glenbard West

4. York (12-0) 4
8A: vs. No. 2 Loyola

5. Glenbard West (11-1) 5
8A: at No. 3 Lincoln-Way East

6. St. Rita (10-2) 6
vs. No. 1 Mount Carmel

7. Lemont (12-0) 7
6A: vs. East St. Louis

8. Prairie Ridge (11-1) 11
6A: vs. No. 21 St. Ignatius

9. Batavia (9-3) 13
7A: at No. 10 Lake Zurich

10. Lake Zurich (11-1) 14
7A: vs. No. 9 Batavia

11. Sycamore (12-0) 16
5A: vs. No. 12 Nazareth