High school football: Michael O’Brien’s Super 25 rankings for Week 3

Simeon and three other new teams join the rankings, and Naperville North vaults into the top 10.

By Michael O’Brien

Simeon’s Cameron Ashley (80) makes a leaping catch out of the reach of Bolingbrook’s Jacob May (7).

Week 2 was a tremendous amount of fun. The crowds have been great at every game I’ve been to this season.

Marian Catholic brought out a nice student section on Thursday. Obviously, the Notre Dame vs. St. Patrick rivalry was packed and raucous.

Kudos to Bolingbrook fans for making the trip to Gately Stadium on Saturday. Simeon always has a nice crowd but the Raiders’ big turnout made the game feel special.

What a win it was for the Wolverines. After some hemming and hawing, I went ahead and put Simeon in the top 10. That’s quite a jump from unranked but it seems warranted, especially after Wheaton-Warrenville South, the team the Wolverines beat in Week 1, knocked off Neuqua Valley.

Warren jumps into the top five after knocking off Maine South. But the Hawks don’t far too far for the loss. I do my best not to penalize teams all that much for losing close games to good teams. That’s one of my basic rankings beliefs.

The toughest part this week was deciding which new teams to add at the bottom. There were a lot of contenders (St. Francis, IC Catholic, Morgan Park, South Elgin, York) and not a lot separated them.

In the end, I decided to go with a pair of Mid-Suburban League teams, Palatine and Hersey.

Week 3’s Super 25
With record and last week’s ranking

1. Mount Carmel (2-0) 1
Friday at No. 20 Notre Dame

2. Loyola (2-0) 2
Friday at No. 13 St. Rita

3. Lincoln-Way East (2-0) 3
Friday at Stagg

4. Warren (2-0) 7
Friday at Libertyville

5. Glenbard West (2-0) 6
Saturday vs. Oak Park

6. Naperville North (2-0) 13
Saturday vs. Detroit St. Mary’s

7. Batavia (1-1) 4
Friday at Wheaton North

8. Simeon (2-0) NR
Saturday vs. Young at Lane

9. Maine South (1-1) 9
Friday at Barrington

10. Prairie Ridge (2-0) 10
Friday vs. Huntley