Michael O’Brien’s Super 25 high school football rankings for Week 9

Wheaton North, Downers Grove North and Prospect are all back.

SHARE Michael O’Brien’s Super 25 high school football rankings for Week 9
Loyola’s William Carlson (14) and Finley Miller (42) celebrate Miller’s second touchdown against Benet.

Loyola’s William Carlson (14) and Finley Miller (42) celebrate Miller’s second touchdown against Benet.

Kirsten Stickney/For the Sun-Times

It’s always tough to drop teams a few spots when they didn’t lose. But ranking Barrington and York below Prairie Ridge and Kankakee wasn’t sitting well.

So the Broncos and Dukes both jump up after big wins in Week 8. Kankakee and Prairie Ridge are both state title contenders, but their regular season schedules haven’t allowed for major wins.

It was a typical week overall with a handful of teams dropping out of the rankings. Palatine is out after the loss at Barrington. Lincoln-Way West falls after being upset by Homewood-Flossmoor. St. Laurence was a difficult decision. The Vikings lost 20-9 at St. Rita. That’s a tough game, but there were some teams that I felt deserved spots, so St. Laurence is out after one week in the rankings.

Downers Grove North, Wheaton North and Prospect all rejoin the Super 25. Those are three solid teams with standout wins that will be a threat in the state playoffs.

Super 25 rankings for Week 9
With record and last week’s ranking

1. Mount Carmel (8-0) 1
Saturday at No. 2 Loyola

2. Loyola (8-0) 2
Saturday vs. No. 1 Mount Carmel

3. Lincoln-Way East (8-0) 3
Friday at Bolingbrook

4. Batavia (7-1) 4
Friday vs. Glenbard North

5. Maine South (7-1) 5
Friday vs. Evanston

6. Hersey (8-0) 6
Friday vs. Elk Grove

7. Barrington (8-0) 9
Friday at Conant

8. York (7-1) 10
Friday vs. Proviso West

9. Prairie Ridge (8-0) 7
Friday at McHenry

10. Kankakee (8-0) 8
Friday vs. Crete-Monee

11. St. Charles North (6-2) 11
Friday vs. Geneva

12. Morgan Park (7-1) 13
Saturday vs. Simeon at Gately

13. Warren (6-2) 14
Friday at Zion-Benton

14. St. Francis (6-2) 16
Friday at Nazareth

15. Naperville Central (7-1) 17
Friday vs. Neuqua Valley

16. St. Rita (5-3) 18
Friday at Brother Rice

17. Carmel (7-1) 19
Friday vs. St. Patrick

18. Joliet Catholic (6-2) 20
Friday vs. St. Ignatius

19. Lake Zurich (7-1) 21
Friday vs. Waukegan

20. Sycamore (8-0) 23
Friday at No. 21 Morris

21. Morris (8-0) 24
Friday vs. No. 20 Sycamore

22. Downers Grove North (6-2) NR
Friday vs. Hinsdale Central

23. Glenbard West (6-2) 25
Friday at Oak Park

24. Wheaton North (5-3) NR
Friday vs. Lake Park

25. Prospect (6-2) NR
Friday vs. Wheeling

The Latest
The White Sox mustered three hits against Sonny Gray, Cards bullpen
On Aug. 20,1972, this reporter was assigned to cover the hordes of hippies, yippies, women’s libbers, Marxists, gay rights advocates, Black Panthers, and anti-Vietnam war vets tenting, talking, and toking it up in Miami’s Flamingo Park before the Republican National Convention kicked off.
Restaurants and bars anticipate a big revenue boost from the city’s outdoor dining program — especially with key summer events like NASCAR and the Democratic National Convention.
Vaughn, who slumped most of April, entered Friday’s game in St. Louis batting .308 in his last six games
The Cubs (19-14) and Alzolay need to find answers to his struggles.