With three-time 7A State Champion Mount Carmel moving up to Class 8A, there's plenty of team chomping at the bit for a chance to be the new team hoisting the state championship hardware. Steve Soucie breaks down the opening round of the 2025 IHSA Class 7A Playoffs.

A look at the football games around the Kane County Chronicle area heading into the first round of the IHSA playoffs.

Attendees at the Batavia High playoff football game against Hoffman Estates Friday are asked not to swear, call names, boo, use offensive language or hand gestures or be intoxicated.

Princeton commit Ryan Myers has been a force on Batavia's offensive line for the past few years. But in Week 9, he made a surprise appearance on the opposite side of the line of scrimmage. Plus, more on St. Charles North and Kaneland's big Week 9 wins in the Kane County notebook.

Join hosts Josh Welge and Joel Boenitz as they preview Week 1 in the Illinois high school football playoffs for the western suburbs

Here are the first-round matchups for each Kane County Chronicle area team.

Gallery

Here are Karen Naess' photos from Friday's game between Batavia and Warrenville South.

Led by a three-touchdown night from Brett Berggren and a stout defense, Batavia cruised past Wheaton Warrenville South with a 45-12 victory to clinch its sixth DuKane Conference championship in seven years.

The DuKane Conference has always been a league that's been decided at the wire, and Batavia and St. Charles North both sit a win away from finishing atop the league once again. Plus, who else has a chance to win a conference title and some wild Week 8 finishes.