The top three teams in the Friday Night Drive Power Rankings held strong in the semifinal round, but that's where the stability ended. Check out the new rankings here.

Join hosts Matt Rodewald and Steve Soucie as they break down what we saw in the Illinois high school football playoff semifinals, talk about Mt. Carmel coach Jordan Lynch's recent comments, and look ahead to the state title games

Getting a strong sense of deja vu when looking at the lineup of state championships? That's understandable considering the group has collectively made 115 title game appearances previously. Steve Soucie takes a look at what we learned in Week 13.

Wilmington defeated El Paso-Gridley 41-0 in IHSA Class 2A semifinal playoff football on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025.

For the second straight week, Wilmington had five touchdown drives of one or two plays, tallying 483 rushing yards in a 41-0 win over El Paso-Gridley in Saturday's Class 2A state semifinal.

Here are the championship game pairings for the 2025 IHSA playoffs.

Two middle classification powers lock horns in one side of the bracket while two long time rivals battle on the other. Steve Soucie breaks down the semifinal round of the 2025 IHSA Class 3A Playoffs.

Wilmington continues to storm its way through the 2A field, can anyone slow down the Wildcats? Steve Soucie breaks down the semifinal round of the 2025 IHSA Class 2A playoffs.

Wilmington will host undefeated El Paso-Gridley on Saturday for a trip to the IHSA Class 2A state championship.

A trio of power teams continue to roll through the playoffs while the upstarts still continue to emerge shaking up the Friday Night Drive Power Rankings. Check out the new rankings here.

The quarterfinal round was an absolute breeze for some teams while others experienced significantly more stress in keeping their postseason runs alive. Steve Soucie takes a look at what we learned in Week 12.

Wilmington ran to a 49-7 victory over Tri-Valley in the Class 2A quarterfinal playoff on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025.

Here are the semifinal round pairings for the 2025 IHSA playoffs.

Wilmington had five touchdown drives of two plays or less as the Wildcats controlled Tri-Valley in Saturday's IHSA Class 2A quarterfinal, sending Wilmington to its third straight state semifinal.

Montini started slow but finished strong in its Class 4A quarterfinal with Coal City, topping the Coalers 35-0 to advance to face Morris next weekend.

The Montini and Coal City football teams met Saturday in a quarterfinal playoff game.

Join hosts Steve Soucie and Josh Welge, along with Mason Schweizer as they preview the quarterfinals in the Illinois high school football playoffs

It appeared early on that the Class 3A bracket was going to provide some blockbuster matchups in later rounds. That time has arrived now. Steve Soucie breaks down the quarterfinal round of the 2025 IHSA Class 3A Playoffs.

A playoff field that started with seven undefeated teams is down to just three. But the group is still chock full of teams that can make a serious run to the title. Steve Soucie breaks down the quarterfinal round of the 2025 IHSA Class 2A playoffs.

Coal City visits Montini in Class 4A and Wilmington welcomes Tri-Valley in Class 2A in the Daily Journal's quarterfinal football previews.

The NUIC and WIVC conference hold five of the eight spots in the 1A quarterfinals, are the two conferences heading toward a state final showdown? Steve Soucie breaks down the quarterfinal round of the 2025 IHSA Class 1A playoffs.

Ranging from the area's biggest school to the smallest, seven Daily Journal area football standouts made IHSFCA All-State teams.

A Roxana High School proposal that would expand the playoffs and provide a regional schedule model has released regional mockups for Class 7A and Class 8A. See the proposed regions here.

One of the city's most successful seasons came to a collective end, Wilmington and Coal City marched on, and more in this week's Daily Journal 2-Minute Drill.

A number of ranked teams bowed out in the second round of the playoffs shaking up the Friday Night Drive Power Rankings considerably. Check out the new rankings here.

Here are the quarterfinal round pairings for the 2025 IHSA playoffs.

High seeds had a rough go of it in Round 2 of the playoffs, while the CCL/ESCC flexed its muscles in numerous classifications. Steve Soucie takes a look at what we learned in Week 11.

Each week, we’ll have 22 players – 11 on offense, 11 on defense – to make the Friday Night Drive Team of the Week. Vote for your favorite players for Round 2 of the playoffs!

Dwight scored three touchdowns on offense, two on defense and one on special teams in a 43-14 win over Clifton Central in the IHSA Class 1A second round on Saturday, advancing to quarterfinals for the second season in a row.

Despite a few dazzling plays from Cedric Terrell III to pull the Kays to within a field goal, Providence did enough down the stretch to earn a road win at Kankakee in the second round of the IHSA Class 5A playoffs Saturday.

Dwight defeated Clifton Central 43-14 in the IHSA Class 1A second round playoffs on Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025.

The Polo Marcos downed St. Anne in I8FA playoff action on Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025 at Polo High School.

Providence Catholic defeated Kankakee 35-25 in the IHSA Class 5A second round playoffs on Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025.

IC Catholic bested former conference rival Bishop McNamara when the two met in the second round of the IHSA Class 3A playoffs at IC Catholic on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025.

A dominant second-half performance from St. Laurence's Cory Les allowed the Vikings to claim a 35-21 victory over second-seeded Bradley-Bourbonnais in a Class 6A second round contest Friday night.

Tamarion Garner recorded 3.5 sacks and returned a fumble for a touchdown, while Nate Lang threw three touchdowns as IC Catholic ended Bishop McNamara's undefeated season with a 37-27 win in the second round of the IHSA Class 3A playoffs.

St. Laurence topped Bradley-Bourbonnais 35-21 in the IHSA Class 6A second round playoffs on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025.

Dixon hosts Coal City, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025, in Round 2 of the 4A football playoffs. Coal City took the slugfest 49-42.

Higher seeds were largely undeterred in the opening round of the 6A playoffs, but considerably bigger threats come from the under seeds in Round 2. Steve Soucie breaks down the second round of the 2025 IHSA Class 6A Playoffs.

A clear favorite in the Class 5A draw still hasn't emerged. Will Round 2 provide some clarity on that topic? Steve Soucie breaks down the second round of the 2025 IHSA Class 5A Playoffs.

Meet the Friday Night Drive MVP for Week 1 of the 2025 Playoffs, Clifton Central senior QB Brady Shule.

The powerhouses will look to keep rolling through the bracket as big-time matchups loom. Steve Soucie breaks down the second round of the 2025 IHSA Class 3A Playoffs.

The Class 2A field remains chock full of quality teams and the group has a collective record of 147-13 as we move into Round 2. Steve Soucie breaks down the second round of the 2025 IHSA Class 2A playoffs.

Join hosts Mason Schweizer and Steve Soucie as they break down Round 2 of the Illinois high school football playoffs in Kankakee County

The Northwest Upstate Illini Conference and the Western Illinois Valley Conference are already stealing the headlines in the Class 1A postseason. Steve Soucie breaks down the opening round of the 2025 IHSA Class 1A playoffs.

Kankakee, Bradley-Bourbonnais and Bishop McNamara all clash with CCL/ESCC powers, Wilmington and Coal City face familiar postseason faces and more in the Daily Journal's second-round playoff previews.

A Roxana High School proposal that would expand the playoffs and provide a regional schedule model has released regional mockups for Class 5A and Class 6A. See the proposed regions here.

The All-City schools made local history, Clifton Central's Brady Shule made school history and more in this week's Daily Journal 2-Minute Drill.

Ranked teams did what they should do largely rolling to easy first round victories in the state playoffs. Check out the new rankings here:

Matt Rodewald, Steve Soucie, and John Sahly break down what happened with a fifth down in the PORTA vs. Fairfield first-round playoff game, and review what else happened in Round 1 in the IHSA football playoffs