Illinois High School Football Playoffs: The Lowest Seeds Still Standing in Round 2

The second round of the 2026 Illinois high school football playoffs features several teams that have taken unexpected paths to get there.

Some have overcome difficult regular seasons, while others have pulled off major postseason upsets to keep their seasons alive.

With the IHSA playoff field narrowing, here is a look at the lowest remaining seeds in each class, how they advanced and who they face next.

Class 1A: No. 14 Newman Central Catholic (7-4)

Newman Central Catholic earned some revenge in the first round, defeating No. 3 Rockridge 35-24.

The Comets finished the regular season 5-4, including a 46-30 loss to Rockridge in Week 8.

Newman had not beaten a team with a winning record during the regular season, going 0-4 against those opponents.

The reason for the recent success? The offense has come to life, scoring 42, 46 and 35 points in its last three games.

The Comets now travel to No. 11 Fulton for a 1 p.m. Saturday matchup in the second round.

Class 2A: No. 22 Shelbyville (4-7)

Shelbyville has put together one of the more surprising postseason runs.

The Rams started the season 0-6 before receiving a forfeit victory over Clinton and beating Eureka 28-20 to finish the regular season 2-7.

They carried that momentum into the playoffs, defeating No. 11 Carmi-White County 42-6 before knocking off No. 6 Pana 28-13.

Shelbyville has now earned the opportunity to host No. 3 Flora after two postseason victories.

The game is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday.

Class 3A: No. 23 Pontiac (5-6)

Pontiac is the lowest remaining seed in Class 3A after advancing through the opening two stages of the playoffs.

After finishing the regular season with three consecutive losses, the Indians have found their groove offensively, scoring 44 and 40 points in their two postseason victories.

Pontiac now gets a home playoff game against No. 2 Byron, one of the highest remaining seeds in the bracket.

Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday, with a spot in the quarterfinals on the line.

Class 4A: No. 22 Aurora Central Catholic (5-6)

Aurora Central Catholic is still hanging around.

After Week 4, who would have guessed?

The Chargers opened the season 0-4 but have won five of their last seven games, including a 49-8 victory over Chicago Carver and a 7-0 upset of No. 6 Chicago Noble/Rauner.

During those first four weeks, Aurora Central Catholic scored just 42 points while allowing 167.

Since then, the Chargers have scored 195 points and allowed only 93.

That's a complete turnaround on both sides of the ball.

Junior Leo Corral has been a major contributor, leading the Chargers with 1,138 all-purpose yards while recording five interceptions.

Aurora Central Catholic now hosts No. 14 Rochelle at 1 p.m. Saturday.

Class 5A: No. 18 St. Francis (6-5)

St. Francis opened the season 1-1 before dropping three consecutive games against Brother Rice, St. Rita and Fenwick.

The Spartans responded by winning five of their next six games to reach the second round.

Junior two-way standout Javonte Williams has Division I offers from Northern Illinois, Pitt, Miami (Ohio) and Marshall.

Senior safety James McGrath received offers from Oklahoma, North Dakota State, Butler and Miami (Ohio) before choosing Western Illinois.

St. Francis has outscored its first two playoff opponents 109-18, including a 48-12 upset of No. 2 Kaneland.

The Spartans now host No. 7 Woodstock at 1 p.m. Saturday.

Class 6A: No. 20 Nazareth Academy (6-5) and No. 21 Chicago Simeon (6-5)

The two lowest remaining seeds in Class 6A will meet in a second-round matchup featuring plenty of Division I talent.

Nazareth Academy has four Division I commits on its roster, including Missouri commits Chris Kasky and Luke Injaychock, Michigan State safety commit Henry Sakalas and Northern Illinois commit Cash Coleman.

Simeon is led by several talented seniors, including defensive lineman Corey Randulph Jr., a Boston College commit.

Fellow defensive lineman Brian Demoss has prominent offers from Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan and Michigan State.

On offense, running back James Bell has offers from Kentucky, Indiana, Miami and Ole Miss.

Simeon also features a rising prospect in sophomore wide receiver Jalonny Billingsley. The Class of 2029 recruit has offers from Kentucky, Missouri, Miami and Arizona State.

Nazareth reached the second round with a 44-14 victory over No. 11 Shepard and a 28-7 win over No. 6 Dunlap.

Simeon defeated Lindblom 36-11 before upsetting No. 5 Oak Lawn 28-19.

The two 6-5 teams meet Saturday, Nov. 7, at 1 p.m., with Nazareth hosting.

Class 7A: No. 39 St. Laurence (5-6) and No. 38 Glenbard North (5-6)

The two lowest-seeded teams remaining in any IHSA classification are in Class 7A.

St. Laurence has overcome an 0-4 start to reach the second round.

The Vikings are 1-6 when scoring 14 or fewer points. When they score more than 14, they are unbeaten at 4-0, including both playoff victories.

St. Laurence defeated No. 26 Belleville East 25-16 before upsetting No. 7 Plainfield South 28-13.

The Vikings now host No. 23 Lincoln-Way West at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Glenbard North also enters the second round after a difficult regular season.

The Panthers went 1-6 in conference play over their final seven games after opening the year 2-0.

Playing in the DuKane Conference was never going to be easy this year, as all eight teams qualified for the postseason, including powerhouses Geneva (9-1), Batavia (8-2) and Wheaton Warrenville South (7-3).

Glenbard North responded with two playoff victories, defeating No. 27 Hoffman Estates 34-20 before upsetting No. 6 Jacobs 35-13.

The Panthers now host No. 11 Richards at 1 p.m. Saturday.

Class 8A: No. 24 Barrington (7-4)

Barrington has put together one of the biggest turnarounds in the state.

After starting the season 0-4, the Broncos have won seven consecutive games.

They closed the regular season with five straight victories, then carried that momentum into the playoffs with a 38-0 win over No. 41 Waubonsie Valley and a 24-17 upset of No. 9 Sandburg.

Barrington secured the victory over Sandburg with a fourth-down stop in the final two minutes.

The Broncos reached the quarterfinals last year, but they now face one of their toughest tests of the season.

Barrington travels to No. 8 Mount Carmel, ranked No. 4 in the High School On SI Illinois state rankings.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday.

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