Breaking down this week's Top 10 football teams

By John Lemon

jlemon@dailyherald.com

First and 10

Team (record) This week's opponent

1. Hersey (9-0) WW South, Saturday

Comment: The Huskies start the Class 7A playoffs against one of the state's most storied programs, one fresh off another gauntlet of a schedule in the DuKane Conference. Hersey sophomore Brandon Jenkins had 2 INTs in last week's 63-14 win over Elk Grove, a victory that wrapped up the Huskies' second straight 9-0 regular season.

2. Batavia (8-1) Brother Rice, Friday

Comment: Last year the Bulldogs went 6-3 in the regular season and might have caught a break in the first round playing at Rockford Guilford, who Batavia dominated 42-0 on the way to a run to the Class 7A state championship game. No such break this year during an 8-1 season against Brother Rice, who beat Maine South, and has losses to defending state champions Loyola, Mt. Carmel and Nazareth.

3. Barrington (9-0) Glenbrook South, Friday

Comment: Like Batavia, the Broncos didn't get an easy draw even though Glenbrook South is 4-5. These teams already played once with Barrington winning 27-19 in Week 3. The Broncos wrapped up a perfect regular season with a 45-19 win over Conant last week behind QB Nick Peipert's 4 TD passes and 198 rushing yards from Dillon Fitzpatrick.

4. York (8-1) Homewood-Flossmoor

Comment: The Dukes reached the Class 8A semifinals last year before a 30-3 loss to eventual state champion Loyola. York has the pieces to make another long run this year. Only a Week 7 loss to Glenbard West stands between the Dukes and a second straight undefeated regular season, and they rebounded from that defeat with wins over Lyons and Proviso West.

5. Maine South (8-1) Lockport, Friday

Comment: Quarterback Constantine Coines shook off a pair of early interceptions in last week's 35-11 win over Evanston to throw for 214 yards. Michael Dellumo rushed for 105 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Hawks won playoff games over Bolingbrook and South Elgin last year before a 37-34 loss to Glenbard West.

6. Warren (7-2) Oswego, Friday

Comment: The North Suburban Conference champions enter the playoffs on a 7-game winning streak. They haven't allowed a point since a 54-7 win over Mundelein in Week 6, closing the regular season with 46-0, 34-0 and 42-0 shutouts. Next comes a 6-3 Oswego team that has lost three of its last five after a 4-0 start.

7. Lake Zurich (8-1) Crystal Lake Central, Friday

Comment: Only a 21-17 loss to Warren stands between the Bears and a perfect regular season. They tuned up for the playoffs with a 41-0 shutout over Waukegan, and now get the playoffs started with a Fox Valley Conference opponent. Crystal Lake Central pulled out a 27-24 win over 2-7 Hampshire last week to qualify for the playoffs.

8. Downers North (7-2) Kenwood, Friday

Comment: No doubt the West Suburban Silver teams will come into the playoffs battle tested. That goes for the Trojans, who beat Glenbard West and took a couple hard-fought losses to York and Lyons. Downers Grove North also beat a pair of teams in the nonconference slate that both ended up as playoff teams, St. Francis and Downers Grove South.

9. Glenbard West (7-2) Naperville North, Saturday

Comment: The Hilltoppers open the playoffs with a matchup of two proud DuPage County programs. This is the third straight trip for the Huskies, who won the 2007 state title during a stretch of 17 straight playoff appearances. The Hilltoppers haven't missed since 2006 and won 2012 and 2015 state championships.

10. St. Francis (7-2) Rochelle, Friday

Comment: The Spartans begin postseason play probably feeling like they already have played nine playoff games. They capped that challenge with another impressive win last week, beating Nazareth 35-17. Ball State-bound QB Alessio Milivojevic threw for 273 yards and a pair of second-half TDs. St. Francis beat Rochelle in last year's quarterfinals before losing to Providence Catholic.

Second and 10

11. Prospect 7-2 Beat Rolling M. 44-7; Buffalo Grove

12. Palatine 6-3 Beat Schaumburg 42-14; at Neuqua V.

13. Naperville Central 7-2 Lost to Neuqua Valley 26-14; Downers S.

14. Neuqua Valley 6-3 Beat Naperville Central 26-14; Palatine

15. Glenbard East 8-1 Beat Bartlett 41-7; Harlem

16. Geneva 7-2 Beat St. Charles North 20-10; Senn

17. Huntley 8-1 Beat Burlington C. 20-10; Maine West

18. IC Catholic Prep 7-2 Beat Fenwick 42-9; Geneseo

19. Antioch 9-0 Beat Round Lake 70-0; Englewood Stem

20. Carmel 8-1 Beat St. Patrick 42-0; Lindblom