2021 Illinois high school football championships recap

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Posted By: Jeff Fisher November 28, 2021

Below is a look at the 2021 Illinois high school football championships played November 26-27at Northern Illinois  University in DeKalb.

Lockport claimed its first Illinois high school football championship since 2003 by beating Maine South 24-6 Saturday night for the 8A title. 

Ty Schultz helped lead the Porters, ranked No. 4 in the High School Football America Illinois Top 10 that is powered by NFL Play Football, with 32 carries for 231 yards and two touchdowns. Maine South entered the title game ranked No. 6 in our statewide rankings.

Lockport finishes with a 13-1 record. Maine South wraps-up 2021 with a 12-2 mark.

Wheaton North had to wait a bit longer for its state title. Saturday’s 35-6 win over St. Rita gave the Falcons its first title since 1986. That will boost Wheaton North in our Top 10 when the final statewide rankings come-out of the Christmas/New Year holiday.

Wheaton North entered the championship game ranked No. 10. St. Rita was No. 5.

Senior QB Forcucci added one last steady and strong performance in his high school career by completing 14 of 22 passes for 302 yards with two touchdowns.

Wheaton North finishes 13-1, while St. Rita closes at 11-3.

The biggest surprise of the weekend was in the 6A championship game where Cary-Grove shocked East St. Louis. The Flyers entered the game as the top team in the state, plus they were ranked No. 47 in the High School Football America 100 national rankings.

C-G’s triple-option offense helped the Trojans upset ESL 37-36.

Nick Hissong carried the ball 32 times for 224 yards and two touchdowns. Quarterback Jameson Sheehan also broke the century mark on the ground with 104 yards with three scores.

Cary-Grove wins its third overall title, finishing 14-0. ESL closes-out 2021 with an 11-3 mark.

In 5A, Fenwick won its first-ever high school football championship by beating Kankakee 34-15. Quarterback Kaden Cobb led Fenwick with three touchdowns passes. He also ran for one.

Fenwick finished 12-2. Kankakee loses its first this year to end 13-1.

Joliet Catholic, ranked No. 2 in the state and No. 165 nationally, won its 15th overall high school football title. The Hilltoppers own the most high school football titles in the Land of Lincoln.

Joliet beat Sacred Heart-Griffin 56-27 to win the Class 4A title. It was the fifth time that the two played for a state championship with JC winning all five.

JCA finishes a perfect 14-0. SHG, which owns five state titles, ends 2021 with a 12-2 mark.

The 3A championship was won by Byron with a 35-7 win over Tolono Unity. Ethan Palzkill scored three touchdowns, two on the ground and one receiving.

Byron finishes a perfect 14-0. Unity loses its first to finish 13-1.

Wilmington won the 2A title by beating Nashville 24-7. The Wildcats finish a perfect 14-0, while Nashville wraps-up 12-2.

Jacob Friddle led the way with 157 yards rushing and two touchdowns.

Lena-Winslow won its fifth state title in eleven years. Marey Roby ran for 241 yards and three touchdowns in L-W’s Class 1A state championship win over Carrollton 38-25.

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About the Author

Jeff Fisher
Jeff is an award-winning journalist and expert in the field of high school sports, underscored with his appearance on CNBC in 2010 to talk about the big business of high school football in America.Jeff turned to his passion for high school football into an entrepreneurial venture called High School Football America, a digital media company focused on producing original high school sports content for radio, television and the internet.Jeff is co-founder and editor-in-chief of High School Football America, a partner with NFL Play Football.

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