Prep Sports Report Newsletter
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Prep Sports Report
Football season is here

Summer’s not over, but football practice is almost here.

Teams will take the field Wednesday, kicking off the start of the fall sports season in Illinois.

Here are some storylines to follow this season.

Prep football

High school football 2026: Storylines to watch in Cook County
Aug 04, 2026 8:49 am - High schools in the area have been getting an earlier start every year. Now it is high school football’s turn. Official practice begins Wednesday. Teams will have to get things rolling quickly because they are targeting a newer opening for the offici
 
 

Prep football

High school football 2026: Storylines to watch in DuPage County
Aug 04, 2026 8:54 am - Montini enters the 2026 season with a “three-peat” as the mission. Coach Mike Bukovsky’s Broncos capped their second unbeaten season (14-0) with a 47-33 Class 4A state championship victory over Rochester last November at Hancock Stadium in Normal. On
 
 

Prep football

High school football 2026: Storylines to watch in Lake County
Aug 04, 2026 8:48 am - With Wednesday marking the first day of football practice at high schools throughout Illinois, here are some tidbits to get the excitement levels even higher across the Lake County gridiron scene. New coaches: Grayslake Central and Lake Zurich bo
 
 

Prep football

High school football 2026: Storylines to watch in the Fox Valley
Aug 04, 2026 8:49 am - The ultimate prize for high school football teams as they begin practice Wednesday is the state title. But before postseason play begins, conference championships are at stake, and there are several Fox Valley area schools eyeing those titles. Batavi
 
 
Kevin Schmit has spent the summer counting down the weeks until opening night.

Prep football

Counting down to prep football: 10 senior recruits to watch this season
Jun 18, 2026 6:00 pm - If it seems too early to start breaking down the 2026 prep football season, you’re right. And you’re wrong. Keep in mind the looming expansion of the IHSA playoffs shortened the summer and bumped up the IHSA calendar by a week. Besides, around here i
 
 

Prep football

Countdown to prep football: Nine area juniors to watch
Jun 25, 2026 6:00 am - Welcome to the latest edition of the Daily Herald’s countdown to prep football. Every week we’ll provide insight related to the 2026 football season for teams, players and coaches throughout our coverage area. Due to the IHSA playoff expansion, we’ll
 
 

Prep football

Countdown to prep football: Eight area quarterbacks to watch
Jul 02, 2026 6:15 pm - Don’t let the July heat fool you. We’ve got fall on the mind as the Daily Herald countdown to the IHSA football season marches on. Every week we’ll provide insight related to the 2026 football campaign for teams, players and coaches throughout our co
 
 

Prep football

Countdown to prep football: Seven of the area’s new football coaches
Jul 09, 2026 2:33 pm - A new batch of coaches will be prowling the sidelines this fall. The Daily Herald’s countdown to prep football continues as each week we bring you insight related to the 2026 football campaign for teams, players and coaches throughout our coverage a
 
 

Prep football

Countdown to prep football: Six stellar season openers
Jul 16, 2026 7:53 pm - The expanded IHSA football playoffs didn’t just mess with the postseason. They also sent chaos into the regular season. Schools were left scrambling to fill open dates because of entire schedules shifting a week earlier. The good news? Intriguing Wee
 
 

Prep football

Countdown to prep football: Five of the area’s toughest schedules
Jul 23, 2026 9:00 am - You’ve got to beat the best to be the best, a cliche far too many high school football teams are taking to extremes in 2026. Some of this season’s schedules are absolutely brutal, partly because of the expanded playoffs. The calendar pushed a week ea
 
 

Prep football

Countdown to prep football: Four area teams facing out-of-state competition
Jul 30, 2026 2:23 pm - Sometimes you must span the country to fill a high school football schedule. The bulk of teams are able to find local competition, but it’s not always a guarantee. When the IHSA shifted the calendar a week earlier to account for the expanded playoffs
 
 
Edgy Tim didn’t take the summer off either.

Prep football

‘Edgy’ Tim: Who are the area’s prep football player of the year candidates?
Aug 02, 2026 2:54 pm - As we get closer to kickoff for the IHSA prep football season, here are some names from the Daily Herald coverage area I consider as player of the year candidates. Montini Catholic senior QB Israel Abrams Abrams, verbally committed to the Miami
 
 

Prep football

‘Edgy’ Tim: The area’s top Class of 2028 prep football players
Jul 19, 2026 2:14 pm - With the IHSA football season just more than a month away, it's time to preview several of the top prospects to watch this season. Here’s a look at the area’s top Class of 2028 recruits. Grant Bowen, ATH, IC Catholic Prep The 6-foot-4, 220-poun
 
 

Prep football

‘Edgy’ Tim: Wilson settling in after transfer to St. Francis
Jul 05, 2026 12:21 pm - St. Francis junior quarterback Jadon Wilson took the reins of the Spartans’ offense at last week’s Naperville North 7-on-7 to great success. Wilson (6-foot-3, 190 pounds), who transferred from East St. Louis earlier this summer, breaks down his move
 
 

Prep football

‘Edgy’ Tim: Standouts from the NCC high school football camp
Jun 07, 2026 2:51 pm - The annual Naperville Championship Football Camps, held three days last week at North Central College in Naperville, continues to be one of the most successful college football camps in the Midwest. The Cardinals hosted over 1,000 high school prospe
 
 

Prep football

‘Edgy’ Tim: Prospect’s Cichy flips to Illinois, Batavia’s Vander Luitgaren commits to Wyoming
May 24, 2026 2:45 pm - Prospect senior wide receiver Nathan Cichy (6-foot-1, 190 pounds) had quite a week. Cichy, who had been verbally committed to Harvard since last spring, added a last-minute offer from Illinois. A few days later Cichy gave the Fighting Illini and head
 
 

Prep football

‘Edgy’ Tim: Batavia football players getting popular with college coaches
Jun 21, 2026 2:10 pm - Batavia rising senior Darin Ashiru narrowed his top schools list to Western Michigan, NIU, James Madison, North Dakota and Arkansas State. The 5-foot-11, 165-pound wide receiver made his first official visit to Western Michigan over the weekend and
 
 

Prep football

‘Edgy’ Tim: Geneva’s Peterson, ICCP’s Shaw make commitments
May 10, 2026 1:42 pm - Geneva junior quarterback Ben Peterson (6-foot-4, 205 pounds) recently gave Eastern Michigan University his verbal commitment. “We had the Eastern Michigan coaches here for an in-home visit a few nights ago for dinner,” Peterson said. “I had been th
 
 
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