December 30, 2024
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Friday Night Drive Week 3 Power Rankings: Minimal shuffling after largely unsurprising week of action

Oswego bursts into the Top 25 after shutting down Joliet Catholic

By Steve Soucie
Oswego’s Theodore Manikas (11) runs after the catch against Joliet Catholic's Michael Jaworski (35) during a football game at Oswego High School on Friday, Sep 6, 2024.

Oswego’s Theodore Manikas (11) runs after the catch against Joliet Catholic's Michael Jaworski (35) during a football game at Oswego High School on Friday. Oswego roared into the Friday Night Drive Rankings entering at No. 12 after shutting out Joliet Catholic. (Sean King for Shaw Local News Ne)

There wasn’t a bunch of movement in the Friday Night Drive Power Rankings between the first and second week of the regular season.

But there was certainly opportunity for that to happen.

East St. Louis had to fend off a challenge from Covington Newton out of Georgia, eventually winning 28-21 to protect its spot at the top of the rankings.

There was a subtle shift in the middle of the top five as Loyola looked more like itself in manhandling Glenbard West and moved up a few notches to No. 3. The remaining teams in the top five: Mount Carmel (No. 4) and Nazareth (No. 5) will lock horns to see who gets to stay there.

The biggest notable arrival was made by Oswego, who enters the poll for the first time at No. 12 in large part due to their Week 2 shutout victory over Joliet Catholic. The Hilltoppers hung on at the bottom of the Top 25 in the No. 25 spot.

Other newcomers to the poll were Libertyville, who jumped into the rankings at No. 22 and Lake Forest, who moves into the rankings at No. 24.

Here are the Friday Night Drive Power Rankings: