Normal West's volleyball team has established itself among the area's best, with top-tier talent and a challenging nonconference schedule.

Manual football coach Dennis Bailey practices what he preaches to his team about never giving up.

Seniors are a key component to the success of every high school football team. Have lots of them, and you’ll go far.

Football is a game highly dependent on skill, speed and toughness. But a quote from Yogi Berra about baseball also translates to the gridiron as well: “Baseball is 90 percent mental, the other half is physical.” Normal U-High’s Cole Matejka and Alek Weiland are the leaders of a Pioneers team that has gone from the middle of the pack into a team that appears destined to be a frontrunner in the Central State Eight.  The two multi-year starters are certainly much bigger, faster

Jrue Mangruem carries a level of maturity that most high school juniors don’t have.  One look at the Normal West quarterback and it’s easy to see why. The way his presence commands a room, the way he talks, his demeanor. Even his face looks much older than most of his peers. But he is still just a junior in high school, and one that’s ready to take the reins of a Wildcats offense that’s potent every year.

Peoria Notre Dame’s brand of football requires two things. One is having tough players that can run the ball. The service-academy style is even more fitting considering head coach Pat Armstrong is a retired Chief Master Sergeant in the Air Force. The other is having a line that’s ready to do the dirty work. PND’s enrollment is outsized by every other school in the Big 12 but what they lose in numbers, they make up for in toughness.  And two Irish players that exemplify that t

Pekin football came down to earth last season after undergoing lots of turnover at its starting positions. However, after a 1-5 start, the Dragons turned it around with three wins to end the season which help them carry momentum – and lofty standards – into 2024. “The team’s come along very, very well,” Pekin head coach Doug Nutter said. “They've worked hard since two weeks after our last game of last season and this group has, as usual, high expectations.” With so many new f

El Paso-Gridley’s football team is eager to continue a streak it began during the Fall 2021 season. 

Few football teams in the area can match the sustained success that Normal West has had. The Wildcats have had winning records in 14 straight seasons and are primed to add to that tally this season. “I think a lot of it has to do with that we have a great school, we have great kids, we have great staff, [and] I think my coaching staff is outstanding,” head coach Nathan Fincham said. “I have a lot of coaches that help me out in the offseason and when you have that as a program

Tremont's football team returns enough size, skill and experience to make significant strides this fall.

Morton ran through most of the Mid-Illini when they started the 2023 season 8-0, were tied for first in the conference and appeared to be contenders for a state championship. The Potters relied heavily on their defense and running game, which helped them beat opponents by an averaged of more than 20 points, which led them to the best start the program had seen since the turn of the millennium.   Despite their dominant start, the Potters faced a setback due to self-described o

Peoria High football has been synonymous with success for over the last decade.  The Lions have qualified for the playoffs nine of the last 10 seasons that a postseason has been held, racked up four seasons with 10 or more wins, reached the Class 5A state championship game twice, and won it all in 2016.  Tim Thornton, the architect behind it all, is no longer there, having taken a coaching position at Lely High School in Naples, Florida. But Peoria High is still in great hand

Heading into the 2024 season, IVC football feels like it has something to prove. The Grey Ghosts want to prove they are better than their 2023 season, where they mustered one win, an uncharacteristic year considering that they were a perennial power in the area not long ago. “We need to get better than we were last year,” head coach Tim Heinz said. “That is what we kept on talking about is, ‘Hey we had one win last year. We have to be better’.”

BLOOMINGTON, IL –The Bloomington Purple Raiders had a mantra this offseason that seemed to stick with many of the players and help define the team’s identity: D.I.G. Aside from encouraging the team to “dig” deep, it stands for “desire, integrity, and grit.”  As former Illinois Wesleyan offensive lineman Niall Mulcahy takes over at the helm, Bloomington will look to win with tremendous physicality paired with their fundamental traits of desire, integrity, and grit.

Limestone finished last season with a record of 1-8, continuing a streak of misfortune for the Rockets. However, the veteran leaders in the blue and white believe they are stronger and more connected than ever.  With Limestone’s coaches confident in the number of returners and the strength of the new starters, don’t expect the old Rockets this year. Head coach Jeff Schmider enters his 28th year on the Limestone football staff and remembers some of the Rockets’ historic playof

Princeville may not be the biggest school in the area, but its football players and coaches are heavily invested into having a great season with what they have. The high school enrollment is 210 students and 52 of them are playing football this season for the Princes. “We're a young team,” head coach Jon Carruthers said. “We had two classes last year back-to-back that were small so we only have six seniors this year out of those 52 kids…We’re looking for them to really help o

How do you follow up a season where you reach the state semifinals, celebrate the 100th year of the program and a legendary coach retires? Aim even higher. That’s what the Washington Panthers are doing in their first year since the Bush administration where someone not named Darrell Crouch is on the sidelines. Thankfully for them, his successor is just as synonymous with Washington football as he is.

In competitive golf, it’s common to become frustrated and feel like you’re on an island by yourself, especially when shots aren’t going as planned.  Neither of those things are the case for the Dunlap girls golf team though so far this season. The shots are going as planned – the Eagles have won both tournaments that they’ve participated in – and camaraderie is high amongst the laid-back group.

Coming off a seven-win season that snapped a seven-year playoff drought last fall, Normal U-High is eyeing another big step forward in 2024.  “I think this team is hungry to prove that not only do we belong in the playoffs, but that we can win games in the playoffs, that we can compete at the top of one of the toughest conferences in Central Illinois, if not the state,” head coach Brody Walworth said. “I think we're excited that we made the postseason, but now we want to move

Normal U-High’s boys golf program is one of the most successful in the state of Illinois. The Pioneers have 10 state championships to their name which is tied for the second-most in the state behind Winnetka (New Trier) and includes seven consecutive titles between 2003 and 2009. This year’s group of golfers certainly has enough talent to make it 11 state trophies, but there’s something that separates them from most other contenders: four of their top six golfers are freshmen