2025 Football Preview: Backed by added depth, Peoria Heights looking to turn experience into wins
- Jonathan Michel
- Aug 17
- 4 min read
PEORIA HEIGHTS — Kendal Parker is a man that wears many hats at Peoria Heights High School, one of which includes teaching weightlifting.
He’s entering his seventh year as the head coach of the Patriots’ football team, an underdog program that is one of the only 8-man teams in Central Illinois. Fittingly, his team, which returns well over half of its starters, has spent plenty of time in the weight room gearing up for the 2025 season.
“We really do take pride in getting into that weight room, we don't have a feeder program, so we don't have kids who've been playing football,” Parker said. “These kids are learning the game right in high school.”
A team that is seeking its first playoff berth in 10 years could easily be headed in the wrong direction, especially with the nationwide trend of declining participation in football. But that’s not the case northeast of Peoria.
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