7:30 p.m. Friday at Ryan Field: One of the area’s top rivalries is the hottest ticket the state has seen since the heyday of the Prep Bowl decades ago. It will be the third football game ever at Northwestern’s new stadium and the first prep matchup. Evanston athletic director Chris Livatino said Thursday afternoon that more than 24,000 tickets had been sold, with more than 2,000 still available. New Trier (7-1, 1-1 Central Suburban South) has a potent offense led by Purdue commit Jackie Ryder, who has 1,780 total yards and 27 touchdowns. Evanston (5-3, 0-2) is led by Illinois-bound cornerback Justin Johnson.
7 p.m. Friday: The Mid-Suburban East title is on the line. Neither team has been seriously tested en route to going 8-0 overall and 4-0 in the conference, though Prospect trailed 14-0 early last week against Buffalo Grove before winning 49-14. Hersey has the consensus No. 5 senior quarterback and No. 65 player in the country in Kentucky recruit Jake Nawrot, who has thrown for 1,864 yards and 27 touchdowns. His top targets are senior Josh Riggs and junior Jaxon St. Paul. Prospect also has a Division I quarterback in Eastern Illinois commit Jackson Cacini, who has 1,854 total yards and 23 touchdowns.
6:30 p.m. Friday: Loyola (8-0, 2-0 Catholic Blue) is coming off its toughest test of the season, a 45-35 victory against small-school power IC Catholic, which led 35-18 at halftime. Junior Melo Maldonado ran for 124 yards and three touchdowns for the Ramblers and junior Matthew Lee passed for 231 yards. Quarterback Brady Cloherty is having the best passing season ever at Mount Carmel (6-2, 1-1), twice throwing for a program-record seven touchdowns in a game. He’s helped by having the state’s best receiving combo in senior Quentin Burrell (Michigan) and junior Marshaun Thornton.
1 p.m. Saturday at Lane: For the first time, the Public League is crowning a regular-season champion by matching the winners of the top two Red divisions. Red Star winner Morgan Park (7-1) has won seven in a row after an opening loss to Downers Grove North. Safety Darrell Mattison, an Ole Miss commit, is the Public League’s top senior prospect. Junior quarterback Ronald Smith Jr. and senior running back Will Smith Jr. are a pair of impact players for the Mustangs’ offense. Kenwood (6-2) is unbeaten after starting with losses to Palatine and Providence. Junior quarterback Malachi Henigan and senior receiver Lawrence Carr, the state’s top uncommitted senior, are a productive pitch-and-catch duo.
7 p.m. Friday: The Battle of Pulaski is one of the state’s fiercest rivalries. Rice (6-2, 1-1 Catholic Blue) has the state’s best freshman in quarterback Sam Holcomb, who has taken over the starting job after splitting time earlier in the season. He has thrown for 1,010 yards and 14 touchdowns with no interceptions and is averaging more than 10 yards per carry with seven more touchdowns. Notre Dame commit Brayden Parks and five-star junior Kameron McGee are a formidable defensive line duo. Marist (5-3, 0-2) is led by the brother duo of junior quarterback Jake Fleming and sophomore receiver Conor Fleming.
