The next year they were undefeated 5A champions, finishing ranked No. RB Mike Mentz and QB Mike Budde led the offense, with LBs Rory Steinbach and Matt Eggert and DBs Mark Reiter and Gannon leading the defense. They outscored their opponents 455-159, including 191-38 in playoffs, and went 7-0 in the Catholic Blue. Why the Celtics were great: Routed undefeated Richards 41-0 for their seventh state title, holding the Bulldogs to 76 total yards with DB Matt Gannon nabbing three interceptions. Playoff victory margin: 30.6 points (Urbana 48-0, Decatur MacArthur 34-28, Prairie Ridge 35-3, Bloomington 33-7, Richards 41-0). Carmel trailed Bloomington 26-25 late in the third quarter before Mike Serio responded with a 91-yard kickoff return that put the Corsairs up for good, and they outscored the Purple Raiders 22-0 in the fourth quarter to ice their only state title. QB Mark Venegoni passed for 1,629 yards and 15 TDs and rushed for 782 and 17 but missed the championship game with an injury. They routed eventual 5A champion Joliet Catholic 41-14 in a Week 9 showdown before outscoring their 6A competition 233-85 in the playoffs. Why the Corsairs were great: They rushed for 4,196 yards behind "The Great Wall of Carmel," an offensive line led by Dan Osterhout (6-2, 280), Drew Cairo-Gross (6-3, 295) and Luke Krombach (6-4, 255).
Playoff victory margin: 29.6 (Notre Dame 42-18, Crystal Lake South 55-7, Rockford Boylan 42-14, Minooka 40-20, Bloomington 54-26). The defense was led by brother LBs Gus (eight sacks) and Jon (seven) Olofsson. QB Anthony Kropp passed for 3,010 yards and 31 TDs. They finished by knocking off undefeated Wheaton South in the semifinals and Maine South, which was making its third straight trip to the finals, in one of the state's best championship games ever. Why the Griffins were great: After dominating an independent schedule of teams that went a combined 91-60, they ran through a gauntlet of top programs in the playoffs in the school's fifth year. Playoff victory margin: 17.2 (Thornton 38-21, Lincoln-Way Central 39-9, Brother Rice 32-6, Wheaton Warrenville South 14-7, Maine South 30-24 2OT). In 2009 they ran through 8A undefeated again and finished ranked No. They outscored opponents 630-170, including 195-63 in the playoffs, and finished No. Other stars included WR/S Joey Orlando, lineman Zach Timm and LBs Corby Ryan and Nick Catino. Goro passed for 3,171 yards with 38 TDs, and Perez rushed for 1,145 and 22. Why the Hawks were great: They won the first of their three straight 8A titles behind QB Charlie Goro, the Tribune's 2008 player of the year, and RB Matt Perez, who earned the honor in 2009. Playoff victory margin: 26.4 points (Stevenson 63-29, Loyola 26-7, Barrington 42-0, Bartlett 23-6, Hinsdale Central 41-21). They outscored their opponents 590-117, including 202-44 in the playoffs, and the finished No. Future Illinois QB Reilly O'Toole passed for 3,187 yards and 42 TDs, and RB Matt Rogers rushed for 1,269 behind a line that included Kansas-bound Luke Luhrsen. They topped 40 points 11 times and allowed seven or fewer points nine times. They didn't win by fewer than 20 points until the final, when they won their second straight 7A title and seventh overall. Why the Tigers were great: They proved their bona fides early with a 44-7 rout of eventual 8A champ Maine South in Week 2 and never stopped rolling. Playoff victory margin: 30.2 points (Benet 49-7, Wheaton North 44-0, Glenbard West 40-20, Belleville East 41-7, Lake Zurich 28-17). So dynasties like the four-peats from Joliet Catholic (1975-78), Mount Carmel (1988-91) and Providence (1994-97) get one team on the list - as do repeat powerhouses such as Maine South 2008-09 and Richards 1988-89. Those four programs probably deserve to have more than their nine combined entries here, but a list of 32 teams that includes 20 or so from the same four schools isn't quite in the spirit of this type of projects.
Likewise, Providence uses all its fingers to count its state championships - and Joliet Catholic and Mount Carmel have to use some of their toes. The Flyers from the year before might finish second, and the team before that might rank third. Louis' 1985 champs probably would win a poll as the state's greatest team. We have two teams from the 2010s, five from the 2000s, five from the 1990s, five from the 1980s, seven from the 1970s, three from the 1960s, two from the '50s, and one each from the '40s, '30s and 1910s. Each era is represented as fairly as possible.
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