We have our top five running backs in Southern Illinois as we head into the high school football playoffs. These are ranked by rushing yards. At #1 is Kaiden Henson, senior running back from Eldorado. Henson and the Eagles missed the playoffs, finishing 3-6, but lost four one score games. All four of those teams made the postseason, and all six of their losses came against playoff teams. Henson rushed for 1,318 yards and 22 touchdowns on 226 carries, averaging 5.8 yards per c

Nolan Schafer (Benton Rangers) in the Military Appreciation game vs the DuQuoin Indians. Week 9 of the high school football season has wrapped up for all of our area teams and we finish the regular season with four teams still undefeated: Benton out of the SIRR Mississippi, Carterville out of the SIRR Ohio, Johnston City out of the Black Diamond and Richland County out of the Little Illini Conference. Benton Rangers 9-0 (5-0): The Benton Rangers outscored their opponents 418

The Carterville Lions have appeared in the IHSA football playoffs 21 times since 2000.

The Benton Rangers remain atop the Ballin4God Rankings for the sixth straight week after defeating rival West Frankfort 39-0. The Carterville Lions hold steady at #2 following a 50-7 win over Massac County, as junior Johnny Miller eclipsed 1,000 rushing yards on the season in the victory.

Week 7 Rankings The Benton Rangers hold their top spot after a thrilling homecoming victory over the Nashville Hornets, 34-24. The Rangers trailed 24-7 at one point before scoring 27 unanswered points, led by senior running back Riley Spencer, who rushed for 201 yards and two touchdowns. With the win, Benton remains undefeated, while Nashville drops to 4-2. Catch Darren Kinnard’s full recap at the link at the bottom of the article. The Carterville Lions and Cahokia Comanches

The Benton Rangers remain atop the Ballin4God rankings for the third straight week after winning a slugfest at home against the previously No. 3 ranked DuQuoin Indians, 17-7.

The Carterville Lions have hosted the most playoff games since 2005 with 21 home playoff games.

After another big win, the Benton Rangers remain atop the Ballin4God rankings with nine first place votes.

New #1 in this week’s Ballin4God Rankings! Benton takes over the top spot after outscoring opponents 132-0, while DuQuoin and Johnston City climb right behind them. Big moves across the top 10, including Mt. Vernon sneaking in after a thriller over Carbondale.

Marcus Leitzen (Johnston City) after a defensive stop in the Week Zero scrimmage against West Frankfort. In this week’s Ballin4God...

T-Minus 4 days until high school football is back! We kick things off with Week Zero, and there are plenty of intriguing scrimmages this week

Ballin4God Preseason Football Rankings The season is finally here, and football is back! We’ve put together our preseason rankings, and...