Six Illini Prairie Conference teams earned spots in the IHSA Class 3A football playoffs, with St. Joseph-Ogden leading the way as the conference champion and No. 2 seed in the southern bracket.
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
Unity's Michael Hardin runs the football during the regular season home game against Monticello. The Rockets open the 2026 football playoffs with home game against Robinson.
BLOOMINGTON - Six of the 48 teams in this year's Illinois High School Association Class 3A football playoffs come from the Illini Prairie Conference, giving the league a substantial presence as the newly formatted state series gets underway. Conference champion St. Joseph-Ogden and fellow Illini Prairie teams Monticello and Bloomington Central Catholic earned opening-round byes after strong regular seasons. The Spartans finished 9-0, while Monticello and Central Catholic each went 7-2. All three will begin their postseason runs at home for first-round games in approximately two weeks. St. Joseph-Ogden enters the playoffs as the No. 2 seed in the southern half of the bracket. The Spartans will face the winner of the opening-round matchup between Althoff and Harrisburg. Central Catholic, the No. 7 seed, could have a familiar opponent waiting in the second round. The Saints will face the winner of the Robinson-Unity game, potentially setting up a rematch with their Illini Prairie Conference counterpart. Monticello, seeded No. 8 in the southern bracket, will host the winner of Olympia and Columbia. Olympia enters the playoffs at 7-2, while Columbia is 2-7. Unity, meanwhile, earned the No. 10 seed in the southern half and will begin its playoff run next weekend. The Rockets, 7-2, will play No. 23 Robinson, which enters the postseason at 4-5. In the opening round, the higher seed hosts the game. In subsequent rounds, the school that has hosted fewer times during the current playoff series hosts the game. If both teams have hosted an equal number of times, the higher seed hosts. The Rockets' matchup also carries significance for the conference's playoff picture. Should Unity advance, Central Catholic could be waiting in the second round. The Illini Prairie's playoff contingent extends into the northern half of the Class 3A bracket, where Prairie Central and Pontiac both earned postseason berths. Both teams start their playoff journey as the away team. Prairie Central, 4-5, is the No. 18 seed and will face No. 15 Chicago Christian, which also finished 5-4. Pontiac, meanwhile, enters as the No. 23 seed after finishing 3-6. The Indians will face Dyett, a 6-3 team.