According to a very reliable source.....East St. Louis is being allowed to petition up and is planning to petition up to Class 7A starting thjis coming playoff season.
More to follow soon.
More to follow soon.
East St. Louis is planning to move up
- Thread starter Edgytim
- Start date
6A is gonna get crowded again
Is Batavia locked into 7A again? Or was it one year only?
The whole opt up thing is crazy because it seems there are at least as many schools like Batavia trying to avoid a juggernaut as there are schools like ESL legitimately trying to push themselves.
and even when a school does legitimately want to opt up it often comes at the expense of something better. Was it 2023 when Loyola opted up to 8A and rather than challenge them, it just opened paths for LA to win 8A and MC to win 7A when they should have met each other in a 7A title game or semi.
but i am glad ESL can finally opt up if this is true. They are the one case where it seemingly always makes sense.
I believe once you option up it's a 2 year deal unless I'm misinformed. Possible BR and ESL clash would be good. 7A was not very strong last year. Rice wasn't challenged and outside of LWC neither was Rita until they met Rice. Rita destroyed Batavia and Hersey offensively and they came in at 5-4.
You have to hand it to ESL, they legit only want to play the best
All.... Yes when a school plays up it is for two years. Ratsy
IHSA site lists ESL enrollment at 1146 so likely 5A numbers.
Good on them and the Southwestern Conference for letting them petition up.
Like others have said, they dont duck anyone.
Good on them and the Southwestern Conference for letting them petition up.
Like others have said, they dont duck anyone.
I don't think it's automatic....year before they lost in round 2 so I think they are staying in 6A. I may be wrong
That was more for the dumbass comment about running from Fenwick. 1. They maybe in 7A, 2. BR and St. Rita are both 7A. 3. ESL open up the year against the state best in MC.
Unfortunately you have some individuals that think little dumb comments are funny as if they are taking a shot. Reality is it takes a lot to win a championship but, most who have never been or won really don't understand that.
ESL don't duck anyone! ESL has also won enough to know that you can lose on any giving day or night. It's called respect.
All.... The change in the success factor which would push a private up a class is described as a "rolling three year period" defined as making the final twice in the past three seasons. The Friars haven't done that so it will not apply to them.
The new IHSA enrollment accounting which should of been all along is now yearly. Fenwicks's multiplied number in 2025 was 1593.90. Below is a chart not including 2025 with the postseason break down for all eight classes. Anything is possible, using those past numbers on average as a basis Fenwick 's enrollment would have to take a decent jump to be multipled into 7A. Ratsy
How the IHSA Football Pairings are Determined
Imagine being a fan of team with this much success and still being so sensitive. Wild.
I'm okay with that.
This move is a benefit of the new teams joining the conference.
Yes, I believe they dabbled with the South 7 and going independent. Perfect storm of Mascoutah/Triad getting fed up with the MVC drama and GC/Collinsville needing a home turned into them re-joining a split SWC.
Cville is a great hoops program - would be a shame NOT to keep them in the fold. I still say the SW Conference is the toughest hoops in the state. A frigid Tuesday in O'Fallon is no time to take a game off, or it could change your sectional seeding. Hell, the ONLY IL team ESL lost to this year was West!
Cville has been putting together the blocks to build a football program. Having to play the same-sized teams was the next step. Granite ... useless, except for wrestling and that is in the past.
Would love to see esl back in the collinsville holiday tourney. But that may still be a ways off.
So.... was it always EStL not wanting any part of 7A or was it their conference??????
It's whatever you want it to be.
Relax. It was clearly a comment made in jest. I don't think anyone is unaware of how good ESL is. It was also moreso to poke fun at the teams that petition up to avoid the Flyers. I have plenty of respect for ESL.
Batavia absolutely did. Richards to. Rita had no issues being in 5a for a year but as soon as they were 6a they petitioned up to 7a.
Ultimately, we will find out in 2027.
Let's not get too carried away here. I don't disagree that they want to play the best, but they likely won't find the best if they only move up one class.
Laughable
Batavia has been in 7a for numerous years and done just fine. They ain’t ducking ESL.
ESL loses to a northern team every other year. Ain’t no traditional 7a team ducking them.
We need to stop putting them on a pedestal.
Okay, beside Fenwick, Carey Grove, Naz, JCA, and Prairie Ridge, who else is ESL Ducking and Dodging with this move to buy a trophy?
Any projected 6A school in 2025 that petitioned up to 7A was 100 percent taking the opportunistic chance to jump into a class that seemed light at the top and was devoid of any traditional powers. With Naz being bumped into 6A along with ESL already there and MC bumping from 7A to 8A, 7A absolutely appeared more forgiving than 6A this past fall.
I am 100 percent convinced Batavia saw a better opportunity to win a state championship in 7A as opposed to 6A last fall and that is why the petitioned up. I can't fault them for that, that is the ridiculousness that is allowed when schools are allowed to choose a classification.
But to say that Batavia would never do that seems more laughable than the suggestion that they did in fact seek out a more likely route to a title. . They did it. The reason was what any normal person would think it was. It didn't work out in their favor in 2025, but was probably still the right call for them. Now they will likely be 7A again in 2026 and may get a chance to run into ESL.
Moving into a better class to avoid one school always struck me as silly. Sure ESL may clock you on a given day, but you just increased the number of teams that can beat you from 3 to 12 by moving up. See Richards.