Since back-to-back Illinois 8-Man Football Association playoff appearances in 2019 and 2020, its first two seasons playing the eight-man game, the Flanagan-Cornell/Woodland football co-op has alternated seasons making it to Week 10 – one year out, one year in; one year out, one year in.

The Falcons bucked that every-other-year trend in 2024, however, making a second consecutive trip to the postseason thanks to a 6-3 regular season before falling in a 20-17 heartbreaker at West Carroll in the I8FA’s opening round.

The goal for the 2025 Falcons? Earn a third consecutive playoff berth for the first time since FCW made the IHSA’s 11-man playoffs nine consecutive falls the first nine years of the co-op between the old and often fierce rivals.

“Losing another great senior class from last year will create some big shoes to [fill], but we do have some solid experience coming back,” eighth-year FCW coach Todd Reed said.

At the top of that list is another somewhat small but mighty senior class. Leading those 12th-graders are a pair of Times-All-Area Football Team honorees from last season – first-teamer and 1,000-yard rusher RB/LB/KR Leelynd Durbin and honorable mentionee RB/QB/DB Logan Ruddy.

They’re joined by fellow senior returnees WR/DB Jaxon Torrez, OL/DL Oliver Weber, RB/LB Darren Howell and WR/DB Riley Wallace. A handful of returning juniors will bolster the Falcons’ experienced ranks, including RB/LBs Jaxon Flahaut and Emmett Horaney, TE/QB/DL Brezdyn Simons and OL/DLs Liam Kapraun and Jose Torrez.

“All return with varsity experience, which we are excited about,” Reed said.

Prospective impact players, per Reed, joining the varsity Falcons include senior WR/DB Ethan Pennell and sophomores such as OL/DLs Cris Manriquez, Jayden Ryerson and Garet Cain, RB/LB Chris Held and WR/DB Grant Wissen.

While Durbin and Ruddy both return for offenses and defenses that bring back half of their eight starters each – a promising place to build from, especially with how much FCW traditionally has liked to run the ball and Durbin and Ruddy’s history moving the chains with the ground game – the big-play passing attack will need retooling with the graduation of QB Seth Jones and his favorite target, WR Connor Reed. Ruddy and Simons are expected to split time under center this fall.

Reed is hopeful the program he has rebuilt alongside his assistant coaches can return to the consistent heights it enjoyed in the early days of the co-op.

“Every year we lose a great group of seniors that gets replaced with a new group,” he said. “Having consistency in our program and dedication from outstanding assistant coaches has given us the reward of playing in the postseason. I’ve been blessed.”

The Falcons open the I8FA season on a Saturday, visiting Harvest-Westminster on Aug. 30. Then comes a Week 2 home game (at Woodland) against Polo, a Sept. 12 visit to Galva and Sept. 19 trip to powerhouse Amboy/LaMoille/Ohio, a Sept. 26 home game (again at Woodland) versus Cambridge and a Week 6 road game at West Prairie.

The final third of the season includes an Oct. 10 visit from West Central (at Flanagan), the penultimate game of the regular season Oct. 17 at Peoria Heights and Week 9’s contest against visiting Bushnell-Prairie City (at Flanagan).