The penultimate week of football has come, and the playoff chances for Kane County teams are starting to fully take shape.

Three teams have claimed a spot in the field of 256 with their sixth win, while four teams enter the week knocking on the door of clinching with five wins apiece.

But for two teams, an excruciating loss in Week 7 has put them in a win or go home situation.

Here is where teams stand heading into Week 8 of the football season.

Locked in

St. Charles North (6-1 32 playoff points)

Although a 33-7 loss to Wheaton Warrenville South did end the North Stars’ hopes of their first undefeated regular season in program history, it doesn’t shake them from the playoffs or of their goal of repeating as DuKane Conference champions. The North Stars will hope to keep that latter goal in tact over the final two weeks with wins over Glenbard North and Lake Park heading into the playoffs.

Burlington Central (6-1, 29 playoff points)

After not making it to the playoffs in 10 years prior to last season, a 20-7 victory over Huntley clinched consecutive playoff appearances for the Rockets for the first time since 2006-2007. A lot of it has been thanks to their defense, who have not let up more than 14 points in each of their wins. The Rockets will finish out the season with a game at Crystal Lake Central in Week 8 before hosting Dundee Crown to end out the regular season.

Aurora Central Catholic (6-1, 15 playoff points)

A 42-34 victory over Wisconsin’s Living Word Christian secured the Chargers their first spot in the playoffs since 2016. The offense has been rolling during their three-game winning streak, putting up 40 or more points in each of their wins. ACC will face off against Wisconsin’s Big Foot and Fisher at home to end the season.

Sitting comfortably

Batavia (5-2, 37 playoff points)

The Bulldogs secured a 28-7 victory over Wheaton North to clinch the program’s 15th consecutive regular season with a winning record. A win over St. Charles East in Week 8 would get the Bulldogs to the playoffs for the 14th consecutive season, but could also set up a battle for at least a share of the DuKane Conference title in Week 9 against Wheaton Warrenville South.

St. Francis (5-2, 33 playoff points)

The Spartans bounced back from their Week 6 loss to IC Catholic with a commanding 42-20 victory over Marian Catholic, putting them in a more than prime position to make the playoffs for the seventh straight season. The Spartans can clinch their spot in the big dance with a win on the road against DePaul Prep, which is 2-5, before ending the regular season with a big-time matchup against Nazareth.

Aurora Christian (5-2, 33 playoff points)

The Eagles got back to their high-scoring ways against Chicago Christian, scoring over 40 points for the sixth time this season with a 49-7 victory. The Eagles will have a chance to clinch their eighth consecutive playoff appearance with a win against a Wheaton Academy team that’s on the verge of missing the playoffs for the first time since 2019 in Week 8, or against Marian Central in Week 9.

Kaneland (5-2, 31 playoff points)

While a 21-20 loss to Rochelle wasn’t ideal for the Knights, they still find themselves in a favorable position to make it back to the playoffs for the eighth consecutive season. Kaneland will finish the regular season with consecutive road games, traveling to La-Salle Peru to finish out Interstate 8 play before going to Althoff Catholic in Week 9.

Work to do

Geneva (3-4, 32 playoff points)

The Vikings fell 16-13 on a game-winning field goal to Glenbard North, and now find themselves needing to win out in order to have a shot to make the playoffs for the fifth straight season. Three of the Vikings’ losses have been decided by a field goal, with last week’s loss and the Week 6 loss to Batavia coming on the final play. Geneva will head on the road to Wheaton North for its Week 8 matchup before hosting St. Charles East to end the season.

Hail Mary time

Marmion (3-4, 29 playoff points)

A 57-14 loss to IC Catholic on the road has the Cadets in danger of finding themselves out of the playoffs. None of the Cadets’ games so far this season has been decided by 14 or more points. Marmion will host two teams also looking to keep their rather slim playoff hopes alive with Marist in Week 8 and Leo in Week 9.

No playoffs this season

St. Charles East (1-6, 37 playoff points)

A 41-35 loss to Lake Park officially put the Saints at six losses on the season, ending all hopes of making the playoffs. St. Charles East has now missed out on the playoffs in each of the last five seasons. With Batavia and Geneva coming up on the schedule, they still have a chance to shake up the playoff boards with an upset.