With just one regular-season game remaining, both Genoa-Kingston and Sycamore face win-and-you’re-in games, but both play teams that are 7-1 this year.

Here’s a look at where each DeKalb County team sits heading into Week 9.

Sitting comfortably

Kaneland (6-2, 34 playoff points)

The Knights are guaranteed a playoff berth after a crazy fourth-quarter comeback in a 22-21 win at La Salle-Peru last week. A win over Althoff Catholic will put them in position to possibly host a playoff game. The Crusaders are the defending 1A state champs but are 4-4 this year and are off a 23-0 loss to St. Mary’s South Side (Missouri). Kaneland lost to them in Belleville last year, 14-10. According to the IHSA website, the Knights have the eighth-most playoff points of the 11 teams currently 6-2. Playoff points are the amount of wins a team’s opponent has and are used to break ties for seeding purposes.

Hiawatha (5-3)

The Hawks lost 54-14 to Polo (7-1) last week, although five wins should almost certainly guarantee them a spot in the I8FA playoffs. A win at West Carroll (6-2) this week would likely elevate them past having to face an elite 8-man team in the first round. A loss and they could wind up facing Polo again or a team like South Beloit (7-1), which beat the Hawks 34-14 earlier this year.

Work to do

Sycamore (4-4, 44 playoff points)

The Spartans lost 50-10 at Morris last week, and face another tough team even further away when they head to the St. Louis area to face Cahokia. Five wins is all but guaranteed a postseason berth this year, so the Spartans can punch their ticket with a win over the Comanches (7-1). They beat Cahokia in Sycamore 52-14 last year as the Comanches finished up the year 9-3. Even with a loss, however, the door isn’t shut on a postseason berth for the Spartans. They have the third-most playoff points of any projected 5A team and the most of any team currently 4-4. Sycamore has qualified for six straight postseasons under 22nd-year head coach Joe Ryan, who announced in July he would retire at the end of the season.

Genoa-Kingston (4-4, 39 playoff points)

The Cogs picked up one of the two wins they needed to close the season, knocking off Rock Falls (0-8) 62-0 last week. Now, they face Dixon (7-1), a team that has rolled over everyone on their schedule except for Byron, losing 28-7 to the undefeated state power. The Dukes have five shutouts this year, all coming in the last six weeks. However, their playoff points could put them in position to make the field of 256 depending on how the rest of the Week 9 games break, their nonconference game against Seneca (8-0) helping boost their total.

Eliminated

DeKalb (2-6, 39 playoff points)

The Barbs fell to 2-6 after a 47-28 loss to Andrew last week, giving the Thunderbolts their fifth win. They close the season at Waubonsie Valley (1-7), looking to secure their third win after a 1-8 campaign last year and a 3-6 showing in 2023. They last made the postseason in 2022, finishing 6-4.