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Newman rolled to a 43-8 win over Ridgeview-Lexington Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025, in the 2A football playoffs.

Seven of the state's remaining 26 undefeated teams reside in the Class 2A field and along with some other daunting teams the draw looks as deep as any classification. Steve Soucie breaks down the opening round of the 2025 IHSA Class 2A playoffs.

Here is a look at the seven IHSA first-round playoff football matchups in the Sauk Valley area and what to watch for. Dixon and Sterling would face each other in Class 4A if they both win.

Monmouth-Roseville controlled the line of scrimmage, and Newman made too many mistakes in a 40-7 road loss to the Titans to close the regular season

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Newman football rolled to a 79-32 win over Kewanee Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025.

Newman had its highest scoring game in at least 29 years after beating a scrappy Kewanee team 79-32. ‘It was just a weird game overall.’

Dixon's defense continues to have eye-popping numbers after a fourth straight shutout in the Big Northern Conference. Sterling is on a roll heading into a big matchup, and Matthew Blackert helped get Newman back on track in this week's Sauk Valley notes.

Not often does a team score touchdowns on offense, defense and special teams in one game, but Matthew Blackert did that in one half for Newman on Saturday in a 46-7 home win over Mercer County.

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Newman hosts Mercer County Saturday, Oct. 4, 2025, for week 6 football action. Newman won 46-7.