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IHSA football historians release 2025 updates chronicling most successful programs

Tuesday, August 12, 2025 at 9:09 AM

By Matt Troha, IHSA Associate Executive Director, mtroha@ihsa.org

Since 2014, long-time IHSA football historians Kev Varney and Tom Sikorski have been releasing annual updates to their data chronicling the most successful high school football programs in state history. 
 
Varney and Sikorski’s work can be seen below in two formats, one that lists the most successful programs by total wins, and another by winning percentage. 

Additionally, new in 2025 is a list of schools who are the cusp of reaching their 300th victory in program history, which has the been the minimum threshold to appear on the list in the past.

East St. Louis enters the 2025 season with the most wins in state history at 854, while Lincoln-Way East, which opened in 2001, tops the winning percentage list with an .844% winning percentage. Hinsdale South and Peoria Notre Dame will both enter Week 1 of the 2025 season searching for a historic victory, as both sit at 299 program wins. 

See the lists below:

IHSA Football Programs By Wins.pdf

IHSA Football Programs by Winning Percentage.pdf

IHSA Football Programs Closing In On 300 Wins.pdf