About 8-man football

What is 8-man football?

Eight players a side instead of eleven, on a field 40 yards wide and 100 yards long. Five players must be on the line of scrimmage. Fewer bodies and more space mean faster games and far more scoring than the 11-man game — 60- and 70-point nights are common.

Who runs 8-man football in Illinois?

The Illinois 8-Man Football Association (I8FA), a coaches-and-schools association founded in 2017 that played its first season in 2018. Member schools are IHSA members and follow IHSA rules, but the IHSA does not sanction an 8-man state series; the I8FA schedules the season and runs the playoffs and championship.

How many schools play 8-man in Illinois?

35 programs in 2026, organized into five conferences: Central East, Central West, North East, North West, South. Many are co-ops — two or three small schools fielding one team.

How do the I8FA playoffs work?

Sixteen teams qualify and are seeded 1–16 by record, with playoff points (the combined wins of a team's opponents) as the first tiebreaker. Four rounds: first round, quarterfinals, semifinals and the state championship game at April Zorn Memorial Stadium, Monmouth College.

Where do the scores on this site come from?

Scores, schedules and standings are read from the IHSA's public data feed, which carries 8-player results alongside 11-man. Scores marked live update on Thursday, Friday and Saturday game windows.

The conferences

• Central East7 teams
• Central West6 teams
• North East7 teams
• North West6 teams
• South9 teams