When Decatur Eisenhower High School announced it wouldn’t be able to field a varsity football team this season, the Panthers joined a growing club. Five-time state runner-up Rock Island Alleman, Litchfield, Minock Fieldcrest and Watseka had previously announced those schools also wouldn’t play a varsity schedule in 2026 either.
Two teams in The State Journal-Register have previously encountered this situation, and while the jury is still out on if Riverton can make the playoffs just two years later to end a drought which dates back to 2009, Litchfield turned its lost 2020-21 campaign into a 6-4 record and a 2023 playoff berth. That postseason appearance was the Purple Panthers’ first since 2005.
Riverton coach Colton Piper remembers well the numbers’ game that forced the Hawks to play a JV-only season.
“I think when people are on the outside of those situations, you obviously always think there’s some other way it could have worked out,” Piper said. “I know in our situation two years ago, there was no other answer.
“It wasn’t like a choice we made. It was, ‘Hey, we have to do this or we’re not going to have a football program after this year.’ You feel for those guys (Litchfield, Eisenhower, etc.) because you’ve been there, but if they can do the right things and find some positives to build off of this year in JV, then they can make the most out of it.”
The emotional weight of that 2024 decision was lifted quickly for the Hawks, who beat Pittsfield 29-20 to open the 2025 season. The Hawks won two games, getting Auburn 36-33 in Week 7 as the Riverton fans got to watch both wins on the Hawks’ home field.
When Litchfield beat Staunton in Week 2 of the 2022 season to snap its 47-game losing streak, then-Panthers’ coach Dan Carlson was overjoyed.
“Seeing the excitement of the community and the kids is well worth it and up there as one of my best memories and one of those I’ll live with forever,” Carlson said.
With a team full of returning experience, there is optimism now that Riverton is a contender for a winning record. It’s a long way from the 2023 season, when these seniors were freshmen and the Hawks lost by the running clock in all nine games. But that meant these seniors were getting plenty of opportunities to play in the second halves.
“They made the most out of it and found the positives and built off of it,” Piper said. “They’re just a really relentless group.”
Piper hopes that Eisenhower, Litchfield and all football programs who are forced to forfeit a season come out stronger on because of it.
“(Litchfield) was a similar situation where those kids as freshmen knew they were going to start for three or four years and turned into a playoff team,” Piper said. “I know it’s worked in other places, and you just hope that it can be a positive experience for those guys (Eisenhower, Litchfield) now.”
Contact Ryan Mahan: 788-1546, ryan.mahan@sj-r.com, Twitter.com/RyanMahanSJR.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Riverton proves cancelled football seasons can have long-term positives
Reporting by Ryan Mahan, Springfield State Journal-Register / State Journal-Register
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By Ryan Mahan, Springfield State Journal-Register | USA TODAY Network
