Peoria High scores 92 and a rivalry blowout: Week 3 football recap from around Peoria

Last week, upset wins and dramatic finishes continued in Illinois high school football in the Peoria area.

This week, it was all about those big numbers on the scoreboard — including an eye-popping performance at Peoria Stadium.

We're back for more in Week 3 here at Journal Star preps experience — your one-stop shop as we look around the Peoria-area football landscape this weekend:

Looking for the Week 3 scoreboard? You can find that here

Who's gonna win? Week 3 predictions are here

10:09 p.m. — Blowouts in the Mid-Illini

The opening week of the Mid-Illini Conference season included three blowouts — and one tight game.

Washington (2-1, 1-0) dominated its rivalry game with Metamora (2-1, 0-1), winning 45-7 at Malone Field.

Meanwhile, Dunlap (3-0, 1-0) blanked Pekin (1-2, 0-1) by a 40-0 score, while Morton (3-0, 1-0) beat Canton (0-3, 0-1) by a score of 57-13.

Limestone (1-2, 1-0) earned its first win of 2023, rallying to defeat East Peoria (1-2, 0-1) 13-12 on a pair of TD passes from Caleb Bieneman.

'It's everything': Washington football coach reflects on Metamora rivalry after big win

9:40 p.m. — Peoria High closes out Urbana

The state-ranked Lions came. up short of its own single-game scoring record in a 92-0 victory over Urbana on Friday night.

Peoria (2-1), No. 5 statewide in Class 5A, led the game 78-0 at halftime.

In 2016, Peoria High set a still playoff-record of 96 points, scored in the second round of their Class 5A championship run. The Lions that season set the all-time state record for points in a season with 805.

9:32 p.m. — Bloomington rallies past Notre Dame

Notre Dame got within a point in the fourth quarter, but host Bloomington (2-1) made a big defensive stop and pulled away for a 34-26 win over the Irish (2-1).

9:17 p.m. — State-ranked Princeton bounces back

Princeton toppled from No. 1 statewide in Class 3A to No. 6 last week after an upset loss to Morrison.

The Tigers (2-1) bounced back in a big way Friday, pitching a 20-0 road shutout against Class 1A No. 6 Sterling Newman.

9:12 p.m. — Washington takes control behind run game

Washington has grabbed a 24-7 lead early in the third quarter of its rivalry game with Metamora.

Running back Kainon McQueary goes up the middle for a 71-yard TD run at 10:47. McQueary ended the first half with 13 carries for 74 yds and two TDs, so he's up near 150 yards now for the game. Metamora had 69 yards total in the first half.

8:52 p.m. — Notre Dame in a tight one

The Notre Dame Irish and their big offensive line are locked in a Big 12 Conference battle with Bloomington.

The host Raiders just managed to tie the score at 20-20 early in the fourth. The Irish are looking to move to 3-0 on the season.

8:44 p.m. — When smack talk makes you think

As seen in the Dunlap student section Friday night in Pekin.:

8:36 p.m. — Peoria High has scored how many!?

The Lions certainly have found their roar.

The state-ranked Lions are leading Urbana 78-0 as halftime hits Peoia Stadium. Illinois High School Association rules dictate the second half will be played with a running clock.

The incredible total begs the question: What's Peoria High's record for points in a game? That would be a still playoff-record of 96 points, scored by the Lions in the second round of their 2016 Class 5A championship run. The Lions that season set the all-time state record for points in a season with 805.

8:26 p.m — Morton takes control against Canton

Morton is quietly on its way to a possibly 3-0 start.

The Potters scored 22 points in about 10 minutes of game time Friday night to open up a 30-13 lead over host Canton in the Mid-Illini Conference opener for both.

Morton and first-year coach Adam O'Neill opened the season with a pair of close victories — 20-14 over Mahomet-Seymour and 27-26 over Rochelle.

8:20 p.m. — Game of the week a defensive battle

Rivals Washington and Metamora are locked in a tight game early in the second quarter.

Washington struck first when running back Kainon McQueary gave the Panthers a 7-0 lead late in the first. Metamora tied it just moments into the second quarter on a 29-yard quarterback keeper from Nick Rhoades.

7:57 p.m. — Dunlap's offense continues to impress

The Eagles are flying high so far in 2023.

Dunlap (2-0) has opened a 14-0 first-quarter lead over host Pekin in the Mid-Illini Conference opener for both. It now has 95 points in two-plus games this season.

Ryan Dietz snagged a 9-yard TD catch from John Bargen to open the scoring, and Jackson Oldham added an 11-yard TD run to add to the lead.

7:40 p.m. — Peoria High flashes to a lead

Some Mid-Illini Conference games haven't even kicked off yet and Peoria High is about to earn a running clock.

Peoria High (1-1) jumped to a 38-0 lead over Urbana after one quarter of play at Peoria Stadium. The Lions needed only 15 seconds to return the opening kickoff for a score — and didn't slow down.

7:21 p.m. — Manual late for game at Danville

The Big 12 Conference game between Manual and host Danville will begin at 7:45 p.m. after the Rams had transportation issues, according to Danville reporter Chad Dare.

The game was originally scheduled for 7 p.m. Manual arrived in Danville around 7:10 p.m., according to Dare, and the game was slated to begin soon after.

4:33 p.m. — Richwoods opponent deals with transportation issues

The Champaign school district is dealing with a shortage of bus drivers, and that almost affected Centennial’s game v. Richwoods on Friday night in Peoria.

According to the Champaign News-Gazette, Centennial on Friday morning did not have buses available to transport the varsity football team to its 7 p.m. game at Richwoods Stadium.

In a noon update, coach Kyle Jackson texted the newspaper that “we definitely have buses” and said the team will be in Peoria for the Week 3 game between Big 12 Conference programs.

Centennial is 2-0 and Richwoods is 1-1.

Game of the week: Washington at Metamora

The Mid-Illini Conference season is here — and what better way to kick off league play than the greatest rivalry around Peoria?

Washington travels 7 miles of blacktop to face neighboring Metamora for a 7:30 p.m. kick at Malone Field. It's the first game in this rivalry on the new turf in Metamora, plus it is the final game in the series for retiring Washington coach Darrell Crouch.

The Panthers have won five of the last six against the rival Redbirds, including a 44-22 victory last season. Overall, Metamora leads the regular-season series 21-20. Who did we pick to win this season?

Peoria Heights rushes to first win

Peoria Heights earned its first on-field victory since the final game of the 2021 season, defeating reigning 8-player state champion Biggsville West Central, 56-38, on Thursday night.

The Patriots (1-2) rallied from a 24-20 deficit in the second quarter, scoring 28 in a row to seize a 48-24 lead just minutes into the second half, according to The Hawk Eye. Heights gained 401 yards of offense, including 245 rushing.

Peoria Heights finished 1-8 last season, earning a forfeit victory in the home opener. The Patriots face Sciota West Prairie next week on the road.

Do you have a great video clip?

To send a highlight to the IHSA, submit video to FridayNight5@ihsa.org or via social media with the hashtag #FridayNight5. Each Tuesday, the IHSA releases the top five plays, culminating with the "Undeniably Dairy Play of the Week."

The school with the top play each week will receive a $250 gift certificate from Dick’s Sporting Goods for their football program.

Hey, and if you send a play the way of the IHSA — send it our way, too. We want to see your highlights or pictures here! Send your videos and photos to sports@pjstar.com or tag us on X.com at @pjstarsports.

Kickoff 2023: Peoria high school football preview coverage

Dig into the Journal Star's preview coverage of the 2023 season. We have top players, returning coaches and much, much more. Find nearly 25 stories right here.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Illinois high school football scores: IHSA Week 3 updates around Peoria