St. Rita comes in at No. 3...

...in the Chicago Tribune high school football poll. The Mustangs, led by senior running back Jahwon Akui, will try to improve over last year's season which ended with a 23-14 loss to Wheaton Warrenville South in the Class 7A quarterfinal. Akui, who gained over 20 pounds in the off-season on a 5' 7" frame, rushed for 1,396 yards and scored 25 touchdowns last year before injuring his ankle in Week 6. (Akui finished with 1,800 yards rushing and 31 touchdowns.)

Also returning is senior running back Travis Starks, a Division I recruit in his own right after rushing for nearly 900 yards in a reserve role. If Head Coach Todd Kuska can settle on the right quarterback -- between senior Brandon Johnson and junior Scott Thomas -- the Mustangs could have the most potent backfield in the state.

St. Rita will open the 2010 season against two out-of-state opponents, Portage (Indiana) on August 28 at home and Jefferson City (Missouri) in East St. Louis on September 5.

But it's in the month of October that the Mustangs will be truly tested. St. Rita hosts the Caravan of Mt. Carmel on October 1 in the 88th installment of a rivalry that dates back to 1924. And on the following Friday, October 8, the Mustangs will travel to highly-ranked Providence. Finally, the South Siders will finish their regular season on October 22 at Loyola Academy in still another key Catholic Blue matchup.