Jackie Ryder will take his first snap as a Purdue commit on Aug. 21 when New Trier hosts Naperville North at 7 p.m. on the Northfield campus, and the 6-foot-5, 220-pound senior quarterback now has a wider road to the postseason behind him.

The IHSA expanded its football playoff field from 256 teams to 384 beginning this season, a change approved by member schools on a 377-252 vote on Dec. 15, 2025. The old five-win threshold is gone. Under the new format, every team with at least three wins qualifies, and the top 16 teams in each of the eight classes earn first-round byes.

For a Trevian program that went 5-5 last fall and squeezed into the Class 8A bracket, the math is friendlier.

"Our goal more than anything right now … and our main focus is starting out hot and beating Naperville North in Week 1," head coach Brian Doll told The Record in July. "I do believe things do just get on a big major swing when you win the first game."

Naperville North (6-4 in 2025) is making the trip to Northfield because the DuPage Valley Conference returned to independent operation after a two-year merger with the SouthWest Suburban Conference. That left DVC teams needing four nonconference opponents. Huskies coach Sean Drendel told the Chicago Tribune his team added "two extremely good teams, perennial powers" (New Trier and East St. Louis) to fill those slots.

New Trier beat Naperville North 20-14 last season.

The Trevians will debut on a renovated field. A $14.2 million facilities project funded largely by a $10 million anonymous donation installed new synthetic turf on three fields including the stadium, added two new fields, a press box, five scoreboards and energy-efficient lighting. The work was expected to wrap up in time for fall.

Doll's offense pairs Ryder's arm (1,784 yards, 17 touchdowns, four interceptions in 2025) with the deepest backfield in his tenure. Seniors Declan O'Meara (more than 600 rushing yards, five touchdowns last season) and Donsley Lyman return alongside junior Nikolas Hanold. All three have squatted over 400 pounds in offseason workouts, a program first. Doll said in July it is the first time he can recall having three backs who could each start.

Senior defensive back Rick Miller told The Record in July that the 2025 playoff berth, the program's first since 2021, shifted the team's self-image. He said every player on the roster now expects to make the postseason. Under the expanded bracket, the first game that counts toward the three-win threshold kicks off Aug. 21.