Over the past decade, Fulton’s presence in the playoffs has been a given.

From 2014-2023, only once have the Steamers been on the outside looking in. That was in 2015 when Fulton went 4-5 to come up just short of extending its season to a 10th week.

A run of seven consecutive playoff appearances came to a halt last year. Three losses in its first four games, followed by back-to-back losses to start October added up to a 4-5 finish.

“All five of our losses were to teams that ended up in the playoffs,” Fulton head coach Patrick Lower said. “But at the end of the day, we didn’t play well enough through to have a Week 10.”

With a new season on the horizon, Lower hopes Fulton can mark its fifth year as members of the Northwest Upstate Illini Conference by beginning a new run.

“Towards th

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