Wendell Phillips Wildcats celebrate state championship

CHICAGO (WLS) -- They made history on the football field. The Wendell Phillips Academy Wildcats are Chicago's first public league team to win a state football title.

The school celebrated their 4A State Football Championship on Wednesday.

Principal Matthew Sullivan said the victory validates the school's turnaround from a failing institution in 2010 to what it is today: a school managed by a non-profit with a 93-percent graduation rate. Sullivan said a third of those seniors will get scholarships worth around $6 million total.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel joined in the celebration.