NationalHSFootball.com
It has been six seasons since the team that started the year atop the national high school football rankings has ended there.
That is the history staring St. Thomas Aquinas (Forth Lauderdale, FL) in the face. (Read more on Aquinas, here)
Not since the 2007 Miami Northwestern (Miami, FL) program went wire-to-wire has a team duplicated the effort; only two teams in that same time span would go on to win its sate title.
Odds are that a team inside the Top 25 will claim the title and an even more narrowed scope places the safe bets at teams No. 4 through No. 9.
In 2008, St. Thomas Aquinas won the HSFB100 after starting the year at No.8.
2010 and 2012 produced winners that moved up from the No. 5 spot when South Panola (Batesville, MS) and John Curtis (River Ridge, LA) hoisted the trophy.
Trinity (Louisville, KY) won the 2011 championshiop after starting the season at No. 9 in the poll.
2013 winner, Booker T. Washington (Miami, FL) moved up from No. 4.
Only in 2009 did a team make a move from further back in the pack when Don Bosco (Ramsey, NJ) claimed its lone national title after staring the season No. 22.
Entering the season the power states are well represented in the HSFB100 as ‘The Big Three’ of Florida (15), Texas (14), California (11) make up 40 teams of the HSFB100.
| 1 | St. Thomas Aquinas | Ft. Lauderdale | FL | 10-3 |
| The foundation was strong but the addition the team added was what pushed the team over the top. Offensively the team can roll out DI athletes like hockey lines and defensively there are no weak positions. The schedule will test the Raiders and could keep the team at No. 1. | ||||
| 2 | Allen | Allen | TX | 16-0 |
| Allen starts right were it left off in 2013 as the No. 2-ranked team in the nation. The defense is turning over a ton of starters as well as DI prospects but it may have the best offense in the country with a quarterback that is starting his third year in the offense. | ||||
| 3 | St. John Bosco | Bellflower | CA | 16-0 |
| St. John Bosco also remains locked into the position it ended the 2013 season as it returns in nearly the same situation as Allen. The offense for the Braves could prove to be among the nation’s elite but it will need to find replacements for 10 defensive starters. It’s schedule will be among the best in the nation come December — if the team meets expectations and makes it that deep. | ||||
| 4 | Hoover | Hoover | AL | 15-0 |
| Hoover is likely only outdone by Aquinas for balance with its returning players. The Bucs defense is projected to be better than both St. John Bosco and Allen but offensively the group is not as good nearly across the board. The offense could prove doubters wrong with early games against Miami Central (Miami, FL) and Colquitt County (Moultire, GA). | ||||
| 5 | St. Edward | Lakewood | OH | 11-2 |
| St. Edward has plenty of offensive firepower of its own and has one of the better defenses in the state of Ohio. Combining what St. Edward returns with what many other programs in the state lost pushed the Eagles to a major headstart in the Buckeye State. The team could be primed for its second Top 5 finish in the last five years. | ||||
| 6 | De La Salle | Concord | CA | 14-1 |
| De La Salle is the third team to coincidentally be starting its 2014 season in the same placement it ended 2013. The offense will be breaking in a new quarterback and it also lost a key member to its defensive front seven. The talent is still there for De La Salle however and it was quite close to being preseason pick in California. | ||||
| 7 | Katy | Katy | TX | 15-1 |
| The Tigers lost in the state finals last year after making some uncharacteristic errors. Katy returns the majority of its defense — which was led by a group of talented sophomores and bolstered bu juniors last year — and has one of the top running backs in the country. The program is usually always fundamentally sound and has to be motivated to erase the loss from last year. | ||||
| 8 | Bishop Gorman | Las Vegas | NV | 13-2 |
| The Gaels will own Nevada once again but it has added plenty of tests against other programs in out-of-state games. The talent is always high at Gorman and this year is no different. Offensively the team is comparable to St. Thomas Aquinas but the defense has some more question marks that will need answered. | ||||
| 9 | Cedar Hill | Cedar Hill | TX | 14-2 |
| The Longhorns have been ranked as high as No. 1 in the nation by one media outlet and as low as No. 4 in the state by another. Much of the talent does return from its championship season from a year ago so expectations are high. Inside the Top 10 nationally feels like the right place for Cedar Hill to prove itself one way or the other. | ||||
| 10 | American Heritage | Plantation | FL | 15-1 |
| American Heritage won a state title but lost two five-star players from last season on offense. Like St. Thomas Aquinas it really benefited from transfers leaving University School (Fort Lauderdale, FL) and bolstered an already talented roster. The ranking for this team has varied similar to Cedar Hill and like most every team in the Top 10 the schedule will sort out preseason evaluations with in-season ability. | ||||
| 11 | McEachern | Powder Springs | GA | 11-3 |
| As talented and deep as any team in the rankings the Indians are the early favorite to win Georgia. The team will open with a pair of tough games and have to play all three teams that defeated it last year in the regular season. With three, five-star players on one squad the talent is there, too. | ||||
| 12 | Bellevue | Bellevue | WA | 14-0 |
| Never a program to go to a knife fight without a gun, the Wolverines only lose 10 seniors from an undefeated 2013 season. It will take on two out-of-state foes and likely see another HSFB100 team in the state finals to validate its ranking. | ||||
| 13 | Serra | Gardena | CA | 13-1 |
| Coming off of a disappointing end to 2013, the Cavaliers start near the top of the national rankings with redemption on their mind. The team has a strong defense but some questions as to depth — and toughness from some analysts — which pushed the talented team below Bellevue to open the year. | ||||
| 14 | Booker T. Washington | Miami | FL | 14-0 |
| The defending HSFB100 National Champion are losing a lot of talented players but most every report from the offseason is that it is not missing a beat. It would be impressive if that were true. Starting inside the Top 25 was not a lock in the early part of the evaluation process but a strong spring helped land the Tornadoes here. | ||||
| 15 | Chandler | Chandler | AZ | 10-3 |
| A mental block was lifted last year as the Wolves downed crosstown rivals, Hamilton. The Wolves return the most of any team in Arizona and the improving state lands a preseason Top 25 team for the second consecutive year when Mountain Pointe (Phoenix, AZ) was listed as the team to beat and ran the table. | ||||
| 16 | Servite | Anaheim | CA | 6-6 |
| Putting a team that went 6-6 last season into the Preseason Top 25 is a pretty risky bet but one that is worth taking. The Friars have the talent to make a major move in the poll and if it didn’t play the schedule it had last year probably would have been a 10-game winner in any other state. | ||||
| 17 | Miramar | Miramar | FL | 12-1 |
| Failure is a major motivator and the Patriot senior class has to be feeling plenty of fuel after one of the most stunning upsets of the year ended its season in 2013. Talent is high and despite a coaching change, expectations are amazingly high. | ||||
| 18 | Miami Central | Miami | FL | 13-1 |
| The flipside to Allen and St. John Bosco is Miami Central. The Rockets are replacing 10 players on offense and there is a real concern that the team may struggle to score. Defensively this program looks like it could have a front seven that keeps it in every game and a secondary that can ballhawk and win a few on its own. Time will tell if this was a respect ranking or solid early evaluations. | ||||
| 19 | St. Peter’s Prep | Jersey City | NJ | 10-2 |
| New Jersey has been a state that has dramatically improved its national reputation over the last decade and that helps push the Marauders into the Top 25 entering the year. The team brings back two of the best players in the state as well as a talented supporting cast that could have it earn a state title that has evaded it for years. | ||||
| 20 | St. Jospeh’s Prep | Philadelphia | PA | 13-3 |
| Prep was the wire-to-wire top team in Pennsylvania but did not earn a HSFB100 ranking after a state championship season. The Hawks returns so much talent that it is tough to not believe the program is a runaway winner in the state. It will need to prove a national power with four out-of-state games to open the year. | ||||
| 21 | Warren Easton | New Orleans | LA | 10-4 |
| Likely the most talented team not given a Top 10 ranking entering the season the Eagles have a lot to prove to finish in the Top 25. There are double-digit players that will go on to play on Saturday but if they aren’t interested in showing strong on Friday nights the team will not improve like many project it to. | ||||
| 22 | Folsom | Folsom | CA | 14-1 |
| The Bulldogs are a controversial team among fans in California and a Top 25 placement will likley irk some — mostly in SoCal. Folsom dramatically improved its schedule this season and has stepped up in depth over the last three years. There is a very high cieling with an unbeaten season. | ||||
| 23 | Centreville | Clifton | VA | 15-0 |
| The Wing-T offense returns both of its top rushers and the majority of its offensive line. This was the year that many cirlced on the calendar for Centreville to make a move in Virginia but it came a season early when the team won the state title and crushed powerhouse Oscar Smith (Chesapeake, VA) to do so. | ||||
| 24 | Bingham | South Jordan | UT | 14-0 |
| The Miners have been the flagbearer in Utah for a number of seasons and this year it may have its most talented of the recent run. It added a couple of transfers to bolster it ranks and it will test itself with a game against Bishop Gorman in September. | ||||
| 25 | Buford | Buford | GA | 15-0 |
| The small school power has been a source of plenty of debate in Georgia and this year it will have a chance to prove its place on the totem pole. A defense-first team the Wolves will play Trinity Christian (Jacksonville, FL) and McEachern to open the year. | ||||
| 26 | Acadiana | Lafayette | LA | 14-1 |
| 27 | Mainland | Mainland | FL | 12-2 |
| 28 | Mater Dei | Santa Ana | CA | 11-3 |
| 29 | West Monroe | West Monroe | LA | 9-3 |
| 30 | Bentonville | Bentonville | AR | 11-2 |
| 31 | Archer | Lawrenceville | GA | 11-1 |
| 32 | First Coast | Jacksonville | FL | 11-2 |
| 33 | Creekside | Fairburn | GA | 15-0 |
| 34 | Calvary Baptist | Shreveport | LA | 9-4 |
| 35 | Cocoa | Cocoa | FL | 11-2 |
| 36 | DeSoto | DeSoto | TX | 14-1 |
| 37 | Trinity | Euless | TX | 11-3 |
| 38 | Trinity Christian | Jacksonville | FL | 12-1 |
| 39 | Spanish Fort | Spanish Fort | AL | 15-0 |
| 40 | Centennial | Corona | CA | 12-3 |
| 41 | Don Bosco | Ramsey | NJ | 7-4 |
| 42 | Mountain Pointe | Phoenix | AZ | 14-0 |
| 43 | Lake Travis | Austin | TX | 12-2 |
| 44 | Niceville | Niceville | FL | 13-2 |
| 45 | Armwood | Seffner | FL | 14-1 |
| 46 | Manvel | Manvel | TX | 12-2 |
| 47 | Oakland | Murfreesboro | TN | 12-1 |
| 48 | Maryville | Maryville | TN | 15-0 |
| 49 | Poly | Long Beach | CA | 11-2 |
| 50 | Hart | Newhall | CA | 12-3 |
| 51 | Moeller | Cincinnati | OH | 14-1 |
| 52 | Steele | Cibolo | TX | 12-2 |
| 53 | Destrehan | Destrehan | LA | 12-2 |
| 54 | North Shore | Houston | TX | 12-1 |
| 55 | Central Catholic | Portland | OR | 14-0 |
| 56 | Central | Fort Pierce | FL | 11-2 |
| 57 | Dwyer | Palm Beach Gardens | FL | 15-0 |
| 58 | Dr. Phillips | Orlando | FL | 12-1 |
| 59 | Longview | Longview | TX | 11-2 |
| 60 | Bolingbrook | Bolingbrook | IL | 10-1 |
| 61 | Rummel | Metairie | LA | 10-3 |
| 62 | Clay Chalkville | Pinson | AL | 10-2 |
| 63 | John Curtis | River Ridge | LA | 10-2 |
| 64 | Dallas Skyline | Dallas | TX | 11-2 |
| 65 | Landry Walker | New Orleans | LA | 9-3 |
| 66 | Westfield | Houston | TX | 13-1 |
| 67 | Oscar Smith | Chesapeake | VA | 14-1 |
| 68 | Alemany | Mission Hills | CA | 10-3 |
| 69 | Brandon | Brandon | MS | 11-2 |
| 70 | Eastern Christian | Elkton | MD | 9-3 |
| 71 | Dutch Fork | Irmo | SC | 12-3 |
| 72 | Northwestern | Rock Hill | SC | 15-0 |
| 73 | McDonogh | Owings Mills | MD | 11-0 |
| 74 | Mill Creek | Hoschton | GA | 6-4 |
| 75 | Mentor | Mentor | OH | 13-2 |
| 76 | Carroll | Southlake | TX | 11-2 |
| 77 | Jenks | Jenks | OK | 14-0 |
| 78 | Camden County | Kingsland | GA | 10-2 |
| 79 | Paramus Catholic | Paramus | NJ | 10-2 |
| 80 | Ben Davis | Indianapolis | IN | 8-3 |
| 81 | Cathedral Catholic | San Diego | CA | 11-2 |
| 82 | Pearland | Pearland | TX | 14-2 |
| 83 | Colquitt County | Moultrie | GA | 11-3 |
| 84 | Oxford | Oxford | MS | 14-1 |
| 85 | Greenwood | Greenwood | SC | 8-4 |
| 86 | Blackman | Murfreesboro | TN | 11-3 |
| 87 | Spartanburg | Spartanburg | SC | 6-6/td> |
| 88 | Flanagan | Pembroke Pines | FL | 9-2 |
| 89 | University Lab | Baton Rouge | LA | 14-1 |
| 90 | South Pointe | Rock Hill | SC | 11-3 |
| 91 | Male | Louisville | KY | 12-2 |
| 92 | DePaul | Wayne | NJ | 10-2 |
| 93 | Shades Valley | Birmingham | AL | 10-2 |
| 94 | DeMatha | Hyattsville | MD | 11-1 |
| 95 | Gonzaga | Washington | DC | 6-5 |
| 96 | Wayne | Huber Heights | OH | 11-2 |
| 97 | Hamilton | Chandler | AZ | 11-3 |
| 98 | Union | Tulsa | OK | 11-3 |
| 99 | Eastside Catholic | Sammamish | WA | 11-3 |
| 100 | Archbishop Wood | Warminster | PA | 13-2 |
