MaxPreps Top 25 high school football rankings

Turnover continues to be the norm in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Football Rankings.

Three new teams entered the rankings this week, led by No. 23 Byrnes.

The South Carolina power was overlooked in the preseason, but has rattled off three consecutive victories, punctuated by a 31-29 win over then No. 7 Mallard Creek.

Following an upset over Arlington Martin, Skyline debuts in the rankings as well.



Bergen Catholic, on the strength of a dominant season-opening victory against American Heritage (Delray Beach, Fla.), also cracks the list. The New Jersey powerhouse has a brutal schedule that, if navigated successfully, could have it rising substantially up the rankings over the next few weeks.

No. 4 DeMatha enjoyed another impressive victory, traveling to Florida and beating American Heritage (Plantation) 23-22 in a nail biter.

The three teams ahead of DeMatha all notched impressive wins, but its clear that DeMatha is forging a resume for the No. 1 spot.


1. (1) Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.), 2-0
The Gaels downed Bingham 38-20.

2. (2) St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), 2-0
Aquinas dominated Miramar 48-18.

3. (3) Centennial (Corona, Calif.), 2-0
In the Honor Bowl, Centennial routed talented Serra 52-13.

4. (4) DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.), 2-0
In back-to-back weeks, DeMatha has beaten a top Florida team. It dispatched American Heritage 23-22.

5. (5) Allen (Texas), 2-0
Allen won easily over Florida's Viera.

6. (6) Colquitt County (Moultrie, Ga.), 3-0
Rush Propst's squad overwhelmed Crisp County 37-7.



7. (8) Flanagan (Pembroke Pines, Fla.), 2-0
Flanagan's defense dominated in a 21-14 victory over Coconut Creek.

8. (9) Katy (Texas), 2-0
Katy pitched its second straight shutout with a 57-0 win over Fort Bend Travis.

9. (10) St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.), 2-0
St. John Bosco impressed for a second straight week, posting a 67-7 win over Norwalk.

10. (11) Ocean Lakes (Virginia Beach, Va.), 2-0
Ocean Lakes dominated First Colonial 55-0.

11. (12) Archer (Lawrenceville, Ga.), 2-0
Idle.

12. (13) Spartanburg (Spartanburg, S.C.), 2-0
Despite weather delays, Spartanburg cruised to a 49-20 win over Union County.

13. (15) Mainland (Daytona Beach, Fla.), 2-0
Mainland defeated Bartram Trail 56-24.



14. (17) Archbishop Rummel (Metairie, La.), 1-0
Louisiana's top team opened with a 24-7 win over University Lab

15. (18) South Panola (Batesville, Miss.), 2-0
Idle

16. (20) McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.), 3-0
McEachern snapped Buford's 42-game winning streak, winning 37-14.

17. (21) Trinity (Euless, Texas), 2-0
There was no letdown after beating De La Salle; Trinity hammered Rockwall 41-16.

18. (16) Clay-Chalkville (Pinson, Ala.), 3-0
Clay-Chalkville survived against Hillcrest, winning 41-40.

19. (19) American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.), 1-1
American Heritage narrowly lost to DeMatha, 23-22.

20. (23) IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.), 2-0
IMG traveled to Texas and beat DeSoto 47-29.

21. (24) De La Salle (Concord, Calif.), 1-1
The Spartans rebounded with a 37-21 win over Serra.



22. (25) Cedar Hill (Texas), 2-0
Joey McGuire's squad downed Bowie 28-17, setting up a showdown with Skyline.

23. (NR) Byrnes (Duncan, S.C.), 3-0
Byrnes has been better this season than most previously thought. It downed Mallard Creek 31-29.

24. (NR) Skyline (Dallas, Texas), 2-0
Skyline downed Arlington Martin and will face off with Cedar Hill this week.

25. (NR) Bergen Catholic (Oradell, N.J.), 1-0
Bergen Catholic looked extremely impressive in a 37-7 dismantling of American Heritage.