Top 10 toughest high school football playoff brackets

Winning a title in any state is never easy, but it's more challenging in some places than others.

As postseason play gets underway in most states, MaxPreps breaks down the country's most challenging playoff brackets.


1. California Southern Section Pac-5
Defending champion: Centennial (Corona, Calif.)
Favorite: St. John Bosco
Sleeper: Bishop Amat (La Puente)
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The possibility of a St. John Bosco/Centennial matchup is quite tantalizing, but there will be a number of outstanding games in the nation's toughest bracket. Serra, Mater Dei and Bishop Amat are some of the most talented teams in the country. The winner will likely take on De La Salle in the CIF Open Division Bowl Game.

2. Georgia AAAAAA
Defending champion: Colquitt County (Moultrie)
Favorite: Colquitt County
Sleeper: Peachtree Ridge (Suwanee)
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Four teams ranked in the Xcellent 25 make this bracket simply grueling. Mill Creek, Camden County and McEachern have a combined two losses, and each could make a run. An undefeated champion from this bracket will have a strong argument for a national title.



3. Texas 6A-I
Defending champion: Allen
Favorite: Allen
Sleeper: Pearland
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When DeSoto and Allen could meet in the second round, it's clear a bracket is exceptionally deep. Being named the state champion in Texas' largest classification is basically the pinnacle of high school football bragging rights. Whoever take the crown this year certainly will have earned it.

4. Texas 6A-II
Defending champion: Cedar Hill
Favorite: Katy
Sleeper: Lake Travis (Austin)
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This bracket is just a notch beneath its counterpart in 6A-I. Cedar Hill and Katy are as good as any tandem in the country, while Southlake Carroll, Lake Travis and Cibolo Steele add impressive depth. The quality of teams in this bracket make it remarkable to consider what a single Class 6A bracket might look like in the Lone Star State.

5. Ohio Division I
Defending champion: St. Edward (Lakewood)
Favorite: Colerain (Cincinnati)
Sleeper: St. Xavier (Cincinnati)
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Traditionally this bracket is a gauntlet, and 2015 is no different. It may lack a truly elite national team, but it is deep with good teams from all parts of the state. Teams from Cincinnati and Cleveland have dominated the bracket over the last five seasons. The likes of Wayne and Hilliard Davidson will look to snap that streak.

6. NJ Non-Public Group IV
Defending champion: St. Peter's Prep (Jersey City)
Favorite: Bergen Catholic (Oradell)
Sleeper: St. Augustine Prep (Richland)
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While the bracket is without Paramus Catholic this year, it adds St. Joseph Regional, which makes the jump from the Non-Public Group III bracket. It would be shocking if a team from outside of North Jersey won this bracket. However, St. Augustine is the top seed and has not lost this season.

7. Alabama 6A
Defending champion: Clay-Chalkville (Pinson)
Favorite: Clay-Chalkville
Sleeper: Blount (Eight Mile)
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Despite not being the bracket with the state's largest schools, the 6A bracket boasts three of the top four teams in the state's MaxPreps Computer Rankings. Nationally-ranked Clay-Chalkville will not have an easy path to a repeat. Both Muscle Shoals and Opelika are formidable, undefeated foes. Spanish Fort is yet another team with the potential to go the distance.

8. Florida 6A
Defending champion: Central (Miami)
Favorite: Mainland (Daytona Beach)
Sleeper: Navarre
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Florida's top five ranked teams in the MaxPreps Computer Rankings all compete in different playoff brackets (IMG Academy does not compete in any FHSAA playoffs.) While the top teams are spread across different school sizes, Class 6A still fields an impressive group of teams. Mainland and Central figure to resume their postseason rivalry, but the bracket is much more wide open than it has been in recent years.



9. Indiana 6A
Defending champion: Ben Davis (Indianapolis)
Favorite: Center Grove (Greenwood)
Sleeper: Penn (Mishawaka)
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Indiana's Class 6A bracket has proven to be quite challenging in 2015. Traditional mainstays such as Ben Davis, Cathedral and Warren Central have already been eliminated. Out of the four teams remaining, Penn appears to be an intriguing underdog, despite not having lost to an in-state team this season.

10. Arizona I
Defending champion: Chandler
Favorite: Chandler
Sleeper: Chaparral (Scottsdale)
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Arizona football is certainly trending upward. This year's Division I bracket features Chandler and Hamilton, rivals ranked inside of the Top 30 of the national MaxPreps Computer Rankings. Undefeated Mountain Point, Centennial and Desert Ridge all fall inside of the Top 100.