Best high school football team in each state

From summer two-a-days through chilly autumn practices, the road to a high school football state title is a long and arduous. COVID-19 precautions and regulations made 2020 a more difficult championship path. A majority of states forged ahead and crowned champions. Some states played a regular season, while others were forced into abbreviated schedules.

What has emerged are banners that will carry a special significance.

MaxPreps has crowned a champion for each state this year based on its final computer rankings coupled with on-field achievement. Those teams are highlighted here.

Seventeen states moved their seasons to 2021 – California, Connecticut, Washington D.C., Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington. Alaska played its regular season, but virus precautions forced a cancellation of the state playoffs. Alabama — Thompson (Alabaster)

While the Warriors needed a miracle finish to grab their second straight 7A title, Thompson's 2020 run was nothing short of dominant. The 14-0 Warriors scored 10 points in the final 30 seconds to stun Auburn 28-19, but that was about the only scare for the No. 6 team in the MaxPreps Top 25 rankings. Thompson allowed 222 points while scoring 604 on the season. The offense was led by junior quarterback Conner Harrell, who finished with more than 3,500 yards passing and 42 touchdowns despite being injured in the title game. Defensively, the Warriors were anchored by linebacker Jeremiah Alexander, who tallied more than 100 tackles. MORE: Final Alabama rankings

Arizona — Chandler

The Wolves cemented their spot as the Grand Canyon's best with a 23-21 Open Division championship win over Hamilton (Chandler). The victory earned Chandler its second straight Open Division crown, its fifth consecutive banner over all and extending the win streak to 36 games. Chandler seniors leave the school having gone 49-3. In 2020, the Wolves averaged nearly 45 points per night, led by bell cow back Eli Sanders (1,371 yards rushing and 23 TDs) and quarterback Mikey Keene and Jalen Richmond. Defensively, Brandon Buckner led a stout group that allowed just over 10 points per game. MORE: Final Arizona rankings

The traditionally high-powered Bruins offense showed no signs of slowing down in 2020, averaging more than 50 points per night while producing a pair of 2,000-yard passers and a back that almost hit the 2,000-yard plateau. That output also led to a 13-0 mark, a second straight 5A title in a dominating 64-27 win over Little Rock Christian Academy (Little Rock).

When 2021 rolls around, the Bruins will begin a quest for a third straight 5A crown and look to add to their 23-game win streak. In 2020, Cherry Creek went 9-0 as Colorado stopped but restarted fall football and finished with a 21-0 title victory over Valor Christian. The Bruins' banner was their 11th in 19 appearances. The win over Valor Christian was Cherry Creek's fourth shutout of the season. Seniors Luis Lozano, Malik Majekodunmi and Arden Walker were among the leaders on that side of the ball. Quarterback Julian Hammond, 1,000-yard rusher James Walker II and wide receiver Chase Penry got it done for an offense that averaged nearly 40 points per game. MORE: Final Colorado rankings

It was the Wildcats year ... again. Howard earned its second-straight Division II title, capping an 8-0 shortened season with a dominating 42-6 win over Archmere. The Wildcats were equally stout throughout the season, outscoring opponents 316-51 on the season. Kevin Ignudo racked up more than 1,300 yards rushing on the year and was a big factor on both sides of the ball for Howard all season. MORE: Final Delaware rankings

It's no surprise the most dominant team in the country — and No. 1 team in the MaxPreps Top 25 all season — is the Sunshine State's best. Even though the Ascenders don't play for a state title, they dominated a national schedule and notched marquee wins over Texas power Duncanville as well as in-state foes Venice, Edgewater, Northwestern and TRU Prep Academy. IMG was powered by blue chip recruits on both sides of the ball, including J.J. Mccarthy, Kaytron Allen and Omar Burroughs. MORE: Final Florida rankings

A prolific offense combined with a smothering defense proved a winning recipe for the Rams, who won the AAAAAAA title with a dominating 38-14 win over Collins Hill. Along the way, Grayson tallied a 14-0 season as California transfer Jake Garcia stepped into the starting quarterback role and guided the Rams' high-powered offense even after Clemson-bound running back Phil Mafah went down with an ankle injury. Grayson had plenty of talent, including wideout Jamal Haynes and a running-back committee that included Sean Downer and Joseph Taylor. On defense, the Rams were stingy, allowing 20 points total in a five-game postseason run. On the year, they gave up an average of eight points per night en route to their third state crown and first since 2016. MORE: Final Georgia rankings

The Grizzlies finished 9-0 with a hard-fought 17-14 5A title win over Rigby to capture their third title in six seasons. Senior quarterback Kobe Warr accounted for 231 years in the championship game, while Maxwell Lehman ran for two scores, including the difference-maker early in the fourth quarter. The Grizzlies are 59-8 over the last six seasons. MORE: Final Idaho rankings

The Trojans topped the Hoosier State in 2020 with an unblemished 14-0 record, a 6A title and national No. 14 ranking in the MaxPreps Top 25. Helping secure the school's fourth title under coach Eric Moore, Carson Steele powered Center Grove with 139 yards rushing and two scores on 31 carries. The senior back finished the year with 1,659 yards and 31 scores.

The Trojans' dominant season was punctuated by this stat: All 14 opponents were held to 14 points or fewer. MORE: Final Indiana rankings

The Hawks ran the playoff gauntlet and emerged with their first title in eight seasons by beating Southeast Polk 42-14 in the 4A championship. Ankeny, which finished 12-1, was powered in the title game by Jase Bauer, who threw for 101 yards and a touchdown while adding 158 yards on the ground and two more scores. Arland Bruce IV churned out 149 yards rushing and three TDs. The Hawks' path to the title included playoff bracket wins over Cedar Fall, Waukee and Dowling Catholic (West Des Moines), which was looking for its eight straight title. MORE: Final Iowa rankings

The Jaguars are a budding dynasty with back-to-back 5A titles and four championships in the last six seasons. In 2020, Mill Valley downed Northwest (Wichita) 49-35 in the title tilt while finishing the season 9-2 and grabbing a win over 6A champion Derby. Cooper Marsh led the Jags' charge to the title with 1,852 yards passing and 19 scores with nearly 700 yards rushing and 16 more TDs. He accounted for nearly 400 yards offense and six touchdowns in the win over Northwest. MORE: Final Kansas rankings

The Shamrocks continued their reign of excellence in the Bluegrass State, winning a 27th banner and finishing a 10-0 season with 28-0 blanking of Male in the 6A title game. Trinity has won 15 titles this century and 10 of 14 since 6A was instituted in 2007. Against Male, Brad West and Armon Tucker led the charge with nearly 200 yards rushing and three scores. On defense, the Shamrocks were up to the task, allowing 48 points all season. MORE: Final Kentucky rankings

The Cougars earned a Bayou State repeat, beating De La Salle (New Orleans) for the second straight season in the Division II finals. The 35-28 victory was punctuated by Walker Howard's game-winning, 22-yard TD pass to Paxton Perret with just under four minutes remaining. St. Thomas More beat De La Salle in 2019 58-10. For his part, Howard threw for 381 yards and four scores in this year's title game and Jack Bech set a championship record with 232 receiving yards (10 grabs, two TDs). The 10-0 Cougars outscored opponents 453-167, with their only close game coming over Division I champion Catholic (Baton Rouge) 39-38 on Oct. 16. MORE: Final Louisiana rankings

The season, which started in September and paused in November, finally reached a conclusion in January with the Lakers earning their first state title with a convincing 41-0 win over Davison in the Division 1 championship. West Bloomfield finished 11-1 behind state Player of the Year Donovan Edwards. The Michigan-bound back ran wild in the title game with 257 yards rushing and three scores. He finished the year with nearly 1,300 yards rushing and 20 TDs. It was the second state title appearance for the Lakers, who fell in the 2017 championship tilt. MORE: Final Michigan rankings

Though the Gopher State didn't get to play its postseason brackets to completion after an emergency order by Gov. Tim Walz halted the season during playoffs, Eden Prairie stood above the rest. The Eagles were 7-0 when play was called, outscoring opponents 244-48 this fall with shutouts against Shakopee and Edina. MORE: Final Minnesota rankings

Sometimes you just have to roll the dice. That's what head coach Drew Causey did in Oak Grove's 29-28 6A title win over Oxford. Trailing by one after Kabe Barnett's 10-yard TD with seven seconds left, Causey called on Barnett, who hit tight end Trayvon Moore on a drag for the two-point conversion, win and banner. The win was redemption for the 13-0 Warriors, who fell in the past two championship games. Oak Grove was dominant all season, outscoring foes 568-273 as Barnett passed for more than 2,000 yards and 38 scores. MORE: Final Mississippi rankings

The Locomotives steamed through 2020 with a 9-1 mark, erasing the schedule's lone blemish with a 34-0 Class A title win over Billings Central Catholic. The championship is the school's first in 18 years when Mike Ludwig, a Laurel alumni, led his squad to a 2002 crown in his first year as head coach. Jack Waddell scored three times for the Locomotives, who fell earlier in the season to Billing Central Catholic. And while BCC owns a decided advantage in the overall series, Laurel is 1-0 in state championship games against its rival. MORE: Final Montana rankings

This was the year the Warriors finally climbed to the top of the mountain. After falling short in 2006, 2013 and 2019, Omaha Westside ran the table, going 12-0 and winning the school's first Class A title since going back-to-back in 1981-82. The Warriors averaged nearly 45 points per game, led by 1,300-yard rusher Dominic Rezac and senior quarterback Cole Payton, who accounted for nearly 3,000 yards total offense and 39 touchdowns. MORE: Final Nebraska rankings

The Titans were rock solid as the Granite State's best team in 2020, finishing 7-0 and earning the school's first title with a 49-21 Division I championship win over Goffstown. After missing 2019 playoff action with a knee injury, senior Curtis Harris-Lopez had his fingerprints all over the championship win. The quarterback and defensive back opened the scoring with a 47-yard interception returned for a score and finished offensively with 118 yards rushing and three TDs. The Titans, who never trailed in the title game, scored on offense, defense and on special teams. MORE: Final New Hampshire rankings

It was an atypical year in the Garden State, but one thing was normal — dominance by Bergen Catholic. The Crusaders finished 5-1 and downed St. Peter's Prep 22-15 to close out a four-team pod postseason. Bergen Catholic owns 17 state titles and while New Jersey didn't have its standard 13 classifications, the Crusaders showed a champion's heart in the final win over St. Peter's. Trailing 15-14 just inside of the fourth quarter, Ryan Butler and Bergen ate up nine minutes of clock to cap an 83-yard scoring drive with a 1-yard TD plunge. Butler accounted for more than 200 yards offense and two scores, while making the final tackle on St. Peter's last-ditch hook-and-lateral. MORE: Final New Jersey rankings

The Patriots dominated Sheyenne (West Fargo) 34-0 in the AAA championship to capture back-to-back titles and the program's fourth since 2015. Century will carry a 24-game win streak into 2021 after their second straight 12-0 season. Senior running back Cade Garcia ran for 142 yards and two scores in the championship game. MORE: Final North Dakota rankings

Winning five titles in six seasons is certainly a measure of dominance, but the Knights took it up a notch in 2020 by beating opponents by an average of 30 points per game. Only one contest was decided by fewer than 14 points. In the end, Archbishop Hoban capped its 11-0 season with a 35-6 Division II win over Washington (Massillon) as senior quarterback Shane Hamm had a hand in all five TDs. Meanwhile, the Hoban defense held the Tigers to 136 yard on offense as the Knights ran their record to 79-5-1 over the past six seasons. MORE: Final Ohio rankings

The Spartans added to their recent state-title run with a 17-14 win over Choctaw in the 6A Division II championship game to cap an 11-0 2020 campaign. It was Bixby's third straight crown and the sixth in seven seasons under head coach Loren Montgomery (the Spartans are 75-14 in his tenure). Running back Braylin Presley led the charge for Bixby in the championship game, running 35 times for 218 yards and a touchdown. MORE: Final Oklahoma rankings

Not even a COVID-shortened season could slow down the Hawks, who finished 6-0 and blasted Central York 62-13 in the 6A title game. The victory sealed St. Joseph's Prep's third straight crown and helped the Hawks to a No. 3 national rank in the MaxPreps Top 25. The team's star power is evident as Ohio State-bound Kyle McCord finished 44-3 in his career and ends on a 17-game win streak. In addition to McCord, the Hawks benefited from Marvin Harrison Jr. and Jeremiah Trotter Jr., sons of two NFL greats. MORE: Final Pennsylvania rankings

When you win five straight state titles, you get to hold up five fingers in the championship photo. And that's exactly what the Silver Foxes did after their 28-6 win over T.L. Hanna in the AAAAA title game. Dutch Fork continued its recent success with a 10-0 season, outscoring foes 426-94 with three shutouts and each victory coming by at least 21 points. The team was led by senior quarterback Will Taylor, who accounted for 2,685 yards and 32 touchdowns. MORE: Final South Carolina rankings

Brandon Valley lost in its season opener only to rattle off nine wins in a row, including a 35-14 victory in the Class 11AAA title game over Harrisburg. It was the second title in three seasons for the Lynx, who also won four banners in the 1980s and two in the 1990s. In the 2020 title game, Tate Johnson and Joe Kolbeck shouldered the offensive load, rushing for a combined 368 yards and four touchdowns. MORE: Final South Dakota rankings

In the toughest postseason bracket in the nation, the Chaparrals not only knocked off the two-time defending state champion North Shore in the semifinals, but then turned a father-son battle in the finals into a coronation for the school's third banner. Westlake broke a 21-all tie midway through the second quarter with a 31-point outburst as the Chaps legendary coach Todd Dodge earned his sixth state title win. The school owns three — this season's 6A-1 title, a 6A-2 crown in 2019 and a Drew Brees-led championship in 1996. Four-star junior Cade Klubnik led an offense that piled up more than 500 yards offense in the victory.  MORE: Final Texas rankings

Jordan James ran for 226 yards and six touchdowns as Oakland capped a 15-0 season with a 56-33 win over Brentwood in the 6A title game. James, who finished the season with more than 1,700 yards rushing and 26 scores, powered an Oakland offense that set a state championship mark for most points in a half (42). The first unbeaten season adds a fifth banner for the Patriots. MORE: Final Tennessee rankings

Quarterback Jaxson Dart emerged as a major FBS recruit as he led Corner Canyon to its third straight title and helped the program extend its win streak to 40 games. He finished with nearly 4,700 yards passing and 67 scoring strikes, including 22 to Noah Kjar. The Chargers faced only a few close games and dominated Lone Peak 45-7 in the state title game. MORE: Final Utah rankings

The Broncs' championship pedigree was evident midway through the 2020 season. After starting 5-0, Cody dropped a 21-14 decision to Star Valley. The loss fueled a five-game run to their sixth state title and third since 2014. In the championship game, Cody jumped out to a 26-0 halftime lead before downing Jackson Hole 34-13. Under coach Matt McFadden, the Broncs are 33-9 since 2017. MORE: Final Wyoming rankings