High school football rankings: Roosevelt tops South Dakota Preseason MaxPreps Top 25

Roughriders look to rebound from upset semifinal playoff defeat in 2020.

Thumbnail image of this articles writer: Mitch Stephens
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Aug 12, 2021, 11:00am
The 2021 high school football season in South Dakota kicks off next week and MaxPreps has your look at the state's top teams. Coming off an 8-1 campaign last fall, Roosevelt owns the No. 1 spot in our preseason rankings.

The Roughriders outscored opponents 368-109 and were the No. 1 seed in the state Class 11AAAA playoffs, but were upset by fifth-seed Harrisburg 21-19 in the semifinals. That Roosevelt team was made up of largely juniors and sophomores and could be primed to go all the way in 2021.

Since coach Kim Nelson took over the program in 2009, the Roughriders have been one of the top teams in the state with a record of 106-27.

Defending state champions include Winner (11B), Brandon Valley (11AAA), Riggs (11AA), Wolsey-Wessington (Wolsey) (9B), Canistota/Freeman (Canistota) (9A) and Platte/Geddes (Platte) (9AA).

See the complete list below.
Coming off an 11-0 season, Kaden Keiser and Winner open the season at No. 6 in the state rankings.
Coming off an 11-0 season, Kaden Keiser and Winner open the season at No. 6 in the state rankings.
Photo by Michael Turner
South Dakota Preseason MaxPreps Top 25

1. Roosevelt (Sioux Falls), 8-1
2. Brandon Valley (Brandon), 9-1
3. Tea, 11-0
4. Brookings, 11-1
5. Riggs (Pierre), 9-2
6. Winner, 11-0
7. Bridgewater/Emery/Ethan (Emery), 11-1
8. Yankton, 9-2
9. Lincoln (Sioux Falls), 6-4
10. Sioux Valley (Volga), 9-2
11. Canton, 8-3
12. Harrisburg, 8-4
13. More (Rapid City), 7-2
14. West Central (Hartford), 6-5
15. O'Gorman (Sioux Falls), 6-4
16. Elk Point-Jefferson (Elk Point), 6-4
17. Dell Rapids, 5-4
18. Madison, 6-5
19. Washington (Sioux Falls), 3-7
20. Woonsocker/Wessington Springs/Sanborn Central, 7-3
21. McCook Central/Montrose (Salem), 5-4
22. Mitchell, 3-7
23. Dakota Valley (North Sioux City), 6-4
24. Aberdeen Central (Aberdeen), 3-5
25. Sioux Falls Christian (Sioux Falls), 2-6

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