Week 9 PrepNation National Prep Football Poll

Photo: MarylandSportsAccess.com

D.C. Party Crashers

Gonzaga's win over DeMatha shakes up Top 25

The National Prep Football Poll is compiled by Jamie DeMoney of XOS Digital with input from sportswriters, experts, and coaches. The Week 9 national Top 25 and regional Top 15's follow with current won-loss records:

NATIONAL TOP 25

1. St. John Bosco HS (Bellflower, Calif.), 7-0 (Last week: 1)                               

2. Bishop Gorman HS (Las Vegas), 8-0 (2)

3. Colquitt County HS (Moultrie, Ga.), 8-0 (3)

4. Centennial HS (Corona, Calif.), 7-0 (4)

5. Allen HS (Texas), 7-0 (5)

6. Cedar Hill HS (Texas), 7-0 (7)

7. Trinity HS (Euless, Texas), 7-0 (9)

8. De La Salle HS (Concord, Calif.), 6-1 (12)

9. Ocean Lakes HS (Virginia Beach, Va.), 7-0 (11)

10. Katy HS (Texas), 7-0 (14)

11. IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.), 6-0 (10)

12. Clay-Chalkville HS (Pinson, Ala.), 8-0 (15)

13. Grayson HS (Loganville, Ga.), 8-0 (16)

14. South Panola HS (Batesville, Miss.), 8-0 (18)

15. Jenks HS (Okla.), 6-0 (19)

16. Gonzaga HS (Washington), 7-0 (NR)

17. Mater Dei HS (Santa Ana, Calif.), 6-1 (17)

18. Chandler HS (Ariz.), 7-1 (20)

19. St. Edward HS (Lakewood, Ohio), 7-1 (22)

20. DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.), 6-1 (6)

21. Male HS (Louisville, Ky.), 8-0 (21)

22. Gilman School (Baltimore), 7-1 (23)

23. Wayne HS (Huber Heights, Ohio), 8-0 (24)

24. Steele HS (Cibolo, Texas), 8-0 (25)

25. American Heritage HS (Plantation, Fla.), 6-1 (8)

Dropped out: Spartanburg (S.C.) 13

NORTHEAST REGION

1. Archbishop Wood HS (Warminster, Pa.), 7-0 (Last week: 1)

2. Woodland Hills HS (Pittsburgh, Pa.), 7-0 (2)

3. Bergen Catholic HS (Oradell, N.J.), 4-2 (4)

4. St. Joseph Regional HS (Montvale, N.J.), 5-2 (6)

5. Don Bosco Prep HS (Ramsey, N.J.), 4-2 (7)

6. St. Joseph’s Prep (Philadelphia), 5-2 (NR)

7. Xaverian Brothers HS (Westwood, Mass.), 6-0 (5)

8. Aquinas Institute (Rochester, N.Y.), 6-0 (9)

9. Archbishop Stepinac HS (White Plains, N.Y.), 6-0 (10)

10. La Salle College (Wyndmoor, Pa.), 3-3 (3)

11. Southington HS (Conn.), 5-0 (11)

12. Upper Dublin (Fort Washington, Pa.), 7-0 (12)

13. Central Dauphin HS (Harrisburg, Pa.), 7-0 (13)

14. Marshfield HS (Mass.), 6-0 (14)

15. Pine-Richland HS (Gibsonia, Pa.), 7-0 (15)

EAST COAST REGION

1. Ocean Lakes HS (Virginia Beach, Va.), 7-0 (2)

2. Gonzaga HS (Washington), 7-0 (NR)

3. DeMatha HS (Hyattsville, Md.), 6-1 (1)

4. Gilman School (Baltimore), 7-1 (4)

5. Bird HS (Chesterfield, Va.), 7-0 (5)

6. Lake Taylor HS (Norfolk, Va.), 7-0 (6)

7. Scotland HS (Laurinburg, N.C.), 8-0 (8)

8. Spartanburg HS (S.C.), 7-1 (3)

9. Byrnes HS (Duncan. S.C.), 7-1 (7)

10. Northwestern HS (Rock Hill, S.C.), 7-1 (9)

11. Westside HS (Anderson, S.C.), 8-0 (10)

12. Charlotte Catholic HS (N.C.), 7-0 (11)

13. Damascus HS (Md.), 7-0 (12)

14. Lake Braddock HS (Burke, Va.), 7-0 (13)

15. Cabell Midland HS (Ona, W.Va.), 8-0 (15)

SOUTHEAST REGION

1. Colquitt County HS (Moultrie, Ga.), 8-0 (1)

2. IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.), 6-0 (3)

3. Clay-Chalkville HS (Pinson, Ala.), 8-0 (4)

4. Grayson HS (Loganville, Ga.), 8-0 (5)

5. South Panola HS (Batesville, Miss.), 8-0 (6)

6. American Heritage HS (Plantation, Fla.), 6-1 (2)

7. Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville, Fla.), 7-0 (7)

8. Archer HS (Lawrenceville, Ga.), 6-1 (8)

9. Maryville HS (Tenn.), 8-0 (9)

10. Archbishop Rummel HS (Metairie, La.), 6-1 (10)

11. Roswell HS (Ga.), 7-0 (14)

12. Spanish Fort HS (Ala.), 8-0 (11)

13. West Monroe HS (La.), 7-0 (12)

14. Opelika HS (Ala.), 9-0 (13)

15. St. Thomas Aquinas HS (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), 6-1 (NR)

MIDWEST REGION

1. St. Edward HS (Lakewood, Ohio), 7-1 (2)

2. Male HS (Louisville, Ky.), 8-0 (1)

3. Wayne HS (Huber Heights, Ohio), 8-0 (3)

4. Center Grove HS (Greenwood, Ind.), 9-0 (11)

5. La Salle HS (Cincinnati), 7-1 (4)

6. Colerain HS (Cincinnati), 7-1 (5)

7. Carmel HS (Ind.), 7-2 (14)

8. Loyola Academy (Wilmette, Ill.), 8-0 (8)

9. Homewood-Flossmoor HS (Flossmoor, Ill.), 8-0 (9)

10. King HS (Detroit), 8-0 (10)

11. Mona Shores HS (Norton Shores, Mich.), 8-0 (NR)

12. Trinity HS (Louisville, Ky.), 8-1 (12)

13. Saline HS (Mich.), 8-0 (13)

14. Warren Central HS (Indianapolis), 6-3 (NR)

15. St. Xavier HS (Cincinnati), 5-3 (6)

MIDLANDS REGION

1. Christian Brothers HS (St. Louis), 9-0 (1)

2. Bingham HS (South Jordan, Utah), 8-1 (2)

3. Webb City HS (Mo.), 9-0 (3)

4. Eden Prairie HS (Minn.), 9-0 (4)

5. Blue Springs South HS (Mo.), 9-0 (8)

6. Columbine HS (Littleton, Colo.), 7-0 (9)

7. Lawrence HS (Kan.), 7-0 (10)

8. Francis Howell HS (St. Charles, Mo.), 9-0 (6)

9. Lone Peak HS (Highland, Utah), 9-0 (11)

10. Dowling Catholic HS (West Des Moines, Iowa), 7-0 (12)

11. Millard West HS (Omaha, Neb.), 8-0 (13)

12. Cherry Creek HS (Greenwood Village, Colo.), 6-1 (5)

13. Sky View HS (Smithfield, Utah), 9-0 (14)

14. Staley HS (Kansas City, Mo.), 8-1 (15)

15. Coeur d’Alene HS (Idaho), 7-1 (NR)

SOUTHWEST REGION

1. Bishop Gorman HS (Las Vegas), 8-0 (1)

2. Allen HS (Texas), 7-0 (2)

3. Cedar Hill HS (Texas), 7-0 (3)

4. Trinity HS (Euless, Texas), 7-0 (4)

5. Katy HS (Texas), 7-0 (5)

6. Jenks HS (Okla.), 6-0 (6)

7. Chandler HS (Ariz.), 7-1 (7)

8. Steele HS (Cibolo, Texas), 8-0 (8)

9. Klein Collins HS (Spring, Texas), 7-0 (9)

10. Hamilton HS (Chandler, Ariz.), 9-0 (10)

11. Lake Travis HS (Austin, Texas), 7-0 (12)

12. Westlake HS (Austin, Texas), 7-0 (13)

13. Westfield HS (Houston), 6-1 (14)

14. Manvel HS (Texas), 6-1 (15)

15. Har-Ber HS (Springdale, Ark.), 6-1 (NR)

WEST COAST REGION

1. St. John Bosco HS (Bellflower, Calif.), 7-0 (1)

2. Centennial HS (Corona, Calif.), 6-0 (2)

3. De La Salle HS (Concord, Calif.), 6-1 (3)

4. Mater Dei HS (Santa Ana, Calif.), 6-1 (4)

5. Serra HS (Gardena, Calif.), 7-1 (6)

6. Bishop Amat HS (La Puente, Calif.), 6-2 (7)

7. Eastside Catholic HS (Bellevue, Wash.), 7-0 (8)

8. Mission Viejo HS (Calif.), 8-0 (9)

9. Folsom HS (Calif.), 7-0 (12)

10. Elk Grove HS (Calif.), 7-0 (13)

11. Jesuit HS (Portland, Ore.), 7-0 (10)

12. Bellevue HS (Wash.), 5-1 (11)

13. Long Beach Poly HS (Calif.), 5-2 (5)

14. Clayton Valley HS (Concord, Calif.), 6-1 (NR)

15. Mililani HS (Hawaii), 9-1 (15)

RECAPPING THE RANKINGS

Top Five Storylines

1. Gonzaga derails DeMatha’s dream season: Any glimmer of hope DeMatha had for national-title talk this season was extinguished with a 24-14 ESPN2-televised loss to unbeaten Gonzaga (D.C.). The Stags tumbled 14 spots in the rankings to No. 20 while Gonzaga entered the Top 25 at No. 16. The upset also caused collateral damage to American Heritage (Plantation), which fell 17 spots to No. 25. The Patriots lost at home to DeMatha last month.

2. Top-ranked St. John Bosco gets key league win: In the lone game last week between Top 25 teams, the No. 1 Braves doubled up on No. 17 Mater Dei, 42-21, and took sole possession of first place in the Trinity League. Washington commit Sean McGrew led the way with a season-high 218 rushing yards.

3. LB Poly not match for DLS: An anticipated NorCal-versus-SoCal showdown of perennial powers quickly evolved into a one-sided rout as No. 8 De La Salle suffocated regionally ranked Long Beach Poly, 52-6. Poly was held to only 83 yards of total offense.

4. Boiling Springs stuns Spartanburg: Gonzaga’s win over DeMatha was a stunner, but not as surprising as then-No. 13 Spartanburg losing to Boiling Springs, 20-13. Although it now has three straight wins, Boiling Springs’ record is still only 4-4 this season.

5. Defense powers Center Grove up the rankings: It there was a 26^th spot available in this week’s national rankings, it might belong to the Trojans who closed out their first unbeaten regular season in 17 years with a tough 7-0 win over state power Indianapolis Cathedral. It’s the first time the Fighting Irish have been shut out since Aug. 20, 2004.

Top Five Risers

1. Gonzaga (D.C.)

2. Center Grove (Ind.)

3. St. Joseph’s Prep (Pa.)

4. Carmel (Ind.)

5. Mona Shores (Mich.)

Top Five Feats … plus one

1. Rushing records fall in Arizona Part I: Ethan Johnson of Westwood (Mesa) set the state’s individual single-game record for rushing yardage when he ran for 566 yards (along with seven touchdowns) in a 46-41 win over Higley (Gilbert).

2. Rushing records fall in Arizona Part II: On the same night as Johnson’s individual heroics, Desert Edge (Goodyear) set a new state record by rushing for 728 yards as a team in an 83-27 drubbing of Agua Fria (Avondale). The same Agua Fria squad surrendered the state record for passing yardage earlier this season.  

3. Rushing record falls in Montana, too: John Bannon from Powell County (Deer Lodge) surpassed the previous state record by more than 50 yards when he ran for 512 in a frenetic 84-64 win over Ronan.

4. Seven-OT marathon in Oklahoma: Cyril outlasted Maysville, 78-72, in a game that lasted four hours and set a new state record for most extra periods. Hats off to Cyril quarterback Josh Garza, who accounted for seven touchdowns including five scores in the overtime sessions.

5. A performance to Ponder: Bells (Texas) quarterback Derrick Ponder passed for 622 yards along with seven touchdowns in a 62-36 win over Chico. The feat ranks 17th on the list for single-game passing yards, according to the National High School Sports Record Book.

Plus one … Soldotna beat Kenai, 33-18, to earn its fourth consecutive state championship in the Alaska Medium School division. The Stars have a 96-6 overall record with eight state titles since 2006.

All content Copyright 2015 Jamie DeMoney/PrepNation.com

About the PrepNation National Prep Poll

The PrepNation National Prep Poll is a continuation of World Feature Syndicate’s National Prep Poll, which was published and distributed to the Associated Press and other news organizations from 1987 to 2015. 

The National Prep Poll is second only to the USA Today Super 25 as the longest continually published weekly high school rankings. While a product of World Features Syndicate (1987-2015), the National Prep Poll was the only high school poll distributed to newspapers and websites around the United States by the Associated Press.

Before authoring rankings for Student Sports and ESPN, National High School Sports Hall of Fame journalist Doug Huff compiled the National Prep Poll rankings from 1987 until 1999. Current author Jamie DeMoney has compiled the poll since the start of the 1999 basketball season to the present. 

Among the criteria used in the weekly compilation of the National Prep Poll rankings are strength of schedule, the ability to accomplish the ultimate goal on a team's schedule (i.e. winning a championship), impact players and performers, a team's coaching and recent tradition.

About PrepNation.com

PrepNation.com was originally launched August 1, 2001 by Jamie DeMoney for the purpose of creating a permanent online home for the National Prep Poll football and boys basketball rankings.