Another week of championship games begins with sixteen teams in our Top 100 getting ready to face-off against another one of their fellow ranked opponents.
While most of the teams in our matchups will be playing for the state title, No. 3 Allen and No. 54 Euless Trinity are still two wins away from claiming their spot in the Texas state championship. Both teams hope to get themselves one step closer to the big game when they face each other this Saturday in the Class 6A Division I quarterfinals. In the first round of last year’s playoffs, Allen knocked off the Trojans with a 34-25 victory. The Eagles do enter this game with zero losses on their record, but it was just last year that this same undefeated Allen team came up short in the semifinal game against The Woodlands, putting an end to their playoff run. In order to prevent their team from being struck with that same fate two years in a row, the Eagles will have to put a stop to the red-hot Trojans who are on a ten-game win streak and are eager to pull off an upset.
No. 7 St. Joseph’s Prep and No. 20 Pine-Richland will duke it out for Pennsylvania’s 6A title. This marks a rematch of the 2014 championship game where Pine-Richland fell to the state’s powerhouse program 49-41. If there is ever a year to go against the best however, this seems to be it for the Rams. Pine-Richland enters this game 15-0 and has gotten here in an impressive fashion, winning each of their games by an average margin of 31.8 points. Saturday’s showdown will surely be its biggest test yet, however, as the Hawks have won 27 straight games, including last year’s championship, and enter the week with an equally convincing 13-0 record. If the Rams can pull this one off, it will be good enough for the school’s first ever state title.
Another undefeated team looking to finish with the perfect season is No. 21 Armwood who will take on No. 9 Northwestern in Florida’s Class 6A championship. The Hawks will rely on a defensive unit that has been spectacular all postseason, allowing only 20 rushing yards and totaling 16 sacks in the first four games of the playoffs. They square-off against a Northwestern team that has been playing at its best towards the end of the season and is hoping to carry that momentum into this weekends matchup. It has been a long time since either of these teams took home the hardware as Armwood’s last championship win came in 2004 and Northwestern’s in 2007, so both squads are sure to be hungry to end the season on top.
Also looking to take home another one of Florida’s championship trophies are No. 30 Venice and No. 89 Bartram Trail, who will match up in the Class 7A championship game. Venice moves up 25 spots in our rankings after coming off a thrilling semifinal round where the Bears upset the three-time defending state champions and former No. 20 St. Thomas Aquinas 27-20. Bartram Trail is also making a splash in the rankings this week, moving into the Top 100 for the first time after taking down the former No. 56 Plant 34-29 on its route to the program’s first ever state championship game. Venice will need to hold off a high-powered Bears offense that is averaging 42 points a game this season if they hope to win their first title since 2000.
A pairing between the best of the best in North Carolina will take place Saturday as No. 43 Wake Forest goes up against No. 57 Mallard Creek in the 4AA championship game. These two teams faced each other in this same game twice before in 2013 and 2014 and it was Mallard Creek winning both years. After a third consecutive state title in 2015 for the Mavericks, it was Wake Forest who finished on top last year and will be looking to defend its title Saturday afternoon. Both teams enter the matchup with 14-0 records.
In Alabama’s class 7A state championship, No. 52 Hoover faces No. 65 McGill-Toolen for the crown. It’s the second year in a row these two have met in the finals and it was Hoover who took control last year, beating the Yellow Jackets 17-7. The Bucs have fought hard to try and defend that title this postseason, already having knocked out two of the other top teams in the state in Hewitt-Trussville and Thompson.
It’s also championship time in Georgia with No. 68 North Gwinnett meeting No. 76 Colquitt County for the Class 7A finals. After getting the third seed in the playoffs, Colquitt County has been on a tear on the road all postseason, coming out on top of each of the four playoff games in enemy territory, including a come from behind win in last week’s game over Brookwood. North Gwinnett has had its own unpredictable run to make it this far. The Bulldogs entered the season under new head coach Bill Stewart and lost star quarterback and Texas A&M commit, Cade Fortin, in Week 2 due to injury, but still has managed to win 12 in a row coming into the championship game.
The other game getting Georgia fans excited is the battle between No. 90 Marist and No. 94 Blessed Trinity in the Class 4A championship. Earlier this year, these two met with Marist winning 25-24 in dramatic fashion by scoring a two-point conversion with under a minute left in the game.
Where the Top 100 Play This Week
No. 1 Mater Dei (California) – Idle
No. 2 IMG Academy (Florida) – Season Completed
No. 3 Allen (Texas) vs. No. 54 Euless Trinity (Texas), Saturday
No. 4 Trinity Kentucky – Season Completed
No. 5 South Pointe (South Carolina) – Season Completed
No. 6 American Heritage (Plantation, Florida) vs. Baker County (Florida), Friday
No. 7 St. Joseph’s Prep (Pennsylvania) vs. No. 20 Pine-Richland (Pennsylvania), Saturday
No. 8 Ben Davis (Indiana) – Season Completed
No. 9 Northwestern (Florida) at No. 20 Armwood (Florida), Friday
No. 10 St. Frances Academy (Maryland) – Season Completed
No. 11 Brentwood Academy (Tennessee) – Season Completed
No. 12 Bishop Gorman (Nevada) – Season Completed
No. 13 De La Salle (California) – Idle
No. 14 Bingham (Utah) – Season Completed
No. 15 Katy (Texas) vs. North Shore (Texas), Saturday
No. 16 Miami Central (Florida) – Season Completed
No. 17 St. John Bosco (California) – Season Completed
No. 18 St. John’s College HS (Washington, DC) – Season Completed
No. 19 Bergen Catholic (New Jersey) – Season Completed
No. 20 Pine-Richland (Pennsylvania) vs. No. 7 St. Joseph’s Prep (Pennsylvania), Saturday
No. 21 Armwood (Florida) vs. No. 9 Northwestern (Florida), Friday
No. 22 Dutch Fork (South Carolina) – Season Completed
No. 23 Westlake (Texas) vs. Cibolo Steele (Texas), Saturday
No. 24 John Curtis (Louisiana) vs. Catholic (Baton Rouge, Louisiana), Saturday
No. 25 Archbishop Wood (Pennsylvania) vs. Gateway (Pennsylvania), Friday
No. 26 Erie Cathedral Prep (Pennsylvania) vs. Imhotep Charter (Pennsylvania), Thursday
No. 27 Trotwood-Madison (Ohio) – Season Completed
No. 28 Owasso (Oklahoma) – Season Completed
No. 29 Pickerington Central (Ohio) – Season Completed
No. 30 Venice (Florida) vs. No. 89 Bartram Trail (Florida), Saturday
No. 31 Corona Centennial (California) – Season Completed
No. 32 Denton Ryan (Texas) vs. Lubbock Coronado (Texas), Saturday
No. 33 DePaul Catholic (New Jersey) – Season Completed
No. 34 Chandler (Arizona) – Season Completed
No. 35 Aledo (Texas) vs. Richland (Texas), Saturday
No. 36 Lake Travis (Texas) vs. O’Connor (Texas), Saturday
No. 37 St. Peter’s Prep (New Jersey) – Season Completed
No. 38 Centennial (Arizona) – Season Completed
No. 39 St. Thomas Aquinas (Florida) – Season Completed
No. 40 Union (Oklahoma) – Season Completed
No. 41 Mission Viejo (California) – Season Completed
No. 42 West Point (Mississippi) – Season Completed
No. 43 Wake Forest (North Carolina) vs. No. 57 Mallard Creek (North Carolina), Saturday
No. 44 Pearl (Mississippi) – Season Completed
No. 45 St. Joseph Regional (Montvale, New Jersey) – Season Completed
No. 46 Fort Dorchester (South Carolina) – Season Completed
No. 47 Cocoa (Florida) vs. Raines (Florida), Thursday
No. 48 Mentor (Ohio) – Season Completed
No. 49 Archbishop Hoban (Ohio) – Season Completed
No. 50 Prairie Ridge (Illinois) – Season Completed
No. 51 Lincoln-Way East (Illinois) – Season Completed
No. 52 Hoover (Alabama) vs. No. 65 McGill Toolen (Alabama), Wednesday
No. 53 Manvel (Texas) vs. Temple (Texas), Friday
No. 54 Pulaski Academy (Arkansas) – Season Completed
No. 55 Euless Trinity (Texas) vs. No. 3 Allen (Texas), Saturday
No. 56 Duncanville (Texas) – Season Completed
No. 57 Mallard Creek (North Carolina) vs. No. 43 Wake Forest (North Carolina), Saturday
No. 58 Folsom (California) vs. Fresno Central (California), Friday
No. 59 St. Ignatius (Ohio) – Season Completed
No. 60 East (Utah) – Season Completed
No. 61 St. Xavier (Ohio) – Season Completed
No. 62 St. Edward (Ohio) – Season Completed
No. 63 Saint Louis (Hawaii) – Season Completed
No. 64 Midway (Texas) vs. Southlake Carroll (Texas), Saturday
No. 65 McGill-Toolen (Alabama) vs. No. 52 Hoover (Alabama), Wednesday
No. 66 Thompson (Alabama) – Season Completed
No. 67 Narbonne (California) vs. Paraclete (California), Saturday
No. 68 North Gwinnett (Georgia) vs. No. 76 Colquitt County (Georgia), TBA
No. 69 Central (Phenix, Alabama) – Season Completed
No. 70 Liberty (Nevada) – Season Completed
No. 71 Maryville (Tennessee) – Season Completed
No. 72 Saguaro (Arizona) – Season Completed
No. 73 Phillips Academy (Illinois) – Season Completed
No. 74 North Little Rock (Arkansas) – Season Completed
No. 75 Chaminade-Madonna (Florida) vs. Oxbridge Academy (Florida), Saturday
No. 76 Colquitt County (Georgia) vs. No. 68 North Gwinnett (Georgia), Saturday
No. 77 Cardinal Gibbons (Florida) – Season Completed
No. 78 Archer (Georgia) – Season Completed
No. 79 Grayson (Georgia) – Season Completed
No. 80 Oakland (Tennessee) – Season Completed
No. 81 Maine South (Illinois) – Season Completed
No. 82 Longview (Texas) vs. Lufkin (Texas), Saturday
No. 83 Rome (Georgia) vs. Warner Robins (Georgia), Saturday
No. 84 Klein Collins (Texas) – Season Completed
No. 85 Plant (Florida) – Season Completed
No. 86 Judson (Texas) – Season Completed
No. 87 Carol City (Florida) – Season Completed
No. 88 Kahuku (Hawaii) – Season Completed
No. 89 Bartram Trail (Florida) at No. 30 Venice (Florida), Saturday
No. 90 Marist (Georgia) vs. No. 94 Blessed Trinity (Georgia), Friday
No. 91 Viera (Florida) – Season Completed
No. 92 Gonzaga (Washington, DC) – Season Completed
No. 93 Good Counsel (Maryland) – Season Completed
No. 94 Blessed Trinity (Georgia) vs. No. 90 Marist (Georgia), Friday
No. 95 Winton Woods (Ohio) – Season Completed
No. 96 Buford (Georgia) – Season Completed
No. 97 Cartersville (Georgia) – Season Completed
No. 98 Chaminade (California) – Season Completed
No. 99 Colerain (Ohio) – Season Completed
No. 100 Miramar (Florida) – Season Completed
