Only four Blue Star Go-To 25 High School Football Preseason rankings – all from the Southland – debuted this weekend. Starting Friday six more tee it up.
Triple Option
What we learned: All four Blue Star Go-To 25 teams won but that’s deceiving. It was business as usual for No. 16 Trinity (Louisville, Ky.), the 21-time state championship program, and No. 13 Butler (Matthews, N.C.), both of who struggled at times but recorded lopsided wins. No. 14 South Panola (Batesville, Miss.) and No. 20 Ensworth School (Nashville, Tenn.) are both works in progress. South Panola failed to find the end zone in a 12-10 win over West Point. The Tigers better shore things up in practice because No. 19 Hoover (Ala.) visits on Aug. 31 and will be prepared.
In the Midlands Region, Cathedral (Indianapolis), Indiana’s top-ranked Class 4A team lost to Ben Davis (Indianapolis), 24-21. Ben Davis is No. 5 in Class 5A and is now a challenger to 5A top dog Carmel (1-0).
Six Go-To 25 teams, including No. 1 Grayson (Loganville, Ga.), open their seasons this upcoming weekend.
The rankings are static until Labor Day (Sept. 3) when upon release will reflect the initial three weeks of action. No. 25 Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.) is the final Go-To 25 team to open its season in a “neutral site” game at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. against regionally ranked Gilman School (Baltimore), considered one of Maryland’s top teams.
Game Ball: QB Travis Wright of No. 16 Trinity (Louisville, Ky.) produced a monster passing game in a 52-23 decisive victory over Brentwood Academy of Tennessee, earning him Blue Star Media Player of the Week honors. Wright, a 6-foot-1, 180-pound senior, helped rally Trinity from a 23-17 deficit in the second quarter, engineering an 87-yard drive, capped by a 16-yard touchdown strike to Reggie Bonnafon with 28.5 seconds left.
Wright finished 21 of 31 for 291 yards and three TDS as the Shamrocks scored the game’s final 35 points. Wright, a fleet-footed dual threat signal caller, has interest from Ball State, Georgia Tech, Toledo, Louisville and a handful of Southeastern Conference programs.
Must-see TV: You don’t have to be at a stadium this weekend for quality games of week. In fact, your couch and TV remote control puts you a click away from 13 games for over three days on the ESPN family of networks, including nine teams ranked nationally or regionally by Blue Star Media.
Fifteen states are represented on the ESPN High School Kickoff Weekend. Here are the top three games: Friday, No. 10 Good Counsel (Olney, Md.) at No. 22 Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas), 9 p.m. ET, ESPN2; Saturday, No. 5 Santa Margarita (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.) at Brophy Prep (Phoenix), 10 p.m. ET, ESPN2; Sunday, Gilman School (Baltimore) at No. 17 Moeller (Cincinnati), 7 p.m., ESPNU. Check local listings for the entire schedule.
Brett Ball
In case you missed it, Brett Favre is back in football and loving it. This time the future Pro Football Hall of Famer, two years removed from his last gig with the Minnesota Vikings, was on the sidelines as the offensive coordinator for Oak Grove (Miss.) High during a 64-6 blow out of Sumrall Friday.
Oak Grove QB Kirk McCarty took his cue from Favre with a bit of chicanery only 44 seconds into the contest when he pitched to QB Cameron Myers, who was lined up in the slot before uncorking a long TD pass and the rout was on.
When Favre was hired this spring, he approached head coach Nevil Barr about adding a few offensive wrinkles to the Oak Grove playbook. Expect more hijinks from Favre’s vast bag of tricks but more importantly watch the growth of Oak Grove’s quarterbacks.
Here’s how the Blue Star Go-To 25 fared:
1. Grayson, Loganville, Ga. (0-0) opens Saturday vs. McEachern (Powder Springs) in Corky Kell Classic at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.
2. Skyline, Dallas (0-0) opens Sept. 1 vs. The Woodlands.
3. Central, Miami (0-0) opens Aug. 31 at No. 1 Grayson (Loganville, Ga.).
4. Manatee, Bradenton, Fla. (0-0) opens Sept. 2 vs. Miramar.
5. Santa Margarita, Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif. (0-0) opens Saturday at Brophy Prep (Phoenix).
6. Southlake (Texas) Carroll (0-0) opens Aug. 31 at Allen.
7. Booker T. Washington, Miami (0-0) opens Aug. 31 at Carol City (Miami).
8. De La Salle, Concord, Calif. (0-0) opens Aug. 31 at Bellarmine (San Jose) at San Jose Community College.
9. John Curtis Christian, River Ridge, La. (0-0) opens Aug. 31 at Franklinton.
10. Good Counsel, Olney, Md. (0-0) opens Friday at No. 22 Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas).
11. Camden County, Kingsland, Ga. (0-0) opens Saturday vs. Peachtree Ridge (Suwanee) at the Georgia Dome.
12. Vista Murietta, Murietta, Calif. (0-0) opens Aug. 31 vs. ThunderRidge (Highlands Ranch, Colo.).
13. Butler, Matthews, N.C. (1-0) defeated Mallard Creek (Charlotte), 27-6, in a battle of the North Carolina’s top two Class 4AA teams. The Bulldogs jumped to a 24-0 halftime edge as Tennessee-bound QB Riley Ferguson passed for 158 yards and three TDs despite injuring the thumb on his throwing hand in late July. He also threw three INTs in the third quarter but the Butler defense surrendered only six points. Up Next: Friday vs. Olympic (Charlotte).
14. South Panola, Batesville, Miss. (1-0) defeated West Point, 12-10. Senior Clayton Sibley kicked four field goals, including the game-winner as time expired, as the Tiger avoided a bad loss. Up Next: Aug. 31 vs. No. 19 Hoover (Ala.).
15. Plant, Tampa, Fla. (0-0) opens Aug. 31 at Jesuit (Tampa).
16. Trinity, Louisville (1-0) defeated Brentwood (Tenn.) Academy, 52-23. The Shamrocks won their 26th straight game, scoring the game’s final 35 points. RB Dalyn Dawkins rushed for 122 yards and two TDs. Up Next: Friday at Montgomery Bell Academy (Nashville, Tenn.).
17. Moeller, Cincinnati (9-4) opens Sunday vs. Gilman School (Baltimore).
18. Lake Travis, Austin, Texas (0-0) opens Aug. 31 at Converse Judson.
19. Hoover, Ala. (0-0) opens Aug. 31 at No. 14 South Panola (Batesville, Miss.).
20. Ensworth School, Nashville, Tenn. (1-0) defeated Memphis University School, 35-28. RB Corn Elder ran for 230 yards and four TDs, but his late fourth quarter fumble gave University a lifeline before the defense quashed a rally. Up Next: Saturday at Lexington (Ky.) Catholic.
21. Katy, Texas (0-0) opens Aug. 31 vs. Klein in Houston’s Reliant Stadium.
22. Bishop Gorman, Las Vegas (0-0) opens Friday vs. No. 10 Good Counsel (Olney, Md.).
23. Goose Creek, S.C. (0-0) opens Friday vs. Ashley Ridge (Summerville).
24. Bellevue, Wash. (0-0) opens Aug. 30 vs. Trinity (Euless, Texas) at Seattle Memorial Stadium on ESPN.
25. Don Bosco Prep, Ramsey, N.J. (0-0) opens Sept. 8 vs. Gilman School (Baltimore) at Navy-Maine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Md.
About: The Blue Star Media Go-To 25 Football Rankings are released weekly from September 3 until the conclusion of the high school season. Criteria considered are the quality of the team and its players, strength of schedule, tradition and quality of league, conference, region or district. The rankings are compiled by Blue Star Media’s Senior Writer Christopher Lawlor, who consults with a national network of coaches, talent evaluators and prep sports writers.
