No team in the USA TODAY Sports Super 25 has moved more than Santa Margarita (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.) this season. The team climbed as high as No. 15 in the rankings on Sept. 22 before suffering a second loss and dropping out. Now, they’re back in the top 10 after beating Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.). Very few teams have proven they have earned a top-10 ranking like the Eagles.
Santa Margarita’s 7-6 win was the second time they had beaten a top-5 team this season, following an overtime victory over Centennial (Corona, Calif.), which helped with their initial placement. Two big wins offset their two losses, and the Eagles re-enter at No. 8, behind a Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.) team to whom they lost, and a pair of undefeated Georgia teams that have been in the top-10 all season.
Milton (Ga.), which entered the week at No. 20, is out of the Super 25 following a loss to Gainesville (Ga.).
Gainesville is one of about 10 teams outside the Super 25 who are making excellent cases for joining. Teams like Clay-Chalksville (Pinson, Ala.), Mission Viejo (Calif.) and Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.), all of whom have defeated Super 25 teams this year, are on the borderline of entering (or, in Mission Viejo’s case, re-entering) the national rankings.
As high school football action rushes into mid-October, here is the full Super 25:
1. St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.)
Record: 7-0
Previous rank: 1
Last result: Defeated Orange Lutheran (Calif.) 48-0
2. IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.)
Record: 6-0
Previous rank: 2
Last result: DNP
3. St. Frances Academy (Baltimore, Md.)
Record: 6-1 (including forfeit)
Previous rank: 3
Last result: Defeated St. Thomas More (Oakdale, Conn.) 60-0
4. Centennial (Corona, Calif.)
Record: 6-1
Previous rank: 4
Last result: Defeated Vista Murrieta (Calif.) 63-14
5. Grayson (Loganville, Ga.)
Record: 8-0
Previous rank: 7
Last result: Defeated Rockdale County 58-10
6. Buford (Ga.)
Record: 7-0
Previous rank: 8
Last result: Defeated Dacula (Ga.) 58-7
7. Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.)
Record: 7-1
Previous rank: 6
Last result: Defeated Mojave (North Las Vegas) 58-0
8. Santa Margarita (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.)
Record: 5-2
Previous rank: NR
Last result: Defeated Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) 7-6
9. Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.)
Record: 7-0
Previous rank: 9
Last result: Defeated Chaminade (West Hills, Calif.) 45-14
10. Edna Karr (New Orleans, La.)
Record: 6-0
Previous rank: 10
Last result: Defeated Brother Martin (New Orleans) 48-13
11. Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.)
Record: 4-2
Previous rank: 5
Last result: Lost to Santa Margarita (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.) 7-6
12. St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
Record: 6-1
Previous rank: 12
Last result: Defeated NFL Academy (London) 41-38
13. Chaminade-Madonna (Hollywood, Fla.)
Record: 5-1
Previous rank: 12
Last result: DNP
14. Carrollton (Ga.)
Record: 8-0
Previous rank: 14
Last result: Defeated Chapel Hill (Douglasville, Ga.) 56-7
15. Southlake Carroll (Texas)
Record: 7-0
Previous rank: 15
Last result: Defeated V.R. Eaton (Fort Worth, Texas) 66-7
16. DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.)
Record: 6-0
Previous rank: 13
Last result: Defeated Our Lady of Good Counsel (Olney, Md.) 7-0
17. De La Salle (Concord, Calif.)
Record: 6-0
Previous rank: 16
Last result: DNP
18. Baylor (Chattanooga, Tenn.)
Record: 6-0
Previous rank: 17
Last result: DNP
19. Basha (Chandler, Ariz.)
Record: 6-0
Previous rank: 18
Last result: DNP
20. Allen (Texas)
Record: 5-0
Previous rank: 19
Last result: Defeated Princeton (Texas) 62-14
21. Duncanville (Texas)
Record: 3-1
Previous rank: 23
Last result: Defeated DeSoto (Texas) 48-28
22. Cass Tech (Detroit, Mich.)
Record: 7-0
Previous rank: 21
Last result: Defeated East English Village Prep (Detroit) 67-0
23. Grimsley (Greensboro, N.C.)
Record: 7-0
Previous rank: 22
Last result: Defeated Ragsdale (Jamestown, N.C.) 43-8
24. Brownsburg (Ind.)
Record: 8-0
Previous rank: 24
Last result: Defeated Noblesville (Ind.) 42-7
25. Bixby (Okla.)
Record: 6-0
Previous rank: 25
Last result: Defeated Edmond North (Okla.) 64-7
Super 25 watchlist
- Clay-Chalkville (Pinson, Ala.)
- Mission Viejo (Calif.)
- South Oak Cliff (Dallas, Texas)
- Corner Canyon (Draper, Utah)
- Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.)
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY High School Sports Wire: How did Mater Dei loss shake up Week 8 of USA TODAY Sports Super 25?
