A pair of upsets shook up the Stadium Talk Top 25 High School Football Rankings this week as a pair of ranked California programs saw their seasons come to an end in the postseason.
In the CIF Southern Section Division I playoffs, No. 18 Centennial (Corona, California) fell to Mission Viejo (Mission Viejo, Calif.), 31-28, and unbeaten, No. 20 Long Beach Poly (Long Beach, Calif.) fell to Los Alamitos (Los Alamitos, Calif.) 52-42. In the same bracket, No. 1 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) rolled to a 54-14 win in its playoff opener against JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.).
All eyes this week will be focused on a Top 25 matchup between the top two independent teams in the nation. No. 14 IMG Academy (Bradenton, Florida) travels to face No. 4 St. Frances Academy (Baltimore, Maryland) on Friday.
Two new teams joined the Stadium Talk Top 25 for the first time with No. 17 Lakeland (Lakeland, Fla.) and No. 25 Frederick Douglass (Lexington, Kentucky) entering the poll after playoff victories.
Thirteen different states are represented in this week’s Top 25, with Florida leading the way with six teams and Texas right behind with five teams. California, Georgia and Ohio each put two teams in the Top 25.
The Stadium Talk Top 25 High School Football Rankings are released every Tuesday morning throughout the regular season with a national champion crowned following the final state championship games across the country. Check out The Stadium Talk Podcast, Season One: High School Football in America on Apple Podcast, Spotify and Amazon.
22. Archbishop Moeller High School (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Archbishop Moeller Athletics
Previous ranking: 23
Record: 12-1
Last game: Defeated Mason 24-16
Next game: Nov. 18 vs. Lakota West (13-0)
Bottom line: Archbishop Moeller led 24-0 against Mason before holding off a late charge to advance in the Division I state playoffs, where they’ll face unbeaten Lakota West in next week’s regional finals.
Moeller got a big lift from freshman quarterback Matt Ponatoski, who committed to play baseball for the University of Missouri in the eighth grade. Ponatoski came off the bench to go 7-of-18 passing for 106 yards and a 33-yard touchdown pass to Tennel Bryant.
Senior running back Jordan Marshall added 98 rushing yards and one touchdown on 12 carries.
14. IMG Academy (Bradenton, Florida)
Previous ranking: 14
Record: 7-1
Last game: Defeated West Toronto Prep 96-0 (Nov. 4)
Next game: Nov. 18 at No. 4 St. Frances Academy (8-0)
Bottom line: With IMG Academy’s season now down to just one game remaining at No. 4 St. Frances Academy on Friday in Baltimore, it’s fair to ask the question — did a blown call in the first game of the year cost the Ascenders a shot at the national championship?
IMG opened the season with a 20-14 home loss to No. 3 Miami Central on Aug. 27, after the Rockets scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 20-yard interception return for a touchdown by junior cornerback Lawayne McCoy in the fourth quarter. With an official running directly behind him, McCoy tossed the ball in the air in celebration several yards before he was in the end zone, and the ball tumbled out the back of the IMG end zone, which should have resulted in a touchback and not a touchdown.
Internet super-sleuths reacted with their own screenshots and close-ups of the play, with Twitter user Aron Christiansen providing the definitive proof on the play.
