Florida is basically the wild west of high school football. You’ve got teams in South Florida that could probably beat some small colleges, and then you’ve got the technical computer rankings that try to make sense of it all. Honestly, if you look at the Florida high school football rankings at the end of the 2025 season, the numbers tell a wild story of dynasties holding on by their fingernails and new giants finally kicking the door down.
It’s never just about who has the most stars. It’s about who survives the heat, the travel, and the absolute gauntlet of the FHSAA playoffs.
The Undisputed King and the Dynasty in Fort Lauderdale
Let’s be real for a second. IMG Academy is always going to be the elephant in the room. They finished 2025 at 9-0. Because they don’t play for a traditional FHSAA state title, they sort of exist in this vacuum at the top of the rankings. They played a national schedule, beat everyone put in front of them, and finished as the #1 team in the state according to almost every computer model, including MaxPreps and Massey.
But for the folks who care about the trophies you can actually hold in a hometown gym, St. Thomas Aquinas is the name that carries the most weight.
They did it again. Seven in a row.
📖 Related: Vince Carter Meme I Got One More: The Story Behind the Internet's Favorite Comeback
The Raiders finished 14-1, with their only blemish being an opening loss to a national powerhouse. After that? They were a buzzsaw. They ended the year ranked #2 overall after dismantling Lakeland 29-0 in the Class 5A state championship. When people talk about "South Florida football," this is the standard they’re measuring against.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Rankings
There’s this huge misconception that the highest-ranked team is always the "best" team. In Florida, the ranking system is a mix of human polls and the FHSAA’s modified MaxPreps formula.
- The Computer Bias: The FHSAA system (which determines playoff seeding) removes the "predictive" elements that standard MaxPreps rankings use. It cares about what you actually did on the field, not how many four-star recruits you have on the roster.
- The Strength of Schedule Factor: This is why a team like American Heritage can finish 9-5 and still be ranked in the top 10. They played one of the hardest schedules in the country. Losing to a top-5 team in California shouldn't drop you below an undefeated team playing a much weaker local schedule.
- The "Rural" Trap: Often, dominant teams in the Rural or 1A classifications get ignored because they don't play the "big" schools. But tell that to Cardinal Newman, who finished 12-3 and took down the mighty Chaminade-Madonna 17-14 for the 1A title.
The Underdogs Who Crashed the Party
If you weren't watching Jacksonville this year, you missed out. Raines High School finished a perfect 14-0. Think about that. In a state this competitive, going undefeated is almost impossible. They clinched the Class 3A title by beating Miami Northwestern in a 23-22 thriller that basically gave everyone in the stadium a heart attack.
Raines ended the year at #3 in most state-wide rankings, which is a massive statement for a Duval County program.
👉 See also: Finding the Best Texas Longhorns iPhone Wallpaper Without the Low-Res Junk
Then you have Cardinal Mooney. They weren't exactly "underdogs" in terms of talent, but the way they finished was terrifying. A 52-28 blowout of Bolles in the 2A final? That’s not just a win; that’s a statement of intent. They ended the season sitting pretty at #4 or #6 depending on which poll you trust more.
How the 2025 Final Top 10 Shook Out
If we look at the consensus across On3, MaxPreps, and the final media polls, here is how the dust settled after the December championships.
- IMG Academy (9-0): The national independent powerhouse.
- St. Thomas Aquinas (14-1): The 5A Champs and the most consistent winners in state history.
- Raines (14-0): The undefeated 3A kings from Jacksonville.
- Miami Northwestern (13-1): Their only loss was that one-point heartbreaker to Raines.
- Miami Central (10-2): Still a powerhouse, though they missed out on the final trophy.
- Cardinal Mooney (14-1): The 2A State Champions who dominated the postseason.
- Cardinal Newman (12-3): 1A State Champions who proved they belong with the big boys.
- West Boca Raton (13-2): 6A State Champions who shut out West Broward 31-0 in the final.
- Chaminade-Madonna (11-3): A legendary program that fell just short in the 1A final.
- American Heritage (9-5): 4A State Champions who overcame a rocky start to win it all.
Why 2026 is Going to Break the System
If you think these Florida high school football rankings are controversial now, just wait. The FHSAA is making massive changes for the 2026 season. They are introducing an Open Division.
Basically, the top eight teams in the state—regardless of school size—will be pulled out of their normal brackets to play in a "Super Bracket" for the ultimate state title. Imagine St. Thomas Aquinas, IMG (if they joined), Miami Central, and Raines all in one bracket.
✨ Don't miss: Why Isn't Mbappe Playing Today: The Real Madrid Crisis Explained
It’s going to be absolute chaos.
They are also dropping from eight classifications down to seven (1A through 6A, plus Rural). This means more teams crammed into fewer brackets, making the road to a championship significantly harder.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Recruits
If you're a parent, a player, or just a die-hard fan trying to keep up with the Florida high school football rankings, don't just look at the record. Look at the "Strength of Schedule" (SOS) metric on MaxPreps.
A team with three losses in the "305" or "954" area codes is often better than a 10-0 team from a less competitive region. If you're looking for the best games to attend in 2026, keep an eye on the new District Tournament format being proposed for weeks 10 and 11. It's designed to create "win-or-go-home" scenarios before the actual state playoffs even start.
Stay tuned to the FHSAA power rankings starting in October; that’s when the math starts to actually matter for the postseason.