It happened on a cold December night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and honestly, it felt like the entire state of Georgia was holding its breath. Buford vs. Carrollton. A 28-21 dogfight that didn't just decide a state title but effectively ended the debate over the high school football top 25 for the 2025 season.
Buford isn't exactly a Cinderella story—they've won 15 state titles now—but this year was different. For the first time since MaxPreps started crowning national champs back in 2005, a Georgia team actually finished at the very top of the mountain. They went 15-0. They survived a schedule that would make some D1 college programs sweat. And they did it with a roster that looked like a blue-chip recruiting fever dream.
The Consensus King: How Buford Locked Down No. 1
The Wolves didn't just squeak into the top spot; they basically boarded up the doors so nobody else could get in. By late December, they were the consensus No. 1 across USA Today, MaxPreps, and ESPN.
Why? Because they beat the best.
That state final against Carrollton was the separator. Carrollton was ranked No. 1 or No. 2 in plenty of polls heading into that game. When you beat the other guy who has a legitimate claim to the throne, the "what-ifs" usually go out the window. Buford’s defense, anchored by stars like Bryce Perry-Wright and Tyriq Green, was allowing just a handful of points most weeks. They outscored people by an average of 34 points. That’s not just winning; that’s a weekly demolition.
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The Chaos in the High School Football Top 25
If you followed the rankings this year, you know it was a total mess for a while. Usually, the Trinity League in California or the South Florida powers just pass the trophy back and forth.
Not this time.
Take Mater Dei and St. John Bosco. For a decade, these two have been the "Super Bowl" of high school ball. This year’s game was an instant classic, but it also threw the national rankings into a blender. Mater Dei was down 24-3. They looked dead. Then Ryan Hopkins turned into a human highlight reel, throwing five touchdowns to pull off a 36-31 comeback.
But here’s the kicker: Mater Dei finished with three losses. In the world of the high school football top 25, three losses is usually a death sentence for a national title hunt. They still finished in the top 10 because their "Strength of Schedule" was basically 70.1 (per MaxPreps metrics)—a number so high it’s almost comical.
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The Top 10 Reality Check
- Buford (GA): 15-0. The undisputed heavyweight champs.
- St. Frances Academy (MD): 9-1. Their only loss was a tight one, and they played anyone, anywhere.
- Bishop Gorman (NV): 11-1. The Gaels won their 15th state title in 16 years. Their dominance in Nevada is getting a bit ridiculous, honestly.
- Santa Margarita (CA): 11-3. They climbed late, especially after Carson Palmer (yes, that name sounds familiar) led them to a dominant Open Division state title win over De La Salle.
- Carrollton (GA): 14-1. Only lost to Buford. Julian Lewis lived up to the hype, but it wasn't quite enough.
- Edna Karr (LA): 14-0. The pride of New Orleans. They were a "composite" darling all year.
- IMG Academy (FL): 9-0. Hard to rank them higher because they don't play for a state playoff, but the talent is undeniable.
- Centennial (CA): 11-2. Another California powerhouse that basically lives in the top 10.
- Mater Dei (CA): 8-3. The best "bad record" in the history of the sport.
- St. Thomas Aquinas (FL): 14-1. They jumped up 9 spots from their preseason rank to win another Florida title.
Texas-Sized Disappointments and Surprises
Texas usually dominates this conversation, but 2025 was a weird year for the Lone Star State. Duncanville, a perennial top-5 lock, finished 12-2 and slid down to No. 27 in some national polls. They're still elite, obviously, but the "unbeatable" aura took a hit.
Instead, South Oak Cliff and North Shore carried the banner. South Oak Cliff went 15-1, finishing as the No. 15 team in the country according to the On3 Composite.
What's interesting is how the Massey Ratings—which are purely math-based—loved Bixby out of Oklahoma. Massey actually had Bixby at No. 1 for a stretch. It shows the massive divide between "eye-test" scouts who love the IMG Academies of the world and the "computer" guys who look at point differentials and margin of victory.
Why the Rankings Still Matter (And Why They Don't)
You'll hear coaches say they don't look at the high school football top 25.
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They're lying.
These rankings dictate who gets the big TV games. They dictate which players get the extra "stars" on their recruiting profiles. If you're a school like St. Frances Academy, being in the top 5 is the only way you can justify flying a team of teenagers across the country to play a game in a different time zone.
But rankings are also flawed. It’s impossible to truly compare a 15-0 team in Georgia to a 14-0 team in Florida when they never play each other. We rely on "common opponents" and strength of schedule, but at the end of the day, it's a lot of educated guessing.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Coaches
If you're trying to keep up with this world or help your program get noticed, here's the deal:
- Schedule Matters More Than Record: Mater Dei's three losses didn't keep them out of the top 10 because they played a "who's who" of national talent. If you want to be in the Top 25, you can't play cupcakes.
- The "Composite" is King: Don't just look at one poll. Use the On3 or MaxPreps composite rankings. They average out the bias between the different scouting services.
- Watch the Sophomores: This year was dominated by underclassmen. Names like Koa Malau'ulu at Bosco and Bryce Perry-Wright at Buford are the ones who will define the 2026 rankings too.
The 2025 season proved that the center of the high school football universe might finally be shifting. For years, it was Cali and Florida. This year? The road to the national title ran straight through Buford, Georgia.
To keep an eye on next season's movement, start tracking the returning starters for the Top 10 programs now. Early transfer portal moves and coaching changes in the spring will be the first indicators of who stays in the high school football top 25 come August.