Valor Christian is the preseason No. 1 in 5A. (Kevin Keyser/KeyserImages.com)
Defending champions head six of football’s seven preseason CHSAANow.com rankings, which were unveiled Monday morning.
The lone exception is Lutheran in Class 3A — which saw both its champion (Coronado) and runner-up (Silver Creek) move up to 4A this cycle.
In fact, that ranking was also the most split of any other, with both Lutheran and preseason No. 2 Delta both getting three first-place votes. Lutheran got the No. 1 nod with 65 total points. Delta had 53 points.
Lutheran was eliminated in the first round of the 3A playoffs last season, while Delta made the semifinals. Lutheran is entering its first season under new coach Blair Hubbard, formerly of Faith Christian.
Valor Christian, a five-time defending champion across three classifications, opens up as No. 1 in Class 5A for the second year in a row. The Eagles topped Fairview to win the 5A title last season.
Cherry Creek, a quarterfinalist a year ago, is No. 2 in 5A. Cherokee Trail is ranked third, Pomona is fourth and Columbine is fifth.
Chatfield begins the season as No. 6, Regis Jesuit is No. 7, Grandview is No. 8, Ralston Valley is No. 9 and Fairview rounds out the preseason poll.
Platte Valley celebrates last year’s 2A championship. (Jon E. Yunt)
Among those receiving votes in 5A were ThunderRidge, Overland, newcomer Monarch and Legend.
In 4A, Pine Creek begins as the No. 1 team. The Eagles beat Montrose in last year’s title game. Montrose is No. 2 in the ranking.
Other preseason No. 1 teams are Platte Valley (2A), Paonia (1A), Dayspring Christian (8-man) and Stratton/Liberty (6-man).
The rankings are voted upon by coaches and select media members, and are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, rankings will be released each Monday.
Complete rankings are below.
CHSAANow.com Football Polls
Voted upon by coaches and select media members around the state. New voters can sign up by emailing rcasey@chsaa.org.
These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding, except in 5A where they are used as part of the seeding criteria.
Go to: 5A | 4A | 3A | 2A | 1A | 8-man | 6-man
| Class 5A | ||
|---|---|---|
| RK | TEAM | PTS |
| 1 | Valor Christian (10) | 125 |
| 2 | Cherry Creek (3) | 113 |
| 3 | Cherokee Trail | 80 |
| 4 | Pomona | 61 |
| 5 | Columbine | 56 |
| 6 | Chatfield | 54 |
| 7 | Regis Jesuit | 51 |
| 8 | Grandview | 45 |
| 9 | Ralston Valley | 34 |
| 10 | Fairview | 32 |
| Others receiving votes: | ||
| ThunderRidge 31, Overland 16, Monarch 7, Legend 5, Douglas County 3, Grand Junction 3, Mullen 2, Doherty 1, Fountain-Fort Carson 1. | ||
| Class 4A | ||
|---|---|---|
| RK | TEAM | PTS |
| 1 | Pine Creek (11) | 110 |
| 2 | Montrose | 81 |
| 3 | Pueblo South | 75 |
| 4 | Longmont | 67 |
| 5 | Denver South | 53 |
| 6 | Broomfield | 43 |
| 7 | Standley Lake | 36 |
| 8 | Dakota Ridge | 28 |
| 9 | Pueblo Centennial | 26 |
| 10 | Windsor | 25 |
| Others receiving votes: | ||
| Pueblo West 18, Vista Ridge 17, Loveland 13, Fort Collins 5, Coronado 3, Palmer Ridge 2, Wheat Ridge 2, Falcon 1. | ||
| Class 3A | ||
|---|---|---|
| RK | TEAM | PTS |
| 1 | Lutheran (3) | 65 |
| 2 | Delta (3) | 53 |
| 3 | Holy Family | 52 |
| 4 | Rifle (1) | 40 |
| 5 | Roosevelt | 33 |
| 6 | Evergreen | 25 |
| 7 | The Classical Academy | 19 |
| 8 | Palisade | 16 |
| 9 | Lewis-Palmer (1) | 15 |
| 10 | Vista PEAK | 11 |
| Others receiving votes: | ||
| Fort Morgan 9, Northridge 9, Pueblo East 7, Mead 4, Conifer 3, Discovery Canyon 3, Erie 3, Frederick 3, Woodland Park 2, Eagle Valley 1, Pueblo Central 1. | ||
| Class 2A | ||
|---|---|---|
| RK | TEAM | PTS |
| 1 | Platte Valley (5) | 66 |
| 2 | Faith Christian (1) | 64 |
| 3 | Brush (1) | 54 |
| 4 | Manitou Springs | 41 |
| 5 | Kent Denver | 38 |
| 6 | Florence | 31 |
| 7 | Strasburg | 24 |
| 8 | Bennett | 23 |
| 9 | Lamar | 16 |
| 10 | Olathe | 9 |
| Others receiving votes: | ||
| Gunnison 7, La Junta 4, Sterling 4, Eaton 2, Middle Park 1, Moffat County 1. | ||
| Class 1A | ||
|---|---|---|
| RK | TEAM | PTS |
| 1 | Paonia (4) | 63 |
| 2 | Centauri (2) | 58 |
| 3 | Limon (1) | 53 |
| 4 | Buena Vista | 49 |
| 5 | Resurrection Christian | 40 |
| 6 | Burlington | 36 |
| 7 | Monte Vista | 30 |
| 8 | Yuma | 13 |
| 9 | Wray | 10 |
| 10 | Cedaredge | 8 |
| Others receiving votes: | ||
| Platte Canyon 6, Colorado Springs Christian 5, Meeker 4, Holyoke 3, Hotchkiss 3, Rye 2, Front Range Christian 1, Wiggins 1. | ||
| 8-man | ||
|---|---|---|
| RK | TEAM | PTS |
| 1 | Dayspring Christian (7) | 70 |
| 2 | Norwood | 61 |
| 3 | Caliche | 53 |
| 4 | Hoehne | 50 |
| 5 | Simla | 42 |
| 6 | Sargent | 29 |
| 7 | Merino | 25 |
| 8 | Sanford | 22 |
| 9 | Sedgwick County | 11 |
| 10 | Dove Creek | 7 |
| Others receiving votes: | ||
| Granada 4, McClave 4, Kiowa 3, Rangely 2, Vail Christian 2. | ||
| 6-man | ||
|---|---|---|
| RK | TEAM | PTS |
| 1 | Stratton/Liberty (4) | 49 |
| 2 | Eads | 40 |
| 3 | Arickaree/Woodlin (1) | 39 |
| 4 | Peetz | 32 |
| 5 | Hi-Plains | 25 |
| 6 | Briggsdale | 21 |
| 7 | Fleming | 18 |
| 8 | Idalia | 16 |
| 9 | Otis | 11 |
| 10 | Kit Carson | 9 |
| Others receiving votes: | ||
| Prairie 7, Flagler 4, Hanover 3, Walsh 1. | ||