Arizona High School Football Rankings: Preseason Top 25 teams

Arizona high school football is set to kick off this month, and the Grand Canyon State will feature some of the best teams in the nation in 2024.

The On3 Massey Ratings, officially used during the BCS era, is a model that ranks sports teams by analyzing game outcomes, strength of schedule and margin of victory. According to this model, four Arizona teams rank in the national top 150.

Below are the top 25 programs in Arizona heading into the 2024 season.

1. Peoria Liberty

A 33-21 win over Centennial capped a 12-1, Arizona Open Division championship-winning season for Liberty in 2023. The Lions will look to defend their title in 2024 against a schedule that features nine top-25 Arizona programs, including Chandler, Centennial and Saguaro. Liberty is the nation’s No. 22 team and will kick off on Aug. 30 against Desert Edge. Minnesota OT commit Nick Spence will anchor the offensive line for the Lions this season.

2. Chandler

Chandler dropped the first round of the playoffs to Highland last season, but the Wolves are back and poised to compete for a state title in 2024. It will open with Cesar Chavez on Aug. 29 before facing the likes of Mountain Ridge, Highland, Liberty, Casteel, Basha and Hamilton. The Wolves lose a handful of Power 4 caliber players from last season: Illinois RB Ca’lil Valentine, Notre Dame DB Kennedy Urlacher and Utah CB Sammie Hunter.

3. Peoria Centennial

Centennial made it to the Open Division state championship game before falling to Liberty, capping an 11-2 season for the Coyotes. Centennial will get a shot at revenge against Liberty in the final game of the season on Nov. 8. Other big games include Hamilton, Highland, Brophy, Salpointe Catholic, Boulder Creek, Saguaro, Queen Creek, Chaparral and Pinnacle.

4. Chandler Hamilton

Liberty dropped Hamilton in the first round of the Open playoffs last year after a 7-3 regular season for the Huskies. Hamilton’s first game comes on Aug. 29 against Centennial, followed by a tough two-game stretch against Desert Ridge and Boulder Creek. Games against Casteel, Red Mountain and Chandler will close out the schedule heading into November.

5. Chandler Basha

Basha put together an impressive 10-2 season, falling to Centennial in the state semifinals. The Bears will host the No. 2 squad in Nebraska for the first game of the season — Omaha Millard South. They will also go on the road to Mission Viejo (Calif.) on Sept. 20, the Diablos being the No. 47 team in the nation. Basha will have to make a replacement at the quarterback position in 2024 after losing Demond Williams Jr. to Washington at the next level.

6. Scottsdale Saguaro

A 9-5 season ended with an Arizona 6A state title for Saguaro a year ago, beating Red Mountain 40-20 in the final game. A tough schedule awaits the Sabercats with the likes of American Leadership Academy, Mountain View, Basha, Centennial, Chaparral, Liberty, Salpointe Catholic and Pinnacle.

7. Gilbert Highland

Highland made it to the Open Division semifinals before a 54-12 loss ended the Hawks’ 9-3 season. This year, Highland can look forward to games against Centennial, Chandler, Red Mountain, Williams Field, American Leadership Academy, Queen Creek and Desert Ridge.

8. Phoenix Pinnacle

A 7-5 season a year ago ended in heartbreaking fashion for Pinnacle with a 27-24 overtime loss in the postseason to Red Mountain. The Pioneers will kick off 2024 against Albuquerque (N.M.) La Cueva before playing against American Leadership, Chaparral, Liberty, Sandra Day O’Connor, Centennial and Saguaro.

9. Phoenix Brophy

The theme of the postseason in Arizona 6A, Brophy also took Red Mountain to overtime before losing 36-35 in the state semifinals. The Broncos have a loaded roster in 2024 to try to get over that hump with Power 4 talent like Wisconsin four-star IOL commit Logan Powell, Notre Dame cornerback pledge Cree Thomas, Kansas State DB commit Dominic Mitchell and Kansas IOL commit Anderson Kopp in the senior class. The Broncos will open the season against Williams Field with future games against Centennial, Basha and Salpointe Catholic.

10. Gilbert Higley

The Arizona 5A state championship belonged to Higley in 2023 as the Knights finished with a 13-2 record. Games against Desert Edge, American Leadership Academy, Horizon, Desert Mountain and Williams Field litter the Knights’ schedule in 2024. Leading the way for Higley this season will be Arizona quarterback commit Luke Haugo.

Teams 11-16

11. Queen Creek American Leadership Academy
12. Mesa Red Mountain
13. Tucson Salpointe Catholic
14. Gilbert Williams Field
15. Scottsdale Horizon

Teams 16-20

16. Queen Creek Casteel
17. Glendale Sandra Day O’Connor
18. Goodyear Desert Edge
19. Scottsdale Chaparral
20. Gilbert Perry

Teams 21-25

21. Queen Creek
22. Mesa Mountain View
23. Scottsdale Desert Mountain
24. Mesa Desert Ridge
25. Phoenix Boulder Creek