California High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Sept. 30

Heading into Week 6 of the California high school football season, the same six teams in the state rankings remain atop the list.

Mater Dei holds steady as the No. 1 team, with St. John Bosco and Mission Viejo — both undefeated — looming behind them.

Below are the full top-25 rankings, per the On3 Massey Ratings.

The On3 Massey Ratings — which were officially used during the BCS era and have generated college high school sports team rankings since 1995 — rank sports teams by analyzing game outcomes, strength of schedule and margin of victory.

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1. Mater Dei

Previous Rank: No. 1
After beating national powerhouse St. Frances Academy out of Maryland, Mater Dei had a well-deserved bye week before its top-10 showdown against Santa Margarita Catholic on Friday night. The On3 Massey Ratings heavily favor the Monarchs to win that contest and remain undefeated.

2. St. John Bosco

Previous Rank: No. 2
The Braves rolled past previously undefeated Pittsburgh in Week 4, but like Mater Dei, had a bye week before another big came this weekend. They’ll face No. 6 Orange Lutheran and quarterback TJ Lateef, who leads a 4-1 squad into this one.

3. Mission Viejo

Previous Rank: No. 3
Mission Viejo crushed top-25 Chaparral 51-10 over the weekend to remain spotless and maintain their No. 11 spot in the national rankings. Before they get to their bye week on October 11, they’ll face a Long Beach Poly squad looking to pull off an upset and get back to .500.

4. Centennial

Previous Rank: 4
After a slow start that saw them lose their first two games, the Huskies have rebounded in a huge way with wins over Utah powers Timpview and Lone Peak, as well as a 63-39 bludgeoning of Arizona No. 1 Liberty on Saturday night. They’re now averaging better than 55 points per game over the past three weeks and look to be hitting their stride.

5. J Serra Catholic

Previous Rank: No. 5
Following a 5-0 start that included top-25 wins over Sierra Canyon, Clovis North and Lincoln, the Lions got a needed bye week before the meat of their schedule starts. Over the next five weeks, they’ll face five consecutive top-10 teams in the state: No. 7 Servite, No. 6 Orange Lutheran, No. 1 Mater Dei, No. 9 Santa Margarita Catholic and No. 2 St. John Bosco. No team will be more battle-tested going into the playoffs.

6. Orange Lutheran

Previous Rank: No. 6
The Lancers have had a daunting schedule to start the season with games against No. 12 Junipero Serra, No. 23 Rancho Cucamonga, St. Frances Academy, Nevada’s No. 1 Bishop Gorman, and No. 10 Sierra Canyon. Coming out of that, they sit at 4-1 and among the top teams in the state. But the Trinity League spares no one, as they’ll also face five top-10 teams to close out the season.

7. Servite

Previous Rank: No. 8 (+1)
The 5-0 Friars will no doubt get their biggest test so far when they head to face No. 5 J Serra Catholic on Friday night. That kicks off a run of five games against top-10 teams for them as well.

8. De La Salle

Previous Rank: No. 9 (+1)
The Spartans have been a longtime power in the state and look to be returning to that form in 2024. After sneaking by St. Mary’s two weeks ago, they handled El Cerrito 35-14 on Friday night.

9. Santa Margarita Catholic

Previous Rank: No. 7 (-2)
Santa Margarita was idle over the weekend after a 3-2 start that included a huge win over No. 5 Centennial but also losses to Missouri Viejo and Leuzinger. They’ll be underdogs in four of their final five games, according to the On3 Massey Ratings, which includes tilts against Mater Dei, Bosco, Orange Lutheran, J Serra Catholic and Servite.

10. Sierra Canyon

Previous Rank: No. 10
The Trailblazers have faced a brutal first half of their schedule with five ranked matchups to open the season. They had a huge win over one of Hawaii’s top teams, Punahou, but fell J Serra Catholic, St. John Bosco and Orange Lutheran to drop to 2-3. The good news is that the schedule the rest of the way is much easier, with only one remaining top-25 opponent.

Teams 11-25 in latest California High School Football rankings

11. Folsom (+2)
12. Junipero Serra San Mateo
13. Clovis East (+1)
14. Los Alamitos (-3)
15. Oaks Christian

16. Murrieta Valley
17. Lincoln (+2)
18. Junipero Serra Gardena (-1)
19. Central Fresno (+1)
20. Pittsburg (+2)

21. Rocklin (previously unranked)
22. Clovis (+1)
23. Rancho Cucamonga (-2)
24. Chaparral (previously unranked)
25. Clovis North