Virginia High School Football Rankings: Preseason Top 25 teams

High school football is right around the corner in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the Old Dominion should once again produce plenty of Power 4 talent 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 the model, four teams from Virginia rank inside the top 250.

Below are the top 25 programs in the Commonwealth of Virginia heading into the 2024 season.

1. Woodbridge Freedom

Freedom cruised to a 14-0 season and a Virginia Class 6 championship win over Highland Springs last season and now will look to repeat. The Eagles kick off on Aug. 30 against Washington (D.C.) Coolidge before taking on a schedule that features Varina and Woodbridge. A pair of Power 4 commits headline the senior class in Clemson wide receiver pledge Carleton Preston and Virginia Tech running back commit Jeff Overton.

2. Norfolk Maury

The Commodores also touted a perfect season in 2023, going 15-0 with a Class 5 championship win over Stone Bridge. Games against Highland Springs and Dinwiddie highlight this year’s schedule. Senior top-50 EDGE and Clemson commit Ari Watford is the top player in Virginia heading into this season and is likely to wreak havoc across opposing backfields throughout the season. He’s joined in the class of 2025 by four-star South Carolina DB commit Kendall Daniels, Maryland linebacker pledge CJ Smith and Indiana WR commit LeBron Bond. The junior class is looking promising as well for Maury, led by four-star linebacker Isaiah Simmons.

3. Highland Springs

Highland Springs will open on the road at Manchester this season, will later matchups against Phoebus, Maury and Varina. The Springers went 13-2 last season with a postseason loss in the Class 6 title game to Freedom. Highland Springs will have to replace a pair of seniors from last year’s team who went on to play for Power 4 schools: Virginia Tech DB Noah Jenkins and Maryland QB Khristian Martin.

4. Ashburn Stone Bridge

Stone Bridge entered the postseason with a 6-5 record a year ago before going on a three-game run that saw the Bulldogs match up with Maury in the Class 5 title game, which the ‘Dawgs lost. Stone Bridge will kick off against James Madison on the road. Senior defensive lineman Christian Evans is committed to Virginia Tech.

5. Hampton Phoebus

A tough road game against No. 3 Highland Springs will be quite the opener for Phoebus as the Phantoms begin their Class 4 title defense on Sept. 6. That defense will go up against a schedule that also includes Warwick on Nov. 2. Maryland EDGE Anthony Reddick is among the departures Phoebus will have to fill this season.

6. Lynchburg Liberty Christian

The Class 3 title belonged to Liberty Christian in 2023, and now the Bulldogs will look to repeat their perfect 14-0 season from a year ago. A big showdown with No. 10 Salem is comingon Aug. 30. Clemson top-100 running back commit Gideon Davidson will star in a dangerous rushing attack for Liberty Christian. His teammate along the offensive line, Easton Ware, is also committed to the Tigers.

7. Richmond Varina

The Blue Devils fell to King George 24-14 in the Class 4 Region Finals to cap a 10-3 season. Indian River will be the debut game this year for Varina before a road game against No. 1 Freedom the following week. Junior athlete DaMari Carter is a top-15 player in the commonwealth.

8. Dinwiddie County

Dinwiddie entered the postseason 7-3 last year and picked up a win against Eastern View before getting knocked out by King George. Aug. 30 against George Washington is the season-opener for the Generals in 2024 with games against Maury, Thomas Dale and Matoaca on the schedule. USC landed a commitment from senior four-star running back Harry Dalton back in April.

9. Richmond Benedictine

Benedictine pulled off a VISAA Division I championship last season with a 31-14 win over Trinity Episcopal, capping a 12-1 season. A rematch of the title game between the Cadets and the Titans is set for Nov. 2. Wake Forest tight end Luca Puccinelli graduated from Benedictine last year.

10. Salem

Salem fell short of a Class 4 championship in 2023 with a 21-14 loss to Phoebus in the final game of the season. This year, the Spartans will get a second shot against a schedule that includes Liberty Christian on Aug. 30. Salem will certainly have some shoes to fill from last year’s senior class, including Georgia five-star LB Chris Cole and Tennessee four-star RB Peyton Lewis.

Teams 11-15

11. Stafford Mountain View
12. James Madison
13. Chesapeake Oscar Smith
14. Newport News Warwick
15. Richmond Trinity Episcopal

Teams 16-20

16. Chesterfield Matoaca
17. King George
18. Haymarket Battlefield
19. Stafford Colonial Forge
20. Midlothian Manchester

Teams 21-25

21. Chester Thomas Dale
22. Williamsburg Lafayette
23. Burke Lake Braddock
24. Lorton South County
25. Suffolk King’s Fork