Every year the Deseret News polls the state’s high school football coaches to rank the top five teams in their own classification. A year ago, six of the seven teams projected as preseason No. 1 went on to win the state championship. The year before that it was five of six.
That consistency among the coaches bodes well for the seven teams tabbed as preseason No. 1s in 2025 — five of which are also defending state champs.
Corner Canyon (6A), Morgan (3A), San Juan (2A), Beaver (1A) and Rich (1A 8-player) are the five defending state champs who begin the season ranked No. 1 in their respective classification.
Orem (5A) and Ridgeline (4A) will open as the preseason No. 1s in the other two classifications.
The 2025 season gets underway Thursday, Aug. 14, with Davis at Brighton followed by a full slate of games a night later on Aug. 15.
Here’s a closer look at each classification, with the complete rankings listed below.
Class 6A projections
Corner Canyon is loaded with returning talent and is ready to make a run at a three-peat this season.
A year ago the Chargers got the job done with a backup quarterback, but Helaman Casuga — a Texas A&M commit — is back healthy this season and will lead an experienced offense into a revamped Region 3.
“We have some experience coming back this season. We also have a lot of work to do in order to reach our goals. The players have worked very hard this offseason and have high expectations,” said Corner Canyon coach Eric Kjar. “We will have a new group of leaders that need to make sure they are leading this group, which will be critical for us to reach our goals.”
At Corner Canyon, it’s always a championship-or-bust mentality with five state championships in the past seven years.
The usual class of contenders will be in the hunt with Corner Canyon, with Lone Peak, Lehi, Davis and Skyridge rounding out the preseason top five in 6A.
After spending the past two years in a lesser 6A region with teams from the southwest side of the Salt Lake valley, the Chargers are back in the same region with the Northern Utah County powers, which should create some exciting games late in the regular season.
Class 5A projections
Orem bowed out of the playoffs a year ago in the quarterfinals, but with seven offensive starters and six defensive starters returning, it gets the nod as the favorite in 5A.
The other four teams in the preseason top five — Brighton, Timpview, Bountiful and West — all received at least one first-place vote among the coaches as well in what figures to be a competitive classification from Week 1 to Week 15.
“The Tigers look to be more well-rounded as a team in 2025. The program continues to grow in numbers despite negative trends nationwide,” said Orem coach Lance Reynolds, who is entering his third season as head coach. “Orem will have many weapons and threats that will make them a state contender this year.”
Tayden Kaawa was a second-team all-stater a year ago at wide receiver, but he’s shifting to QB this season for the Tigers.
Brighton and Timpview were semifinalists a year ago who begin the season with high expectations once again.
Defending state champion Bountiful opens the season with question marks with just two returning starters, but one of them is first-team all-state running back Siaki Fekitoa, who rushed for 1,947 yards and 20 TDs a year ago as a junior.
Class 4A projections
Two-time state champ Crimson Cliffs hasn’t taken a backseat to anyone in 4A the past two years, but it will to start the 2025 season as the Mustangs are ranked No. 2 behind top-ranked Ridgeline.
The Riverhawks suffered their only loss of the season a year ago in the semifinals, but with eight offensive starters back and nine defensive starters, it’s loaded for an even deeper run this season.
“We’re entering the 2025 season as an experienced and battle-tested football team. This group has played a lot of football together — and they’ve won a lot of games,” said Ridgeline coach Travis Cox. “But as a program, we know one thing is still missing and that is a championship. They’ve put in the work — on the field, in the weight room, and in the film room. Expectations are high for this group and we cannot wait for the season.”
Ridgeline’s last state championship was in 2021, but returning all-staters Nate Dahle, Graham Livingston and Easton Hammond hope to end that drought in 2025.
Crimson Cliffs returns three starters back on both sides of the ball in its quest for a three-peat.
Rounding out the top five in 4A are Provo, Sky View and Park City.
Class 3A projections
Coming off an undefeated state championship season highlighted by a historically dominant defense, Morgan is hoping to reload and do it again in 2025.
The Trojans return four offensive starters, highlighted by first-team all-state lineman Ledger Keele, and three on defense in their quest to repeat.
“We live in a great community and we love the opportunity to compete and represent them. We graduated a great senior class and are looking forward to see what this group of players will be able to do, and what legacy they will leave,” said Morgan coach Jared Barlow. “With a good mix of returning starters and JV players, the outlook has been positive so far.”
Morgan received eight of 12 first-place votes among the coaches, while Manti received the other four.
The Templars reached the semis a year ago, and with eight offensive starters back and seven defensive starters, it has experience to try and push for its first state championship since 2012.
Juab, Grantsville and Cedar round out the top five in 3A.
Class 2A projections
Can anyone stop San Juan? That’s the only question heading into the 2025 season.
The Broncos have won four straight 2A state championships with a combined 48-3 record during that stretch — and all three of those losses came against upper-classification teams.
Last year San Juan won its three playoff games by an average score of 58-13. And while many of the major contributors graduated, five offensive starters are back along with six defensive starters.
“We don’t return a ton of starters on either side of the ball, but the guys we do return are great leaders and all-state caliber players. The newcomers we have competing for the starting spots look like returners based off of what we have seen so far this summer,” said San Juan coach Barkley Christensen. “This is the second year in a row we don’t return a lot, but the experience these guys got in the JV level last year and the experience of practicing against our varsity for the last two years has made these guys hungry to play.”
South Summit, Emery, Summit Academy and Delta round out the 2A preseason top five.
Class 1A projections
During Beaver’s football resurgence over the past decade it has won six of 10 state championships. It won back-to-back titles in 2015 and 2016, 2019 and 2020 and then again in 2023 and 2024.
In 2025 it has its eye on that elusive three-peat — a feat the school accomplished from 1979-1981.
There’s certainly enough experience back from last year’s team to get the job done.
“We lost some great seniors from last year’s team but we have a large and experienced group of juniors returning. We return four of our five starting offensive linemen, which we are really excited about,” said Beaver coach Jon Marshall. “We play a tough schedule against some very good teams that will test us and hopefully help us to get better. We are excited to see how all the pieces fit together and to find out if we are able to compete with the best teams in our classification.”
Kanab and Duchesne each received a first-place vote as well in 1A as they begin the year ranked No. 2 and 3 in 1A. North Summit and Enterprise round out the top five.
Class 1A 8-player projections
Since the UHSAA expanded to include a 1A eight-player classification in 2022, Rich has won the past two state championships, with Gunnison winning the first in 2022.
The coaches have tabbed Rich as the favorite to three-peat in what figures to be an exciting year with an expanded group of teams. Milford is dropping down to play eight-player football this year, while Panguitch and Escalante will also be joining the league, bringing the total number of teams to 12 this season.
“We are excited to see more teams joining the league. Growth is awesome to see and will fortify the league and make it more competitive. Milford alone is a powerhouse who will instantly cause mayhem to the hierarchy of the league,” said Rich coach Tyson Larsen.
2025 preseason high school football rankings
Each year, the Deseret News asks every football coach in the state to vote for the top five teams in their classification. The votes are tallied, and five points are assigned for a first-place vote, four for a second-place vote, etc. Coaches aren’t allowed to vote for their own team. The following are the results from the coaches who elected to participate (first-place votes indicated in parenthesis):
Class 6A
Team 2024 record
- Corner Canyon (13) 13-1
- Lone Peak (2) 11-3
- Lehi (1) 9-3
- Davis (1) 8-4
- Skyridge 10-3
Others receiving multiple votes: American Fork, Mountain Ridge.
Class 5A
Team 2024 record
- Orem (11) 9-3
- Brighton (6) 11-2
- Timpview (2) 8-3
- Bountiful (2) 13-1
- West (1) 6-6
Others receiving multiple votes: Olympus, Fremont, Roy, Alta, Springville, Viewmont, West Jordan, Northridge.
Class 4A
Team 2024 record
- Ridgeline (14) 12-1
- Crimson Cliffs (4) 12-2
- Provo (2) 8-3
- Sky View 8-5
- Park City 10-2
Others receiving multiple votes: Stansbury, Green Canyon, Desert Hills, Pien View, East, Mountain Crest, Salem Hills.
Class 3A
Team 2024 record
- Morgan (8) 13-0
- Manti (4) 8-4
- Job 6-5
- Grantsville 9-3
- Cedar 4-7
Others receiving multiple votes: Richfield, Logan.
Class 2A
Team 2024 record
- San Juan (8) 11-2
- South Summit (1) 4-7
- Emery 9-3
- Summit Academy 6-6
- Delta 5-7
Others receiving multiple votes: Judge Memorial.
Class 1A
Team 2024 record
- Beaver (7) 12-1
- Kanab (1) 9-4
- Duchesne (1) 5-6
- North Summit 11-1
- Enterprise 3-8
Others receiving multiple votes: Millard.
Class 1A 8-player
Team 2024 record
- Rich (4) 10-3
- Milford (3) 8-4
- Monticello 8-4
- Water Canyon 6-6
- Altamont 6-5
Others receiving multiple votes: Panguitch, Whitehorse, St. Joseph.
