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Colorado High School Football Top 25 State Rankings (Oct. 22, 2026)

Last week’s Top 10 remains intact as the regular season in the ‘Centennial State’ starts to wind down
Buck Ringgold|
Fort Collins' Diego Romero (6, middle) reacts emphatically with teammates after scoring a touchdown during the Lambkins' win against Fossil Ridge on Oct. 16, 2026.
Fort Collins' Diego Romero (6, middle) reacts emphatically with teammates after scoring a touchdown during the Lambkins' win against Fossil Ridge on Oct. 16, 2026. | Chris Abshire/The Coloradoan/USA TODAY NETWORK

Only two more weeks remain in the regular season for Colorado high school football programs.

Several teams are just eager to finally get around to postseason play, while others are still fighting for their playoff lives. There are still several unanswered questions as we are about to wind things down as far as the regular season goes.

Last week, though, there wasn’t an abundance of any major upsets or surprises. In fact, each of the top 10 ranked teams in the High School On SI Colorado Top 25 prevailed.

Will those same top 10 teams stay intact for the final two weeks before postseason play commences? Stay tuned.

Here, now, are this week’s rankings:

PREVIOUS: PRESEASON | WK 0 | WK 1 | WK 2 | WK 3 | WK 4 | WK 5 | WK 6 | WK 7 | WK 8

1. Cherry Creek (7-1)

Previous rank: 1

Another night at the office for the Bruins, whose 31-17 win at Eaglecrest wasn’t as close as the final score indicated. In fact, the Bruins led 31-3 at one point in the fourth quarter.

Up Next: vs. Mullen on Friday, Oct. 23

2. Palmer Ridge (8-0)

Previous rank: 2

A perfect night of passing from senior quarterback Knox Tinlin in the Bears’ 42-14 win against Vista Ridge. He completed all 14 of his pass attempts for 303 yards along with four TDs.

Up Next: at Sand Creek on Friday, Oct. 23

3. Broomfield (8-0)

Previous rank: 3

For the third straight game, and for the fourth time in five contests, the Eagles hung “half a hundred” on their opponent. Their latest was a 51-10 conquest of Montbello. 

Up Next: at Prairie View on Friday, Oct. 23

4. Valor Christian (6-2)

Previous rank: 4

The Eagles posted their third shutout over their last four games as they downed Pine Creek, 42-0. They held Pine Creek’s Eagles to 120 yards total offense in the win. Valor also got 9.5 tackles for loss from 10 different players on defense.

Up Next: vs. Fountain-Fort Carson on Friday, Oct. 23

5. Mountain Vista (7-1)

Previous rank: 5

In his last two games, senior receiver Brooklyn Bailey has 11 catches for 240 yards and three TDs. He had seven catches for 111 yards and a pair of scores in last week’s 44-6 win against Arvada West.

Up Next: at Columbine on Thursday, Oct. 22

6. Ralston Valley (6-2)

Previous rank: 6

Wyoming commit Levi Rillos caught 12 passes for 134 yards and two TDs while adding 30 rushing yards and a score in the Mustangs’ 31-21 win against Columbine.

Up Next: at Chatfield on Friday, Oct. 23

7. Monarch (7-1)

Previous rank: 7

Make it six straight wins for the Coyotes, the latest a 52-9 triumph against Boulder, Monarch’s highest point total all season. But its defense also came through, recording 8 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, 9 quarterback hurries and 5 takeaways - 4 of those interceptions.

Up Next: vs. Mountain Range on Friday, Oct. 23

8. Ponderosa (8-0)

Previous rank: 8

The Mustangs racked up 375 yards as they remained undefeated with a 38-22 win against another Parker-based school, Chaparral.

Up Next: vs. Overland on Saturday, Oct. 24

9. Elizabeth (8-0)

Previous rank: 9

It was the fourth shutout this season for the Cardinals with their 49-0 defeat of D’Evelyn. They got rushing TDs from five different players, and the defense allowed 8 total yards. Elizabeth now gets set to face The Classical Academy in a matchup between 8-0 squads.

Up Next: vs. The Classical Academy on Friday, Oct. 23

10. Fort Collins (8-0)

Previous rank: 10

The Lambkins remain the lone undefeated team in Class 5A, moving to 8-0 with a hard-fought 21-12 win against crosstown foe Fossil Ridge.

Up Next: at Riverdale Ridge on Friday, Oct. 23

11. Grandview (7-1)

Previous rank: 15

With their 31-7 win against Cherokee Trail, the Wolves remain in striking distance of Cherry Creek for the Centennial League title, a half-game back of the Bruins. Grandview steps out of conference play Thursday and then end the regular season by taking on Cherry Creek.

Up Next: vs. Regis Jesuit on Thursday, Oct. 22

12. Montrose (6-2)

Previous rank: 12

The Red Hawks’ lone two defeats have come to two schools currently ranked in the top five: Palmer Ridge and Mountain Vista. They picked up a 55-7 win against Sand Creek last week.

Up Next: at Lutheran on Friday, Oct. 23

13. Roosevelt (7-1)

Previous rank: 24

It’s a huge jump in the rankings for the Roughriders, who emphatically ended Loveland’s undefeated season with a 43-14 win. The only downside to that was it ended a streak of four straight shutout victories. 

Up Next: vs. Frederick on Friday, Oct. 23

14. Holy Family (7-1)

Previous rank: 14

Another huge night on the ground from junior tailback Gage Gunderson, as he ran for 195 yards on 22 carries and four TDs in the Tigers’ 51-18 win at Windsor. On the season, Gunderson now has 1,485 yards and 22 scores.

15. Loveland (7-1)

Previous rank: 11

The Red Wolves will have to wait an extra day to bounce back from their first defeat of the season, as they don’t play until Saturday.

Up Next: at Longmont on Saturday, Oct. 24

16. Colorado Springs Christian (8-0)

Previous rank: 16

A week after upending Limon in a matchup of undefeated schools, the Lions followed that up with a solid 54-20 win against Salida. They now get the week off.

Up Next: Idle this week

17. Limon (6-1)

Previous rank: 17

Speaking of the Badgers, they’ve been itching to get back on the field since that loss at home two weeks ago to Colorado Springs Christian. They finally get that chance on Friday.

Up Next: at Burlington on Friday, Oct. 23

18. Legend (5-3)

Previous rank: 18

Kellen Mauck was 19-of-31 passing for 309 yards and five TDs as the Titans outlasted Heritage, 46-36. They’ve scored 96 points over their past two games after being blanked by Valor Christian.

Up Next: vs. Pine Creek on Thursday, Oct. 22

19. Douglas County (7-1)

Previous rank: 21

A relatively quiet night for standout Asher Schembri, at least by his standards. He had just 250 yards of total offense but still had two TDs running and two more TDs throwing. Plus, his numbers were a bit down because the Huskies won in lopsided fashion, beating winless Overland, 49-0.

Up Next: vs. Vista Peak Prep on Thursday, Oct. 22

20. Pueblo West (6-2)

Previous rank: NR

The Cyclones got a huge 4A Mountain Plains League win at Mesa Ridge, winning 35-7. Their only two losses came to Palmer Ridge and Roosevelt, the latter by a single point. Pueblo West now has another important conference game this week, facing Cheyenne Mountain with first place at stake.

Up Next: vs. Cheyenne Mountain on Friday, Oct. 23

21. Mesa Ridge (6-2)

Previous rank: 13

The Grizzlies seek to get back on track after a stunning 35-7 home loss to Pueblo West.

Up Next: vs. Doherty on Friday, Oct. 23

22. Delta (8-0)

Previous rank: 23

The Panthers were off last week. They’re back in action this week but then are off again in Week 10.

Up Next: vs. Montezuma-Cortez on Friday, Oct. 23

23. Evergreen (8-0)

Previous rank: NR

Want some dazzling numbers? The Cougars have scored a total of 380 points while allowing just 14. They’ve also held opponents scoreless over their last five games, the latest a 42-0 defeat of Pomona.

Up Next: at Conifer on Friday, Oct. 23

24. Palisade (7-1)

Previous rank: 25

Make it five straight wins for the Bulldogs, and the fourth straight game they’ve scored at least 40 points, as they posted a 42-6 win at Glenwood Springs.

Up Next: vs. Grand Junction Central on Friday, Oct. 23

25. Golden (7-1)

Previous rank: NR

In their season opener, the Demons were edged by Frederick, 15-14. They haven’t looked back since, reeling off seven straight victories, the latest 40-3 against Centaurus as quarterback Thatcher Matthews accounted for 351 total yards and three TDs.

Up Next: at Westminster on Friday, Oct. 23

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Buck Ringgold
BUCK RINGGOLD

Buck Ringgold is a veteran high school sportswriter with extensive experience covering sports in Arkansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Texas and Louisiana. He is a longtime contributor to High School On SI.

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