Iowa High School Football: First Set Of RPI Rankings Revealed

Southeast Polk, Cedar Rapids Xavier, Solon sit atop the first RPI rankings for Iowa high school football.

Southeast Polk junior running back Adrian Cooper (23) advances the ball as the Iowa City High Little Hawks compete against the top ranked and undefeated Southeast Polk Rams during Week 6 and featuring the Homecoming game on Friday, October 2, 2026, at SEP High School. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

A few years back, Iowa high school football and the Iowa High School Athletic Association made a playoff switch.

Instead of going strictly off district finishes to determine playoff qualifiers, the IHSAA put in place a Ratings Percentage Index for three of the seven classifications of high school football.

Taking into consideration the winning percentage of the team, the opponents' winning percentage and the opponents' opponents' winning percentage, the RPI spits out a number. For Class 5A, the 16 qualifiers are picked only off that.

For Class 4A and Class 3A, district champions and runners-up automatically qualify. The final four at-large spots are based on the RPI. The other classes all still use the district finishes for postseason qualification.

Southeast Polk Holds No. 1 Spot In Class 5A

The lone unbeaten team left in Class 5A, Southeast Polk, is the No. 1 team in the RPI. The Rams also hold that spot in the High School On SI Iowa Top 25 rankings once again this week.

Southeast Polk has an RPI of .7078, which is just ahead of Johnston, who is second at .70663. Ankeny, Dowling Catholic and Sioux City East round out the Top 5.

The Rams take on No. 8 Waukee Northwest this week in a key Week 7 showdown.

Defending Champion Cedar Rapids Xavier, Solon Are Also Ranked First

The other two RPI classes have Cedar Rapids Xavier (Class 4A) and Solon (Class 3A0 at the top. The Saints, who are defending state champions, are one of three unbeaten teams left along with Sergeant Bluff-Luton and Carlisle.

The Warriors and Wildcats are right behind Cedar Rapids Xavier, with Western Dubuque and Spencer completing the Top 5.

Solon is one of five undefeated teams left in Class 3A, as Mount Pleasant, Des Moines Christian, Sioux Center and Clear Lake all follow them in the standings.

No Change At Top Of Other Class Rankings

Central Lyon/George-Little Rock (Class 2A), Iowa City Regina (Class 1A), Woodbury Central (Class A) and Audubon (eight-player) are the No. 1 ranked teams by the committee.

Here are the Top 16 in the RPI standings along with the rankings from the Iowa High School Athletic Association.

Iowa High School Athletic Association RPI Standings

Class 5A

1. Southeast Polk
2. Johnston
3. Ankeny
4. Dowling Catholic
5. Sioux City East
6. Waukee
7. Cedar Falls
8. Waukee Northwest
9. Iowa City Liberty
10. Dallas Center-Grimes
11. Indianola
12. Bettendorf
13. Urbandale
14. Cedar Rapids Prairie
15. West Des Moines Valley
16. Norwalk

Class 4A

1. Cedar Rapids Xavier
2. Sergeant Bluff-Luton
3. Carlisle
4. Western Dubuque
5. Spencer
6. Clear Creek-Amana
7. ADM
8. Lewis Central
9. North Polk
10. Waverly-Shell Rock
11. Sioux City West
12. Glenwood
13. Decorah
14. Fort Dodge
15. Ballard
16. Gilbert

Class 3A

1. Solon
2. Mount Pleasant
3. Des Moines Christian
4. Sioux Center
5. Clear Lake
6. Mount Vernon
7. West Delaware
8. Carroll
9. Dubuque Wahlert Catholic
10. Iowa Falls-Alden
11. Atlantic
12. Davenport Assumption
13. Fort Madison
14. Fairfield
15. Williamsburg
16. Washington

Iowa High School Athletic Association Rankings

Class 2A

1. Central Lyon/George-Little Rock
2. Alburnett
3. Van Meter
4. Spirit Lake
5. Kuemper Catholic
6. OABCIG
7. Crestwood
8. Mid-Prairie
9. Wilton
10. Waukon

Class 1A

1. Iowa City Regina
2. West Lyon
3. Aplington-Parkersburg
4. Treynor
5. Underwood
6. Dyersville Beckman Catholic
7. Interstate 35
8. Clarion-Goldfield/Dows
9. South Hardin
10. Northeast

Class A

1. Woodbury Central
2. West Sioux
3. Saint Ansgar
4. Council Bluffs St. Albert
5. Madrid
6. East Buchanan
7. North Linn
8. Wapsie Valley
9. West Fork
10. Riverside

Eight-Player

1. Audubon
2. Iowa Valley
3. Woodbine
4. Bedford
5. Bishop Garrigan
6. Gladbrook-Reinbeck
7. Edgewood-Colesburg
8. North Union
9. Kingsley-Pierson
10. Clarksville