Concordia Prep moves into the Maryland Media Top 25

Concordia's win over Mount St. Joseph results in a seventh MIAA A Conference team joining the Top 25; Former MIAA A Conference member St. Frances remains No. 1

Concordia Prep cracks the Media State Poll Top 25 for the first time this season, following a win over Mount St. Joseph. | Concordia Prep Football

It was another perfect week for the public schools in the Maryland Media Top 25, but a few notable private-school upsets produced the biggest shakeup in this week's rankings.

St. Frances Academy again received all 10 first-place votes to remain No. 1, followed by DeMatha, Archbishop Spalding, McDonogh and Quince Orchard. The top five were unanimous in their ranking positions.

The movement began at No. 6.

Good Counsel, Calvert Hall Slide After Out-of-State Losses

Good Counsel dropped from No. 6 to No. 9 after a loss to Malvern Prep (Pa.). The Falcons face one of the state's toughest remaining schedules and will need quality wins to hold their position. The defeat allowed Linganore to climb to No. 6, Wise to No. 7, and Dunbar to jump two spots to No. 8.

Calvert Hall also slipped after falling to Haverford School (Pa.), giving Pennsylvania schools the edge in this week's interstate Top 25 matchups.

The week's lone newcomer is Concordia Prep, which debuts at No. 22 after knocking off then-No. 14 Mount St. Joseph, 13-7. The Gaels fell to No. 23 following the loss.

Bullis was the only team to exit the rankings after a 25-14 defeat to No. 15 Loyola Blakefield. The Bulldogs are the first team outside the Top 25 and could quickly return with a winning streak.

This is the 36th year of the Maryland Media State Poll, which is based on a statewide vote by sports reporters, including High School On SI’s Maryland rankings.

Maryland High School Football Media State Poll

Schools are ranked by points received. The number in parentheses reflects first-place votes. LW is last week’s ranking. Sheldon Shealer compiles the rankings.

Rank, School, Record, Points, LW

Rank, School, Record, Points, LW

1. St. Frances Academy (10), 4-0, 250, 1

2. DeMatha, 4-1, 240, 2

3. Archbishop Spalding, 3-2, 230, 3

4. McDonogh, 5-0, 220, 4

5. Quince Orchard, 4-0, 210, 5

6. Linganore, 4-0, 198, 7

7. Wise, 3-0, 180, 8

8. Dunbar, 4-0, 169, 10

9. Good Counsel, 2-3, 166, 6

10. Sherwood, 4-0, 162, 9

11. Huntingtown, 4-0, 140, 12

12. Oakdale, 4-0, 134, 13

13. Milford Mill Academy, 3-1, 127, 15

14. Calvert Hall, 2-2, 114, 11

15. Loyola Blakefield, 4-0, 110, 17

16. Broadneck, 3-1, 109, 16

17. Mergenthaler Vo-Tech, 3-1, 92, 19

18. St. Mary’s-AA, 2-2, 77, 17

19. North Point, 2-2*, 64, 20

20. Guilford Park, 4-0, 58, 21

21. St. Charles, 4-0, 50, 22

22. Concordia Prep, 3-1, 49, NR

23. Mount St. Joseph, 3-2, 42, 14

24. Winston Churchill, 4-0, 19, 24

25. Easton, 4-0, 10, 25

Others Receiving Votes: Bullis School (3-1, 9 points), Flowers (2-1, 7), Bishop McNamara (4-1, 6), Fort Hill (4-0, 4), Stephen Decatur (4-0, 3), Franklin (4-0, 1).

*-Record reflects a forfeit loss