High School Sports
Final Indiana High School Football Poll (USA) and change playoff format
The playoffs are here for Indiana high school football. This Friday night, 313 high school football teams across the state will aim towards a state championship trophy in one of the six classes for Indiana. Listed below is the final USA Poll of the 2026 season. After each week of games played. I will annotate who has been eliminated from the tournament and which schools are still alive in the state playoffs.
The sectional opening round starts this Friday, October 23, with the sectional semifinals on October 30 and the 48 sectional championships will be played on November 6.
On Friday, November 13, will be the 24 regional championship games. Then on Friday, November 20 is the 12 semi-state championship games across the state. Over Thanksgiving weekend, six state football championships will be played at Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Indiana. Friday, November 27, three state championship games will be battle (Classes 2A, 4A, and 6A). Saturday, November 28, the other three classes (1A, 3A, and 5A) will play to determine their state champions.
As for the state tournament in the future. I hope Indiana High School Athletic Association will consider changing their format to determine the playoff matchups. First, get away from using the ping pong balls to determine matchups. It's ridiculous that so many teams in the state open the sectional with the two best teams playing against each other in the first game while a 1-8 and 0-9 are matched up on the other side of the bracket.
For Example, this Friday night, in Class 2A, you have #2 South Putnam against #7 Cascade. Then in Class 1A, you have #3 North Daviess playing #6 Tecumseh. These teams should be on opposite ends of the bracket and not meet until the sectional championship.
Every football team in the state of Indiana should not be in the playoffs. If you have a losing record, your season is over. Clean out your locker. If you have a winning record, the IHSAA should seed the teams in each sectional by their record and strength of schedule to have good, realistic matchups and not award a 2-7 or 3-6 team a chance to be in a sectional championship.
That is the format used in Illinois High School Association football.
USA POLL
2026 FINAL
CLASS 6A
1. Brownsburg (9-0)
2. Warren Central (9-0)
3. Westfield (8-1)
4. Lawrence North (7-2)
5. Crown Point (9-0)
6. Penn (9-0)
7. Center Grove (7-2)
8. Carroll (Fort Wayne) (8-1)
9. Merrillville (8-1)
10. Carmel (5-4)
11. Decatur Central (8-1)
12. Zionsville (7-2)
CLASS 5A
1. Indianapolis Cathedral (6-3)
2. New Palestine (6-3)
3. Bloomington South (7-2)
4. Warsaw (8-1)
5. Pendleton Heights (8-1)
6. Floyd Central (8-1)
7. Lafayette Jeff (7-2)
8. Plainfield (7-2)
9. Fort Wayne Snider (5-4)
10. Castle (5-4)
11. Concord (4-5)
12. Terre Haute South (5-4)
13. Evansville North (4-5)
14. Huntington North (5-4)
15. Mount Vernon (Fortville) (5-4)
CLASS 4A
1. Fort Wayne Dwenger (8-1)
2. Indianapolis Roncalli (7-2)
3. Indianapolis Chatard (7-2)
4. East Central (7-2)
5. East Noble (9-0)
6. Northridge (9-0)
7. Danville (9-0)
8. Evansville Reitz (8-1)
9. South Bend St. Joseph (8-1)
10. Logansport (9-0)
11. Heritage Hills (7-2)
CLASS 3A
1. Evansville Memorial (9-0)
2. Andrean (8-1)
3. Gibson Southern (8-1)
4. Indian Creek (9-0)
5. Lawrenceburg (8-1)
6. Griffith (9-0)
7. Bluffton (9-0)
8. Evansville Mater Dei (7-2)
9. Maconaquah (9-0)
10. Tri-West (7-2)
11. Adams Central (6-3)
12. Tippecanoe Valley (8-1)
13. West Noble (8-1)
CLASS 2A
1. Brownstown Central (9-0)
2. South Putnam (9-0)
3. Indianapolis Lutheran (8-0)
4. Eastside (9-0)
5. Eastern Hancock (9-0)
6. Lapel (8-1)
7. Cascade (8-1)
8. Eastern (Greentown) (9-0)
9. North Posey (8-1)
10. Hagerstown (9-0)
11. Wheeler (8-1)
CLASS 1A
1. Pioneer (9-0)
2. Riverton Parke (8-0)
3. North Daviess (9-0)
4. North Judson (8-1)
5. South Adams (7-2)
6. Tecumseh (8-1)
7. Wes-Del (8-0)
8. Milan (7-2)
9. Carroll (Flora) (7-2)
10. Knightstown (7-2)
11. Madison-Grant (7-2)
12. Caston (7-2)
13. Springs Valley (6-3)
14. West Central (8-1)
15. Fremont (6-3)