High School Sports

NC high school football preseason NCHSAA polls feature familiar teams. Who’s No. 1?

By Alex Bass
Cardinal Gibbons fans celebrate after an interception late in the second half. The Cardinal Gibbons Crusaders and the Julius Chambers Cougars met in the NCHSAA 4A Football Championship game in Raleigh, N.C. on December 11, 2021.
Cardinal Gibbons fans celebrate after an interception late in the second half. The Cardinal Gibbons Crusaders and the Julius Chambers Cougars met in the NCHSAA 4A Football Championship game in Raleigh, N.C. on December 11, 2021. Steven Worthy newsobserver.com

The top teams from 2021 are all well represented in the early going of the statewide football rankings as the 2022 season is set to get under way this week.

Cardinal Gibbons returns as the top team in the 4A rankings after winning last season’s 4A state title, but hot on the Crusaders’ heels are East Forsyth and Chambers, the latter having lost in that state final a year ago.

Dudley, Reidsville and Tarboro round out the other top-ranked teams across the other classifications.

Here are the full top-10 rankings:

The Observer/News & Observer NCHSAA Football Polls

4A

1.Cardinal Gibbons
2.East Forsyth
3. Chambers
4. Hough
5.Grimsley
6.Rolesville
7. Richmond County
8.Weddington
9. Mallard Creek
10.New Bern

3A

1.Dudley
2.Scotland County
3. West Charlotte
4. Kings Mountain
5.Havelock
6.Eastern Alamance
7. Seventy-First
8.Crest
9. Statesville
10.South Point

Football players run drills during practice at West Charlotte High School in Charlotte, N.C., Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022. West Charlotte football coach Sam Greiner is being investigated by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools for recruiting violations and treatment of players and is currently not working with the team. Some parents are singing petition asks CMS to reinstate coach Greiner and allow home games to be played at West Charlotte this season.
Football players run drills during practice at West Charlotte High School in Charlotte, N.C., Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022. West Charlotte football coach Sam Greiner is being investigated by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools for recruiting violations and treatment of players and is currently not working with the team. Some parents are singing petition asks CMS to reinstate coach Greiner and allow home games to be played at West Charlotte this season. Alex Slitz alslitz@charlotteobserver.com


2A

1.Reidsville
2.Shelby
3. Wallace-Rose Hill
4. East Surry
5.Northeastern
6.Salisbury
7. Burns
8.Maiden
9. Hendersonville
10.Monroe

1A

1.Tarboro
2.Robbinsville
3. Eastern Randolph
4. Mitchell
5.Murphy
6.Mountain Heritage
7. Thomasville
8.Mount Airy
9. Northampton
10.Andrews

This story was originally published August 17, 2022 at 5:45 AM.

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