High School Sports

Sweet 16: These are the best Charlotte high school football teams over the past 40 years

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Sweet 16 turns 40

To celebrate the 40th anniversary of The Charlotte Observer’s Sweet 16 poll, our high school preps staff spent months working to determine the best football players, coaches and teams of the era.


Here are our rankings for the top 16 teams of the Sweet 16 era

A look back at all of The Observer’s Sweet 16 football champions, by decade

Credits

Langston Wertz Jr. | Reporter

Steve Lyttle l Reporter

Lydia Craver | Editor

Justin Pelletier | Editor

The' Pham | Visuals Editor

Rachel Handley | Photo treatment & Design

David Newcomb | Development & Design

This story was originally published January 11, 2024 at 6:00 AM.

Langston Wertz Jr.
The Charlotte Observer
Langston Wertz Jr. is an award-winning sports journalist who has worked at the Observer since 1988. He’s covered everything from Final Fours and NFL to video games and Britney Spears. Wertz -- a West Charlotte High and UNC grad -- is the rare person who can answer “Charlotte,” when you ask, “What city are you from.” Support my work with a digital subscription
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