Owning a No. 1 ranking comes with a big target for opponents to take a shot at.
In Week 1 of the 2022 season, plenty of arrows found their bull’s-eyes.
A whopping five of the state’s nine No. 1 teams in the KSHSAA Covered preseason poll went down in defeat on the opening night of the 2022 season. Amid the carnage, two of the state’s longest winning streaks came to an end.
Two-time reigning Class 2A champion Rossville was knocked off 20-13 by Mid-East League rival St. Marys, ending the Bulldawgs’ 26-game winning streak. St. Marys quarterback Keller Hurla threw for 252 yards and three touchdowns to key the upset and give the Bears their first win over Rossville since 2017.
Class 2A No. 2 Beloit, Rossville’s opponent in last year’s championship game, also went down in Week 1, losing 14-6 to Ellsworth. Nemaha Central takes over as the new 2A No. 1 this week after knocking off Class 3A No. 2 Holton 35-28.
Like Rossville, Olpe also entered 2022 coming off two straight undefeated Class 1A state championships, winner of 24 straight. But taking on Class 3A No. 5 Hayden, the Eagles lost for the first time since 2019, falling 20-7. No. 2 Smith Center moves up to No. 1 to replace Olpe, which slid to No. 3.
Another two-time defending champion, Class 4A’s St. James Academy, fell in a battle of returning state champions, losing 35-21 to 2021 Class 6A state champion Blue Valley Northwest. Northwest was ranked No. 2 in the preseason poll, but moves up to No. 1 after preseason No. 1 Derby was clipped 26-23 in overtime by Manhattan, which beat the Panthers for the first time since 2010. The loss snapped a 46-game home winning streak for Derby.
St. Thomas Aquinas replaces St. James at No. 1 in 4A with the Thunder dropping to No. 3.
The other preseason No. 1 to go down on Friday was Eight-Player Division I’s Little River. After beating Wheat State League rival Canton-Galva twice in crazy shootout wins last season on their way to the state championship game, the Redskins couldn’t keep pace with the Eagles, who were missing All-State quarterback Garrett Maltbie.
No matter, transfer Jett Vincent stepped in at quarterback and accounted for 10 touchdowns – 8 rushing, 2 passing – and more than 530 yards of total offense as Canton-Galva rolled 66-36.
Hill City replaces Little River at No. 1 in Eight-Player Division I.
The other four No. 1s all emerged the wild opening week unscathed, though two got stern tests.
In Eight-Player Division II, No. 1 and defending champion Axtell trailed KSHSAA newcomer Cair Paravel 26-22 at halftime and 32-30 early in the third quarter before exploding for six straight touchdowns to cruise to an 82-38 win. Senior quarterback Isaac Detweiler accounted for eight touchdowns (4 rushing, 4 passing).
In Six-Player, No. 1 Cunningham fought off No. 3 Ashland 38-30. Both teams are ranked in their same positions this week.
Class 5A No. 1 Mill Valley and Class 3A No. 1 Andale were dominant in their openers. Mill Valley blanked Olathe Northwest 40-0, while Andale extended its winning streak to 39 straight victories with a 63-14 romp past Wellington.
KSHSAA COVERED HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL RANKINGS
CLASS 6A
Team … Record
- Blue Valley Northwest (2) … 1-0
- Olathe West (5) … 1-0
- Manhattan (NR) … 1-0
- Derby (1) … 0-1
- Blue Valley (NR) … 1-0
Others – Blue Valley West 0-1, Dodge City 1-0, Garden City 1-0, Lawrence 0-1, Olathe North 1-0, Olathe South 1-0, Shawnee Mission Northwest 1-0, Washburn Rural 1-0, Wichita Northwest 0-1.
CLASS 5A
Team … Record
- Mill Valley (1) … 1-0
- Maize (2) … 1-0
- Kapaun Mt. Carmel (3) … 1-0
- Bishop Carroll (4) … 1-0
- Hays (5) … 1-0
Others – Blue Valley Southwest 0-1, De Soto 1-0, Hutchinson 1-0, Maize South 1-0, Salina Central 1-0, Seaman 1-0, Spring Hill 1-0.
CLASS 4A
Team … Record
- St. Thomas Aquinas (2) … 1-0
- Bishop Miege (3) … 1-0
- St. James Academy (1) … 0-1
- Andover Central (4) … 1-0
- McPherson (5) … 1-0
Others – Atchison 1-0, Arkansas City 1-0, Basehor-Linwood 1-0, Buhler 0-1, Chanute 1-0, Circle 1-0, Eudora 1-0, KC Piper 1-0, Wamego 1-0.
CLASS 3A
Team … Record
- Andale (1) … 1-0
- Wichita Collegiate (3) … 1-0
- Hayden (5) … 1-0
- Holton (2) … 0-1
- Galena (NR) … 1-0
Others – Cheney 0-1, Concordia 1-0, Frontenac 0-1, Girard 1-0, Holcomb 1-0, Hugoton 1-0, Parsons 1-0, Pratt 1-0, Rock Creek 0-1, Scott City 1-0, Wellsville 1-0.
CLASS 2A
Team … Record
- Nemaha Central (3) … 1-0
- Southeast of Saline (4) … 1-0
- Kingman (5) … 1-0
- Silver Lake (NR) … 1-0
- Rossville (1) … 0-1
Others – Beloit 0-1, Chaparral 1-0, Ellsworth 1-0, Eureka 1-0, Garden Plain 1-0, Halstead 1-0, Hoisington 0-1, Humboldt 1-0, Norton 1-0, Osage City 1-0, Riley County 0-1, Sabetha 1-0, TMP-Marian 1-0.
CLASS 1A
Team … Record
- Smith Center (2) … 1-0
- Inman (3) … 1-0
- Olpe (1) … 0-1
- St. Marys (NR) … 1-0
- Pittsburg Colgan (NR) … 1-0
Others – Centralia 1-0, Conway Springs 0-1, Hutchinson Trinity 1-0, Jefferson County North 1-0, Riverside 1-0, Troy 1-0, Wabaunsee 0-1.
EIGHT-PLAYER DIVISION I
Team … Record
- Hill City (2) … 1-0
- Meade (3) … 1-0
- Leoti-Wichita County (NR) … 1-0
- Madison (4) … 1-0
- Little River (1) … 0-1
Others – Argonia-Attica 1-0, Burlingame 1-0, Cair Paravel 0-1, Chase County 1-0, Clifton-Clyde 1-0, Goessel 1-0, Hoxie 1-0, La Crosse 1-0, Lyndon 1-0, Macksville 1-0, Sedan 1-0, South Sumner 1-0, West Elk 1-0.
EIGHT-PLAYER DIVISION II
Team … Record
- Axtell (1) … 1-0
- Canton-Galva (2) … 1-0
- Thunder Ridge (3) … 1-0
- Dighton (4) … 1-0
- Victoria (5) … 1-0
Others – Beloit-St. John’s 1-0, Bucklin 1-0, Colony-Crest 1-0, Hanover 0-1, Hodgeman County 1-0, Lebo 0-1, Logan-Palco 1-0, Sharon Springs-Wallace County 1-0, South Barber 1-0, Stafford 1-0.
SIX-PLAYER
Team … Record
- Cunningham (1) … 1-0
- Northern Valley (4) … 1-0
- Ashland (3) … 0-1
- Waverly (5) … 1-0
- Cheylin (NR) … 1-0
Others – Centre 1-0, Ingalls 1-0, Moscow 1-0, Natoma 0-1, Triplains-Brewster 1-0, Wetmore 1-0.