Iowa high school football rankings: Ankeny, Southeast Valley gain No. 1 status in 5A, 2A

Last year’s Class 5A state champion, Ankeny has reclaimed its status as the best football team in the big-school class.

Fresh off a 21-7 victory over Southeast Polk, the Hawks replaced the Rams as the top-ranked team in The Gazette’s poll, released Tuesday.

Ankeny claimed five of six first-place votes and accumulated 59 poll points. Cedar Rapids Kennedy, which received a forfeit victory over Cedar Rapids Jefferson, remains at No. 2 while Southeast Polk dropped to third.

West Des Moines Valley and Urbandale round out the top five, with Iowa City High (sixth) and Linn-Mar (ninth) climbing into the poll for the first time this season.

Ankeny is one of two new top-ranked teams. Southeast Valley takes over in Class 2A after dropping former No. 1 Ida Grove OABCIG, 44-22, ending the Falcons’ 29-game winning streak.

More shuffling in the top end of the 2A poll is imminent: Southeast Valley plays at third-ranked Estherville ELC in a District 2 showdown this week, and OABCIG — now sixth — hosts No. 2 Spirit Lake in another.

West Marshall is No. 4; Waukon is No. 5.

The other big storyline this week comes in 8-Player. Anita CAM and Audubon have been ranked 1-2 all season, and the Cougars and Wheelers collide Friday at Audubon in a District 10 showdown.

CAM has outscored its first four opponents by a 254-47 margin; Audubon has rolled by a 206-62 count.

CAM received three first-place votes; Audubon, No. 3 Montezuma and No. 4 Easton Valley snagged one apiece. Remsen St. Mary’s is fifth.

The top of the other four classes are a mirror image of last week.

Class 4A leaders North Scott and Indianola both won close games last week. The Lancers topped Cedar Rapids Xavier 20-8, and the Indians tipped Lewis Central 14-9.

North Scott retains a 58-56 lead in poll points. Bondurant-Farrar climbs three spots to No. 3, then Xavier and Lewis Central round out the top five.

Harlan remains a unanimous No. 1 in 3A. Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley is second, then it’s West Delaware, Solon and Humboldt. Independence is sixth.

Van Meter continues its run as a unanimous No. 1 in 1A. Underwood received all six votes as No. 2, then Iowa City Regina, Dike-New Hartford and Sigourney-Keota round out the top five.

West Hancock still is the top team in Class A. Grundy Center is second, then Woodbury Central, Lisbon and Logan-Magnolia complete the top five. North Linn is sixth.

The Gazette football poll

(First-place votes in parentheses)

CLASS 5A W-L Pts Pvs

1. Ankeny (5) 3-1 59 3

2. Cedar Rapids Kennedy (1) 4-0 48 2

3. Southeast Polk 3-1 45 1

4. West Des Moines Valley 3-1 43 3

5. Urbandale 3-1 33 5

T-6. Cedar Falls 3-1 30 7

T-6. Iowa City High 4-0 30 —

8. Cedar Rapids Prairie 3-1 20 9

9. Linn-Mar 4-0 13 —

T-10. Ankeny Centennial 2-2 3 10

T-10 West Des Moines Dowling 1-3 3 6

Dropped out: Johnston (8).

Others receiving votes: Dubuque Senior 2, Johnston 1.

CLASS 4A W-L Pts Pvs

1. North Scott (4) 4-0 58 1

2. Indianola (2) 4-0 56 2

3. Bondurant-Farrar 4-0 40 6

4. Cedar Rapids Xavier 3-1 39 4

5. Lewis Central 2-2 35 3

T-6. Fort Dodge 4-0 24 7

T-6. Winterset 3-1 24 9

8. Waverly-Shell Rock 3-1 22 5

9. Newton 4-0 18 10

10. Norwalk 3-1 11 —

Dropped out: Cedar Rapids Washington (8).

Others receiving votes: Oskaloosa 2, Cedar Rapids Washington 1.

CLASS 3A W-L Pts Pvs

1. Harlan (6) 4-0 60 1

2. Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley 4-0 53 2

3. West Delaware 3-1 42 4

4. Solon 4-0 40 6

5. Humboldt 4-0 37 5

6. Independence 4-0 36 3

7. Nevada 4-0 22 7

8. Sergeant Bluff-Luton 3-1 21 8

9. Mount Vernon 3-1 11 —

10. Davenport Assumption 2-2 3 8

Dropped out: Algona (10).

Others receiving votes: Algona 2, Creston 2, Adel ADM 1.

CLASS 2A W-L Pts Pvs

1. Southeast Valley (4) 4-0 57 3

2. Spirit Lake (2) 4-0 55 4

3. Estherville ELC 3-1 46 5

4. West Marshall 3-1 37 6

5. Waukon 3-1 36 7

6. Ida Grove OABCIG 3-1 35 1

7. Greene County 3-1 19 10

8. West Lyon 2-2 18 10

9. Central Lyon-GLR 1-3 11 2

10. Unity Christian 3-1 8 —

Dropped out: Pocahontas Area (8), North Fayette Valley (9).

Others receiving votes: Monticello 3, Pocahontas Area 2, Williamsburg 2, Clarion CGD 1.

CLASS 1A W-L Pts Pvs

1. Van Meter (6) 4-0 60 1

2. Underwood 4-0 54 2

3. Iowa City Regina 4-0 42 3

4. Dike-New Hartford 4-0 37 4

5. Sigourney-Keota 4-0 30 5

6. West Sioux 3-1 25 8

T-7. Dyersville Beckman 4-0 23 9

T-7. Pella Christian 4-0 23 7

9. Guthrie Center ACGC 4-0 16 10

10. Waterloo Columbus 3-1 8 —

Dropped out: MFL MarMac (5).

Others receiving votes: Denver 4, Cardinal 3, West Branch 3, MFL MarMac 2.

CLASS A W-L Pts Pvs

1. West Hancock (5) 4-0 59 1

2. Grundy Center (1) 3-1 53 2

3. Woodbury Central 4-0 43 3

4. Lisbon 3-1 37 4

5. Logan-Magnolia 3-1 33 5

6. North Linn 4-0 30 6

7. Oakland Riverside 4-0 27 7

8. North Tama 4-0 19 9

9. Hartley HMS 3-1 15 8

10. Mason City Newman 3-1 6 10

Others receiving votes: Earlham 3, Tri-Center 3, Ogden 2.

8-PLAYER W-L Pts Pvs

1. Anita CAM (3) 4-0 56 1

2. Audubon (1) 4-0 53 2

3. Montezuma (1) 5-0 48 3

4. Easton Valley (1) 4-0 40 4

5. Remsen St. Mary’s 4-0 38 5

6. Newell-Fonda 4-0 30 7

7. Janesville 4-0 25 6

8. Gladbrook-Reinbeck 4-0 13 9

9. Turkey Valley 4-0 9 —

10. WACO 5-0 8 —

Dropped out: New London (7), Lansing Kee (10), Ruthven GTRA (10).

Others receiving votes: Lenox 5, Lansing Kee 4, Ruthven GTRA 1.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com