Chanhassen, Stewartville ascend to No. 1 rankings in high school football

Chanhassen defeated then-No. 1 Mankato West, and Stewartville rose when Dassel-Cokato fell.

October 3, 2023 at 12:50PM
Elk River running back Gavin Schmidt (28) is tackled just shy of the end zone by Chanhassen linebacker Carter Carstens (14) in the first half of the opening night game between Elk River High School and Chanhassen High School Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023 at Elk River High School.
Chanhassen’s Carter Carstens wrapped up Elk River’s Gavin Schmidt during one of the victories that have made the Storm No. 1 in Class 5A. (Nicole Neri, Special to the Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Two new No. 1 teams stand atop their high school football classes in this week's rankings.

Chanhassen moved to the top of Class 5A with its 21-14 victory over then-No. 1 Mankato West. That came late Friday, nearly Saturday, after storms including lightning interrupted the game.

The other new No. 1 is Stewartville in Class 3A, replacing Dassel-Cokato, which lost 14-13 at Litchfield on Saturday after storms wiped out Friday plans.

Dassel-Cokato had been ranked No. 1 all season, as had Mankato West.

It's a big week for several other No. 1 teams. Eden Prairie, ranked first in Class 6A all season, will visit Minnetonka, ranked third this week, for a Thursday game. Becker, No. 1 in Class 4A, will host Rocori, ranked seventh. Barnesville, No. 1 in Class 2A from the start, will take on 4-1 Park Rapids.

State rankings

First-place votes in parentheses, record, total points

CLASS 6A

1. Eden Prairie (11), 5-0, 110

8. Shakopee, 3-2, 30

9. Anoka, 4-1, 23

10. Buffalo, 4-1, 13

Also receiving votes: Forest Lake 11.

CLASS 5A

1. Chanhassen (11), 5-0, 110

2. Rogers, 5-0, 97

3. Mankato West, 4-1, 83

4. Alexandria, 5-0, 82

5. Sauk Rapids-Rice, 5-0, 59

6. St. Thomas Academy, 4-1, 49

7. Andover, 4-1, 45

8. Brainerd, 4-1, 35

9. Robbinsdale Cooper, 4-1, 16

10. Robbinsdale Armstrong, 4-1, 14

Also receiving votes: Owatonna 12, Bloomington Jefferson 1.

CLASS 4A

1. Becker (9), 5-0, 107

2. Orono (1), 5-0, 93

3. Byron, 5-0, 89

4. Detroit Lakes (1), 5-0, 77

5. Totino-Grace, 4-1, 58

6. Princeton, 5-0, 53

7. Rocori, 4-1, 49

8. Hutchinson, 3-2, 39

9. Mound Westonka, 4-1, 19

10. Kasson-Mantorville, 4-1, 12

Also receiving votes: Chisago Lakes 7, Hermantown 4, North Branch 4, Duluth Denfeld 3.

CLASS 3A

1. Stewartville (6), 5-0, 105

2. Esko (5), 5-0, 101

3. Fairmont, 5-0, 87

4. Annandale, 4-0, 69

5. Litchfield, 4-1, 57

6. Dassel-Cokato, 4-1, 46

7. Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton, 4-1, 44

8. Minneapolis North, 4-1, 38

9. Waseca, 4-1, 35

10. Pequot Lakes, 4-1, 15

Also receiving votes: Rockford 5, Rochester Lourdes 4.

CLASS 2A

1. Barnesville (7), 5-0, 103

2. Caledonia (3), 5-0, 97

3. Chatfield, 5-0, 87

4. Eden Valley-Watkins, 5-0, 73

5. Jackson County Central, 5-0, 64

6. St. Agnes (1), 5-0, 58

7. Barnum, 5-0, 43

8. Norwood Young America, 5-0, 33

9. Cannon Falls, 4-1, 19

10. Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg, 5-0, 12

Also receiving votes: Osakis 8, Holdingford 4, Moose Lake-Willow River 2, Maple River 1.

CLASS 1A

1. Minneota (9), 5-0, 107

2. Fillmore Central (1), 5-0, 97

3. Mahnomen/Waubun (1), 5-0, 91

4. BOLD, 4-1, 52

5. Sleepy Eye United, 5-0, 36

6. Springfield, 4-1, 35

7. Ada-Borup-West, 4-1, 35

8. Parkers Prairie, 5-0, 31

9. Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa, 5-0, 28

10. Lester Prairie, 4-1, 26

Also receiving votes: Kenyon-Wanamingo 22, Mayer Lutheran 19, Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop 12, Upsala/Swanville 6, Bethlehem Academy 3, Goodhue 3.

NINE-PLAYER

1. Mountain Iron-Buhl (10), 5-0, 109

2. Fertile-Beltrami (1), 5-0, 98

3. Cherry, 5-0, 90

4. Nevis, 5-0, 63

5. Ogilvie, 5-0, 60

6. Ottertail Central, 5-0, 43

7. Leroy-Ostrander, 5-0, 41

8. Edgerton, 4-0, 40

9. Kingsland, 5-0, 25

10. Spring Grove, 5-1, 20

Also receiving votes: Hills-Beaver Creek 15, Stephen-Argyle 1.

The rankings were determined by a group of 12 voters representing media across the state. Each No. 1 vote is worth 10 points, No. 2 9 points, No. 3 8 points, down to No. 10 worth 1 point. The rankings are compiled by the Star Tribune's Jim Paulsen (612-437-9926 cell/text), james.paulsen@startribune.com).

about the writer

about the writer

Jim Paulsen

Reporter

Jim Paulsen is a high school sports reporter for the Star Tribune. 

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