NATIONAL RANKINGS
NATIONAL RANKINGS

3 schools take the lead among Georgia teams in national rankings

Graphics cover the walls inside the football locker room in the Thomas County Central indoor athletic facility. (A. Wallace for the AJC)

Credit: A. Wallace for the AJC

Credit: A. Wallace for the AJC

Graphics cover the walls inside the football locker room in the Thomas County Central indoor athletic facility. (A. Wallace for the AJC)
By
Aug 27, 2026

Buford, Carrollton and Thomas County Central have separated themselves from the other Georgia teams in the national high school football polls after the first full week of the regular season.

Buford, the defending consensus national champion, is ranked in the top seven in all 10 of the polls considered by AJC Varsity. The Wolves are the top Georgia team in all but one poll, the Massey Ratings, which have Carrollton at No. 4, Buford at No. 5 and Thomas County Central at No. 6.

Carrollton is ranked in the top 24 of all 10 polls, while Thomas County Central made the top 25 in six of the 10.

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The only other Georgia teams that earned a top-25 ranking in any poll are North Gwinnett (No. 18 Massey Ratings and No. 22 Sports Idol Nation), Hughes (No. 25, Massey Ratings) and Creekside (No. 25 NationalHSFB.com).

Seventeen Georgia teams are among the Massey Ratings’ top 100. Six Georgia teams — Sandy Creek, Lee County, Newton, Houston County, McEachern and Cartersville — moved into the top 100 this week, while Creekside, Rome, Benedictine and Brookwood slipped out.

Here is where Georgia teams stand in several national polls. The numbers on the left are this week’s rankings; the numbers in parentheses are last week’s rankings.

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MaxPreps

(Full Top 100 list)

  • 7. (7) Buford
  • 15. (19) Carrollton
  • 32. (33) Thomas County Central
  • 38. (38) North Gwinnett
  • 44. (46) Milton
  • 50. (51) McEachern
  • 53. (85) Newton
  • 57. (21) Creekside
  • 61. (37) Gainesville
  • 63. (56) Douglas County
  • 81. (82) Lowndes
  • 89. (91) Valdosta
  • 91. (93) Lee County
  • 99. (NR) Sandy Creek

High School Football America

(Full Top 100 list)

  • 3. (5) Buford
  • 7. (8) Carrollton
  • 23. (44) Thomas County Central
  • 36. (24) Creekside
  • 60. (56) Gainesville
  • 62. (62) Hughes
  • 64. (82) North Gwinnett
  • 73. (79) Roswell
  • 75. (75) Milton
  • 77. (NR) Newton
  • 79. (73) Douglas County
  • 86. (87) Lowndes
  • 90. (NR) McEachern
  • 95. (96) Valdosta
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Massey Ratings

(Full Top 100 list)

  • 4. (12) Carrollton
  • 5. (7) Buford
  • 6. (16) Thomas County Central
  • 18. (15) North Gwinnett
  • 25. (56) Hughes
  • 29. (NR) Sandy Creek
  • 35. (NR) Lee County
  • 47. (NR) Newton
  • 49. (NR) Houston County
  • 53. (97) Milton
  • 54. (84) Valdosta
  • 57. (76) Lowndes
  • 58. (55) Roswell
  • 64. (NR) McEachern
  • 76. (67) Gainesville
  • 85. (NR) Cartersville
  • 96. (47) Grayson
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Mister Football

(Composite list)

  • 4. (4) Buford
  • 10. (11) Carrollton
  • 19. (38) Thomas County Central
  • 39. (NR) North Gwinnett
  • 50T. (22) Creekside
  • 50T. (NR) Hughes
  • 50T. (NR) Sandy Creek

Sports Idol Nation

(Full Top 50 list)

  • 6. (6) Buford
  • 13. (14) Carrollton
  • 22. (25) North Gwinnett
  • 29. (43) Thomas County Central

USA Today

(Full Top 25 list)

  • 7. (11) Buford
  • 13. (14) Carrollton
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ESPN SC Next

(Full Top 25 list)

  • 2. (1) Buford
  • 6. (7) Carrollton

High School on SI

(Full Top 25 list)

  • 3. (3) Buford
  • 14. (15) Carrollton
  • 22. (NR) Thomas County Central

NationalHSFB.com

(Full Top 25 list)

  • 6. (6) Buford
  • 23. (25) Thomas County Central
  • 24. (NR) Carrollton
  • 25. (10) Creekside

Rivals

(Full Top 25 list)

  • 6. (9) Buford
  • 8. (7) Carrollton
  • 20. (NR) Thomas County Central

About the Author

Chip Saye rejoined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2025, at the launch of AJC Varsity. In 2009 he helped start Georgia High School Football Daily. He previously worked for the AJC, Athens Banner-Herald, Anderson (S.C.) Independent-Mail and Gwinnett Daily News.

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