National Prep Poll
September 14, 2009
National Prep Football Poll - Week 5
By Jamie DeMoney

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URBANDALE, Iowa -- Fresh off an impressive 27-7 defeat of perennial national power Long Beach (Calif.) Poly, St. Bonaventure (Ventura) enters this week's National Prep Poll Top 25 rankings.

Senior running back Devon Blackledge ran for 291 yards and three touchdowns to lead the No. 12 Seraphs, whose only loss since September 2007 is a 12-7 setback to Poly last season.

Jenks (Okla.) rejoins the national poll at No. 21 after defeating rival Tulsa Union, 27-25. The Trojans began the year ranked No. 12 before Oklahoma-bound receiver Jarrett Lake was ruled ineligible for the season.

No. 22 Stony Point (Round Rock, Texas) makes its first-ever appearance in the national rankings this week. The Tigers have several key players back from the team that reached the Class 5A/II state semifinals last season.

Rounding out the Top 25 this week is Washington D.C.-area power Good Counsel (Olney, Md.). The Falcons got a win at Valhalla (El Cajon, Calif.) to open the season then blanked city-ranked Mount St. Joseph (Baltimore), 42-0, in week two.

View the PrepNation 101 Preseason Rankings and 101 Teams to Watch in 2009

The National Prep Football Poll is compiled by high school sports journalist Jamie DeMoney with input from sportswriters, experts, and coaches. The national Top 25 and regional Top 10's follow with won-loss records:

# School Record Note LW
1. Fort Lauderdale, Fla., St. Thomas Aquinas 2-0 36-point average margin during 26-game win streak
2. Duncan, S.C., Byrnes 3-0 plays at No. 1 Aquinas Oct. 2
3. Miami, Fla., Northwestern 1-0 seeks fourth straight 6A finals trip
4. Valdosta, Ga., Lowndes 3-0 averaging 56 points per game
5. Cincinnati, Ohio, Elder 3-0 beat four-time defending Ky. champ Trinity
6. Cedar Hill, Texas 3-0 topped state-ranked Euless Trinity, 23-14
7. Ramsey, N.J., Don Bosco Prep 1-0 hammered Calif. power De La Salle, 30-6 12 
8. Chesapeake, Va., Oscar Smith 2-0 reigning Div. 6 titlist
9. Sammamish, Wash., Skyline 2-0 hosts No. 13 Oaks Christian Friday on ESPNU
10. Anaheim, Calif., Servite 2-0 QB Cody Fajardo a dual threat 10 
11. Miami, Fla., Central 2-0 features blue chip QB Jeffrey Godfrey 16 
12. Ventura, Calif., St. Bonaventure 2-0 RB Devon Blackledge nearly 300 yards in defeat of Long Beach Poly NR 
13. Westlake Village, Calif., Oaks Christian 2-0 QB Nick Montana son of NFL legend Joe 13 
14. Lakeland, Fla. 1-0 shut out Winter Haven in opener, 28-0 14 
15. Cleveland, Ohio, St. Ignatius 3-0 LB Scott McVey an Ohio St. recruit 11 
16. Peoria, Ariz., Centennial 3-0 three consecutive 5A/II titles 15 
17. Loganville, Ga., Grayson 3-0 12 straight games of less than 14 points allowed 18 
18. Dallas, Texas, Skyline 2-0 RB Tony Drake headed to Michigan 19 
19. Cincinnati, Ohio, St. Xavier 3-0 three wins over then-regionally ranked teams 21 
20. Hyattsville, Md., DeMatha 2-0 RB Marcus Coker nearly 400 yards in 56-35 win 22 
21. Jenks, Okla. 2-0 edged then-No. 20 Tulsa Union, 27-25 NR 
22. Round Rock, Texas, Stony Point 3-0 only 10 points allowed all year NR 
23. River Ridge, La., John Curtis 1-0 19 consecutive in-state wins 23 
24. Charlotte, N.C., Independence 4-0 seeks eighth state title this decade 24 
25. Olney, Md., Good Counsel 2-0 three seniors committed to BCS schools NR 

Northeast Region
1. Ramsey, N.J., Don Bosco Prep (1-0) (1)
2. Lansdale, Pa., North Penn (2-0) (2)
3. Harrisburg, Pa., Bishop McDevitt (2-0) (3)
4. Oradell, N.J., Bergen Catholic (1-0) (5)
5. Montvale, N.J., St. Joseph Regional (1-0) (4)
6. State College, Pa. (2-0) (6)
7. Pittsburgh, Pa., Central Catholic (2-0) (7)
8. Wayne, N.J., Wayne Hills (1-0) (8)
9. Monroeville, Pa., Gateway (2-0) (9)
10. Central Valley, N.Y., Monroe-Woodbury (2-0) (10)

East Coast Region
1. Duncan, S.C., Byrnes (3-0) (1)
2. Chesapeake, Va., Oscar Smith (2-0) (2)
3. Hyattsville, Md., DeMatha (2-0) (3)
4. Charlotte, N.C., Independence (4-0) (4)
5. Olney, Md., Good Counsel (2-0) (5)
6. Matthews, N.C., Butler (3-0) (6)
7. Rock Hill, S.C. (3-0) (9)
8. Gambrills, Md., Arundel (2-0) --
9. Hampton, Va., Phoebus (2-0) (8)
10. Vienna, Va., Oakton (2-0) (10)

Southeast Region
1. Fort Lauderdale, Fla., St. Thomas Aquinas (2-0) (1)
2. Miami, Fla., Northwestern (1-0) (2)
3. Valdosta, Ga., Lowndes (3-0) (3)
4. Miami, Fla., Central (2-0) (5)
5. Lakeland, Fla. (1-0) (4)
6. Loganville, Ga., Grayson (3-0) (6)
7. River Ridge, La., John Curtis (1-0) (7)
8. Jacksonville, Fla., Bolles (1-0) (8)
9. Madison, Miss., Madison Central (4-0) (9)
10. Memphis, Tenn., Memphis University (4-0) (10)

Midwest Region
1. Cincinnati, Ohio, Elder (3-0) (1)
2. Cleveland, Ohio, St. Ignatius (3-0) (2)
3. Cincinnati, Ohio, St. Xavier (3-0) (3)
4. Cleveland, Ohio, Glenville (3-1) (4)
5. Park Ridge, Ill., Maine South (3-0) (6)
6. Cincinnati, Ohio, Moeller (3-0) (5)
7. Indianapolis, Ind., Cathedral (3-1) (8)
8. Warren, Mich., De La Salle (3-0) (10)
9. Chicago, Ill., Mount Carmel (3-0) (9)
10. Louisville, Ky., St. Xavier (2-1) (7)

Midlands Region
1. Denver, Colo., Mullen (3-0) (1)
2. Hutchinson, Kan. (2-0) (4)
3. South Jordan, Utah, Bingham (3-1) (2)
4. Sandy, Utah, Alta (3-1) (5)
5. Eden Prairie, Minn. (2-0) (6)
6. Plymouth, Minn., Wayzata (2-0) (7)
7. Florissant, Mo., Hazelwood Central (3-0) (8)
8. Littleton, Colo., Columbine (2-0) (9)
9. Jefferson City, Mo. (3-0) --
10. Iowa City, Iowa, City High (3-0) (10)

Southwest Region
1. Cedar Hill, Texas (3-0) (1)
2. Peoria, Ariz., Centennial (3-0) (2)
3. Dallas, Texas, Skyline (2-0) (3)
4. Jenks, Okla. (2-0) (9)
5. Round Rock, Texas, Stony Point (3-0) (6)
6. The Woodlands, Texas (3-0) (7)
7. Katy, Texas (2-1) --
8. Longview, Texas (3-0) (8)
9. Tulsa, Okla., Union (1-1) (4)
10. Springdale, Ark., Shiloh Christian (2-0) (10)

West Coast Region
1. Sammamish, Wash., Skyline (2-0) (2)
2. Anaheim, Calif., Servite (2-0) (3)
3. Ventura, Calif., St. Bonaventure (2-0) (9)
4. Westlake Village, Calif., Oaks Christian (2-0) (4)
5. Mission Viejo, Calif. (2-0) (6)
6. Huntington Beach, Calif., Edison (2-0) (8)
7. Los Angeles, Calif., Crenshaw (2-0) --
8. Oceanside, Calif. (2-0) --
9. Encino, Calif., Crespi (2-0) --
10. Kahuku, Hawaii (4-0) (10)

Dropped out: No. 8 Bellevue, Wash. (1-1); No. 17 Concord, Calif., De La Salle (1-1); No. 25 Garland, Texas (1-1). East Coast: No. 7 Rock Hill, S.C., South Pointe (2-2). Midlands: No. 3 Blue Springs, Mo. (2-1). West Coast: No. 7 Sherman Oaks, Calif., Notre Dame (1-1).

FEATS OF THE WEEK: Week four of the season featured a pair of inter-regional matchups between preseason Top 25 teams. In New Jersey, No. 7 Ramsey, Don Bosco dominated six-time Prep Poll champion and then-No. 17 Concord, Calif., De La Salle, 30-6. It was the second win against the Spartans in as many seasons for the Ironmen . . . In Texas, then-No. 8 Bellevue, Wash., was no match for defending 5A/I titlist Katy. The Tigers smothered the Wolverines' vaunted Wing-T offense and won 35-17 . . . One of the nation's top rivalries was renewed before more than 18,000 fans at Tulsa University's Chapman Stadium. No. 21 Jenks, Okla., eked out a 27-25 win over regionally ranked Tulsa, Union. The two programs, located less than 10 miles apart, have combined to win every Oklahoma 6A state championship since 1996 . . . Scotty Young (Texas Tech) threw a state record-tying eight touchdown passes as Denton, Texas, Ryan earned a wild 62-56 win against McKinney . . . Mark McDonagh had a state-record 20 receptions for 211 yards and three touchdowns in Riverside, Ill., Riverside-Brookfield's 65-26 rout of Chicago, Robeson . . . Running back Marcus Coker (Iowa) exploded for 391 rushing yards and five touchdowns to lead No. 20 Hyattsville, Md., DeMatha past Baltimore, Gilman, 56-35.

Copyright 2009 World Features Syndicate, Inc...endit

This is Jamie DeMoney's 10th year compiling the World Features Syndicate/Associated Press National Prep Poll. He has covered high school sports and recruiting for more than 15 years and compiled the National Prep Poll since 1999. DeMoney has also compiled high school football and basketball rankings for Sporting News, School Sports, and RISE. DeMoney was managing editor of American Football Monthly and assistant national editor of All-Stater Sports/Highwired Sports. DeMoney is a graduate of the University of Iowa School of Journalism, and a member of the Football Writers Association of America and the United States Basketball Writers Association.

About the National Prep Poll: Compiled weekly weekly since 1987 and distributed by World Features Syndicate and the Associated Press, the National Prep Poll is the nation's second oldest weekly high school sports rankings. Doug Huff of ESPN RISE compiled the rankings from 1987 until 1999. Jamie DeMoney has compiled the poll since the start of the 1999 basketball season. The National Prep Poll is the only high school poll distributed to newspapers and Web sites around the United States by the Associated Press national wire service. The National Prep Poll is the first high school football and boys basketball poll to released in the preseason and during each week of the regular season. Criteria considered for the National Prep Poll rankings are strength of schedule, the ability to accomplish the ultimate goal on a team's schedule (i.e. winning a championship), impact players and performers, a team's coaching and recent tradition.

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