August 5, 2009

Dallas Jackson
Rivals High Managing Editor

Last Monday RivalsHigh.com began its 2009 countdown, ranking high school teams from first through No. 100.

We started at the bottom of the rankings and will release two groups of five per day; then we'll do a daily countdown from 10th to first, with our No. 1 team to be unveiled Aug. 10 - which will be two weeks from the start of the season.

After that, we will wait until September 1 for the next rankings, and then every Monday during the season.

The team rankings were compiled by high school sports managing editor Dallas Jackson, the Rivals AMP team, football recruiting analysts, and the entire RivalsHigh network of publishers.

Top 100 Countdown: 100-96 | 95-91 | 90-86 | 85-81 | 80-76 | 75-71 | 70-66 | 65-61 | 60-56 | 55-51
50-46 | 45-41 | 40-36 | 35-31 | Post your thoughts on the national message board

Top 100 countdown No. 30 S.O. Notre Dame, Calif.

COACH: Kevin Rooney LAST SEASON: 11-1 FINAL 2008 RIVALS.COM RANKING: No. 93 Nationally KEEP AN EYE ON: Traveling. Sherman Oaks Notre Dame will travel to Texas to play Klein Oak the first week of the season. Notre Dame is a senrio lead team so the nerves should be calm, but the travel is still very tough on teams. STAR POWER: The stars of the team are in the offensive backfield. Ryan Kasdorf returns at quarterback a year after throwing for 36 TDs. He is joined in the backfield by Kenny Boggs. Boggs has not had much much success on the recruiting front yet, but if he can tally another 1000+ yard season he could end up with some offers. STRENGTHS: The strength of the team is the offensive line. The Knights return four of five starters up front from a team that went 11-1 and advanced to the second round of the playoffs. Ben Gottschalk anchors the line at center. GOALS: "I asked the team to set our goals this year," Coach Rooney said. "They really only set two. Win our league and get to the state finals. I think both are realistic for us."

Top 100 countdown No. 29 North Shore, Texas

COACH: David Aymond LAST SEASON: 9-1 FINAL 2008 RIVALS.COM RANKING: No. 15 in Texas 5A KEEP AN EYE ON: The opening game. North Shore will square off with two time defending State champ Katy. North Shore was able to edge out a 10-6 win to start last season but both teams are largely improved this season. STAR POWER: Trey Hopkins is the No. 1 rated offensive guard in the nation. It is hard to get much higher star power than that. The 6-foot-4 260 pound mountain will be headed to Texas next season. STRENGTHS: The secondary. It will be tough to move the ball through the air against Larry Stephens - and Oklahoma State commit - or Houston commit Alton Demby. Demby is also very solid agains the run and can make a lot of plays. QUOTABLE: "Not only does North Shore have one of the best senior classes in the region they also are very deep with 2011 players," TheOldCoach from TheOldCoach.com points out. "If they can get by Katy again they could set themselves up as a favorite to make a run in the state tournament."

Top 100 countdown No. 28 Mullen, Colorado

COACH: Dave Logan LAST SEASON: 11-2, Won Colorado State 5A Finals FINAL 2008 RIVALS.COM RANKING: No. 1 in Colorado KEEP AN EYE ON: The development of QB Jonny Miller. Miller has commited to Syracuse but can continue to improve on his mechanics and decision making. Mullen has a lot of talented players around Miller so he should be poised for a very good season. STAR POWER: While many of the headlines goes to Miller. The best player on the team may be linebacker Nduka Onyeali. Onyeali has very good size and speed to play on the next level. He has offers from all over the country. STRENGTHS: The back seven. Mullen has a very solid defensive end in Beau Martin but the linebackers and defensive backs will be the teeth of the defense. Erik Smith and Dylan Storm will patroll the secondary as Onyeali and Sammy Wood will be getting pressure from the outside LB spots. COACHES: "Our coaches (at Mullen) are the best in Colorado," QB Jonny Miller said. "The coaches really know how to develop players and get them to the next level. We've had about 45-50 kids go Division I. It's definitely a good program and has helped me get to the next level."

Top 100 countdown No. 27 Lakeland, Florida

COACH: Bill Castle LAST SEASON: 14-1, Lost 5A State Title game FINAL 2008 RIVALS.COM RANKING: No. 15 Nationally KEEP AN EYE ON: The offensive line. The Dreadnaughts have one of the best groups of skill players in the state but have serious holes on both side of the line. The offensive line is the bigger worry with the national spotlight game against fundamentally sound De La Salle aprroaching quickly. STAR POWER: Jarred Haggins may be the most gifted athlete in the 2010 class at Lakeland. He can play so many positions but will likely line up at WR for Florida State next season. Opponenets must always be aware of Quayshawn Nealy as well. The linebacker has had 100+ tackles the last two seasons and is a playmaker on the defensive side of the ball. STRENGTHS: Coaching. Bill Castle was named Coach of the Century in Florida. That is no small feat with all the talented coaches who have come and gone in Florida. Keeping Lakeland in the national spotlight for a long time has been his responsibility and he has been able to cultivate a level of expectation and accountability. SLEEPING GIANT: "Before all the recent buzz about the success of programs like Miami Northwestern and St. Thomas Aquinas, Lakeland was the big kid on the block in Florida football." Rivals.com analyst Barton Simmons continued, "Over the past two seasons, the talent has not quite been the same as it was during their state championship runs but this year it looks like the Dreadnaughts are going to be getting back to their old form with guys like Jarred Haggins and Quayshawn Nealy. They could really be the sleeping giants in the state of Florida this year."

Top 100 countdown No. 26 East St. Louis, Illinois

COACH: Darren Sunkett LAST SEASON: 13-1, Illinois 7A State Champ FINAL 2008 RIVALS.COM RANKING: No. 71 Nationally KEEP AN EYE ON: Playing as a team. Last season The Flyers has two high profile athletes to rely on where as this year they will need to be a more complete team. Things do look good as there is quality depth at most positions and the Flyers are Florida fast and face Illinois competition. STAR POWER: There is no Hawthorne or Appleton on this years roster at East St. Louis, but that doesn't mean they are devoid of stars. Detchauz Wray learned from two very good players and has grown into his own. Wray favors Nebraska and Arizona for his college choices but has yet to make a final decision. Wray has drawn comparisons to Antwaan Randle El. STRENGTHS: Speed. The Flyers were the fastest team in Illinois last season and made a strong case for the best team in Illinois last season. If it wasn't for an opening week misstep in Ohio they would have ended the year undefeated. This season they are just as fast and hopefully more disciplined. QUOTABLE: "They graduated a ton of high level prospects from last year," Tim O'Halloran from EdgyTim.com explains. "But they may actually be a better team this year. They had a very young offensive and defensive line that that will be better this year as well."