Top 25 Louisiana High School Football Rankings (11/18/2024)

Most of the Top 25 had first round playoff byes, but there was some action and movement

No. 16 Mandeville improved to 10-1 with an opening round playoff victory. / Stan Carpenter/ The Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

Not much changed in this week's edition of the Top 25 rankings. Most of the ranked teams had a first-round playoff bye with a few exceptions. Southside and Mandeville were among the programs who passed their first-round tests. 

Dutchtown dropped out of the rankings after getting upset in the first round. University Lab, which was seeded No. 2 in Division II select, also dropped out after the LHSAA won its court case against the Cubs, which reinstated several forfeits.

Keep reading to find out the top 25 teams in Louisiana and who they'll face in the playoffs this week. 

Playoff seed: No. 1 (Division I select) Up next: Against No. 17 Huntington (6-5)

1. Edna Karr (9-0)

The Cougars had a first-round playoff bye. Junior quarterback John Johnson passed for 2,474 yards and 26 TDs with four interceptions in the regular season (fifth in state). His favorite targets have been Daejawn Smith (50 rec., 873 yards, 12 TDs) and LSU commit TaRon Francis ((55-859, eight TDs). 

Huntington upset No. 16 Hammond, 34-6. The Raiders lost by five points, 59-54, to undefeated Airline in district play. During the regular season, Nyles Hullaby (5-11, 228, Sr.) rushed for 1,152 yards on 164 carries with 15 TDs. 

2. Alexandria (10-0)

Playoff seed: No. 2 (Division I select) Up next: against No. 18 Evangel Christian (6-5)

Alexandria coach Thomas Bachman will be up against his alma mater when sophomore quarterback Peyton Houston and the Eagles make the trip down I-49 from Shreveport to visit the Trojans, who had a first-round bye. 

The Trojans have their own standout 2027 quarterbacks in Karsen Sellers and Max Gassiott. Sellers has passed for 1,525 yards and 25 TDs with one interception. He attempted 131 passes before being picked off, according to Bret McCormick of Louisiana vs. All Y'all. Houston, who leads the state in passing, directed the Eagles to a win at district rival No. 15 Captain Shreve.

3. Acadiana (9-1)

Playoff seed: No. 3 (Division I select) Up next: Against No. 19 John Curtis Christian (5-5)

The Rams, who had a first-round bye, host the Patriots in a matchup of split-back veer offenses. Acadiana RB Jonah Gauthier rushed for 812 yards on 98 carries with 12 TDs in the regular season. Tayden Collins added 710 yards on 89 carries with nine TDs.

John Curtis upset No. 14 Brother Martin, 21-13. Quarterback Reggie Johnson ran and passed for a TD, according to Lenny Vangilder of Crescent City Sports. Jack Corcoran rushed for a score. Last year in the regular season, the Patriots blanked Acadiana, 28-0. The Curtis defense intercepted two passes and held the Rams to 61 yards through the air. This season, Rams' QB Caden DiBetta has passed for 1,400 yards with 19 TDs and one interception.

4. Neville (9-1)

Playoff seed: No. 1 (Division I nonselect) Up next: Against No. 16 Covington (9-2)

The Tigers, who had a first-round bye, host a Covington team that lost close regular-season games to Mandeville and St. Paul's. The Lions defeated No. 17 Barbe, 36-29. Caden Heck threw a 23-yard TD pass to Jiwaun Brock with 50 seconds left, according to Ken Trahan of Crescent City Sports. 

Heck completed 12 of 30 passes for 169 yards with two TDs and two interceptions and rushed for 163 yards on 24 carries with a score. Neville sophomore QB Parker Robinson has thrown for 1,840 yards and 16 TDs with six INT.

5. Ruston (8-2)

Playoff seed: No. 3 (Division I nonselect) Up next: Against No. 14 Zachary (6-3)

The Bearcats, who had a first-round bye, host the Broncos in a rematch of the 2023 Division I nonselect championship won by Ruston, 31-17.

Zachary eliminated No. 19 Sam Houston, 54-35. Senior running back DaVekio Ruffin accounted for six TDs for the second straight week, according to Koki Riley of The Baton Rouge Advocate. Caleb Gonzales threw two long TD passes to Tre Chaney.

6. Catholic-BR (9-0)

Playoff seed: No. 4 (Division I select) Up next: Against No. 13 East Jefferson (8-3)

The Bears, who had a bye, were led in rushing during the regular season by Rylan Parker (96-534, six TDs). Baylor Graves completed 88 of 120 passes for 1,219 yards and 11 TDs with two interceptions. Cohen LeBlanc (36-465, two TDs) is the leading receiver. Catholic's loss on the field to University was changed to a forfeit win.

7. Airline (10-0)

Playoff seed: No. 2 (Division I nonselect) Up next: Against No. 18 Westgate (8-2)

Quarterback Ben Taylor was second in the state in passing during the regular season with 3,699 yards and 42 TDs with three interceptions. The Vikings boast the state's top two receivers in junior LSU commit Kenny Darby (80-1,429, 22 TDs) and senior Jarvis Davis (84-1,113, nine TDs). 

Westgate, which knocked off No. 15 St. Amant, 28-20, is led by 1,000-yard rusher Tavias Gordon, who took a significant number of snaps at QB last week. 

8. Lutcher (9-0)

Playoff seed: No. 2 (Division II nonselect) Up next: Against No. 18 Cecilia (8-3)

The Bulldogs, who had a bye, host the 2023 Division II nonselect runner-up Bulldogs. Cecilia defeated No. 15 Pearl River, 50-29. Quarterback Diesel Solari completed 10 of 13 passes for 146 yards and rushed for two TDs. For Lutcher, quarterback Zach Jenkins has completed more than 70% of his throws while accumulating 1,109 yards passing with 17 TDs and no interceptions and rushed for a team-high 11 scores. 

9. Central-BR (9-1)

Power rating: No. 4 (Division I nonselect) Up next: Against No. 13 West Ouachita (10-1)

The Wildcats, who had a bye, host a West Ouachita team that defeated No. 20 Denham Springs, 42-40. During the regular season, Central QB Jackson Firmin passed for 1,206 yards and eight TDs. Kylen Thomas (28-466, three TDs) and Keithon Womack (35-453, three TDs) are the leading receivers. 

10. Archbishop Shaw (8-2)

Playoff seed: No. 1 (Division II select) Up next: Against No. 16 Loranger (6-5)

The Eagles, who had a bye, host the Wolves out of District 7-4A, which includes Division II nonselect No. 1 Franklinton. Loranger, which lost by seven points to Franklinton, defeated No. 17 Kenner Discovery, 60-7. Loranger is led by 1,000-yard rusher Rylan James and dual-threat QB Colton Morris, who ran for 10 TDs and averaged 6.5 yards per carry through the first nine games.

11. St. Thomas More (7-3)

Power rating: No. 8 (Division I select) Up next: Against No. 9 St. Augustine (7-4)

The Cougars welcome the Purple Knights from New Orleans to Lafayette in a high-profile matchup. St. Augustine defeated No. 24 Carencro, 44-7. In Week One, STM beat Carencro by a point in monsoon conditions as senior cornerback Brian Broussard intercepted four passes. John Avery Barton leads STM with six receiving TDs. Gabe Mocek has rushed for 848 yards on 115 carries with 12 TDs.

12. St. Paul's (9-1) 

Playoff seed: No. 7 (Division I select) Up next: Against No. 10 C.E. Byrd (9-2)

The Wolves, who had a bye, face a Byrd team that held Woodlawn-BR to 161 yards of offense in a 20-0 shutout, according to Brian McCallum of The Shreveport Bossier Advocate. Asher Murray kicked a 50-yard field goal. 

During the regular season, St. Paul's senior QB Brennan Keim led St. Tammany Parish passers with 2,070 yards and 15 TDs with seven interceptions, according to Joseph Halm of The New Orleans Advocate. Brennan Villa was fourth among receivers with 34 catches for 717 yards and six TDs. Troy Willis leads the Wolves in rushing (148-736, nine TDs) along with Cody Corales (85-515, seven TDs). The Wolves' loss to University Lab was changed to a forfeit win.

13. Teurlings Catholic (9-1)

Playoff seed: No. 6 (Division I select) Up next: Against No. 11 Jesuit (7-4) 

The Rebels, who had a bye, welcome the Blue Jays from the New Orleans Catholic League to Lafayette in another intriguing DI select game. Jesuit blitzed No. 22 Lafayette High, 45-7. Gavin Palmisano scored four TDs, and the Blue Jays forced five turnovers, according to Ken Trahan of Crescent City Sports. For Teurlings Catholic, quarterback Alex Munoz has passed for 1,103 yards and 12 TDs with no interceptions.

14. Archbishop Rummel (8-2)

Playoff seed: No. 5 (Division I select) Up next: Against No. 12 McDonogh 35 (8-3)

The Raiders, who had a bye, take on another Nola area school in the Roneagles, who routed No. 21 Riverdale, 49-9. Quarterback Camdan Braxton ran for two scores and passed for another, according to Darrell Williams of The New Orleans Advocate. 

15. Southside (8-2)

Playoff seed: No. 6 (Division I nonselect) Up next: Against No. 22 Walker (7-4)

The Sharks defeated No. 27 Live Oak, 42-10. Justin Williams and Ramon Singleton ran for two TDs apiece, according to Steve Peloquin of The Acadiana Advocate. QB Parker Dies and Kollen Francois each added a rushing score. Walker defeated No. 11 Dutchtown for the second time. Senior Cayden Jones was second in scoring among large school Baton Rouge area players in the regular season with 22 TDs. QB Troy Sylve had a field day in both wins over Dutchtown.

16. Mandeville (10-1)

Playoff seed: No. 5 (Division I nonselect) Up next: Against No. 21 West Monroe (6-5)

The Skippers defeated No. 28 Thibodaux, 31-16. Quarterback Ben Hendricks completed 10 of 17 passes for 120 yards and a TD, Isaiah Baham, who ran for a score, finished the regular season with 788 yards rushing on 101 carries with eight TDs, according to Joseph Halm of The New Orleans Advocate.

17. Bunkie (10-0)

Power rating: No. 5 (Division III select) Up next: Against No. 12 Amite (8-3)

The Panthers, who had a bye, take on another public school in its first year in select in the Amite Warriors. Last week, Amite downed No. 21 Sarah Reed, 61-0. During the regular season, Bunkie's Kyle Johnson caught 35 passes for 929 yards and nine TDs.

18. Dunham (10-0)

Power rating: No. 1 (Division III select) Up next: Against No. 16 Parkview Baptist (7-4)

The Tigers take on the Eagles in a rematch of Baton Rouge teams that met in Week One with Dunham coasting to a 46-0 win. During the regular season, sophomore QB Elijah Haven completed 124 of 190 pass attempts for 1,891 yards and 27 TDs with four interceptions.

19. Destrehan (8-3)

Power rating: No. 10 (Division I nonselect) Up next: At No. 7 Northwood-Shreveport (10-1) 

The Wildcats got 262 yards passing and three TDs from junior quarterback Jackson Fields in a 30-12 win over No. 23 Ouachita Parish, according to Grant Chachere of Crescent City Sports. Northwood disposed of No. 26 Salmen, 54-27.

20. Opelousas (7-3)

Power rating: No. 14 (Division II nonselect) Up next: At No. 3 Jennings (9-1)

The Tigers are turning it on in the postseason again after running the table as a No. 12 seed last year. Opelousas ripped No. 19 Bastrop, 47-6. Receiver Korey Fontenot was named Under the Lights' player of the game. Senior running back D'Shaun Ford rushed for over 200 yards in the district championship, a one-point win over Cecilia.

21. North DeSoto (9-2)

Power rating: No. 7 (Division II nonselect) Up next: Against No. 10 Belle Chasse (9-2) 

The Griffins whipped No. 26 Woodlawn-Shreveport, 44-0. Junior QB Luke Delafield completed 12 of 15 passes for 231 yards and four TDs. Cole Cory caught four passes for 82 yards and a score.

22. Jennings (9-1)

Power rating: No. 3 (Division II nonselect) Up next: Against No. 14 Opelousas (7-3)

The Bulldogs, who had a bye, will put their stout running game led by QB Chris Ned and RB Rejohn Zeno up against a large, formidable Opelousas defense that has faced Teurlings Catholic, Alexandria and Zachary. 

23. Madison Prep (7-3)

Power rating: No. 5 (Division II select) Up next: Against No. 12 St. Charles Catholic (4-6)

24. St. Augustine (7-4)

Power rating: No. 9 (Division I select) Up next: At No. 8 St. Thomas More (7-3)

The Purple Knights defeated No. 24 Carencro, 44-7. Receivers Ray'Quan Williams (4-148, TD) and Miguel Whitley (3-67, TD) were the recipients of throws from QB Vashaun Coulon, who completed 8 passes for 220 yards and two TDs. 

25. Vermilion Catholic (10-0)

Power rating: No. 1 (Division IV select) Up next: Against No. 16 Westminster Christian-Opelousas (8-3)

The Eagles take on a WCA team that handled No. 17 Delta Charter, 54-12. Michael Cunningham has rushed for over 1,000 yards for the Crusaders. 6-foot-2, 225-pound sophomore linebacker/running back Kyle Horde is a college prospect. For the Eagles, Allen McLain is averaging 30 yards per catch with nine TDs.

1. Edna Karr (9-0)