Wisconsin High School Sports | Wisconsin Sports Network | WisSports.net

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the high school football season was split into two parts, with about 70% of teams participating in an abbreviated fall schedule, while about 30% of teams participated in an alternate spring schedule. Neither season had a traditional playoff tournament, and teams that participated in the fall did not play against teams from the spring. 

In an effort to compare teams from both seasons and generate discussion in the absence of teams settling it on the field, WSN General Manager and football writer Travis Wilson will be producing All-State Team Rankings. These rankings are determined by Wilson based on his in-person observations, film review, record and stats consideration, and other factors, and are not affiliated with the WSN Coaches Poll.

In an effort to continue to recognize the outstanding teams and players while placing and evaluating teams in somewhat like-sized groupings, we will be using Large Schools (1000+ enrollment), Medium Schools (999-400), and Small Schools (399 or under) designations along with 8-Player.

Previously released rankings:

Large All-Season Rankings
Medium All-Season Rankings
Small All-Season Rankings
8-Player All-Season Rankings

Belmont went a perfect 7-0 in the fall season, not only showing itself as the best team in the Southern-8, but making a strong case as the top-ranked team in 8-Player. The Braves were not significantly challenged during the regular season, which included a 60-6 win over Luck to close the year. Eschewing the WIAA postseason option, Belmont arranged an extra game with fellow unbeaten Gilman to close the season. The Braves rallied from a 20-12 fourth-quarter deficit to secure a 24-20 victory, as Riley Christensen finished with 347 yards and four touchdowns on 43 carries. 

Newman Catholic, last year's 8-Player runners-up, put together another outstanding fall season, opening with an impressive 35-16 win over Greenwood. The Cardinals had a much-anticipated showdown with Gilman in the regular season finale, but the program had to shut down due to COVID-related issues and missed out on that as well as the WIAA postseason. They finished 5-0 overall.

Gilman made the move to 8-Player football this season and it paid big dividends right away. The Pirates dominated during the fall regular season, outscoring opponents 374-28 along the way. That included a 44-8 win over eighth-ranked McDonell Central. While they missed out on a season-ending showdown with unbeaten Newman Catholic, the Pirates did skip the WIAA postseason to schedule a game against Belmont. Gilman led into the fourth quarter only to see the game slip away in a 24-20 defeat, their only on the season as they finished 7-1.

Wisconsin Heights finished as the lone unbeaten team in the spring 8-player season, going a perfect 4-0. They won a nail-biter against Oakfield to open the season, then dominated Wonewoc/Weston, Kickapoo/La Farge, and North Crawford. Hunter Walz threw for 14 touchdowns and added four on the ground, as the offense put up big numbers.

Auburndale planned to play 11-Player football this season, but switched gears shortly before the fall season started due to numbers issues. The team tried to put together an independent 8-Player schedule, but struggled to find games and then had several canceled, as they ended up playing just two, both victories. One was a 32-26 win over Greenwood. The team also scheduled a pair of 11-Player games late in the year and won both.

Oakfield played a number of close games in the 2021 spring season, including four decided by six points or less. They fared well in those, finishing with just one loss, coming in the very first game fo the year against Wisconsin Heights. They'd go on to beat both Sturgeon Bay and Chequamegon, teams that also finished in the rankings.

Strugeon Bay made a late move to 8-player in 2019, and it didn't go well, as they were 0-4 with all blowout losses. The Clippers turned things around in a big way in this spring season, going 4-1, with the lone loss a competitive one against Oakfield. 

Greenwood moved from 11-Player to 8-Player this season, and it was a bit of a rocky start in the fall for the Indians. They lost the first two games in competitive fashion against Newman Catholic and Auburndale, both teams who would rank above them, but won the final six games of the year, including a 60-12 win over Three Lakes in the WIAA culminating event. Greenwood finished 6-2.

Luck won the WIAA 8-Player championship in 2019, going unbeaten. The Cardinals entered 2020 as the top-ranked team and were looking dominant once again, winning the first four games of the fall. However, top player Wyatt Jensen was lost after the Clayton game, and it led to one of the biggest upsets in 8-Player history, when the Cardinals lost 34-16 to winless Prairie Farm. Luck would lose a couple weeks later in a blowout against Belmont to finish 4-2.

Shell Lake dropped a 50-19 decision to Luck in the middle of the season, which turned out to be the only loss for the Lakers in 2020. While they did not participate in the WIAA culminating event, the team did finish 5-1 overall.

For the latest and most up to date football news and recruiting information, follow Travis on Twitter @travisWSN. Email story ideas, recruiting info, etc. to Travis at travis(at)wissports.net.