High school football in Indiana begins 2026 with one program clearly at the top, closely followed by a group of talented teams. Here are the state’s top 10 teams as the season kicks off.
No. 1: Brownsburg Bulldogs
Brownsburg starts the season ranked No. 1, and it’s hard to argue with their track record: the Bulldogs are two-time Class 6A state champions and enter 2026 riding a 19-game winning streak. Head coach John Hart, named the 2024 NFL AFC Don Shula High School Coach of the Year, has built a program that has defeated the same opponent, Westfield, in two consecutive state championship games. Nationally, Brownsburg began the year ranked 17th in the High School Football America 300 rankings.
No. 2: Westfield Shamrocks
Westfield enters 2026 as the program in the state that best understands Brownsburg’s level of competition, having lost two close games last season: 14-10 in the regular season and 38-31 in the state championship game. This history of close wins is often a great motivator for a program, and Westfield returns with a talented roster led by Nicholas Schurman, a promising offensive lineman from the Class of 2027, who has committed to Purdue.
No. 3: New Palestine Dragons
New Palestine begins the year as the reigning Class 4A state champion, capping an undefeated 14-0-1 season with the title. A perfect record with only one tie represents a near-perfect season for a program, and the Dragons return in 2026 intent on defending their crown.
No. 4: Center Grove Trojans
Center Grove began the season ranked No. 4 in the preseason, and although the Trojans suffered a tough 20-14 loss to a rising Warren Central team early in the year, they remain one of the most talented and competitive programs in the state year after year.
No. 5: Carmel Greyhounds
Carmel enters 2026 after a 9-2 season in which both losses came against teams that contended for the state championship, including the Trinity Shamrocks of Kentucky, who won the state title. Four-star safety Drake Coellner, from the class of 2028, leads a talented defense looking to put Carmel back in contention for the title.
Season-End Shifts
The start of the 2026 season has already brought changes to the bottom of the standings. Warren Central made the biggest jump of the season, climbing from 7th to 4th in the state ranking system after defeating Center Grove, which was ranked 4th in the preseason. Ben Davis broke into the Top 10 after beating Cathedral, ranked 6th in the preseason, 33-27, pushing the Fighting Irish down to 8th, while Avon made its ranking debut. Fishers and Hamilton Southeastern, both previously ranked, dropped out of the Top 10 during that same period, demonstrating how quickly the middle of the Indiana standings can shift once the season begins.
Why does the top of the Indiana standings feel so stable?
Unlike other states where the preseason number one seed changes drastically once the regular season begins, Indiana’s top three—Brownsburg, Westfield, and New Palestine—have remained virtually unchanged, as all three begin the year as either defending state champions in their respective divisions or as the team that just lost the final. The real drama of 2026 is unfolding in the second half of the top 10, where the results of the first few weeks have already significantly altered the landscape.
Check our Rankings page for how Indiana’s Top 10 continues to move throughout the season, and our Scores page for results from around the state.
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