10 Strong Poll: Ranking the region’s high school football teams

Overall poll results for the regular season

This year’s high school football season has been surely one to remember with teams from all over bringing their A-game to the gridiron.

All season long, the 10 News team has been ranking the teams we feel dominated the field and stood out from the rest.

With the regular season of high school football season officially over, now it’s time to see how our highly ranked teams performed overall in our 10 Strong Poll.

Without further ado, let’s take a look!

Total points overall in our 10 Strong Poll

Poll results for Week 10 (Nov. 1)

The regular season of high school football wraps up Friday night, and this year has been packed with excitement. But the party doesn’t stop there—playoffs are set to kick off next Friday, Nov. 15.

But first, it’s time to go over how teams throughout our region conquered the gridiron in Week 10 of the football season.

So, let’s get down to business—who was ranked No. 1 in our 10 Strong Poll? You guessed it! None other than the William Fleming Colonels, who have absolutely dominated the season with win after win. Last week, they played Franklin County and didn’t hold back, winning 41-7.

Not far behind them, we have Liberty Christian Academy who have also had some serious bite all season long. In our 10 Strong poll, they earned 70 points after shutting out Brookville last Friday, 61-0. They have had yet to see a loss this season.

Next up, we have the Heritage Pioneers (49), the Alleghany Cougars (46) and the Jefferson Forest Cavaliers (45) snagging the third, fourth and fifth spot. While Heritage didn’t play last week, they have been crushing it on the field. Alleghany and Jefferson Forest both saw wins last week.

Wondering how the other teams held up? Let’s take a look!

#6: Glenvar - Highlanders: 38

#7: William Byrd - Terriers: 37

#8: G.W. Danville - Eagles: 30

#9: Salem - Spartans: 23

#10: North Cross - Raiders: 22

Several other teams earned points in our 10 Strong Poll last week too, including:

• Staunton River - Golden Eagles: 20
• Lord Botetourt - Cavaliers: 17
• E.C. Glass - Hilltoppers; Magna Vista - Warriors: 14
• Amherst: 13
• Martinsville: 9
• Patrick Henry - Patriots; Cburg: 8
• Altavista - Colonels; Rustburg - Devils; Blacksburg: 7
• Radford; Northside: 6
• Floyd County - Buffaloes; Bath County - Chargers: 5
• Halifax: 4
• Grayson: 3
• Gretna: 2
• George Wythe; Carroll County: 1

Stay tuned to see how all of the teams did overall in our 10 Strong Poll!

Poll results for Week 9 (Oct. 25)

We’re nine weeks in, and our No.1 team remains the same.

Last week’s football teams surely brought the heat, and we saw a ton of wins last Friday as we continue to near the end of the high school football season.

Overall, our rankings for Week 9 were almost identical to last week’s, with a few exceptions.

The William Fleming Colonels aren’t backing down anytime soon and are coming in hot with yet another No.1 ranking. They earned 73 points.

Liberty Christian Academy (72), Alleghany (60), and Salem (54) remain in the second, third and fourth spots, respectively. All three teams came out with a win last Friday.

Then we have the Heritage Pioners swooping in with 53 points, a 27-point increase from last week’s score. They went up against Liberty last week and it was a complete shutout, 53-0.

Here’s a look at the rest of our rankings:

#6: Lord Botetourt - Cavaliers: 39

#7: G.W. Danville - Eagles: 36

#7: Jefferson Forest - Cavaliers: 36

#8: Glenvar - Highlanders: 35

#9: William Byrd - Terriers: 24

#10: North Cross - Raiders: 20

Other teams that earned points include: E.C. Glass - Hilltoppers(14), George Wythe (14), Floyd County - Buffaloes (12), Bath County - Chargers (10), Patrick Henry - Patriots(10), Altavista - Colonels (9), Rustburg - Devils (8), Amherst (5), Craig County - Rockets (4), Staunton River - Golden Eagles (3), Magna Vista - Warriors (1), Fort Chiswell (1), and Radford (1).

Poll results for Week 8 (Oct.18)

It’s that time of the week again: it’s time to go over who came out on top in our 10 Strong Poll!

First up, we have William Fleming with 74 points. And I’m sure it comes as no surprise, the Colonels have been knocking it out of the park since the kick-off to the high school football season. They have been getting nothing but wins the entire season, including last week’s game against Northside—it was a complete shutout, 34-0.

In the no. 2 spot, we have Liberty Christian Academy with 67 points. They also have been giving it all they’ve got this football season and have been hanging onto that no.2 spot for weeks now. The bulldogs have been sniffing out win after win and last week, they took down Liberty, 55-6.

Next up, we the Alleghany Cougars with 61 points, an impressive 22-point increase from last week’s ranking, pushing them up four spots.

Lord Botetourt and Salem are neck and neck, with both teams earning 50 points and getting ranked no.4.

The G.W. Danville Eagles swoop in four points behind them, earning the no.5 ranking.

Here’s a look at the rest of our rankings:

#6: Glenvar: 41

#7: William Byrd: 40

#8: Jefferson Forest: 38

#9: Heritage: 26

#10: E.C. Glass: 19

Other teams that earned points include: Altavista - Colonels (13), Christiansburg - Blue Demons (10), North Cross - Raiders (9), Magna Vista - Warriors (8), Staunton River - Golden Eagles (8), Bath County - Chargers (7), Amherst (7), George Wythe (6), Patrick Henry - Patriots (5), Rustburg - Devils (5), Parry McCluer (5), Floyd County - Buffaloes (4), Craig County - Rockets (2) and Franklin County (1).

Poll results for Week 7 (Oct. 11)

It’s almost time for Friday Night Lights, but first, let’s take a look at how the WSLS team ranked our local teams last week.

The results for Week 7 were probably the most tight I’ve seen them thus far!

So, it looks like the William Fleming Colonels are holding on strong to that No.1 spot. They mean business this football season and they earned another whopping 75 points in our 10 Strong Poll, which is the highest number of points you can earn. Last Friday, William Fleming’s matchup with William Byrd was our Game of the Week and they took them down, 28-14.

In our No.2 spot, we have both Liberty Christian Academy and William Byrd tied at 56 points.

Then, just 10 points behind them, we have the Salem Spartans and Heritage Pioneers in yet another tie, with both teams earning 46 points and getting ranked No.3.

Lord Botetourt trailed closely behind them and received 45 points for the No.4 spot, a significant increase from last week’s 11 points!

Right behind them comes the Alleghany Cougars, who received 39 points and were ranked No.5 overall by our team.

Here’s a look at the rest of our rankings:

#6: Glenvar - Highlanders: 35

#7: G.W. Danville - Eagles: 31

#8: Jefferson Forest - Cavaliers: 28

#9: Craig County - Rockets: 26

#10: Magna Vista - Warriors: 10

Other teams that earned points include: George Wythe (9), Staunton River - Golden Eagles (8), E.C. Glass - Hilltoppers (8), Blacksburg (8), Altavista - Colonels (7), Carroll County - Cavaliers (6), Radford - Bobcats (6), Christiansburg - Blue Demons (6), Bath County - Chargers (5), North Cross - Raiders (5), Floyd County - Buffaloes (3), Patrick Henry - Patriots (3), Rustburg - Devils (2), Cave Spring (2) Amherst (1), and Grayson County (1).

Poll results for Week 6 (Oct. 4)

Things are heating up in the world of high school football, and it certainly has our undivided attention!

Last week was an exciting one indeed, which makes the results for our 10 Strong Poll all the more interesting.

10 News didn’t hold back when voting for who they thought showed up and showed out on the field, so without further ado, let’s see which teams dominated in our 10 Strong Poll.

First things first, holding on strong to the No.1 spot we have the William Fleming Colonels coming in hot with 75 points! Just to be clear, they were ranked No.1 by everyone who took our 10 Strong Poll, so needless to say they are absolutely crushing it so far and I don’t see them ending their winning streak anytime soon! Last Friday, they got their third shutout of the season with a 49-0 win over Halifax County.

Next up, we have the Liberty Christian Academy Bulldogs with 69 points as they continue to sniff around for that No.1 spot, all the while clinging onto that No.2 spot for the third consecutive week.

Then, we have the William Byrd Terriers stealing the No.3 spot from the Glenvar Highlanders with 61 points total, seven more than what they scored last week. But Glenvar isn’t going down without a fight and is right on their heels with 60 points this week.

The Salem Spartans follow them with 44 points, earning the No.5 ranking in our poll overall. Last Thursday, Salem didn’t waste time getting to work on the gridiron and got the win against Hidden Valley, 56-6.

Not far behind the Spartans, we have both the Heritage Pioneers and Alleghany Cougars coming neck and neck for the No. 6 spot with 36 points. Last Friday, Heritage was a beast on the field, reigning victorious over Northside, 31-13.

G.W. Danville moved up from the No.8 spot to No.7 with 35 points after taking down Magna Vista last week, 42-36.

Just five points behind them, we have the Jefferson Forest Cavaliers who slipped one ranking from last week’s No.7 ranking.

Then, we have the Carroll County Cavaliers (24 points) and the Rustburg Devils (13 points) climbing their way to the top 10 for the first time this season!

Below you’ll find other teams that received votes in our Week 6 poll, along with their corresponding point totals:

• Lord Botetourt - Cavaliers: 11
• Bath County - Chargers: 11
• George Wythe: 10
• Altavista - Colonels: 10
• Radford - Bobcats: 9
• Floyd County - Buffaloes: 9
• Parry McCluer - Fighting Blues: 8
• Staunton River - Golden Eagles: 7
• North Cross - Raiders: 7
• Magna Vista - Warriors: 7
• E.C. Glass - Hilltoppers: 7
• Brookville - Bees: 6
• Nelson County - Governors: 4
• Craig County - Rockets: 4
• Patrick Henry - Patriots: 3
• Northside - Vikings: 3
• Franklin County - Eagles: 2
• Narrows - Green Wave: 1
• Halifax County - Comets: 1
• Christiansburg - Blue Demons: 1

Poll results for Week 5 (Sept. 26)

Things looked a little different last week, with many of our local high school football games being moved to Thursday due to the threat of inclement weather from Helene. Either way, our teams still gave it their all and didn’t hold back when going head-to-head for Week 5 of the high school football season.

Ready to see which teams came out on top in our 10 Strong Poll?! Let’s go!

For the fourth week in a row, William Fleming has yet again made the No.1 spot with 75 points, a slight one-point increase from last week. It’s no secret as to why they continue to hold on strong! The Colonels have proven to be a force to be reckoned with all season with nothing but wins so far.

But Liberty Christian Academy wants its crown back! Not far behind the Colonels, we have the Bulldogs earning 69 points for the No.2 spot, two points up from their previous score. If you remember from the first week of our 10 Strong Poll, LCA started off in the No.1 spot but Fleming was quick on its toes and snagged it from them and has been holding onto it ever since. Doesn’t look like the Bulldogs are going down without a fight though as they continue to follow the Colonels on its heels. In last week’s match-up, they bit into a victory against Heritage, 34-27. This week is their bye week.

For our No.3 spot, we have Glenvar with 58 points—a 21-point increase from last week. This isn’t the first time the team has made a major comeback in our rankings so kudos to them!

Not far behind them, we have the William Byrd Terriers ranking No.4 and earning 54 points. It’s a slight 1-point decrease from last week that cost them their No.3 spot but fret not, certainly nothing for the Terriers to sweat.

Next up, we have both the Heritage Pioneers and Salem Spartans ending in a deadlock, with each team earning 43 points to tie for the No.5 spot. Last week, Salem went up against Patrick Henry and ended up winning the River Ridge Battle, 41-24. The Heritage Pioneers took on Liberty Christian Academy and although they fell to them, they certainly held their ground, 34-27.

Here’s a look at the rest of our rankings:

#6: Alleghany - Cougars: 38

#7: Jefferson Forest - Cavaliers: 33

#8: G.W. Danville - Eagles: 32

#9: Lord Botetourt - Cavaliers: 26

#10: E.C. Glass - Hilltoppers: 13

Below you’ll find other teams that received votes in our Week 5 poll, along with their corresponding point totals:

• Northside - Vikings: 11
• Rustburg - Devils: 11
• Bath County - Chargers: 11
• North Cross - Raiders: 9
• Staunton River - Golden Eagles: 9
• Franklin County - Eagles: 9
• Altavista - Colonels: 8
• George Wythe: 7
• Carroll County - Cavaliers: 7
• Narrows - Green Wave: 6
• Radford - Bobcats: 5
• Appomattox County - Raiders: 5
• Floyd County - Buffaloes: 4
• Magna Vista - Warriors: 4
• Nelson County - Governors: 3
• Christiansburg - Blue Demons: 2
• Brookville - Bees: 2
• Halifax County - Comets: 1
• Patrick Henry - Patriots: 1
• Amherst County: 1

Poll results for Week 4 (Sept. 20)

Last week’s Friday Night Lights were a force to be reckoned with! Let’s take a look at how the 10 News team ranked the high school football teams that really showed out.

First things first, William Fleming Colonels strike again with another week in the No.1 spot with 74 points total. This is the third week they’ve reigned king and with the way they’ve been playing, it’s honestly no surprise. Last Friday, the Colonels took down the Patrick Henry Patriots in another installment in the battle of the Mayor’s Cup, 41-13. Let’s go, Colonels!!

Coming in hot, we have Liberty Christian Academy ranking No.2 with 67 points, which is quite the comeback from last week’s 54 points. They’ve jumped two rankings and are giving it all they got as they make their way back to the top. Last week, the Bulldogs got to work and took down Amherst County, 42-20.

Not far behind them, we have the William Byrd Terriers who were ranked No.3, earning 55 points total—a slight 6-point decrease from last week. But either way, William Byrd wasn’t messing around when they went against Bassett. It was a complete shutout, 33-0.

The Heritage Pioneers takes the No.4 spot with 42 points, a team we have yet to see in our the top 10 rankings of our 10 Strong Poll. They have earned a whopping 26 points more than last week and I’ve got to say, the come-up is pretty well deserved! They took down Jefferson Forest, 21-7.

Salem Spartans is not far behind them with 38 points, another come-up from last week, where they scored 26 points. Northside is known for bringing the heat, but the Spartans didn’t back down and came out with the win, 42-21.

And following closely with 37 points, we have Glenvar for No.6. While it’s a drop from last week’s No.3, let’s remember that Glenvar jumped from No.8 to No.3 before, so it’s no telling what tricks they’ve got up their sleeves. And surely they were working their magic when they played against Hidden Valley and came out with a big win, 63-0.

Here’s a look at the rest of our rankings:

#7: Lord Botetourt - Cavaliers: 34

#8: Jefferson Forest - Cavaliers: 33

#9: Northside - Vikings:28

#10: Alleghany - Cougars: 25

Below you’ll find other teams that received votes in our Week 4 poll, along with their corresponding point totals:

• North Cross - Raiders: 24
• Rustburg - Devils: 21
• G.W. Danville - Eagles:21
• E.C. Glass - Hilltoppers:14
• Radford - Bobcats:11
• Bath County - Chargers:11
• Floyd County - Buffaloes: 9
• Magna Vista - Warriors: 8
• George Wythe: 8
• Carroll County - Cavaliers: 7
• Staunton River - Golden Eagles: 4
• Parry McCluer: 4
• Altavista - Colonels: 4
• Nelson County - Governors: 3
• Grayson County - Blue Devils: 3
• Gretna - Hawks: 2
• Christiansburg - Blue Demons: 2
• Halifax County - Comets: 1

Poll results for Week 3 (Sept. 13)

Another week of high school football can only mean one thing: it’s time for our 10 Strong Poll!

Let’s get to it!

First up, we have William Fleming who’s going strong with another week ranked No.1. They scored 72 points total, up 15 points from last week.

Just 11 points behind them we have William Byrd, who moved up two spots in comparison to last week, scoring 61 points in all.

Then we have the Glenvar Highlanders who really took this week to make a comeback, moving from the No.8 spot to No.3 and earning 54 points—a 32-point difference from last week.

Next up, we have the Liberty Christian Academy Bulldogs for the No.4 spot, coming in hot with 51 points. Although they scored eight more points than last week, they moved down a rank.

Northside takes our No.5 spot, with 46 points, jumping ranks from the No.10 spot last week.

Here’s a look at the rest of our rankings:

#6: Jefferson Forest - Cavaliers: 45

#7: Lord Botetourt - Cavaliers: 31

#8: Patrick Henry - Patriots: 30

#9: Alleghany - Cougars: 30

#10: Salem - Spartans: 26

Below you’ll find other teams that received votes in our Week 3 poll, along with their corresponding point totals:

• G.W. Danville - Eagles - 23
• Carroll County - Cavaliers - 17
• Heritage - Pioneers - 16
• Floyd County - Buffaloes - 14
• Rustburg - Devils - 14
• Staunton River - Golden Eagles - 12
• E.C. Glass - Hilltoppers - 11
• Bath County - Chargers - 10
• Nelson County - Governors - 7
• Bassett - Bengals - 6
• Franklin County - Eagles - 5
• Radford - Bobcats - 4
• Magna Vista - Warriors - 4
• George Wythe - Maroons - 3
• Altavista - Colonels - 3
• North Cross - Raiders - 2
• Gretna - Hawks - 2
• Halifax County - Comets - 1

Poll results for Week 2 (Sept. 6)

Round 2 of High School football was one for the books.

Firstly, we have William Fleming snagging the No.1 spot from Liberty Christian Academy with a whopping 57 points. They hosted Albemarle and came out with their first win in the last three meetings, 55-0.

Then we have E.C. Glass moving right on up from the No.4 spot last week to the No.2 spot, scoring 45 points. They were our Game of the Week and earned a win against Patrick Henry, 34-21. It was a game that kept you on your toes! At the half, Patrick Henry was in the lead 21-14, but the Hilltoppers made a comeback.

For the No.3 spot, we have Liberty Christian Academy with 43 points. Oddly enough, they scored the exact same points last week; however, this time around, they fell from the No.1 ranking.

William Byrd now sits in the no.4 spot with 37 points. This is one ranking higher than last week. They took down Hidden Valley, 61-0.

We also have some new faces this week. Salem was ranked No.5 with 28 total points. They went against Franklin County and walked away with a win, 56-30.

In the No.6 spot, we have Jefferson Forest, who earned 26 points. They took down Staunton River, 15-9.

Next up, we have Lord Botetourt, who moved up from No. 9 to No.7. They won against Blacksburg, 62-3.

Here’s a look at the rest of our rankings:

• #8 Glenvar: 22
• #9 Alleghany: 19
• #10 Northside: 18

Below you’ll find other teams that received votes in our Week 2 poll, along with their corresponding point totals:

• Radford: 16
• Heritage: 15
• Christiansburg: 14
• Patrick Henry: 13
• Blacksburg: 11
• Rural Retreat: 10
• North Cross: 9
• Giles: 9
• Rustburg: 8
• George Wythe: 8
• Nelson County: 7
• Altavista: 7
• Roanoke Catholic: 6
• Grayson County: 5
• Cave Spring: 4
• Bath County: 4
• Craig County: 4
• Franklin County: 3
• Magna Vista: 3
• Staunton: 2
• Martinsville: 2
• Brookville: 1

Poll results for Week 1 (Aug. 30)

The first week of the high school football season was filled with nothing but excitement as schools across our region went head to head under the Friday Night Lights.

As you know, with the new season, comes our weekly 10 Strong poll. Each week, we’ll release a poll showing our very own top picks based on individual survey results from members of our 10 News team. It’s similar to the AP Top 25 poll.

Now without further ado, let’s see who came out on top!

First up is Liberty Christian Academy with 43 points. Liberty Christian versus Salem was our Game of the Week. The two powerhouse football teams surely put on a show. Things started off slow at first on both ends, but it wasn’t long before we got some momentum going. In the end, LCA pulled off the win, 35-21.

Next up is Patrick Henry with 37 points. This one was certainly a night to remember, with the Patriots coming out with their first dub of the season against Brookville, 42-0. The PH defense surely was one to be reckoned with Friday night.

Following closely behind PH we have Fleming who earned 36 points this go-round. The Colonels shut out the Hidden Valley Titans, 90-0. Not only did Fleming start the high school season off strong but they made history. This was the most points scored in school history since 2021 when they scored 63 points against Harrisonburg.

Then we have E.C. Glass with 33 points. This game was a real nail-biter. The Lord Botetourt Cavaliers were coming off a 9-3 finish last season, and the E.C. Glass Hilltoppers 9-4 so this was a game that had many on the edge of their seat. Ultimately, E.C. Glass squeezed past Lord Botetourt, 11-8.

At No.5, we have William Byrd, who got 28 points. They went up against the Liberty Minutemen and came out victorious, 51-6.

Franklin County made No. 6 with 27 points. They earned a win against Bassett, 41-14.

Glenvar comes right on Franklin County’s heels for No. 7 with 25 points. They defeated Giles, 34-0.

Both Salem and Alleghany were neck and neck for the No.8 spot, both earning 23 points. Salem took on Liberty Christian Academy. While Liberty Christian Academy won this game, 35-21, the Spartans didn’t go down without a fight. Alleghany took down Waynesboro, 47-13.

Next up, we have Lord Botetourt in our No.9 spot with 15 points. They fell to E.C. Glass, 11-8, but it was a close one for sure.

Christiansburg takes our No.10 spot with 12 points. It was another close game, with Christiansburg taking down Floyd County, 27-24.

Here’s a look at the other teams that received votes in our Week 1 poll, along with their corresponding point totals:

• Christiansburg: 12
• Jefferson Forest: 12
• George Wythe: 11
• Heritage: 10
• Craig County: 9
• Chilhowie: 7
• Parry McCluer: 6
• Staunton: 5
• Magna Vista: 4
• Carroll County: 3
• Cave Spring: 2
• Blacksburg: 1