AJC Varsity

Only 1 team got unanimous No. 1 approval in preseason AJC Composite Rankings

Nineteen teams over the eight classifications got a No. 1 ranking from at least one of the pollsters.
Jarvis Jones led alma mater Carver (Columbus) to a 2025 championship in his first season as a high school head coach. Carver is the unanimous No. 1 Class 3A team in the AJC Varsity/GHSF Daily 2026 preseason composite rankings. (Jason Getz/AJC 2025)
Jarvis Jones led alma mater Carver (Columbus) to a 2025 championship in his first season as a high school head coach. Carver is the unanimous No. 1 Class 3A team in the AJC Varsity/GHSF Daily 2026 preseason composite rankings. (Jason Getz/AJC 2025)
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Carver (Columbus) is the only unanimous No. 1 team in the AJC Varsity/GHSF Daily composite football rankings.

Carver is seeking its third straight state championship and faces opposition from another reigning champion, Worth County, which moved up to join Carver in Class 3A this season.

The composite rankings comprise six statewide polls, from the AJC, ITG Next, Coach Georgia, Score Atlanta, 680 The Fan and the Maxwell Ratings.

Nineteen teams over the eight classifications got a No. 1 ranking from at least one of the pollsters.

Buford is the composite No. 1 in Class 7A. Buford won Class 6A (now known as 7A) last season. Carrollton, with one No. 1 ranking, starts No. 2.

Thomas County Central got five of six No. 1 rankings in Class 6A. Gainesville got the other, though Creekside is ranked No. 2. Creekside won Class 4A last season. Thomas Central won 5A.

Benedictine is No. 1 in Class 4A. Cartersville and Marist got No. 1 rankings.

Sandy Creek, the 2025 Class 3A champion, got five No. 1 rankings in 4A. Stephenson got the other.

Fitzgerald, Heard County and Thomasville got No. 1 rankings in 2A. Fitzgerald is the composite No. 1.

Clinch County, Bowdon and Lincoln County got No. 1 rankings in A. Clinch is the composite No. 1 despite Bowdon’s status as four-time reigning champion.

Calvary Day is the composite No. 1 in 4A-A Private. Two-time defending champion Hebron Christian and Greater Atlanta Christian also got No. 1 rankings.

Here’s a look at Georgia’s teams ranked on a consensus of six polls (AJC — Atlanta Journal-Constitution/GHSF Daily; ITG — ITG Next; SC — Score Atlanta; 680 — 680 The Fan; CG — Coach Georgia; MW — Maxwell Ratings).