Teams that have caught AZHSFB by surprise

Every season, there are always teams that take the state of Arizona by storm with how well they are performing. In some cases, teams that people may have seen missing the playoffs could end up hosting a playoff game, having a first-round bye, or even be a serious title contender. 

Here is a list of some of the MOST surprising teams in 11-man AZHSFB up to this point (post-Week 7) in the 2025 season:

2A

St. Johns

Our Preseason Ranking: 20

Current AIA Ranking: 4

Our Current Ranking: 5

One of the most surprising teams so far in 2A has been St. Johns. So far, they are 7-1 in the season and have multiple impressive wins. 

Those wins include a 16-12 victory over Pima and a 49-0 win over Santa Cruz Valley. Their only loss of the season up to this point is Round Valley, which is one of the better teams in 3A. 

Some of their key players this season include ‘26 running back Trace Nielson, who has 698 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns. 

On the defensive side of the ball, one of their standout players has been ‘26 defensive back T Platt. Platt currently has two interceptions and eight pass deflections on the year. 

St. Johns currently sits at number 4 in the AIA rankings and will be in a good position for a first round bye and to host one or even two playoff games if they win one or both of their final 2 games.

3A 

Gilbert Christian

Our Preseason Ranking: Unranked

Current AIA Ranking: 7

Our Current Ranking: 7

In 2025, Gilbert Christian continues to prove why they are one of the better teams in 3A. 

They currently sit at 6-1 on the year and will look to keep building their resume. 

They have impressive wins over Seton Catholic and Sabino. Their only loss of the season came from #1 Benjamin Franklin, who has been dominating every team this season. 

One of the players who has stood out has been ‘26 quarterback Caleb Ely. Ely is completing over 66% of his passes and has a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 14 to 4. 

Leading the charge on a strong defensive unit has been ‘26 linebacker Hyatt Lang. Lang has been doing it all for Gilbert Christian as he has 9.5 sacks and two interceptions, seven games into the season. 

Gilbert Christian sits at #7 in the AIA rankings and will need to close out the season strong if it wants to maintain position to host a first-round playoff game. 

Show Low

Our Preseason Ranking: Unranked

Current AIA Ranking: 8

Our Current Ranking: 6

The other surprise team in 3A has been Show Low. 

Show Low is 5-2 so far into the season, and they have been putting together a quietly dominant season. 

Six games into the season, they have only allowed 33 points and have won four games by shutout. 

Their most impressive win of the season was when they took home a 39-0 victory over 12th-ranked Page. They also got a 28-0 win over a solid Florence team in week one. 

Their only losses of the season came from highly ranked Valley Christian, in which they lost 6-0. Then the other loss was to Round Valley, in which they also lost by one possession. 

One of the best players on their team this season has been ‘26 running back Jett Walker. Walker is averaging a ridiculous 12.3 yards per carry and has found the end zone 11 times in only seven games. 

Helping lead one of the best defenses in 3A is ‘26 defensive end Cooper Peck. Peck leads Show Low with seven sacks and also has 11 tackles for loss. 

Show Low is ranked #8 by the AIA and will look to keep stacking wins to keep their top-8 spot. 

4A

Bradshaw Mountain

Our Preseason Ranking: 11

Current AIA Ranking: 3

Our Current Ranking: 3

In general, the 4A conference has been the most unpredictable and wild conference in the AIA this season. 

A team that has solidified itself as a contender in 4A, though, has been Bradshaw Mountain. The Bears currently sit at 5-2 on the season. 

Their best wins of the season include a 31-21 win over Mohave and a 13-7 win over Lee Williams. Their only losses also come from the only 2 teams ranked over them in Arcadia and Snowflake.  

A key to their success has been the production from their ‘26 athlete Kylin Jackson. On the offensive end, Jackson has rushed for 1110 yards and 13 rushing touchdowns to go along with it. He has also been one of their better defenders, as he has two interceptions and seven pass deflections so far this season. 

Bradshaw Mountain has a few competitive games to round out their season, but the way they have been playing, it is hard to see them not running the table and finishing 8-2 and comfortably securing a first-round bye.

Expect Bradshaw Mountain to make a run at the 4A title once the playoffs start.

Lake Havasu

Our Preseason Ranking: Unranked

Current AIA Ranking: 11

Our Current Ranking: 7

A team that has taken 4A by storm is Lake Havasu. 

Lake Havasu currently stands at 5-2 and has multiple key victories in 2025 so far. 

Some of those include a 28-21 win over Lee Williams and a 21-12 win over Gila Ridge, which look a lot better now than they did before the season. 

Their only losses come from Mohave in week two, which is one of the top teams in 4A. Then they also lost to Deer Valley by one point on the road.

One of their best offensive players in 2025 has been their ‘27 quarterback, Tripp Burke. Burke has been efficient for his team this year as he has 12 passing touchdowns and only one interception. He is also completing 65.2% of his passes.

Defensively, their key player has been ‘26 defensive back Spencer Ibarra. He currently leads the team with four interceptions and has been one of the best players in the secondary for Lake Havasu. 

Lake Havasu should be ranked high for how many quality wins and overall play they have had this year, as long as they can close out their season taking care of business..

Gila Ridge

Our Preseason Ranking: Unranked

Current AIA Ranking: 8

Our Current Ranking: 4

The other big, surprising team in 4A was mentioned earlier, and it is Gila Ridge. 

Led by Jessica Slaughter, the only female head coach in AZHSFB to our knowledge, the Hawks are firing on all cylinders since their season-opening loss to Lake Havasu.

Gila Ridge is similar to Lake Havasu as they not only have a good record of 6-1, but they have put together wins over some competitive teams in the 4A conference.

Their best win of the season was when they took down St. Mary’s, 21-14, and earlier in the season, they also took down Northwest Christian, 31-24.

They have had a lot of key contributors this season to help propel them to a good season, and one of those players is ‘26 running back Prentes Boxx III. Boxx III has been dominant for his team as he has 917 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns, and has been efficient, averaging seven yards a carry. 

One of their defensive key players has been ‘26 defensive end Drew Caudle. Caudle is tied on the team with sacks at seven, and he leads the team in tackles for loss with 13. 

Due to their wins over other great 4A teams, expect Gila Ridge to be ranked high at the end of the season and have a solid chance at earning a first round bye. 

Lee Williams

Our Preseason Ranking: Unranked

Current AIA Ranking: 16

Our Current Ranking: 8

Lee Williams continues to impress people and improve their track record this year.

They sit at 5-2 through their first seven games. They have had a complete turnaround since going 2-8 in the 2024 season.

They have had dominant wins over teams such as Prescott and Kingman. Their only losses of the season came from another surprising team in Lake Havasu and Bradshaw Mountain. 

They have had a few standout players, one of whom has been ‘27 running back Lucas Leist. Leist has been dominant on the ground as he is already at 1107 rushing yards and 15 rushing touchdowns. He is averaging 8.1 yards per carry as well. 

On the defensive side, they have had a standout freshman. ‘29 defensive back Ethan Byrd currently leads the team with four interceptions. 

Lee Williams has a bit of a gauntlet as their next three games in the Grand Canyon Region are Bradshaw Mountain, Coconino, and Mohave. 

They are likely a lock to make the playoffs, and if they can win one or two of their last four games, though, they should be looking at a home playoff game.

5A

ACP

Our Preseason Ranking: 15

Current AIA Ranking: 3

Our Current Ranking: 3

One of the biggest risers in 5A and, in general, one of the best 5A teams has been ACP.

There were questions surrounding ACP, mostly the concerns were their move up from 4A to 5A, and how they would handle the teams in 5A.

They currently sit at 7-0, and every week they seem to just improve and keep stacking wins.

Their best win of the season was over Desert Mountain, where they won 19-15. Desert Mountain has been a staple contender in 5A, and ACP was able to get a victory over them in the first season. Their other key victory was a 44-21 win over Gilbert. 

One of their reasons for success is their two running back system they have with ‘26 running back Max Sasso and ‘27 running back J’Cory Horne Jr. The two half-backs have a combined rushing yard total of 896 and 14 rushing touchdowns. 

The two backs have led the offense, especially while starting '26 QB Evan Heinrich missed 3 games with an injury before returning last week against Skyline in which '27 QB Gunnar Schmidt did a great job filling in for him.

Defensively, they are an overall solid unit, and one of their key players has been ‘26 defensive back Noah Montoya. Montoya leads ACP in interceptions with two and also has five pass deflections to go along with it. 

Linebackers Cam Mitchell, Wyatt Ells, and Cody Tibbott were the best trio in 4A last season and might be the best in 5A so far this season as Ells returns from injury this Friday at ALA Gilbert North.

ACP has removed any doubt that people may have had coming into the year, and they will be in contention for the 5A championship this season. 

Millennium

Our Preseason Ranking: Unranked

Current AIA Ranking: 8

Our Current Ranking: 9

Millennium has made a statement in 2025.

They sit at 6-1 currently, with their only loss coming from a very good Cactus team, in which they only lost by one point. 

After a 3-7 season last year, they are already at a better spot, a little over halfway through this season.

Their best wins are against 6A Shadow Ridge and against Verrado. 

One of the best players has been ‘27 running back D’Mari Bryant. Bryant has put up video game numbers through the first seven games for Millennium. He is already at 1511 rushing yards and 24 rushing touchdowns. He is currently averaging 215.9 yards a game.

In the trenches, they have ‘27 defensive end Ayden De Leon. De Leon leads Millennium with five sacks and six tackles for loss. 

Millennium has one of the toughest remaining schedules in 5A, but they will have a good chance to make the playoffs in 2025. 

6A

Shadow Ridge

Our Preseason Ranking: Unranked

Current AIA Ranking: 18

Current Ranking: 19

For the most part, 6A hasn’t had many surprise teams, but Shadow Ridge has been the most surprising. 

In 2023, they went 1-9. In 2024, they went 2-8. But six games into 2025, they are at 3-3.

Their best wins are against 3-3 Westwood and 4-2 Clark (NV). 

Some of their best players this season include ‘26 athlete Michael Cruz. Cruz has 842 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns. He also leads the team in receiving with 207 yards. 

They have a balanced defense getting production from many players, but the one that stands out the most is ‘26 safety Daniel Lesan. Lesan has one interception and leads the team with 54 tackles. 

They have a couple of tough games in their schedule remaining, such as Williams Field and Higley, but they still have a possibility of finishing their season at .500, getting into the playoffs for the first time since the COVID season in 2020, and maybe even getting their first playoff win since beating Catalina Foothills in the 2013 D-III first round.