Preseason 2026 Nebraska High School Football Top 25 Rankings

With the earliest practice sessions kicking off this week across the country, preseason rankings are also starting to roll out as the countdown to the first week of action begins. As the first batch of high school football preseason rankings rolls out, the next state on the agenda is Nebraska. Looking ahead to the upcoming Nebraska high school football season, Millard South (Neb.) enters 2026 as one of the top teams to watch in all of high school football, with the number one quarterback prospect in the nation according to Rivals Industry Rankings, an equally weighted average that utilizes all three major recruiting services, in five-star quarterback Trae Taylor. One of the top teams in all of high school football, the Patriots won last season’s NSAA Class A state championship game against Papillion-La Vista South (Neb.) in a manner that suited their ranking as the No. 1 team in Nebraska, in a shutout 49-0 victory. But where did the other teams in Nebraska high school football finish the season according to Massey ratings? The Massey Ratings, officially used during the BCS era, are a model that ranks sports teams by analyzing game outcomes, strength of schedule, and margin of victory. 1. Millard South Patriots During Rivals Andy Villamarzo’s preview of the No. 1 team in the state of Nebraska, the Millard South Patriots were predicted to back up their rating. With Rivals predicting the Patriots to finish the season with a 10-0 regular-season record, head coach Taylor Mendenhall has already answered one of the biggest questions surrounding Millard South during the offseason ahead of his second year as head coach at Millard South. Following the graduation of senior quarterback Jett Thomalla, who is committed to Alabama and completed 193 of 266 (73 percent) passes for 3,484 yards and 61 touchdowns in 2025, they have already turned to a new signal-caller with similar high school football accolades. During the 2025 season, for Carmel Catholic (Ill.), Taylor threw for over 571 yards, 38 touchdowns, and also rushed for 633 yards and 12 scores. Following the transfer, Millard South enters 2026 on the cusp of breaking the national top 25 in Rivals Way-Too-Early Top 25 High School Football Rankings. 2. Westside Warriors The number two team in Nebraska high school football, Omaha Westside (Neb.) would undoubtedly be one of the top high school football teams in a lot of states, if not for the competition of Millard South. After falling in a 62-21 loss to the state champions, Westside returns one of the deepest rosters in all of Nebraska high school football going into 2026. Included in that is one of the top quarterbacks in all of Nebraska to go head-to-head with Taylor, in four-star Braylen Warren, as the Missouri commit enters 2026 off the back of completing 125 passes for 1847 yards and 27 touchdowns in his junior year. While graduating the bulk of their receiver core, head coach Paul Limongi returns starting running back Tay Tay Jenkins, who put up 1886 yards and 28 touchdowns on the ground, with four-star offensive lineman Justin Parish Jr. paving the way for both options going into his junior year as the No. 1 prospect from the class of 2028 in Nebraska. 3. Bennington Badgers Entering as the top team in NE Class B play, as the 3rd best team in Nebraska high school football, Bennington (Neb.) will look to compete once again with Waverly (Neb.) going into 2026, after falling to the Vikings in the Class B state semi-finals. Both teams return talent, including starting quarterback Brockson Teply, who threw 2362 yards and 27 touchdowns for the Vikings. Bennington, meanwhile, returns one of the youngest offenses in Nebraska high school football. After Ty Buahkepo completed 151 passes for 2439 yards in his junior year, he is joined by fellow going-on senior Will Gutz and junior Knox Knaughton in the backfield, with all three combining for 2000 yards on the ground in 2025. Also returning is top defensive back Owen Vernon; Bennington enters the 2026 season as the No. 3 team in Nebraska after finishing 2025 with a 9-3 record and ranked No. 5 in the state. 4. Waverly Vikings The top NE Class B team in all of Nebraska high school football in 2025, capturing a state title with a victory over Bennington on the way, the Vikings are narrowly ranked below their biggest Class B competition going into 2025. With the Badgers boasting a Composite score of 82.261, Waverly narrowly trails behind with an 82.049 score. Returning the aforementioned Teply, head coach Reed Manstedt also returns some key pieces on defense. With Gavin McMillan returning for his senior year, the Vikings return both their top receiver and defensive back, after the dual-threat prospect put up 6 interceptions and 519 receiving yards. Averaging 39.9 yards per game, McMillan helped lead Waverly to a 13-0 record and ranked No. 2 in Nebraska in 2025. 5. Wahoo Warriors Entering 2026 as the No. 5 team in Nebraska high school football, Wahoo (Neb.) has some massive numbers to make up for in 2025. With 2,657 yards and 47 touchdowns worth of yardage graduating with Rivals Nebraska Offensive Player of the Year Kip Brigham, Wahoo will have to find someone to carry the rock if they want to repeat their undefeated state title win from 2025, after defeating Sidney (Neb.) to capture the Nebraska Class C title. Ahead of their August 28th opener, head coach Chad Fox will have some significant rebuilding to do, following the graduation of the Rivals offensive player of the year, starting quarterback Jase Kaminski, who accounted for 1604 yards of passing offense and the bulk of their receiving core. Also graduating their top defensive output player in Eli Shada, who accounted for 8 sacks in 2025 alongside Jayse Styskal and Jack Kruger, who put up a combined 20 sacks each, Wahoo will need an impressive roster of J.V players to come through should they want to repeat after going 13-0 and finishing as the No.4 ranked team in Nebraska in 2025. 6. Elkhorn North Wolves7. Elkhorn South Storm8. Norris Titans9. Skutt Catholic Skyhawks10. Gretna East Griffins 11. Papillion-La Vista South Titans 12. Seward Bluejays 13. Creighton Prep School Junior Jays14. Gretna Dragons 15. Scottsbluff Bearcats 16. Omaha North Vikings17. Kearney Bearcats18. Millard North Mustangs 19. Bellevue West Thunderbirds 20. Ashland-Greenwood Bluejays 21. Lincoln East Spartans22. Papillion-La Vista Monarchs23. Lakeview Vikings 24. Millard West Wildcats 25. Aurora Huskies