If St. Frances Academy (MD.) football played one more game, who should they face?

Now we know the answer to the headline for this would obviously in a best case scenario for
St. Frances Academy (Md.) would just be giving us all what we want and playing IMG Academy in a parking lot somewhere. With that matchup completely off the table at this point, we pivot to other hypothetical situations like could there be another team willing to face the Panthers?

This wouldn’t be so much so for a de facto national championship, but just to give St. Frances Academy (7-1) one more game to end their season as they’ve played eight to this point. Problem is, not many high school football programs around the country would be raising their hands to face the Panthers, either.

Knowing that state associations around the country might not be okay with their member school partaking in an extra game, especially against one of the best teams in the land, we create a short list of teams we’d like to see face St. Frances Academy in a couple different scenarios and yes, even an alternative de facto national high school football championship game.

And remember, these are all hypothetical games that we’d like to see, but unsure we’d actually get to with our own eyes. We add in Massey Ratings predictions along with my own in predicting who would win each fantasy matchup.

St. John Bosco Braves (Calif.)

Give us the rematch of St. John Bosco (9-1) versus St. Frances Academy.

The first time around between these two titans, the Braves were able to just edge out the Panthers in a 21-14 win back on Sep. 5. We have to believe both teams are a tad different and yes, St. John Bosco has lost a game, but we’d still love to see how this rodeo would go in a rematch between the two powerhouses.

What happens if St. John Bosco bounces back from their one loss of the season to Mater Dei and goes on to win it all as California’s Open Division state champion? Now there’s the big what if, if they don’t in a highly competitive Division I sector over in the Golden State. Since the Braves are the No. 1 seed and have a pathway to being the country’s No. 1 team at the end of it all, this would be entertaining to see a second time, especially as a alternative national title game.

We’d like to see this game at a neutral location, somewhere in the midwest or heck, maybe make it Las Vegas for the glitz and glamor of it all.

Massey Prediction: St. Frances Academy 27, St. John Bosco 26

Andy’s Take: St. Frances Academy 29, St. John Bosco 28

Southlake Carroll Dragons (TX)

How about it, Texas high school football fans? Southlake Carroll just finished going 10-0 this regular season and they have been by far the most consistent team out of the Lone Star State. What makes them intriguing is their strength is on the offensive side of the ball up against St. Frances Academy’s defense would be interesting to say the least.

The Dragons are averaging a stirring 51.9 points per game behind the play of one of the country’s top quarterback-wide receiver tandems. Pittsburgh commit Angelo Renda (2,936 yards, 29 touchdowns) and his favorite target, Ohio State pledge Brock Boyd, who has hauled in 58 passes for 905 yards and scored 12 touchdowns this season, would look to challenge Alabama commit Jireh Edwards and a talented Panthers’ secondary.

Massey Prediction: Southlake Carroll 28, St. Frances Academy 26

Andy’s Take: St. Frances Academy 35, Southlake Carroll 21

Grayson Rams (Ga.)

Georgia high school football fans are pretty adamant that the undefeated Grayson Rams (10-0) would be able to compete and beat anyone in the country. Let’s visit that thought and dive deep into it a little bit.

Firstly, underscoring the loss of North Carolina quarterback commit Travis Burgess for the rest of the season has to be respected as the 6-foot-6 senior is heavily regarded as one of the Peach State’s top signal caller. With that said, the offense has managed just fine on its way to an undefeated season, but the Rams had a close call with a Thompson (AL) team that has lost two games against Clay-Chalkville and Hoover, which the latter was just knocked out of the AHSAA Class 7A playoffs against Phenix City Central, 34-10.

This sports reporter’s opinion is if Grayson is struggling with Thompson, which it could be argued isn’t the best team in its own state of Alabama, how would it fair against St. Frances Academy, one of the best in the country? I’ll take the Panthers over the Rams.

Massey Prediction: St. Frances Academy 30, Grayson 20

Andy’s Take: St. Frances Academy 28, Grayson 14

Bixby Spartans (OK)

The Bixby Spartans (10-0) have become the ‘Dos Equis guy’ of high school football as they are one of the most interesting teams in trying to figure out how they would exactly matchup against teams from outside of Oklahoma.

One of the country’s highest scoring offenses in the country is averaging a sizzling 65.4 points per game and some may scoff at the notion that Bixby could do this anywhere else other than in Oklahoma. There’s also plenty of reason to believe they could as they feature nearly a dozen Division I prospects and how they are coached up offensively by head coach and play caller Loren Montgomery is fascinating. The Spartans play an uptempo style with all the bells and whistles when it comes to window dressing an offensive play. Massey Ratings favors Bixby in a hypothetical game like this, but we have to go with the boys from Baltimore here.

Massey Prediction: Bixby 35, St. Frances Academy 33

Andy’s Take: St. Frances Academy 49, Bixby 14

Corner Canyon Chargers (UT)

Could the defending UHSAA Class 6A state champions be a possible matchup for St. Frances Academy?

In our eyes, this would be more interesting on paper, but on the field more of a gap between the two teams. That’s taking nothing away from the superb play of Texas A&M commitment Helaman Casuga, who has been making the Chargers’ offense go this season. Casuga has completed 172 of 254 passes for 2,976 yards and 34 touchdowns this fall and would certainly be one, if not the best quarterback St. Frances Academy has seen this season.

What would be the difference maker is at the line of scrimmage between the two teams as the Panthers’ talented front seven, led by the likes of Maryland commit Zion Elee and North Carolina pledge DQ Forkpa, would be tough to deal with for Corner Canyon’s offensive line. This could be entertaining depending on where this game was exactly played, especially if it was in Draper, Utah.

Massey Prediction: St. Frances Academy 32, Corner Canyon 28

Andy’s Take: St. Frances Academy 47, Corner Canyon 20

Others we’d like to see as well vs. St. Frances Academy: Buford (Ga.), Carrollton (Ga.), Don Bosco Prep (N.J.), Edna Karr (La.), Hamilton (Ariz.), Mater Dei (Calif.), St. Thomas Aquinas (Fla.)

How to Follow National High School Football

For high school football fans looking to keep up with scores around the nation, staying updated on the action is now easier than ever with the Rivals High School Scoreboard. This comprehensive resource provides real-time updates and final scores from across the state, ensuring you never miss a moment of the Friday night frenzy. From nail-biting finishes to dominant performances, the Rivals High School Scoreboard is your one-stop destination for tracking all the gridiron excitement across the country.