Cardinal Newman ends the regular season as the No. 1 seed in football

The regular season of prep football is officially in the books and The Press Democrat will release its final team rankings until all teams are done for the year.

Although week 11 provided some exciting action last weekend, the rankings remain largely unchanged.

Cardinal Newman, the season’s No. 1 seed, remains in the top seven. With wins over Windsor, Casa Grande, Vintage and Rancho Cotate, it’s also hard to imagine the Cardinals losing their top spot in the rankings after the playoffs.

1. Cardinal Newman (9-1)

Latest ranking: 1

Last week: defeated No. 4 Vintage 33-0

Next: NCS Open/D1 playoffs, at Marin Catholic (8-2), Saturday, 1 p.m

2. Windsor (7-3)

Latest ranking: 2

Last week: lost to Marin Catholic 24-21

Next: NCS Division 2 Playoffs, at No. 3 Casa Grande (8-2), Saturday, 7 p.m.

3. Casa Grande (8-2)

Latest ranking: 3

Last week: defeated Petaluma 61-36

Next: NCS Division 2 Playoffs, vs. No. 2 Windsor (7-3), Saturday, 7 p.m

4.Vintage (6-4)

Latest ranking: 4

Last week: lost to No. 1 Cardinal Newman 33-0

Next: NCS Division 2 playoffs, at Liberty-Brentwood (7-3), Friday, 7 p.m.

5. Saint Vincent (9-1)

Latest ranking: 5

Last week: defeated Maria Carrillo 48-21

Next: NCS Division 5 Playoffs, vs. Arroyo (8-2), Saturday, 1 p.m

6. Rancho Cotate (4-6)

Latest ranking: 7

Last week: lost to San Marin 17-16

Next: Season over

7. Ukia (7-3)

Latest ranking: Not ranked

Last week: defeated Analy 28-27

Next: NCS Division 4 playoffs, at Alameda (8-2), Friday, 7 p.m

Failed: No. 6 American Canyon (8-2)

On the bell: American Canyon (8-2), Sonoma Valley (10-0), Maria Carrillo (7-3), Piner (8-2)

Windsor, Casa Grande, Vintage and St. Vincent round out the top five. All four teams begin the North Coast Section play-offs this week, culminating in Windsor vs. Casa in the first round of Division 2.

Rancho Cotate missed the playoffs for the first time since 2003 after a heartbreaking 17-16 regular-season loss to San Marin last week. The Mustangs blocked a potential PAT with less than 20 seconds left to send the Cougars home for the year. But the Cougars will move up one spot in our rankings this week after American Canyon’s surprising 21-6 loss to Redwood.

After starting the year 8-0, the Wolves dropped their final two games of the regular season. However, they are taking advantage of the new competitive NCS playoff system and were named No. 2 in Division 4, behind top seed Ukiah.

The Wildcats earned a narrow 28-27 victory over Analy after stopping the Tigers on a potential game-winning two-point attempt with less than 30 seconds to play last week. Ukiah returns to the top seven after losing to American Canyon. The Wildcats finished the regular season with a better schedule and all three of their losses (San Marin, Rancho Cotate, St. Vincent) were to higher ranked teams than Redwood.

YYou can reach staff writer Gus Morris at 707-304-9372 or [email protected]. On X (Twitter) @JustGusPD.