The 2026 Arizona high school football season kicks off on Aug. 20-21 with games in the AIA 3A, 2A and 1A conferences. Then, from Aug. 27-29, the big schools in 6A, 5A and 4A get going.
In the weeks leading up to the start, The Arizona Republic's Richard Obert has been previewing the season, breaking down teams to watch, top players at each position and making conference predictions.
Here's a summary of his stories and links to them on azcentral.com to help you get ready for the season.
Top 2026 Arizona high school football players at each position
Offense: Quarterback | Running back | WR | OL | TE| Athlete
Who is the top quarterback entering the 2026 season? What about running back? Or defensive lineman? We've ranked the top 10 at each position and included polls for readers to choose No. 1. Here are links
to those stories and polls:
Defense: DT | Edge rushers | LB | DB
Special teams: Returners | Kickers/Punters | Long snappers
Republic's preseason All-Arizona High School Football team
After assessing players at each position, The Republic presented its preseason All-Arizona High School Football Team. We will present our final All-Arizona team for the 2026 season after the final championship game in December. As part of that, we will present our offensive and defensive players of the year.
Here's the link to our 2026 preseason All-Arizona High School Football Team.
Arizona high school football conference favorites, picks
We've broken down the favorites in each conference with predictions on who will emerge as champions. In addition, we've predicted favorites to emerge in the Open Division playoff bracket, which features the top teams from 6A.
Our picks to win championships include a major repeat winner and a surprise at the 6A level. Click the link to read more.
Top Arizona high school football teams by conference
The Republic presented its preseason top 10 rankings for each AIA Conference ahead of the season (6A will be posted in coming days and the link added here).
Top 10 teams by conference: 1A | 2A | 3A | 4A |5A
Top Arizona high school football players by conference
Each of the six AIA high school football conferences are filled with great players. We chose the top player for each conference. In addition, we presented our list of the top 10 overall best Arizona high school football playersentering the 2026 season and included a poll for readers to vote for No. 1.
Stories on Arizona high school football players, teams, issues
Here are links to some of the preseason stories we've reported. We'll continue doing this throughout the season along with game previews, game coverage, weekly team rankings and lists of top player performances on azcentral.com. And of course, we will include reader polls along the way.
Centennial football forecast: https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/08/13/centennial-football-eyes-open-division-championship/91292105007/
Liberty quarterback returns: https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/08/11/liberty-kenny-raymond-return-high-school-football/91263188007/
Desert Edge in bowl game: https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/08/11/desert-edge-navy-all-american-bowl-2027/91255866007/
Thunderbird star moves to QB: https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/08/06/thunderbird-star-daryl-little-ii-embraces-qb-move/91133397007/
How teams deal with heat: https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/08/05/how-arizona-high-school-football-teams-get-around-extreme-heat/91182338007/
AIA adjusts ranking method: https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/08/10/will-maxpreps-rankings-improve-arizona-hs-football/91249028007/
Arizona teams, players on national radar: https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/08/09/arizona-high-school-football-takes-huge-step-in-2026/91169510007/
Benjamin Franklin looks to avenge playoff loss: https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/07/28/benjamin-franklin-3a-avenge-eagar-round-valley-title-loss/91043046007/
2A scheduling issues: https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/08/07/2a-football-teams-scramble-find-new-opponents-after-latest-news/91220837007/
Key questions ahead of season: https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/08/03/5-key-questions-as-arizona-high-school-football-practices-heat-up/91150240007/
Which school has best game-day vibe? https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/08/19/the-republics-top-12-arizona-hs-football-game-vibes-with-poll/91355848007/?taid=6a859f74b743e900013ccc2c&utm_campaign=trueanthem&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona high school football 2026. Top players, teams, issues
