Five District 2 teams, all of them Lackawanna Football Conference members, open the season in the top 10 in the state in their classifications, according to the preseason state football rankings released Thursday by pennlive.com.
Old Forge leads the way as the second-ranked team in Class A.
The Blue Devils were the only District 2 team to win against an inter-district opponent last season, winning both in the District 1-2 Subregional and in a state game against District 11’s Williams Valley. The Blue Devils (11-1) suffered their only loss in overtime in the state quarterfinals against Canton.
Valley View, in Class 4A, and Scranton Prep, in Class 3A, joined Old Forge in last season’s state quarterfinals after winning District 2’s larger tournaments. Both are ranked to begin the season.
Delaware Valley and Lakeland move down an enrollment classification this season, helping to boost their stock on the state level.
Following six years as the District 2 Class 6A champion, Delaware Valley begins the season ranked third in the state in Class 5A. The Warriors were 9-4 last season when they carried a nine-game winning streak into state play.
Lakeland is eighth in Class 2A after going 10-2 and falling to Scranton Prep in last season’s District 2 Class 3A semifinals.
Scranton Prep is ninth in Class 3A. The Cavaliers were 11-1 last season with the loss in the state tournament.
Valley View is 10th in Class 4A.
Delaware Valley (Division 1), Scranton Prep (Division 2), Lakeland (Division 3) and Old Forge (Division 4) all won LFC titles in 2021.
St. Joseph’s, Imhotep Charter, Aliquippa, Belle Vernon, Southern Columbia and Bishop Canevin are the top-ranked teams in Class 6A down through Class A.
