This St. Frances Academy [Baltimore, MD] Panthers' team felt like the one.
After walloping the TSN No. 10 Chaminade-Madonna [Hollywood, FL] Lions, 42-13, in a season-opening visit to Florida on August 23, it looked like the preseason TSN No. 4 Panthers might finally be ready.
Ready to make a serious run at the national title that has eluded them since their emergence as a national power over the past decade.
After winning Maryland's MIAA Class A state championship in 2017 and finishing in the Top 5 in the national rankings, St. Frances went the national route, scheduling games against the nation's best teams in every corner of the country. And, of course, any serious national scheduling strategy is going to include games against the members of California's Trinity League.
But, so far, St. Frances Academy hasn't found a way to beat those teams.
We're talking, of course, about the likes of the Mater Dei [Santa Ana, CA] Monarchs and the Orange [CA] Lutheran Lancers. The Panthers are 0-3 against the Monarchs to date, and the closest they've come to beating a Trinity League team was last year in a 15-13 loss to those Lancers.
And, of course, it also includes their opponent last Friday night in Bellflower, California — the mighty Braves of St. John Bosco. St. Frances Academy lost at St. John Bosco two years ago in a 37-14 beating, but heading into last Friday night's game, it felt like they had a chance.
Yeah, this Panthers' team was the one.
And they almost were. Trailing 7-0 at the half, the Panthers rallied to score two touchdowns and take a 14-7 lead into the fourth quarter. But then, the Braves scored to even it up at 14-all, and a feeling of inevitability began to creep in. When the Braves scored again to go back up 21-14, it not only felt inevitable.
It felt like it was over.
Minutes later, it was. The Braves picked off a late Panthers' pass attempt with less than two minutes to play, and they were able to run out the clock.
Technically, the Panthers aren't completely eliminated. Mater Dei looks shaky, and St. John Bosco always loses at least one game to the Monarchs. There are scenarios where all of the top teams could end up losing a game, and St. Frances could be one of several teams in the mix at that point if they run the table.
But their best path to winning a national title ran through Bellflower Friday night, and barring a miracle, the Panthers will be on the outside looking in again when the national champion is declared later this fall.
MORE NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL
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- The Sporting News 2025 Preseason All-America Offense
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National Week 4: How the rest of the Top 25 fared
The biggest beneficiaries of No. 4 St. Frances losing were the three undefeated teams right behind them in the rankings.
The No. 5 IMG Academy [Bradenton, FL] Ascenders, No. 6 Duncanville [TX] Panthers, and No. 7 Grayson [Loganville, GA] Rams all need help in the form of teams in front of them losing. IMG plays a big national schedule, including a season-ending game against St. Frances, but Duncanville and Grayson will build their remaining resume primarily in the Texas UIL and Georgia GHSA playoffs, respectively.
That means all three of those teams need the other teams in front of them to lose, and they may even need a team like Mater Dei or St. John Bosco to lose twice. At the very least, all three of those teams will move ahead of St. Frances Academy when the latest edition of The Sporting News High School Football Top 25 is released Tuesday morning.
Complete TSN High School Football Top 25 Results for National Week 4
Tuesday, September 2 – Monday, September 8, 2025
NR — Not ranked
- TSN No. 1 Mater Dei [Santa Ana, CA] Monarchs 21, NR Kahuku [HI] Red Raiders 18
- TSN No. 2 Bishop Gorman [Las Vegas, NV] Gaels 35, NR Lone Peak [Highland, UT] Knights 14
- TSN No. 3 St. John Bosco [Bellflower, CA] Braves 21, TSN No. 4 St. Frances Academy [Baltimore, MD] Panthers 14
- TSN No. 6 Duncanville [TX] Panthers 35, NR 1 South Oak Cliff [Dallas, TX] Bears 28
- TSN No. 7 Grayson [Loganville, GA] Rams 63, NR Mallard Creek [Charlotte, NC] Mavericks 13
- TSN No. 9 St. Thomas Aquinas [Fort Lauderdale, FL] Raiders 42, NR Columbus [Miami, FL] Explorers 7
- TSN No. 10 Buford [GA] Wolves 65, NR Roswell [GA] Hornets 21
- TSN No. 11 North Crowley [TX] Panthers 36, NR DeSoto [TX] Eagles 27
- NR Basha [Chandler, AZ] Bears 30, TSN No. 12 Orange [CA] Lutheran Lancers 24
- TSN No. 13 Bergen Catholic [Oradell, NJ] Crusaders 21, NR West Boca Raton [Boca Raton, FL] Bulls 14
- TSN No. 14 Mission Viejo [CA] Diablos 53, NR Folsom [CA] Bulldogs 14
- TSN No. 15 Chaminade-Madonna [Hollywood, FL] Lions 28, TSN No. 8 American Heritage [Plantation, FL] Patriots 24
- TSN No. 16 Corner Canyon [Draper, UT] Chargers 45, TSN No. 23 Liberty [Peoria, AZ] Lions 14
- TSN No. 17 Southlake [TX] Carroll Dragons 35, NR Hebron [Carrollton, TX] Hawks 7
- TSN No. 18 Sierra Canyon [Chatsworth] Trailblazers 45, Punahou [Honolulu, HI] Buff n' Blue 0
- TSN No. 19 Santa Margarita [Rancho Santa Margarita] Eagles 45, Highland [Palmdale, CA] Bulldogs
- TSN No. 20 Edna Karr [New Orleans, LA] Cougars 35, NR Archbishop Shaw [Marrero, LA] Eagles 0
- TSN No. 21 Centennial [Corona, CA] Huskies 42, Bingham [South Jordan, UT] 6
- TSN No. 24 Grimsley [Greensboro, NC] Whirlies 48, NR East Forsyth [Kernersville, NC] Eagles 21
- TSN No. 25 DeMatha [Hyattsville, MD] Stags 30, NR Imhotep Charter [Philadelphia, PA] Panthers 14
BYES
TSN No. 5 IMG Academy [Bradenton, FL] Ascenders; TSN No. 22 Milton [GA] Eagles
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