PALM BEACH COUNTY – There is only one non-mover this week, and we will get this out the way right now.
Cardinal Newman (1-2) stays at No. 10 for one reason only. Consistent lightning has forced its Week 4 game against Fort Pierce Central (2-1) to get pushed back to Monday, Oct. 18.
And speaking of lightning, the Week 3 rivalry clash between Dwyer and Palm Beach Gardens was pushed back to finish on Monday (Sept. 20).
It ended with Dwyer (3-1) fending off Palm Beach Gardens (2-2) in a 14-7 home win yesterday afternoon.
As a result of this particular game taking place, Dwyer – which also took down Fort Pierce Westwood in a close 16-14 home win in Week 4 – will move up a whopping four spots from No. 8 to No. 4.
For Palm Beach Gardens, it has been an up-and-down season after four games played. For that, it drops two spots from
No. 4 to No. 6.
Meanwhile, we have a surprise team slotting in between Dwyer and Palm Beach Gardens.
Welcome to the top tier, Park Vista.
After enjoying its Week 3 bye, Park Vista (3-0) totally dominated Lake Worth (0-2) in a 51-0 win that happened in Week 4. It was one of the largest wins for any team so far this season in Palm Beach County.
For that, Park Vista also moves up a whopping four spots from No. 9 to No. 5.
While both Park Vista and Dwyer made some major strides here, two teams dropped two spots and one team had the biggest drop of them all.
Let us start with Benjamin, which suffered its first loss of the season in Week 4. A 49-14 blowout home defeat to Gulliver Prep (Miami) (3-0) results in a slide from No. 6 to No. 8 this week for Benjamin (3-1).
Seminole Ridge (3-1) is in the same situation, as it suffered its first loss of the season. A 24-6 road loss to Martin County (3-0) results in a drop from No. 7 to No. 9 this week.
The biggest drop goes to Atlantic, which drops all the way from No. 1 to No. 7.
This happened because of timing more than anything else.
A 34-28 road loss to Lakewood (St. Petersburg) (4-0) in Week 4 has Atlantic (2-2) outside of the top tier. But with both Atlantic and Palm Beach Gardens at 2-2 right now, Atlantic is a spot below Palm Beach Gardens primarily due to its 20-17 road loss in Week 1.
With all that being said, let us welcome our newest No. 1 in Palm Beach County.
Palm Beach Central (4-0) has the largest win of the season in Palm Beach County, as evidenced by its 70-0 road win over Royal Palm Beach in Week 4. In four games played, Palm Beach Central has outscored its opponents by a score of 209-54.
Palm Beach Central will be at No. 1 as it enjoys its bye in Week 5.
And finally, guess which two teams are right behind Palm Beach Central at No. 1?
We have Glades Central (3-1), which quietly moves up a spot from No. 3 to No. 2 after its easy 45-6 road win over Santaluces (0-4) in Week 4. And we have Pahokee (3-0), which moves up two spots from No. 5 to No. 3 after enjoying its bye in Week 4.
Let us get to the following three team polls: Combined Top 10, Public Top 10, and Private Top 5.
COMBINED TOP 10
1. Palm Beach Central (4-0) [PR: 2]
2. Glades Central (3-1) [PR: 3]
3. Pahokee (3-0) [PR: 5]
4. Dwyer (3-1) [PR: 8]
5. Park Vista (3-0) [PR: 9]
6. Palm Beach Gardens (2-2) [PR: 4]
7. Atlantic (Delray Beach) (2-2) [PR: 1]
8. Benjamin (3-1) [PR: 6]
9. Seminole Ridge (3-1) [PR: 7]
10. Cardinal Newman (1-2) [PR: 10]
PUBLIC TOP 10
1. Palm Beach Central (4-0) [PR: 2]
2. Glades Central (3-1) [PR: 3]
3. Pahokee (3-0) [PR: 5]
4. Dwyer (3-1) [PR: 7]
5. Park Vista (3-0) [PR: 8]
6. Palm Beach Gardens (2-2) [PR: 4]
7. Atlantic (Delray Beach) (2-2) [PR: 1]
8. Seminole Ridge (3-1) [PR: 6]
9. Boca Raton (2-1) [PR: NR]
10. Boynton Beach (2-1) [PR: 10]
Dropped out: Former No. 9 Wellington (1-2)
PRIVATE TOP 5
1. Benjamin (3-1) [PR: 1]
2. Cardinal Newman (1-2) [PR: 2]
3. Jupiter Christian (2-0) [PR: 3]
4. King’s Academy (3-1) [PR: 5]
5. Glades Day (2-1) [PR: 4]
NEXT RANKINGS RELEASE: Tuesday, Sept. 27
PHOTO CREDITS: Tan Allen, Keith Forde, Tra’Nell Hollis, and Fred Self
