Predicting Every 2026 Football Region Champion

With region play beginning for most teams this week, let’s have some fun and jump into some predictions for the rest of the regular season. Some teams have gotten off to a rough start, while others have taken the state by storm, but region play gives teams a clean slate to work with. Who will be taking home a region title this year?

REGION 1: DAVIS DARTS

The Davis Darts are one of those teams that have had a rough go thus far. They sit at 2-2, but those two losses were an ugly watch. Granted, they were against two of the state’s best teams, but it was not the way you would have liked to see them compete. Not to mention, the QB drama to start the year has also set them back.

All that being said, I still have the Darts as Region Champs. There is still too much talent on this roster to bet against them. Utah’s best athlete, Bode Sparrow, is still making highlight plays in all three aspects of the game. The receiving room, including Bode, is still extremely loaded with Jaxton Itaaheau and Sam Coleman. Porter Hunt has been a beast on the defensive side of the ball as well.

The Darts had no issue putting away a good Alta team 27-6 last week. A quality opponent, but around the same skill level they will be seeing in Region 1. Paden Toula will ease into some good quarterback play after being thrown into the fire in an offensive scheme that is one of the best in the state, and the Darts should go unbeaten in region play again this year.

REGION 2: MOUNTAIN RIDGE SENTINELS

Mountain Ridge has not backed down from building a tough pre-region schedule over the past few years. This year, they did the same thing but saw different results. Two blowout wins against two very good opponents, as well as a 15-point victory over a VERY GOOD Skyridge team that many didn’t think they’d beat.

What has been the reason for the Sentinels’ success this year? Well, you can’t really point to one specific thing. They do just about everything well.

This offensive line has bullied every defensive front they’ve seen. Bradley Foster was going crazy before he got injured for the rest of the season. Luckily for Mt. Ridge, Jayden Romero has looked phenomenal in the carries he’s been given.

This receiving room is probably the most underrated in the state, and they deserve their flowers. They have five guys who have already eclipsed 150 receiving yards on the year in Thayer, Dejong, Classen, Neilson, and West.

The main reason these guys are having the success they are is because they have a poised, accurate, and seasoned quarterback in Jaxon Hunt. Jaxon has done everything you could ask of a quarterback and more! Seventeen touchdown passes in four games is absurd. 1,361 passing yards is just as absurd.

Hunt has led the Sentinel offense to an average of 46 points a night. The defense on this team has arguably been just as impressive, allowing 8.25 points per game.

There are a few guys who play both ways, like Tytan Dejong, who does a great job in both roles. However, a lot of these guys only play one side of the ball, and they excel in doing so. Kyler Christiansen, Cole Uluave, and Scooby Tulau are tone-setters for the defense.

The secondary consists of a variety of rotational pieces, headlined by Blake Benson with 18 tackles as a DB.

This team looks scary and should run through a solid Region 2. They will have their work cut out for them in a rivalry game vs. Herriman, but like the Darts, I don’t see them losing a region game.

REGION 3: CORNER CANYON CHARGERS

If you think that Corner Canyon has a cakewalk to a region title, you’re wrong. Region 3 will be a bloodbath, just like it is every year. This is the best football the state of Utah has to offer.

We could be looking at the end of the year with the American Fork Cavemen, Lone Peak Knights, or Skyridge Falcons as region champs, and I would not be shocked at all. Those are some of the elite teams in the state.

That being said, I’m still picking the Chargers. Why? Culture and defense.

Everyone knows how much of a juggernaut this program has been over the last eight years. Coach Kjar built a dynasty and a culture over there. That didn’t magically disappear when he left for Weber State. A good chunk of these kids still have state championship experience. They know what it takes to win.

Not to mention, this defense is scary, and defense wins championships. Josh Harris and Diesel Dart are two of the best DBs in the state. Tate Patterson is one of the best linebackers in the state, and Wyatt Warner is an absolute beast on the D-line.

The offense is not the Chargers’ strength, which is the opposite of how it has been in years past. Jaxon Pehrson has looked good at the start of his 2026 campaign, and Jackson Carruth has been great for the Chargers, running behind one of the best O-line units in the state.

The receiving room has done its job thus far, but it is one of the question marks that will be answered come region play.

This region is the Chargers’ to lose, but make no mistake about it, this is no cakewalk.

REGION 4: WEST PANTHERS

Let’s not waste too much time here. This is the easiest pick of all time.

Barring injury, the West Panthers are going to annihilate this entire region again. Kamden Lopati is widely regarded as the best quarterback in the state, and he deserves that recognition. He’s a special talent.

The Panthers are off to a 4-0 start and should lock up the No. 1 seed heading into the state playoffs. The Panthers already have three separate rushers in Hamilton, Dixon, and Lopati with over 200 yards, which is just ridiculous.

This team is loaded with talent and are co-favorites to win the 5A state title with the Orem Tigers.

Expect a lot of mercy rules this year from West.

REGION 5: BOX ELDER BEES

You really can’t help but root for the Bees. This is a homegrown team that is backed by a community and has true state championship aspirations.

The Bees are a run-heavy offense led by one of the best backs in the state in Judd Howells, as well as quarterback Kadyn Reyes. Both studs have already rushed for over 400 yards and five touchdowns.

The Bees will face a challenge if that running game slows down, especially down the road if they face a scary defensive front in Orem or West.

Let’s not go too far too soon, however, as this region will give them tests in its own right. Fremont is the other title contender in this region with a solid team themselves. October 2nd will likely be a region championship game between the two.

West Field is a team that could sneak up on people and contend for the title as well, but Box Elder and Fremont are the current favorites.

REGION 6: OLYMPUS TITANS

Welcome to Region 6, the most wide-open region in the state. Six teams are in this region, and you could make a great argument for why every single one of them will win.

In all likelihood, this is probably going to end in some version of a shared region title, but what fun is that? Let’s pick a team.

In all honesty, if this prediction was made a week ago, I would give the nod to the Bountiful Redhawks, but with Hudson Malmrose going down with an injury, that changes things.

The Titans are led by superstar Sam Ngata, who is a nightmare for opposing teams and the anchor of a stout defense that is yet to allow more than 21 points.

I don’t expect Olympus to come out of region play unscathed, as they will likely drop a game or two. Someone has to win this region. Give me the Titans.

REGION 7: OREM TIGERS

Region 7 is a competitive region as well, and we would most definitely be having a similar conversation as we are in Region 6… if it weren’t for the Orem Tigers.

Orem is a level above the rest in this group. The Tigers’ defense is absolutely insane and might be the best in the entire state despite being 5A.

Krew Jones, MJ Bateman, Major Stokes, Kaio Akana, Will Rasmussen, Ty Hanchett, Aoi Faumui — just to name some of the studs holding down the fort.

I could keep going, but what’s the point of naming every individual player on the defense?

The offense is what holds this team back a little bit and is likely to be the downfall of this team if they aren’t state champs. That offense could also be just fine, and they cruise to another title.

Expect the Tigers to get through this region fairly easily, but maybe with a few closer games than you would think. There is still real talent that other teams have to offer.

REGION 8: PROVO BULLDOGS

This kind of feels like cheating for this exercise. The Salem Hills Skyhawks were early region favorites, but the Bulldogs just took them down, which also would give them the head-to-head tiebreaker if it came down to that.

So I’m rocking with the Bulldogs.

Provo has had a rough go to start the year, but they kind of did the same thing last year. There’s no reason to panic, as those losses came against some good teams. Their win last week over Salem is very moving, enough for me to tag them as region champs.

This region is weaker than it has been in years past. Wasatch recently had to split, and Deer Creek is a brand-new school, both of which are weak teams because of that. Despite beating Mountain View last week, Park City looks to have taken a step back from last year.

Timpanogos could be a sneaky team to win this region, so keep an eye out for them, but for now, I expect the Bulldogs to take it.

REGION 9: HURRICANE TIGERS

Region 9 is one of the more difficult regions to pick a winner from. Crimson Cliffs has dominated this region the past three years, winning 17 straight Region 9 games. Remarkable.

Almost all of last year’s starters graduated, but QB Tanoai Andresen returned and has the Mustangs off to another great start.

It’s really hard to bet against them… but I’m doing it.

Hurricane returns a big chunk of their starters from last year and has dominated in every game this year. Now, their strength of schedule has not been too difficult, but they’ve made sure to put every game away in a hurry.

Titan Borchardt has been the engine of the Tigers’ offense, leading the team in both rushing and receiving yards while finding the end zone eight times.

This dangerous defense is led by Tanner Matua, who is second in the state with six sacks.

The Tigers are balanced and looking to finally get the region trophy out of Crimson Cliffs’ hands.

Fortunately, we will see these two teams in action on Friday in what is likely a region championship. I don’t want to put the other teams to rest just yet, as Pine View is looking like they could compete with these two teams, and although Snow Canyon has been pretty up and down thus far, they are more than capable of pulling off some unexpected wins.

Crimson and Hurricane are currently a tier above the rest, but that is subject to change.

REGION 10: SKYLINE EAGLES

Region 10 is most definitely the weakest region top to bottom in 4A, but there are still a few competitive squads not to be ignored.

Skyline is one of those teams. They opened up the season in a very close loss to Stansbury, and if you’ve been following 4A, then you know how good Stansbury is this year.

They picked up a very impressive win at Olympus in Week 2, showing major promise. Week 3 should be taken with a grain of salt, as that game was bound to get out of hand at some point, but the Eagles bounced back in Week 4 vs. Juan Diego.

This region race is going to come down to Skyline, Highland, and Murray.

I’ve got the Eagles coming out on top.

REGION 11: RIDGELINE RIVERHAWKS

As fun as it would be to pick Stansbury here, I’m not there quite yet. Stansbury has already shown they are one of the top dawgs in 4A and state title contenders.

Unfortunately for them, they share a region with Ridgeline.

The Riverhawks ran through all of 4A last year and are on pace to do the same this year. Expect a little more pushback from the Stallions this year.

Ridgeline lost a lot of talent last year… a lot. They’ve reloaded.

One of the key returning players to this team is Noah Fiefia, who is off to a scorching-hot start with 644 yards on the ground and 14 total touchdowns.

Insane.

Ridgeline remains state championship favorites until proven otherwise.

3A NORTH: MORGAN TROJANS

Grantsville has looked great thus far and has a really tough squad. Logan looks way better than they were last year, led by returning QB Easton Favero.

Both teams could end up winning this region.

Morgan looks dang good, though. They are the team to beat in all of 3A. Loaded up and down the roster at just about every position, I won’t be betting against the Trojans.

3A SOUTH: JUAB WASPS

This region is an absolute blast. Similar to Region 6, there is a case to be made for a good chunk of these teams.

You have the Canyon View Falcons, who are the only undefeated team left. They have decimated three of their four opponents, and the other one was a convincing 15-point win over Dixie.

The Cedar Reds are the defending champs, but just recently dropped a close one to that same Dixie squad. Richfield looks really good, and so does Juab.

This region is going to be a dogfight.

Even though Juab handled Manti, don’t count out the Templars to make some noise. At this current moment, I’m giving the Wasps the slight edge over the rest of the field.

Price Armstrong has them boys moving with a whole bunch of weapons to work with.

There’s going to be a lot of great games to come in this region, and it’s going to be cinema.

2A NORTH: SUMMIT ACADEMY BEARS

This is a two-team race. There’s no other way to spin it.

Give credit to ALA for being 4-0 thus far, but this is between Summit Academy and South Summit. A region title that will 100% be decided on September 25th.

South Summit started the year off better than last year, getting the best of Duchesne this go-around. They continue their gauntlet of a schedule with an extremely hard three-game stretch against San Juan, LCA, and Summit Academy.

The Wildcats will be battle-tested come November and are up for the challenge.

The Bears are led by star wideout Beckham Meredith, who is probably the best receiver in 2A. Meredith has already hauled in seven touchdowns and will always give his team a chance to compete.

Finau Katoa does the same thing for the Bears on the defensive side, causing havoc as he’s already tallied five sacks on the year.

This region really is a coin flip. If you have South Summit, I can’t blame you!

2A SOUTH: SAN JUAN BRONCOS

Similarly to Region 4, there’s no reason to spend too much time on this one.

There has been no greater dynasty in the state of Utah over the last five years than these boys.

Beau Yeomans is going to lead the Broncos to another region title with star running back Brigg Palmer by his side.

The Broncos are heavy favorites to win state again this year, and they’ll breeze through region play.

Although, shoutout to the Delta Rabbits, who look much improved from last year and would be the team to shock the world if there were one.

1A NORTH: DUCHESNE EAGLES

Duchesne is a lot like Crimson Cliffs in the sense that they lost a big portion of their starters from a really good team, but have reloaded and are back ready to compete.

However, this year will be much more difficult for the Eagles to win the region versus the cakewalk that it was last year, obliterating everyone in their path.

North Summit could put up a pretty good fight against the Eagles, but still expect Duchesne to go unbeaten.

Just not the same score differential as last year.

1A SOUTH: KANAB COWBOYS

Tied for the smallest region in the state with four teams, it’s not too shabby of a group.

The defending champs should definitely make their way through without many scars, as their main contender, Beaver, has taken a significant step backward.

Enterprise, on the other hand, is on the come-up and could put up a fight against the Cowboys, but expect Grady Anderson and Kanab to make light work of this region.