Bishop Gorman football falls in national polls after loss in Florida

Bishop Gorman’s football team fell from the No. 1 position to No. 8 in the MaxPreps national rankings after a 33‑28 loss to Christopher Columbus of Florida on Saturday. St. Thomas Aquinas of Florida now holds the top spot in the MaxPreps poll, while Columbus rose from No. 100 to No. 6 following its victory over the Gaels. Gorman is scheduled to face Lone Peak of Utah at 7 p.m. MT on Friday. Lone Peak enters the game with a 2‑1 record and is ranked No. 5 in MaxPreps’ Utah state rankings. The Gaels previously beat Lone Peak 35‑14 last season in a contest that was halted in the third quarter after several Lone Peak players entered the field during a sideline altercation. In addition to the MaxPreps drop, Gorman lost its No. 1 standing in both ESPN’s SC Next Top 25 and High School Football America’s national rankings. The Gaels now sit at No. 7 in the ESPN poll and No. 8 in the HSFA Super 300. On Saturday, Gorman (2‑1) trailed 20‑0 to Columbus after an hour‑long delay before kickoff and another 45‑minute pause in the first quarter because of lightning. The Gaels narrowed the gap to 23‑15 at halftime on two long touchdown passes from quarterback Ace Amina. Columbus added a fourth‑quarter touchdown and recovered a fumble on a kickoff, extending its lead to 33‑15 after a field goal. Amina scored two more long touchdowns; Gorman recovered an onside kick between those scores, but Columbus secured the final onside kick with a minute remaining. After the Lone Peak matchup, Gorman will travel to Mater Dei of California, ranked No. 15 nationally by MaxPreps, on Sept. 18. The Gaels hold an 0‑5 all‑time record against Mater Dei. That game is currently the last scheduled out‑of‑state opponent for Gorman, though the team is expected to take part in the four‑team Overtime Nationals postseason tournament in December. According to a Rivals study, the Overtime Nationals will expand from a single‑game event in 2025 to a four‑team tournament this year. Gorman, which claims four mythical high‑school football national championships, could earn an opportunity to play nationally ranked teams from states such as Florida and Arizona, a scenario that might improve its national standing. St. Frances Academy of Maryland, ranked No. 2 by MaxPreps, defeated Corner Canyon of Utah 37‑20 in last year’s inaugural Overtime Nationals championship game.