The 2026 high school football season is about to begin, and ESPN has assembled a kickoff weekend schedule that may be the most ambitious in the history of the network high school football coverage. Seven games, spread across the opening weekend, will feature multiple Top 25 teams, several championship rematches, and a concentration of Division I talent that rivals any weekend on the college football calendar.
St. Thomas Aquinas enters the season ranked in the top 10 of every major national poll, and the Raiders have the kind of roster that has become their trademark. The team is led by a junior running back who is already being compared to some of the greats to come through the program, and a secondary that features two Division I-caliber cornerbacks who can lock down any receiver in the country.
Bishop Gorman, the Las Vegas dynasty that has won 14 consecutive state championships, is also featured on the kickoff schedule. The Gaels are ranked in the top five of every major preseason poll and have a roster dotted with Division I recruits, including a five-star quarterback commitment and a defensive lineman who is considered one of the top prospects in the 2027 class.
"We do not shy away from competition," the Bishop Gorman head coach said at media day. "Our schedule is designed to test us and prepare us for a championship run. The ESPN kickoff weekend is a great platform for high school football, and we are excited to be a part of it."
One of the most significant aspects of the ESPN kickoff schedule is the platform it provides for high school football. The games will be broadcast on ESPN family of networks, giving high school players the kind of exposure that was unimaginable a decade ago. For the players, the opportunity to play on national television is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and it adds a layer of excitement to an already significant moment.
For the programs involved, the ESPN kickoff is more than a game. It is a statement about the state of high school football and the growing national interest in the sport at the prep level. The rankings, the recruits, and the television cameras all combine to create an event that celebrates the best of what high school football has to offer.
