Lake Mary leads defending state champion Sanford Seminole in the first Florida High School Athletic Association rating percentage index (RPI) football playoff standings, which were released Wednesday afternoon.
The Rams (3-0) rank No. 3 among all classifications and No. 1 in Class 8A Region 1 with an .861 RPI. Seminole (4-0, .816 RPI), which was 12-0 last season, ranks No. 5 overall and No. 2 behind Lake Mary in Region 1.
The ‘Noles host Lake Mary on Friday, Oct. 22, in a game that will help decide the District 2 championship. Seminole has won the past four meetings in the series since 2016. The Seminole County rivals did not play last fall.
Four district champions and four at-large teams based on RPI rankings earn playoff spots in each of the four regions in Class 8A, 7A, 6A and 5A. The RPI is used to select and seed all six playoff qualifiers per region in Class 4A, 3A, 2A and 1A.
No other Orlando area teams sit inside the RPI’s top 25 entering Week 5 games this week.
Apopka (3-0, .757) ranks No. 28 overall and No. 3 behind Lake Mary and Seminole in 8A Region 1. Winter Park (3-1, .731 ) is No. 40 overall and No. 4 in a region that is followed by St. Johns Creekside (4-0, .722), Lake Brantley (3-1, .675), Oviedo (3-0, .658) and Ocoee (3-0, .642).
Venice (3-0, .892), which plays in 8A Region 3, holds the overall No. 1 spot this week. Class 5A’s Jacksonville Ed White (2-0, .883) ranks No. 2 and 2A’s Hollywood Avant Garde (2-0, .825) ranks No. 4 overall.
Dr. Phillips (2-2, .602) is No. 7 in a crowded 8A Region 3 field that includes District 9 opponents West Orange (3-1, .590) at No. 9 and Osceola (2-1, .581) at No. 10.
Boone (2-1, .599) ranks No. 5 and Lake Nona (2-2, .533) ranks No. 7 in 8A Region 2. The Braves play at Lake Nona next week in a contest likely to decide the District 5 champion and a top-four seed in the tournament.
The RPI rankings, published each Wednesday by the FHSAA, factors a team’s winning percentage, the winning percentage of a team’s opponents, and the winning percentage of a team’s opponent’s opponents.
Orange City University (3-0, .701) ranks No. 3 in 7A Region 1 behind Niceville (4-0, .725) and District 4 foe Port Orange Spruce Creek (4-0, .718). The Titans clocked in at No. 56 overall.
Edgewater (3-1, .651), the Class 7A state runner-up in back-to-back years, ranks fourth in Region 2 behind Stuart Martin County (3-0, .721), Viera (2-1, .660) and Palm Beach Gardens Dwyer (3-1, .657).
The Eagles play at Apopka on Friday at 7 p.m.
Jones (2-2, .632) is No. 3 in 6A Region 2 behind Auburndale (3-0, .772) and Ocala Vanguard (3-0, .700). The Tigers, who lost last week at national power IMG Academy, play Thursday at Oak Ridge (2-2) at 7 p.m.
Leesburg (3-0, .603) ranks fifth in 5A Region 2 going into Friday’s matchup of unbeatens against 4A The Villages (3-0, .675).
Orlando Christian Prep (1-1, .635) is off to a fast start in its return to FHSAA play after competing as an independent in recent years in the Sunshine State Athletic Conference. The Warriors rank No. 2 in 2A Region 2 behind Melbourne Holy Trinity (4-0, .659).
Daytona Beach Father Lopez (2-1, .500) is third and Foundation Academy (2-1, .486) ranks fourth.
This article originally appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email J.C. Carnahan at jcarnahan@orlandosentinel.com.
