Here are AzPreps365's preseason rankings for 4A flag football:

Salpointe Catholic – The Lancers started their program a year ago and finished as the state champion with an impressive 16-1 season with the lone loss coming at 6A power Marana.

Can they keep it rolling?

Only Hamilton has been able to win back-to-back state titles in the short Arizona history. Considering the program is entering its second year, most of the team is back to give it another run.

“We used elite flag pulling and caught the ball well to propel us late in deep into the playoffs,” quarterback Isla Collins said.

Collins came on to the scene to complete 76 percent of her passes for 2,432 yards with 47 touchdowns and four interceptions and finished with 966 yards rushing with 12 touchdowns.

Three of her four top targets return including junior Aliyah Adger, who had 71 receptions for 728 yards and 17 scores.

The defense lost more to graduation, but senior Danika Alonzo has a chance to take over as the top player on that side of the ball.

Eastmark – The Firebirds have had two great seasons sandwiched around a good one in the first three years of AIA sanctioned play.

The first year in 2023 Eastmark entered the playoffs undefeated but were upset in the quarterfinals. A year ago, the Firebirds made a run to the state title game and lost 17-0 to Salpointe.

Coming off a 16-4 season and finishing second, the Firebirds will be looking to finally win the big one as coach Rich Garces prepares to make another run this season.

It starts with senior quarterback Paige McCrabb as she rushed for 576 yards, passed for 4,191 yards on 67 percent completion with 45 touchdowns.

Most of her targets went to senior wide receiver Mikaela Oberstein with 129 receptions for 1,525 yards and 17 touchdowns, while Kinsley McCarty was right there with 98 catches with 20 touchdowns to form the toughest duo in 4A.

As good as the offense was last year, the defense performed at high level despite being young as Kaiya Blackhurst (21 flag pulls for a loss, 16 sacks), Peyton Elzinga (14 flag pulls for a loss, 11 sacks) and Sierra Holm (13 flag pulls for a loss, nine sacks) return as leaders.

Prescott – The Badgers have been really good from the start, going a combined 31-4 including finishing 15-1 as a runner up in 2024 and then followed up by making it to the semifinals and finishing with a 16-3 record last season.

Coach Ryan Hart and his staff lost a big graduating class so there will be some adjustments, possible position changes and growing to do, but Prescott will still be a team to reckon week in and week out.

Expect sophomore Rylee Hart to take over the huddle after getting some snaps last season to finish with just under 1,000 yards with 13 touchdowns.

Senior Addalyn Brandon might become the top receiver to keep the offense rolling, but this offense also ran for more than 2,000 yards in 2025 behind two players who have graduated. The balance of the offensive look in 2026 will be one of the things to watch for the Badgers.

The defense will have a hard time matching last year’s stingy squad as Prescott gave up only 8.9 points a game.

Junior linebacker/safety Lucy Zembik will be someone to lean on after she had 88 flag pulls including 15 tackles for a loss and 11 sacks.

The season opens with a rematch of the 2024 championship game as the Badgers host St. Mary’s, which won the 2024 4A title game 10-7.

Mingus – The Marauders was one of last season’s surprise teams, going 14-2 overall and advancing to the state semis after finishing 10-7 in 2024 including a first-round loss.

Mingus coach Dave Moncibaez will oversee a roster overhaul while trying to maintain a level of success that was established last season.

Mingus has good receiving corps with four players with at least 30 catches last season, led by Karstyn Richardson after the senior had 90 catches for 1,224 yards and 10 scores.

The defense has an all-state candidate in senior Maddie Babock with 118 flag pulls including 59 for a loss, 50 of which were sacks.

Senior Tambra Hahn makes a great tandem with Babcock as the former had 71 flag pulls and she had 32 for a loss including 29 sacks.

Crismon – The Rattlers had a quick turnaround after going 2-11 in their inaugural season in 2023 by going 10-3 with a first round loss in 2024.

Then they came back last year to go 14-3 and dropped out in the quarterfinals.

Coach Rebecca Sloat has been around for it all and will have some offensive weapons to try and keep the progression going in 2026.

The receiver corps will be a good place to start with four of the top five targets coming back this year including junior Sophia Saldivar and sophomore Reylynn Lazarin, who combined for 103 catches and 27 touchdowns.

The defense has some top talent returning as Jade Bristol (45 flag pulls, five for a loss), Ava Rodriguez (24 flag pills, 15 for a loss, 10 sacks) and Saldivar (48 flag pulls, seven for a loss) to lead the way.

The schedule has some good matchups but don’t be surprised if the Rattlers have 10/13 circled as they travel to Eastmark, which has knocked Crismon out of the playoffs the last two seasons.

Send comments and story ideas to jskoda@azpreps365.com. Follow him in X and Instagram at AzPreps365Skoda for more stories, opinions, insights, news and in-game updates with videos.