🏈 2026 Strength of Schedule Rankings

👋 Hey everyone! We’re back to take a look at which teams have the toughest schedules in the 2026 MHSAA season!

As per usual, we will break it down division by division, based on the previous years final computer ratings.

But, before we do that make sure to subscribe below to get our newsletter straight to your inbox every week👇

Here are the 15 toughest schedules based on 2025 computer rating in Division 1:

Breakdown:

The OK Red absolutely dominates Division 1, taking each of the top six spots. Grandville leads the way with a 41.25 SOS rating after adding Cass Tech and Muskegon to an already brutal OK Red schedule. They’re clearly not shying away from competition.

Behind them are five more OK Red teams, making one thing obvious: there won’t be many easy Fridays in that conference this fall.

If you guys want to hear Doak and I dive into 2026 MHSAA Football Strength of Schedule, check out our latest Goosecast👇

If you guys enjoy the content, make sure to subscribe! More podcasts are coming soon!

Watch here: Goosecast Ep. 17 | The Hardest 2026 MHSAA Football Schedules

Here are the 15 toughest schedules based on 2025 computer rating in Division 2:

Breakdown:

To nobody’s surprise, Orchard Lake St. Mary’s enters 2026 with the toughest schedule in Division 2, and there’s a pretty significant gap between the Eaglets and the rest of the field. Their 36.98 SOS rating sits nearly five points ahead of No. 2 Caledonia at 32.07, with Brother Rice close behind at 31.86.

Muskegon and Byron Center round out a strong top five, while Traverse City West sits just behind them at 27.56. After that, there’s another noticeable drop to Saginaw Heritage at 23.30.

Division 2 has no shortage of difficult schedules, but St. Mary’s clearly stands above the rest. A loaded CHSL slate, plus non-conference matchups with Mona Shores and Detroit MLK, gives the Eaglets one of the toughest roads in the entire state.

Stax Payments, a Hubspot customer, now books 80% more meetings with the exact same team they had before.

No new hires. No new territories. Just HubSpot's Prospecting Agent finding the right accounts, surfacing the right contacts, and drafting outreach that actually gets responses.

Your best rep is great because they know who to go after and when. Prospecting Agent gives every rep that same starting point.

Get a demo

Here are the 15 toughest schedules based on 2025 computer rating in Division 3:

Breakdown:

No team separates itself from its division quite like River Rouge. The Panthers come in with a massive 37.53 SOS rating, more than 12 points ahead of No. 2 De La Salle at 25.26. That’s one of the biggest gaps between the top two teams in any division.

Behind them, Reeths-Puffer, Harper Woods and Mason round out the top five, with Forest Hills Central sitting at No. 6. Once you get past River Rouge, things tighten up considerably, with spots three through nine separated by just over four points.

River Rouge is the clear headline here. Their independent schedule is loaded with matchups against Grand Blanc, Davison, Saline, Mona Shores and more, giving the Panthers one of the toughest paths in the state.

By now, you’ve probably noticed that all of Goosepoop’s content is completely free.

A big reason we’re able to keep it that way is because of Teamfi — the fundraising company my brothers and I started a little over 3 years ago.

Funny enough, Teamfi actually started through this very newsletter.

We built it to help teams and organizations fundraise in a way that’s faster, simpler, and way less painful than the traditional stuff. No platform fees, no product delivery, no chasing checks around. Just simple digital fundraisers that regularly raise several hundred dollars per player in under two weeks.

If your team, program, or organization is looking to raise money, we’d love to help.

Check it out here 👉 www.teamfi.works

Here are the 15 toughest schedules based on 2025 computer rating in Division 4:

Breakdown:

The top of Division 4 has a very strong West Michigan flavor. Kenowa Hills takes the No. 1 spot with a 21.96 rating, followed closely by Grand Rapids Christian at 20.51 and South Christian at 19.42.

Allendale, Divine Child, Hamilton and Spring Lake make up the next group, with just over six points separating No. 1 from No. 7.

Unlike D3, D4 is much more tightly packed at the top. Kenowa Hills earns the No. 1 spot, but several teams are dealing with similarly difficult paths in 2026.

Here are the 15 toughest schedules based on 2025 computer rating in Division 5:

Breakdown:

There’s a clear top tier in Division 5, led by Grand Rapids West Catholic at 17.04. Right behind them is Grand Rapids Catholic Central at 12.45, giving the Grand Rapids private schools the two toughest schedules in the division.

After those two, there’s a major drop to Armada at 4.70, with Comstock Park and Whitehall tied at 4.17. West Catholic’s rating is more than three times higher than the No. 3 team in D5, making the Falcons and Cougars the clear standouts when it comes to strength of schedule heading into 2026.

Here are the 15 toughest schedules based on 2025 computer rating in Division 6:

Breakdown:

No team in Division 6 comes remotely close to Jackson Lumen Christi in the SOS department. The Titans carry a 20.15 SOS rating, more than double No. 2 Traverse City St. Francis at 8.10 and nearly 12 points clear of the rest of the field.

St. Francis, Gladwin and Lansing Catholic make up the next tier, all sitting between 7.43 and 8.10.

From there, the numbers drop quickly. Lumen Christi has never been afraid of a tough schedule, and once again, the Titans will be battle-tested when the postseason arrives.

Here are the 15 toughest schedules based on 2025 computer rating in Division 7:

Breakdown:

Cass City owns the toughest schedule in Division 7 with a 3.46 rating, creating some separation from Sandusky at 0.91 and Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central at 0.54. Those three are also the only teams in the top 15 with positive SOS ratings.

Menominee checks in at No. 4 with a -0.89 rating, followed closely by Millington and Ravenna. The numbers may look different as we move into the smaller divisions, but compared to the rest of D7, Cass City has a VERY tough road ahead.

Here are the 15 toughest schedules based on 2025 computer rating in Division 8:

Breakdown:

The top of Division 8 belongs to the Big Thumb Conference, with Ubly, Reese and Harbor Beach sweeping the top three spots. Ubly leads the division with a 5.84 SOS rating, followed by Reese at 3.44 and Harbor Beach at 0.66.

After those three, every other team in the top 15 falls into negative territory, beginning with Unionville-Sebewaing at -3.20.

Ubly and Reese have created some serious separation at the top. In fact, both would rank inside the top three in Division 7 as well, which shows just how tough their 2026 schedules are compared to the rest of D8.

👋 That’s all for today guys! Thanks for reading! Hopefully you got something out of our 2026 Strength of Schedule Rankings and have a little better idea of which teams have the toughest roads ahead this fall.

We’re just getting started. Goosepoop will be back every week throughout the 2026 Michigan high school football season with rankings, projections, breakdowns and plenty more.

See you next week! Make sure to subscribe below to get the next edition straight to your inbox👇

Love,
Goose & Doak