(Note: To see the complete list of schools and how they are ranked, pick up the March issue of Mile High Sports. High School Rankings is based on performances in the calendar year 2023.)

The countdown continues.

On Monday, we started counting down the top 50 high schools in terms of athletic success in 2023. Spots 50-41 featured teams from the Denver Metro area, Southern Colorado and the Western Slope who captured state championships.

Tuesday’s crop of 40-31, had see some Jeffco powerhouses, a trio of Colorado Springs-area programs and small-school football champions from the Eastern Plains and Four Corners.

In today’s release of 30-21, seven of the 10 featured schools are in Class 2A or lower.

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High School Rankings

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The Formula

What exactly is “High School Rankings XXI”? Well, it’s the 21st year it’s happened, so, to begin, it’s a tradition.

But beyond that, it’s our own highly patented (a loose term at best) formula that was crafted to fairly evaluate which Colorado schools are the best. We don’t care how big or small the school is, or whether it’s metropolitan or so country that its address could very well be “BFE,” we want to know what school does this whole sports thing best. As such, here’s the magic formula that helps us determine that

…

(Number of Team State Qualifiers / Total Sports Participated In) x 25
+
(Number of Team State Runner-Up Finishes / Total Sports Participated In) x 75
+
(Number of Team State Champions / Total Sports Participated In) x 200
+
(Number of Individual State Champs / Total Sports Participated In) x 20
+
(Number of First-Team All-State Athletes / Total Sports Participated In) x 20
=
TOTAL SCORE

…

The List

30

Flatirons Academy Bison
Class: 1A
Score: 38.33
Last Year: 14 (-16)

29

Wray Eagles
Class: 2A
Score: 39.67
Last Year: 20 (-9)

28

Cherokee Trail Cougars
Class: 5A
Score: 40.45
Last Year: 88 (+60)

27

Simla Cubs
Class: 1A
Score: 40.63
Last Year: 32 (+5)

26

Denver Jewish Day Tigers
Class: 1A
Score: 40.83
Last Year: DNQ

25

Battle Mountain Huskies
Class: 4A
Score: 41.32
Last Year: 30 (+5)

24

Briggsdale Falcons
Class: 1A
Score: 41.43
Last Year: 58 (+34)

23

Golden View Classical Academy Sentinels
Class: 2A
Score: 42.14
Last Year: 138 (+115)

21T

Crested Butte Titans
Class: 2A
Score: 42.22
Last Year: 62 (+41)

21T

St. Mary’s Academy Wildcats
Class: 3A
Score: 42.22
Last Year: 21 (0)