Wisconsin’s Top 5 Public Football Programs (2021–2025)

Public Schools Top 25 | National Series — Part 49/50Wisconsin high school football has one of the cleanest postseason structures in the country, and it made this one of the most fascinating states to rank.The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) uses seven enrollment-based divisions (Division 1 through Division 7) for 11-player football, with every division crowning its own state champion each season. Unlike some states that saw major classification changes during this stretch, Wisconsin remained relatively stable from 2021 through 2025, which makes comparing résumés across the five-year window much cleaner.Every November, the road ends at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, one of the best championship environments in all of high school football.As always for this series, this ranking is public schools only. That means strong private powers such as Aquinas, Marquette, Catholic Memorial, Notre Dame, and Racine St. Catherine’s are excluded from consideration.This one came down to two major debates:Franklin vs Bay Port for No. 1 and Bay Port vs West De Pere for No. 2.Both required balancing head-to-head results with overall five-year consistency and classification strength.Here is Wisconsin's Top 5.1. Franklin High SchoolAccomplishments:2021 Division 1 State Champion2023 Division 1 State Runner-UpThis was the toughest call at the top.Bay Port defeated Franklin head-to-head in the 2025 playoffs, and that absolutely mattered in the discussion.But when looking at the full five-year body of work, Franklin still gets the nod.The Sabers captured the Division 1 state championship in 2021, then returned to the Division 1 title game in 2023, giving them elite success spread across the full window.That is the difference.Bay Port’s peak from 2024–2025 was outstanding, but Franklin’s résumé shows stronger full-window consistency at the highest classification.That keeps them at No. 1.2. Bay Port High SchoolAccomplishments:2024 Division 1 State Champion2025 Division 1 State Runner-UpBay Port made a serious push for the top spot.The Pirates won the 2024 Division 1 state championship, then returned to Camp Randall in 2025 and finished as runner-up.They also own the direct playoff win over Franklin, which made this debate extremely close.Ultimately, they land at No. 2 because Franklin’s success spans a slightly larger portion of the five-year window.Still, Bay Port clearly belongs in the top tier of Wisconsin public football.3. West De Pere High SchoolAccomplishments:2022 Division 2 State Runner-Up2025 Division 2 State ChampionWest De Pere’s case was extremely strong.The Phantoms actually have the better recent head-to-head record against Bay Port, which absolutely strengthened their argument.However, Bay Port remains ahead because of classification strength.A Division 1 state title and Division 1 runner-up finish simply carries more weight than a Division 2 title and Division 2 runner-up.That is what keeps West De Pere at No. 3.This is not a knock on the Phantoms at all — their résumé is outstanding and they are firmly one of the top public programs in the state over this stretch.4. Waunakee High SchoolAccomplishments:2021 Division 2 State Champion2023 Division 2 State Runner-UpWaunakee has one of the cleanest résumés in the state.A Division 2 title and another runner-up finish over five years makes this one of Wisconsin’s most consistent public programs.This was very close with West De Pere, but the Phantoms’ more recent undefeated title run gave them the edge.Still, Waunakee is a clear top-four program in the state.5. Stratford High SchoolAccomplishments:2022 Division 6 State Champion2023 Division 6 State Champion2024 Division 5 State ChampionThis is where hardware wins out.Three straight state championships from 2022 through 2024 is simply too much to leave out.Even with lower-division weighting, three titles in three consecutive seasons earns Stratford the final spot.For this series, 3 > 1 was the deciding factor over the bubble teams.Final Ranking — Wisconsin (2021–2025)FranklinBay PortWest De PereWaunakeeStratfordWisconsin came down to exactly the kind of debates that make this series great:head-to-head vs full-window consistency, division strength vs direct results, and peak vs sustained success.In the end, Franklin’s overall Division 1 consistency across the full five-year stretch keeps them at the top.That wraps up Part 49/50 in the series.Only one remains! Wyoming🏈🔥Here is the full thread to catch up on any states that you may have missed: 👉CLICK HEREIf you like this series and want to help out, I greatly appreciate any likes, reposts, bookmarks, or comments. It all really helps the algo put these articles in front of more people.Thank you for reading.— Alex | T25PS