The first two weeks of the 2026 Philadelphia high school football season have already delivered big wins, national tests and some early surprises.
From Imhotep Charter and St. Joseph’s Prep to Roman Catholic, La Salle, Central and Simon Gratz, Philadelphia programs have not been afraid to challenge themselves early. Several of the city’s top teams have already faced strong programs from California, Maryland, New Jersey and Tennessee.

WEEK 1: IMHOTEP MAKES A STATEMENT

IMHOTEP CHARTER VS CAMDEN
Imhotep opened its season with a convincing 29–8 victory over Camden. The Panthers entered 2026 as one of Philadelphia’s premier programs and immediately looked the part, controlling a quality interstate opponent and starting the season 1–0.

ROMAN CATHOLIC VS ST. JOHN BOSCO
Roman Catholic faced one of the toughest opening assignments in the country, traveling to California to take on national powerhouse St. John Bosco. Roman fell 45–25, but the matchup demonstrated the Cahillites’ willingness to test themselves against elite competition after moving into PIAA Class 6A.

LA SALLE VS PARAMUS CATHOLIC
La Salle jumped out to a 14–0 advantage before Paramus Catholic responded with 35 unanswered points. The 35–14 loss gave the defending state champion Explorers an immediate indication of how difficult their early-season schedule would be.

Philadelphia’s Public League also produced several notable Week 1 performances. Central opened with a 38–14 victory over Olney. Simon Gratz earned an impressive 37–28 win over Camden Eastside, while Roxborough edged Dobbins 12–6.

Father Judge also started the season with a victory, defeating Archbishop Ryan 16–13.

WEEK 1 SCORES TO KNOW

CENTRAL 38 VS OLNEY 14
SIMON GRATZ 37 VS CAMDEN EASTSIDE 28
ROXBOROUGH 12 VS DOBBINS 6
IMHOTEP CHARTER 29 VS CAMDEN 8
FATHER JUDGE 16 VS ARCHBISHOP RYAN 13
ST. JOHN BOSCO 45 VS ROMAN CATHOLIC 25
PARAMUS CATHOLIC 35 VS LA SALLE 14
BISHOP MCNAMARA 23 VS LINCOLN 6
BELMONT CHARTER 26 VS NEUMANN-GORETTI 6
SCHOOL OF THE FUTURE 22 VS BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 12

WEEK 2: ST. JOE’S PREP ARRIVES

ST. JOSEPH’S PREP VS BRENTWOOD ACADEMY
One of Philadelphia’s biggest Week 2 performances came from St. Joseph’s Prep.
The Hawks traveled to Tennessee and defeated nationally regarded Brentwood Academy 31–23.
Ohio State commit Jett Harrison delivered a huge performance, catching five passes for 171 yards and two touchdowns, including scoring receptions of 80 and 27 yards.
Prep led 28–16 at halftime and later made a crucial goal-line stand to preserve the victory.
It was an impressive opening statement for a St. Joe’s Prep program that once again expects to be in the conversation for championships in Philadelphia and across Pennsylvania.

IMHOTEP LOSES A HEARTBREAKER

IMHOTEP CHARTER VS DEMATHA CATHOLIC
One point separated Imhotep from a 2–0 start.
The Panthers led DeMatha 20–7 at halftime, but the Maryland powerhouse rallied with 14 fourth-quarter points to escape Philadelphia with a 21–20 victory.
The loss dropped Imhotep to 1–1, but there was little reason to downgrade the Panthers significantly after taking a nationally respected opponent down to the final margin.

ROMAN’S BRUTAL SCHEDULE CONTINUES

ROMAN CATHOLIC VS DON BOSCO PREP
Roman may have the toughest early-season schedule of any team in Philadelphia.
After traveling across the country to play St. John Bosco, Roman returned home to face New Jersey powerhouse Don Bosco Prep.
Don Bosco built a commanding advantage before Roman scored twice late, handing the Cahillites a 38–14 loss and an 0–2 start.
Roman’s record needs context. Its first two opponents were St. John Bosco and Don Bosco Prep, and the schedule isn’t getting much easier.

LA SALLE FALLS TO MALVERN PREP

LA SALLE VS MALVERN PREP
La Salle’s difficult opening stretch continued with a 21–0 loss to Malvern Prep.
The Explorers fell to 0–2 after opening the season against Paramus Catholic and Malvern Prep in consecutive weeks.
Like Roman, La Salle’s early record says as much about the quality of its schedule as it does about the team itself.

CENTRAL STARTS 2–0
One of the best starts in the Philadelphia Public League belongs to Central.
After defeating Olney 38–14 in Week 1, Central followed with a 19–0 shutout of South Philadelphia.
Two games. Two victories.
The Lancers allowed only 14 points over those first two games and established themselves as one of the Public League teams worth watching as the season develops.

WEEK 2 SCORES TO KNOW

ST. JOSEPH’S PREP 31 VS BRENTWOOD ACADEMY 23
DEMATHA CATHOLIC 21 VS IMHOTEP CHARTER 20
DON BOSCO PREP 38 VS ROMAN CATHOLIC 14
MALVERN PREP 21 VS LA SALLE 0
CENTRAL 19 VS SOUTH PHILADELPHIA 0
FATHER JUDGE 15 VS LANSDALE CATHOLIC 6
BONNER-PRENDIE 29 VS ARCHBISHOP RYAN 0
WEST CATHOLIC 40 VS DOVER 7
LINCOLN 40 VS ABRAHAM LINCOLN (BROOKLYN) 13
SUSSEX CENTRAL 28 VS WEST PHILADELPHIA 24
LONE STAR 48 VS SIMON GRATZ 24

WHAT WE LEARNED AFTER TWO WEEKS

Philadelphia’s best programs are scheduling aggressively.
Roman Catholic, Imhotep Charter, La Salle and St. Joseph’s Prep aren’t building their early records against easy competition. They are testing themselves against established programs from New Jersey, Maryland, California and Tennessee.
That’s why records alone don’t tell the story.
Roman is 0–2, but those losses came against St. John Bosco and Don Bosco Prep.
La Salle is 0–2 after facing Paramus Catholic and Malvern Prep.
Imhotep is 1–1 after beating Camden and losing to DeMatha by one point.

Meanwhile, St. Joe’s Prep produced one of Philadelphia’s strongest early-season statements by going on the road to Tennessee and defeating Brentwood Academy.
And don’t overlook the Public League. Central is 2–0, Simon Gratz already owns a quality interstate victory, and several city programs are beginning to establish their identities. Two weeks into the season,

Philadelphia high school football already has plenty of storylines.
The Catholic League heavyweights are being tested. Imhotep remains dangerous. Central is unbeaten. And St. Joe’s Prep has announced that it is ready to make another run at the top.
The season is just getting started.

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PHILADELPHIA HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS
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