The Northeast Red belonged to Grand Rapids in 2025. The Thunderhawks went 6-0 in conference play, finished 10-2 overall and stood at the top of one of northern Minnesota’s most physical high school football leagues. Until somebody beats Grand Rapids, the road to the conference championship still runs through the Thunderhawks.
But preseason rankings are not lifetime achievement awards. They are projections, built on returning talent, program direction, schedule strength and the reasonable belief that what happened last fall does not have to repeat itself this fall. That is why Hermantown opens at No. 1 in the 2026 Howie Sports preseason Northeast Red football rankings.
The Hawks finished second in the league last season at 5-1 and went 8-2 overall, losing only to Grand Rapids in conference play before falling again to the Thunderhawks in the Section 7-4A championship game. That finish left Hermantown close enough to respect Grand Rapids, but not so far away that the Hawks should enter 2026 looking up with both hands tied behind their backs. Hermantown has a case, and it starts with the most dependable thing a northern Minnesota football team can have in late October: a powerful running game.
Martin Sleen gives the Hawks that foundation. After rushing for 1,908 yards and 29 touchdowns last season, Sleen returns as the league’s most dangerous offensive player and one of the best backs in the region. He gives Hermantown a weekly identity before the first whistle. He can control tempo, shorten games, punish light boxes and make every play-action throw more believable for quarterback Sawyer Senst, who also returns after gaining valuable experience in 2025.
That returning backfield is the reason Hermantown gets the slight preseason edge over Grand Rapids. It is not a dismissal of the Thunderhawks. It is a recognition that high school football often turns on the quality of returning skill, line play and senior leadership, and Hermantown appears positioned to be older, stronger and more explosive than it was a year ago.
Grand Rapids, ranked No. 2, deserves every bit of respect it will receive. The Thunderhawks were perfect in the Northeast Red last season and proved twice that they were better than Hermantown when it mattered most. Their 10-2 overall record was no accident. They were physical, balanced and battle-tested. They also enter 2026 with the confidence of a program that knows exactly what championship football looks like.
That is what makes this league race so appealing. Hermantown may have the best returning player. Grand Rapids has the crown. The Hawks have the motivation. The Thunderhawks have the proof. Somewhere between those two truths sits the best storyline in the Northeast Red.
North Branch belongs firmly at No. 3 after going 4-2 in the conference and 7-3 overall last season. The Vikings were not far from the top tier, and their ability to play tough, disciplined football makes them more than a dangerous spoiler. They are good enough to make the league race uncomfortable for both Hermantown and Grand Rapids, especially if either favorite assumes the conference is a two-team race.
After the top three, the league becomes much more difficult to sort out. Cloquet, Duluth Denfeld and Duluth East all finished 2-4 in conference play last season. Cloquet and East were both 3-6 overall, while Denfeld finished 3-7. There was not much separation between them, which means the middle of the Northeast Red could be decided by development, health, quarterback play and which program finds confidence first.
Cloquet opens at No. 4 because the Lumberjacks still carry the look of a program capable of being more physical than its record showed last season. Denfeld sits at No. 5, but the Hunters should not be viewed as a distant fifth. If Denfeld improves up front and finds consistency on offense, it has enough athletic ability to move up. Duluth East begins at No. 6, but the Greyhounds are in the same neighborhood. A couple of close wins could turn last season’s 3-6 record into a much different conversation.
Rock Ridge begins at No. 7 after going 0-6 in the conference and 1-8 overall. The Wolverines need progress more than predictions. For a young or rebuilding program, the first step is rarely a conference championship chase. It is becoming harder to play against every Friday, cutting down mistakes and finding a few players who can change the direction of a game.
The rankings, then, begin this way: Hermantown, Grand Rapids, North Branch, Cloquet, Duluth Denfeld, Duluth East and Rock Ridge.
The important part is that nothing is settled in June. Grand Rapids still owns the league until somebody takes it. North Branch is too good to ignore. Cloquet, Denfeld and East are close enough to make the middle of the standings a weekly fight. Rock Ridge has nowhere to go but forward.
But Hermantown is the team with the most compelling preseason case. The Hawks have the returning star, the returning quarterback, the sting of finishing second and the kind of offensive identity that travels well when the weather turns cold. Grand Rapids was the best team in the Northeast Red in 2025. Hermantown may be the team best built to change that in 2026.