This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Unlike college football, preseason games in high school don't really mean anything. Games scheduled at the beginning of the season are used for evaluation and growth, as coaches are finally able to use actual game experience for instruction.

But, for the majority of the state, the luxury of playing in situations with little pressure is officially over. Now the games truly count as region play starts this weekend. So what exactly did we learn through the first three weeks of the season?

It's Bingham and everybody else in the 5A classification. The Miners buried their first three opponents, and Friday will mark the fourth straight week they face a team with a perfect record, in West Jordan. Although the Jaguars make their highest appearance ever in the statewide top 25, checking in at No. 8, that game is likely to be as lopsided as the first three games Bingham has played.

The 4A classification is nearly as top-heavy, too. East is clearly the best team, but unlike Bingham, which already faced Lone Peak and Herriman, the Leopards still might have some competition with Timpview and Alta, which play each other on Friday. The key emphasis is the word "might."

No. 17 Desert Hills and No. 25 Ridgeline have owned the top two spots in the 3AA classification, but Pine View appears to be a serious contender to win its first-ever state championship. Don't count out Dixie, either. The Flyers are 0-3, but that record is extremely deceiving considering they lost to teams currently ranked No. 4, 5 and 11.

No. 13 Corner Canyon experienced the largest leap this week, jumping up seven spots after dismantling then fifth-ranked Roy on the road. As a result, the Royals plummeted 10 spots to No. 15 — the steepest drop.

West Jordan (+3), No. 12 Jordan (+3), No. 19 Lehi (+3) also ascended the charts more than two spots, while No. 22 Pleasant Grove (-6), No. 18 Sky View (-4) and No. 21 Hunter (-2) fell more than two spots.

No. 20 Syracuse, No. 23 Layton and Ridgeline, which returns after a season-opening loss to Skyridge, are new to the rankings this week.

There are only four ranked-ranked games for Week 4:

No. 3 Timpview at No. 5 Alta

No. 4 Lone Peak at No. 22 Pleasant Grove

No. 8 West Jordan at No. 1 Bingham

No. 21 Hunter at No. 23 Layton

Complete statewide top 25

1. Bingham (3-0)

2. East (3-0)

3. Timpview (3-0)

4. Lone Peak (2-1)

5. Alta (3-0)

6. Davis (3-0)

7. Fremont (3-0)

8. West Jordan (3-0)

9. Herriman (1-1)

10. American Fork (2-1)

11. Springville (3-0)

12. Jordan (2-1)

13. Corner Canyon (2-1)

14. Olympus (2-1)

15. Roy (2-1)

16. Highland (2-1)

17. Desert Hills (2-1)

18. Sky View (2-1)

19. Lehi (2-1)

20. Syracuse (2-1)

21. Hunter (1-2)

22. Pleasant Grove (1-2)

23. Layton (3-0)

24. Skyridge (2-1)

25. Ridgeline (2-1)

Classification power rankings:

CLASS 5A

1. Bingham (3-0) — Is there any question about the Miners' supremacy after blowout wins against Westlake, Herriman and Lone Peak? Undefeated season talks should start now.

2. Lone Peak (2-1) — The Knights are still the second best team in the classification, at least 21 points behind Bingham.

3. Davis (3-0) — The Darts continue to win ugly, but they continue to win all the same.

4. Fremont (3-0) — The Silver Wolves of the north were on cruise control for most the night against the Riverton Silverwolves of the south.

5. West Jordan (3-0) — After starting the season 3-0 for the first time in seven years, the Jaguars face Bingham in the opening game of region.

CLASS 4A

1. East (3-0) — The Leopards continued to blow past local competition with another dominating win against Clearfield.

2. Timpview (3-0) — One week following their big win against Helix (Calif.), the Thunderbirds dispatched Taylorsville with ease.

3. Alta (3-0) — Overcame slow start against Dixie to set up primetime matchup against Timpview next week.

4. Springville (3-0) — Make that 14 consecutive regular-season wins, this one impressively against upstart Skyrdige.

5. Corner Canyon (2-1) — Third team from Region 7 in the top five. The Chargers made a statement with a blowout win against Roy, which, at the time, was ranked No. 5 in the state.

CLASS 3AA

1. Desert Hills (2-1) — Shutout Foothill (Nev.). This Thunder defense is going to present headaches to opposing offensive coordinators throughout the season.

2. Ridgeline (2-1) — After shutting out Spanish Fork, Ridgeline is living up to preseason expectations.

3. Pine View (24-7) — The Panthers continued their strong start to the young season with a lopsided win against Manti.

4. Tooele (3-0) — The Buffaloes are excelling on both sides of the ball right now.

5. Dixie (0-3) — As projected, the Flyers started 0-3. Now it's time to see how they play against programs residing within their own classification.

CLASS 3A

1. Juan Diego (1-1) — After their bye week, the Soaring Eagle return to action against Murray.

2. Juab (1-2) — Yes, the Wasps loss, but it's hard to punish them for losing to Salem Hills, which competes in Class 4A.

3. North Sanpete (2-1) — Battled defensively and stunned Class 4A's Maple Mountain on the road. Huge win for the Hawks.

4. Manti (1-2) — The Templars lost to Juan Diego and Pine View. Hard to fault them for that.

5. Delta (2-1) — The Rabbits make their first appearance in the rankings after holding off Emery in a low-scoring affair.

CLASS 2A

1. Beaver (3-0) — The defending champs are going to be extremely difficult to beat this season, evident by their 63-0 win against Millard.

2. South Summit (3-0) — The Wildcats held off a much-improved Park City team to earn the rivalry game win.

3. San Juan (2-1) — The Broncos rolled Richfield to the tune of 40-14.

4. Summit Academy (3-0) — For the second straight week, the Bears proved they're capable of winning close games.

5. Enterprise (3-0) — Solid win against North Summit to stay undefeated.

CLASS 1A

1. Kanab (2-1) — The Cowboys smoked Gunnison, which goes to show they're going to be a tough out this season.

2. Duchesne (3-0) — Embarrassed defending champion Diamond Ranch.

3. Rich (1-1) — Hard to analyze out-of-state games, but regardless, Rich lost a double-overtime game against West Side (Idaho). Not enough to drop the Rebels from their No. 3 spot.

4. Layton Christian (3-0) — Impressive performance against Agassi Prep (Nev.) has the Eagles playing with confidence. Each week this team is getting better.

5. Milford (2-1) — The Tigers make their first appearance in the power rankings after consecutive wins.