The Crusaders opened at No. 11 in MaxPreps' preseason national rankings. Spencer Honda | SL

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The Crusaders opened at No. 11 in MaxPreps' preseason national rankings. Spencer Honda | SL

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Football season continues to creep closer and that means preseason rankings are being unveiled.

While our first ScoringLive/Hawaiian Electric Football Power Rankings won't be released until Monday, July 29, the first national rankings from MaxPreps was announced earlier this week with three-time defending Open Division state champion Saint Louis coming in at the No. 11 spot.

Though these rankings are mostly arbitrary since many schools do not end up playing each other, one matchup that will be settled this season will be when the Crusaders play No. 17 Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) Aug. 30 at Aloha Stadium as part of The Aloha Football Classic.

The two schools last battled on the gridiron in 2012 with the Gaels coming out on top, 52-40. Kahuku was the last Hawaii team to face Bishop Gorman when the Red Raiders traveled to Las Vegas in 2016 but fell, 35-7.

"It should be a great game, great competition," Saint Louis senior linebacker Jordan Botelho said. "I know both sides are looking forward to it and I know our team — we can't wait for that date — but we got to take care of the games before that. One game at a time. One day at a time. Just go out there, do it for the team and have fun." 

Also part of The Aloha Football Classic on that same night, the Open Division state runner-up Mililani Trojans will play host to No. 92 Liberty (Henderson, Nevada), and will later welcome third-ranked St. John Bosco (Bellflower, California) to John Kauinana Stadium on Sept. 21.

The Trojans battled Liberty in 2015 to a 76-53 barn-burner loss, and traveled to take on the Braves last August in a 52-14 losing effort.

"We always want to compete against the best," Mililani coach Rod York said. "You watch these guys on ESPN and you only see some of the private schools go and play these teams so why not? Instead of watching, let's go touch it and feel it. Let's go taste it and go get some of that action. We like to be on the same field on the other side of the ball instead of on the sidelines or in the stands."

Punahou will be one of the few teams to travel to the states this season as it takes on Long Beach Poly (California) also on Aug. 31.

"It's always a chip on our shoulder," Buffanblu senior Alakai Gilman said. "We don't only represent Punahou, we represent our family, our friends and everybody from the state of Hawaii because we're just island boys that love to ball. We love to play the game of football. I think when we go up there, that's the kind of mindset we're going to have."

Other schools to appear in the top 100 was No. 33 Mission Viejo (California), whom the Konawaena Wildcats will play Aug. 23 on the west side of the Big Island.

Other Out-of-State Matchups:
 » Kamehameha vs. Fagaitua (American Samoa)
 » Baldwin vs. Edison (California)
 » Waimea vs. Orange Glen (California)
 » Kekaulike vs. Kwansei-Gakuin (Japan)
 » Damien vs. St. Thomas More Collegiate (Canada)
 » Waialua vs. Vincent Massey (Canada)
 » Moanalua vs. Sierra Vista (Las Vegas)
 » Kahuku vs. Timpview (Utah)
 » Kapolei vs. Downey (California)
 » Campbell vs. O'Connor (Arizona)

MaxPreps is a division of CBS Sports that covers high school sports across the nation.

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Find out more about 808 vs. Everybody in our 60-minute ScoringLive 2019 Prep Football Preview Special presented by Hawaii Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, premiering August 1, 7 p.m. on K5/Hawaii News Now and later on demand at ScoringLive.com.

Also check back later for more details on how you can obtain a physical print copy of our annual 2019 Prep Football Preview with team breakdowns, predictions and preseason Player of the Year picks.