Mater Dei made history in 2021, joining De La Salle atop all-time Super 25 champs list

The 40th USA TODAY Super 25 champion added a historical footnote to the overall results that began in 1982. The Mater Dei Monarchs’ 2021 nod was the program’s fifth Super 25 crown, tying them with football powerhouse De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) for the most all-time.

It’s a remarkable achievement, especially when considering the massive amount of programs and competitive nature of the high school football landscape.

To honor the historical feat—and all the football teams that have made their mark as a past USA TODAY Super 25 champ—we’re looking back at the winners throughout the four decades of gridiron glory.

We begin in Cincinnati, Ohio…

(Editor’s note: Not all images will match the exact season.)

1982: Moeller (Ohio) — 13-0

(Photo: Cincinnati Enquirer).

1983: Berwick (Pa.) — 13-0

(Photo: Butch Comegys, The Times & Tribune via AP)

1984: Valdosta (Ga.) — 15-0

(AP Photo)

1985: East St. Louis Senior (Ill.) — 14-0

(Photo: Bradley Leeb/Associated Press).

1986: Valdosta (Ga.) — 15-0

(AP Photo)

1987: North Hills (Pa.) — 13-0

(Championship game at Three Rivers Stadium vs. Mt. Lebanon, 1987 – via AP)

1988: Pine Forest (Fla.) — 13-0

Bruce Graner/bgraner@pnj.com Bruce

1989: Cleveland St. Ignatius (Ohio) — 13-0

(Michael Noyes For The Enquirer)

1990: Lawton Eisenhower (Okla.) — 14-0

(Jay Calderon/The Desert Sun)

1991: LaGrange (Ga.) — 15-0

(AP Photo/LaGrange Daily News, Mike Jacoby)

1992: Berwick (Pa.) — 15-0

(Berwick Football)

1993: Cleveland St. Ignatius (Ohio) — 14-0

(AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

1994: Mater Dei (Calif.) — 14-0

(Photo: Russ Ronchi/Mater Dei Football)

1995: Berwick (Pa.) — 15-0

(Berwick Football)

1996: Mater Dei (Calif.) — 14-0

(Photo by Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports)

1997: Canton McKinley (Ohio) — 14-0

(USA TODAY Network)

1998: De La Salle (Calif.) — 12-0

(Getty Images)

1999: Midland Lee (Texas) — 15-0

(Rudy Gutierrez, USA TODAY Network)

2000: De La Salle (Calif.) — 13-0

(USA TODAY Network)

2001: De La Salle (Calif.) — 12-0

(Photo: USA TODAY Sports).

2002: De La Salle (Calif.) — 13-0

(Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)

2003: De La Salle (Calif.) — 13-0

(Getty Images)

2004: Southlake Carroll (Texas) — 16-0

(AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

2005: Lakeland (Fla.) — 15-0

(ERNST PETERS/ THE LEDGER)

2006: Southlake Carroll (Texas) — 16-0

(AP Photo/Eric Gay)

2007: Miami Northwestern (Fla.) — 15-0

(AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)

2008: St. Thomas Aquinas (Fla.) — 15-0

(AP Photo/Miami Herald, Joe Rimkus Jr.)

2009: Don Bosco Prep (N.J.) — 12-0

(Michael Karas-USA TODAY NETWORK)

2010: South Panola (Miss.) — 15-0

( AP Photo/The Birmingham News, Tamika Moore)

2011: Don Bosco Prep (N.J.) — 11-0

(Danny Wild-USA TODAY Sports)

2012: John Curtis (La.) — 14-0

(AP)

2013: Booker T. Washington (Fla.) — 14-0

(Craig Bailey/FLORIDA TODAY)

2014: Bishop Gorman (Nev.) — 15-0

Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

2015: Bishop Gorman (Nev.) — 15-0

(Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports)

2016: Bishop Gorman (Nev.) — 15-0

Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

2017: Mater Dei (Calif.) — 15-0

(Photo: Mater Dei HS)

2018: Mater Dei (Calif.) — 14-1

(Photo: St. John Bosco Football)

2019: St. John Bosco (Calif.) — 13-1

(Photo by Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY Staff)

2020: *IMG Academy (Fla.) — 8-0

(Syndication: The Tennessean)

• Several states did not compete in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

2021: Mater Dei (Calif.) — 12-0

(Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY Staff)

2022: St. John Bosco (Calif.) — 13-1

(Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images)