Lakota West landed at No. 4 in the first Associated Press Division I state football poll of the season, The Report Ohio reported Tuesday, Sept. 15.

The Firebirds (4-0) earned 49 points from AP voters, trailing only Cincinnati Elder and Lakewood St. Edward, tied at No. 1 with 71 points apiece, and Cincinnati Princeton at No. 3 with 57 points. Gahanna Lincoln rounded out the top five at 45 points. All five teams are unbeaten.

The ranking is the highest AP Division I placement for a West Chester football program this season and a sharp turnaround from 2025, when Lakota West finished 7-5 and exited in the second round of the playoffs.

A dominant four-week stretch earned the spot. Senior running back Kenyon Norman, a Northwestern University commit, has been the engine. In the Friday, Sept. 11 win over Hamilton, Norman scored the game's first four touchdowns and rushed for nearly 200 yards before most starters sat out the second half. The final was 42-7, improving Lakota West to 3-0 in the Greater Miami Conference.

Hamilton managed eight total yards in the first half and one first down all night. Junior linebacker Judah Blair and senior Roman Combs anchored the defensive effort, with Karson Jordan adding an interception.

Head coach Tom Bolden, in his 20th season, said after the Hamilton game that he liked where his team stood but saw room to grow, pointing to two turnovers and assignment miscues in an otherwise lopsided win.

"I like where we are at. It's just not good enough yet," Bolden said.

That standard has defined the season.

After a 48-18 rout of rival Lakota East on Aug. 28, in which Norman rushed for 262 yards and four touchdowns on 13 carries, Bolden told WCPO the Firebirds still had not reached their ceiling. Norman, reflecting on his final game against East, said the win erased the sting of a rivalry loss the year before.

Now comes the biggest test. Lakota West faces No. 3 Princeton (4-0) on Friday, Sept. 18, at Lockland in a GMC showdown between two top-five teams. Bolden, speaking after the Hamilton game, called the Princeton matchup what high school football is all about and guaranteed it would be a battle.