I was far enough out of the popularity loop that I don’t know what groups were most popular. Our football team lost nearly every game (as I recall, we had a season with 0 wins), and football did not dominate social events, so I wouldn’t assume football players and cheerleaders were most popular. Whatever group was most popular, it was many divisions away from me. I mostly interacted with students in honors classes and took several classes with students in higher grade levels, including being a half-time student at nearby university while in high school. I tended to get along better with persons a few years older than myself than persons my own age, including women. I was very independent, and had my share of issues. Things could have gone quite badly for me, with a few different decisions during HS or different random external events.
I was more interested in video games than HS school ECs/sports, and was published as the first person to finish a few popular games. I also worked out regularly during HS and was in outstanding physical condition by senior year. When I was on the shuttlebus from airport to college at Stanford, the kid sharing the ride assumed I was on the football team based on my appearance and the way I carried myself. He asked me several related questions about the college’s football team.