Vontrelle Wafer (RB) and Joseph Barrientos (QB) were among the standouts on Friday who led Monterey Trail of Elk Grove to a big win over higher-ranked Grant. Photo: Mark Tennis.
Saturday updates now added. On Friday, there were some surprises and lower-ranked teams beating higher-ranked teams, including Frontier of Bakersfield downing Liberty of Bakersfield plus Servite of Anaheim defeating Santa Margarita of Rancho SM and Monterey Trail of Elk Grove jumping back into the top 50 mix with a win over Grant of Sacramento. Many in the S.F. Bay Area worked and played with a heavy heart, however, due to the sudden passing of longtime De La Salle defensive line coach Steve Jacoby.
Note: Look for a brand new State Top 50 set of football rankings that won’t simply be a list on Monday night. We’ll have insights and breakdowns based on 45 years of going to Friday night games with an overview of the state’s top teams and what’s coming up that just can’t be matched. Each new set of rankings will be for Gold Club members only. The late Friday/Weekend Scoreboards will continue to be free posts and will provide snippets of info, comments and more.
We hope you enjoy this free post on CalHiSports.com. To join our Gold Club to get all new state rankings, state record updates and all of the all-state team announcements, CLICK HERE.
FOR LAST WEEK’S FIRST 25 IN TOP 50 STATE RANKINGS, CLICK HERE.
(Rankings based on previous State Top 50)
(Through reported results of Saturday, Oct. 21)
(Thanks to Northern California correspondent Daniel Poulter for contributions)
1. St. John Bosco (Bellflower) 8-1
Defeated No. 13 JSerra (SJ Capistrano), 42-20, on Friday. It was a good night for head coach Jason Negro in one sense as he captured the 200th win of his career. All 200-win coaches go into the all-time state coaches list. Negro began his career with six seasons at Trabuco Hills in Mission Viejo before going to his alma mater for the 2010 season. On the other hand, Coach Negro probably wasn’t too pleased with the Braves not being as dominant as they were in last week’s 28-0 win against Mater Dei.
2. Mater Dei (Santa Ana) 8-1
Defeated No. 9 Lutheran (Orange) 55-13 on Thursday. Linebacker Nasir Wyatt told the Orange County Register that “we still feel like we’re the No. 1 team in the country” after the Monarchs responded well from their 28-0 loss to No. 1 St. John Bosco in its previous game. Wyatt had three sacks to lead the defense. Elijah Brown threw for four TDs and the offense scored on nine of 10 possessions.
3. Centennial (Corona) 7-2
Defeated Murrieta Valley (Murrieta), 63-27. It was another game in which the Huskies flashed their offense early and often and overwhelmed another team from the Big West Conference Upper Division. Cornell Hatcher rushed for 245 yards and six touchdowns.
Standout sophomore Madden Riordan makes a tackle for Sierra Canyon during Friday game vs Serra of Gardena. Photo: @SportsRecruits / Twitter.com.
4. Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) 9-0
Defeated Serra 35-28 on Friday. After being locked in a 21-21 stalemate at the halftime break against No. 17 Serra (Gardena) on Friday, the Trailblazers would outpace the Cavaliers 14-7 en route to a 35-28 victory over Serra. Dane Dunn had the winning score for Sierra Canyon with less than two minutes remaining when the star running back punched in a two-yard rushing score.
5. Serra (San Mateo) 8-0
The Padres put an emphatic wrap on the West Catholic Athletic League title Saturday at home with a 53-7 romp past State TOP 50 ranked Archbishop Riordan. It was 36-0 at halftime and the Serra defense had only allowed 81 yards. At this point, it will be a total shock if the Padres don’t win another CCS Open title and then grab the NorCal spot in the CIF Open state final.
6. Lincoln (San Diego) 10-0
Defeated University City of San Diego, 49-0, Friday. Head coach David Dunn’s squad has a bye next week so this win was it for the regular season and in fact it’s the first 10-0 regular season in school history. The Hornets are in line to grab the top seed for the CIF San Diego Section Open Division playoffs.
7. Carlsbad 9-0
Defeated La Costa Canyon (Carlsbad) 41-34 on Friday. Back to back close weeks for the Lancers, as Carlsbad needed a late fourth quarter score to power past 5-4 La Costa Canyon. It was the defense that held strong in the end, as Carlsbad recovered a backward pass to kneel out the game.
8. Clovis North (Fresno) 9-0
Defeated Buchanan (Clovis) 28-3 on Friday. The Tri-River Athletic Conference is known for being a wild ride in the Central Section, but there were no shenanigans Friday night for the Broncos, as Clovis North snuffed out Buchanan (Clovis) 28-3. Jackson Cinfel had 18 carries for 137yards and two touchdowns.
9. Lutheran (Orange) 5-4
LOST to No. 2 Mater Dei (Santa Ana) 55-13 on Thursday. Having to play the Monarchs after their showing against St. John Bosco last week certainly didn’t help. Then again, the gap between the first two teams in the state and everyone else other than perhaps Centennial and Sierra Canyon and maybe Serra (SM) is rather huge. We’re pretty sure other teams from this place in the state and further down would suffer the same fate.
10. De La Salle (Concord) 6-2
Defeated El Cerrito, 31-12, on Friday. What a hard night it was for the Spartans, who learned earlier in the day that longtime defensive line coach Steve Jacoby, 61, had died on Thursday night. He had been on the staff since 2006. The players voted to play the game and it was a game that hadn’t even been set up until Wednesday. De La Salle’s regularly scheduled opponent, Foothill of Pleasanton, cancelled on Tuesday due to low numbers and injury. El Cerrito fell to 7-1 and has been in our medium schools state rankings.
De La Salle defensive line coach Steve Jacoby, who died suddenly on Thursday, stands next to head coach Justin Alumbaugh during national anthem from earlier game. Steve started coaching at DLS in 2006. Photo: SportStarsmag.com.
11. Long Beach Poly (Long Beach) 8-1
Defeated Compton, 50-6, on Friday. Head coach Stephen Barbee’s squad kept up the torrid pace in the Moore League with another easy win. Team’s only loss is to nationally ranked Bishop Gorman.
12. Rancho Cucamonga 9-0
Defeated No. 34 Damien (La Verne), 36-35, on Friday. Dakota Mendoza was the hero for the Cougars as he intercepted a pass to stop a two-point conversion with 38 seconds left that if converted likely would have given Damien the win. Emiliano Villareal passed for 268 yards and three TDs while Trey Wilson gobbled up 155 yards rushing and two scores.
13. Santa Margarita (Rancho SM) 5-4
LOST to No. 23 Servite (Anaheim), 50-42, on Friday at Cerritos College. The Eagles were led by two rushing touchdowns by Skylar Lendsey and three TDs from Trent Mosley (two rushing, one receiving).
14. JSerra (SJ Capistrano) 4-5
LOST to No. 1 St. John Bosco, 42-20, on Friday. The promising news for the Lions is that at one point in the third quarter they got the score to 21-13 against the Braves. The bad news is that they will now have to beat Servite next week to get to 5-5 and improve their chances for a CIFSS D1 playoff berth. A 4-6 record isn’t going to cut it based on established criteria.
15. Folsom 7-2
Defeated Del Oro (Loomis) 61-21 on Friday at Del Oro. Folsom went 9-for-9 on scoring drives and outscored the Golden Eagles 54-14 after a tied 7-7 first quarter. Sophomore quarterback Ryder Lyons put on a show, as he had a total of eight touchdowns, with five coming through the air and three following on the ground. The Bulldogs will look to clinch the outright Sierra Foothill League title this week against Granite Bay.
16. Helix (La Mesa) 8-1
LOST to No. 18 Granite Hills 44-43 in double overtime at Granite Hills. After playing four overtimes last season, the game finished in the second overtime when Helix’s Kevin Allen III was stopped just short of the goal line after a two-point-conversion attempted run to the right side of the Helix offensive line. This is the second straight overtime victory for Granite Hills over Helix, with Granite Hills clinching the Grossmont Hills League title with the victory.
17. Serra (Gardena) 6-3
LOST to No. 4 35-28 at No. 4 Sierra Canyon. The Cavaliers went into the fourth quarter tied 21-21 with undefeated Sierra Canyon, but a last minute score by Dane Dunn pushed the Trailblazers over the top. The contest started about as well as Serra could have hoped, as the Cavaliers had an early 14-0 lead after a Tre’ Harrison 40-yard pick-six return.
Jordan Glaze has been one of the top defensive players all season at Granite Hills. Photo: Fox5SanDiego.com.
18. Granite Hills (El Cajon) 9-0
Defeated No. 16 Helix (La Mesa) 44-43 on Friday evening. For the second straight season the fate of the Grossmont Hills League title couldn’t be decided in regulation, as Granite Hills stopped Helix running back Kevin Allen III on the goal line to walk away with the double overtime victory. Granite Hills will finish the regular season on the road at Grossmont (El Cajon).
19. San Ramon Valley (Danville) 7-1
Defeated State Top 50 team California (San Ramon) 14-0 on Friday. It is an extreme rarity when the San Ramon Valley offense is held in check, as the Wolves only scored 14 points after dropping 27 on the vaunted De La Salle (Concord) defense the week before. Luckily for the Wolves, the defense pitched a shutout in the victory. Standout junior LB/TE Marco Jones was used at running back this week as well. It was a bigger margin of victory over Cal-Hi than Pittsburg had earlier in the season.
20. Liberty (Bakersfield) 7-2
LOST Friday at home vs 9-0 Frontier of Bakersfield, 25-20. In one of the bigger shocks on Friday evening, the Patriots’ 30-game league winning streak is gone after being upset by Frontier. Fresno State offered sophomore Kobie Watson had the game clinching interception for Frontier in the final moments.
21. Pittsburg 8-0
Defeated Heritage of Brentwood 56-28. The Pittsburg defense honed in after allowing 21 points in the first half, as the Pirates held the Patriots offense to only seven second half points in the blowout. Yes, there is a good chance Pitt will go 10-0 in the regular season and not get the No. 1 or No. 2 in the NCS Open/D1 playoffs behind DLS and SRV.
22. St. Mary’s (Stockton) 8-1
Defeated Tokay of Lodi, 56-0, on Friday. The Rams will close the regular season next week vs rivals from Lincoln (Stockton). They are viewed as a favorite or co-favorite with Rocklin in the upcoming CIFSJS D2 playoffs.
23. Servite (Anaheim) 5-4
Defeated No. 13 Santa Margarita, 50-42, on Friday at Cerritos College. This win broke a Trinity League losing streak that goes back two years. Servite also now has a shot at making the CIFSS playoffs. Leo Hannan led the offense with four TD passes.
24. San Clemente 8-1
Defeated Capistrano Valley (Mission Viejo), 35-18, on Friday. The Tritons kept rolling after last week’s close win over Mission Viejo.
25. Mission Viejo 6-3
Defeated Tesoro (Las Flores), 36-0. Big-time junior recruit Dijon Lee had a TD catch and an interception return TD for the Diablos, who bounced back from a loss to San Clemente from last week.
TEAMS ON THE BUBBLE
California (San Ramon) 5-3
LOST to No. 19 San Ramon Valley (Danville) 14-0. California has been a sneakily impressive team this season and had an impressive defensive showing in a 14-0 defeat to the Wolves. It was the lowest point total for the San Ramon Valley offense this season.
Central Catholic (Modesto) 7-2
The Raiders hosted Manteca on Friday and managed to squeak past the Buffalos, 39-35. Their only losses are to Serra (San Mateo) and St. Mary’s (Stockton).
Eli Bechtel (8) is the player from Damien (La Verne) who caught a TD pass with 38 seconds left that cause his father, head coach Matt, to choose about going for two and the win or tying the score and going to overtime. Photo: Twitter.com.
Damien (La Verne) 8-1
LOST to No. 12 Rancho Cucamonga, 36-35, on Friday. A 14-yard TD pass from Isaiah Arriaza to Elijah Bechtel with 38 seconds left gave the Spartans a chance to get the win. They needed to convert a two-point conversion, however, and it was not successful. Arriaza had 211 yards passing with the one TD and he scored once on the ground.
Edison (Huntington Beach) 5-3
Does not play this week. The Chargers have a bye on their schedule this week, which had to be re-arranged when they had their first two games cancelled in Maui back in August. They will face Los Alamitos next week for the Sunset League title.
Frontier (Bakersfield) 9-0
Knocked off state No. 20 Liberty (Bakersfield) 25-20. Considering the opponent (Patriots won CIF D1A state title last season and the last two CIF Central Section D1 titles), this may rank as the biggest win in the Titans’ history. Their lack of a strong schedule just didn’t give much to go on in ranking them very high. That changes now, of course.
Los Alamitos 7-2
Defeated Huntington Beach, 63-13, on Friday. The Griffins went past 60 points for the second straight week and are peaking for their showdown game this week against Edison (Huntington Beach).
Monterey Trail (Elk Grove) 6-3
Head coach T.J. Ewing’s squad knocked off state No. 33 Grant of Sacramento, 35-34. The Mustangs scored the winning touchdown on a 44-yard run by Ventrell Wafer with five minutes left and then held on by barely stopping a two-point conversion attempt by the Pacers with 1:14 left. Monterey Trail’s losses are to Folsom, St. Francis of Mountain View and Pittsburg.
Oak Hills (Hesperia) 8-1
Visiting Sultana of Hesperia on Friday played the Bulldogs closer than expected, but they were ahead 35-3 in the fourth quarter of a 35-24 triumph.
Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills) 8-1
Defeated Whitney (Rocklin) 35-9 on Friday. No issues for the Trojans against Whitney. Big time matchup upcoming against 8-1 Rocklin this week in Sierra Foothill League action.
Oaks Christian (Westlake Village) 7-2
Defeated Simi Valley 48-16 on Friday. After Simi Valley only lost 29-24 last week to St. Bonaventure, that there could have been a close contest this week. The Lions had other plans. Justin Lewis finished off the night with a pick-6 for Oaks Christian.
Palos Verdes (PV Estates) 9-0
Defeated Culver City, 34-31, on Friday. This was the second close game for the Sea Kings in three weeks (9-7 vs Mira Costa was the other one).
Pacifica (Oxnard) 9-0
Defeated Rio Mesa (Oxnard) 28-3 at Rio Mesa on Friday evening. Dominic Duran connected with Isaiah Dillon on a 67-yard touchdown pass in the opening five minutes and Pacifica never trailed in the blowout.
Rocklin 8-1
Defeated Granite Bay 43-35 on Friday. In potentially the wildest Sac-Joaquin Section game this week, Rocklin outlasted Granite Bay in triple overtime, as Reeve Slone had the eventual game winning touchdown on a 12-yard run. The sophomore ran for three total touchdowns and finished with five scores after two passing touchdowns.
St. Bonaventure (Ventura) 7-2
Defeated Calabasas 42-21 at home on Friday evening. No stress for the Seraphs this week, as St. Bonaventure opened the contest with 14 points and breezed to a 42-21 victory over the Coyotes. Senior quarterback Anthony Wolter was 10-for-11 for 260 yards and threw four touchdown passes.
St. Francis (Mountain View) 5-3
Defeated Valley Christian (San Jose) 24-14 on Friday. The Lancers have losses to Helix, De La Salle and Serra (SM) with a win over Monterey Trail plus WCAL wins against Mitty, St. Ignatius, Sacred Heart Cathedral and this week’s vs VC. They host Riordan on Friday and win would cement their status as the No. 2 team in the CCS.
Upland 7-2
Defeated Chino Hills, 45-21, on the road on Friday. The Highlanders still have unbeaten Rancho Cucamonga to play in the Baseline League to close their regular season.
Valencia 9-1
Defeated Hart (Newhall), 37-7. Coming off of their bye week, the Vikings cruised past the Indians in the matchup of longtime Foothill League rivals.
Mark Tennis is the co-founder and publisher of CalHiSports.com. He can be reached at markjtennis@gmail.com. Don’t forget to follow Mark on the Cal-Hi Sports Twitter handle:
