Some of the players from Serra of San Mateo were happy to get together for some silly photo poses after they were more than serious on the field in a victory at Folsom. Photo: Mark Tennis.
No. 1 Mater Dei and No. 2 St. John Bosco take on out-of-state heavyweights and both win to further cement top two status not just in California but for the USA. Centennial (Corona) may be right behind, however, and won in a rout itself over state No. 10 team. No. 5 Los Alamitos lost on Saturday in Florida while on Friday Serra of San Mateo, Long Beach Poly and Chaminade of West Hills also record major victories.
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 44 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. It’s usually more than 8,000 words of jam-packed info. 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.
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(Rankings based on previous State Top 50)
(Through reported results of Saturday, Aug. 27)
(Thanks to Northern California correspondent Daniel Poulter for contributions)
1. Mater Dei (Santa Ana) 2-0
Defeated Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) 24-21. This matchup of nationally ranked teams was in Las Vegas and required the Monarchs to come back from deficits of 14-0 and 21-7. Andre Medina’s field goal with 3:32 left ended up being the difference, but the MD defense also needed to make a stop and it did. Elijah Brown passed for 245 yards and three TDs, according to Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Players from No. 1 Mater Dei warm up on Friday prior to their game at Bishop Gorman. Photo: @MDFootball / Twitter.com.
2. St. John Bosco (Bellflower) 1-0
After Mater Dei went to the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex and rolled over one of the top Texas’ teams (Duncanville) last season, the Braves went this season and blasted Allen, 52-14, on Friday. Pierce Clarkson passed for three TDs and ran for one. Huge thunderstorms hit the area during the game.
3. Centennial (Corona) 2-0
Defeated No. 10 Cathedral Catholic (San Diego), 42-7. Cornell Hatcher ran for four TDs to lead the Huskies. Their defense actually gave up no points since the only TD for the Dons was on an interception return. Centennial hosts No. 1 Mater Dei next Friday. This was a 21-16 win for the Monarchs last season in CIF Southern Section D1 semifinals.
4. Mission Viejo 2-0
This team jumped out to a 35-9 lead over Servite (Anaheim) on Friday and cruised to a 42-23 victory. The Diablos play Long Beach Poly next week.
5. Los Alamitos 1-1
LOST to American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.) 56-27 on Saturday. In this game played at St. Thomas Aquinas in Florida and shown on ESPN2, the Griffins had no answer in stopping an explosive run game for American Heritage. That team was No. 19 in the nation in one poll and may be higher in all of them in the coming weeks.
6. Folsom 1-1
LOST to No. 9 Serra (San Mateo) 17-12 on Friday at home. The Bulldogs had a chance to tie or take the lead with 3:46 left and reached the Serra 4-yard line, but there was a fumble that the Padres recovered. Folsom lost last year in a similar NorCal clash with De La Salle, but won in a rematch in the CIF NorCal D1-AA final. That scenario clearly could play out again.
7. De La Salle (Concord) 1-0
Monterey Trail (Elk Grove) made the Spartans sweat more than expected, as the Mustangs pulled within two points early in the fourth quarter on a blocked punt. De La Salle avoided the upset, however, with a 36-20 victory. Charles Greer had two touchdowns for the Spartans, who host Serra of San Mateo next Friday.
8. Santa Margarita (Rancho SM) 2-0
Jaxon Potter was 21-of-34 for 289 passing yards and four touchdowns to push the Eagles past Norco 36-14.
Team has solid test next week against St. Augustine of San Diego.
9. Serra (San Mateo) 1-0
Defeated No. 6 Folsom 17-12. The Padres have a lot of new stars that stepped up in the big win. With six seconds before halftime, they took a 14-10 lead on a 25-yard TD pass from Maealiuaki Smith to Jayden Weber. After getting a stop of Folsom to start the third quarter, Serra then went on a 15-play drive for a field goal. Head coach Patrick Walsh had the team take a safety as the game ended to account for Folsom’s final points.
10. Cathedral Catholic (San Diego) 1-1
LOST to No. 3 Corona Centennial 42-7. It was 50-6 last year when the Dons lost to the powerful Huskies and yet they still were able to come back and win a D1-AA state title. Centennial is just that good so don’t look for Cathedral Catholic to drop from being No. 1 in San Diego.
11. Lutheran (Orange) 2-0
Defeated Upland 24-7. T.J. Lateef threw a pair of TD passes in the first half to help the Lancers get out to a 14-0 halftime lead.
12. JSerra (SJ Capistrano) 1-1
Chaminade of West Hills stormed back from 21-0 down to stun JSerra on an 18-yard field goal by Ryon Sayeri at the end. The Lions won their first game over Sierra Canyon.
Chaminade of West Hills’ Isaiah Chisom is one of the leading linebackers in the state. Photo: @NadeFootball / Twitter.com.
13. Pittsburg 1-0
Defeated Bethel (Vallejo) 59-0. Pirates’ starters were pulled at halftime and a running clock started before halftime. Pitt is headed to the Honor Bowl in San Diego next Saturday to play Liberty of Henderson, Nev.
14. Long Beach Poly (Long Beach) 2-0
Defeated No. 15 Serra (Gardena) 17-3 at Vet’s Stadium. Devin Samples rushed for 178 yards and one TD, according to Long Beach Press-Telegram. Defense barely gave up anything in its first game and was stellar once again. Poly goes to No. 4 Mission Viejo next.
15. Serra (Gardena) 0-2
LOST to No. 14 LB Poly 17-3. The first loss for the Cavaliers was 27-26 to Orange Lutheran. Still a lot to like about this group.
16. Bishop Amat (La Puente) 1-0
The Lancers breezed to a 42-7 victory over La Habra. St. John Bosco is next.
17. Central (Fresno) 1-1
San Joaquin Memorial (Fresno) had one of the shocking scores of the night, as the Panthers held off a late charge and upset Central 23-21 in Fresno.
18. Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) 0-2
LOST to Oaks Christian (Westlake Village) 38-21. It was the first-ever on campus game at Sierra Canyon, but the hosts lost their second straight game. They lost in their opener at JSerra.
19. Carlsbad 1-0
Defeated No. 23 Mater Dei Catholic (Chula Vista) 36-35 in 2 OTs. The teams were tied 28-28 at regulation, neither scored in first OT. Mason Walsh TD in 2nd OT made it 35-34, then Lancers went for two and won it on pass from Julian Sayin to Luke Ferrelli.
20. Warren (Downey) 2-0
Head coach Kevin Pearson’s squad picked up a scare from La Serna (Whittier). It trailed 16-13 at halftime, but Warren held on for a 32-26 victory.
21. St. Francis (Mountain View) 1-0
The Lancers came from behind to overcome a quality Central Catholic (Modesto) club 35-28 on Friday. Central Catholic led at halftime and to start the fourth quarter, but the Lancers took the lead for good with 8:48 remaining in the fourth quarter.
22. Liberty (Bakersfield) 2-0
The Patriots handled Ridgeview (Bakersfield) with ease in a 35-0 blowout.
23. Mater Dei Catholic (Chula Vista) 0-2
LOST to Carlsbad 35-34 in 2 OTs. Crusaders tied the score at 28-28 with just eight seconds left in regulation on TD pass from Dominic Nankil to Jerry McClure. Their first loss was 28-14 to No. 10 Cathedral Catholic.
24. Lincoln (San Diego) 1-1
LOST to Alemany (Mission Hills) 14-7. Penalties and not having their No. 1 QB in the second half hurt the Hornets. Alemany came in 0-1, but it looks like team it lost to 49-20 (Lone Peak of Utah) is very good.
25. Buchanan (Clovis) 2-0
Buchanan had potentially the closest scare of a winning team this week, as the Bears needed overtime to escape Escalon with a 41-40 victory. The Clovis side had to force overtime late in the game and needed a game winning touchdown from Gus Remlinger and an extra point to overcome the Sac-Joaquin Section small school side.
TEAMS ON THE BUBBLE
Alemany (Mission Hills) 1-1
Defeated No. 24 Lincoln (San Diego), 14-7. The Warriors lost in their first game to Lone Peak (Utah).
Central Catholic (Modesto) 1-1
The Raiders nearly upended St Francis of Mountain View in a 35-28 defeat to the Lancers.
Chaminade (West Hills) 2-0
The Eagles looked dead in the water early with a 21-0 deficit to JSerra (SJ Capistrano), but Chaminade rallied off 24 unanswered points to stun JSerra 24-21 on a 18-yard field goal from Ryon Sayeri with just six seconds left in the game. Team will be No. 1 in L.A. Daily News rankings next week since JSerra beat Sierra Canyon last week.
Clayton Valley (Concord) 0-1
The Ugly Eagles attempted to send their game against Salinas to overtime on Friday, but Salinas’ Josiah Garnica intercepted a pass on the two-yard line to secure the 21-14 victory.
Corona del Mar (Newport Beach) 2-0
Defeated Los Gatos 28-14. We saw CdM win at Mountain View St. Francis in 2019. The Sea Kings beat a team that was 9-1 last season.
Edison (Huntington Beach) 2-0
The Chargers scored 21 points in the first quarter against Leuzinger (Lawndale) and that would be all the Chargers would need in a 31-16 victory.
Helix (La Mesa) 2-0
Defeated Otay Ranch (Chula Vista) 52-0. The Highlanders were leading 49-0 at halftime.
Inglewood 2-0
Defeated Foothill (Henderson, Nev.) 39-0. It’s another strong outing for the Sentinels, who won in their opener over St. Bonaventure (Venture).
Madison (San Diego) 2-0
Defeated Steele Canyon (Spring Valley) 35-7. The Warhawks play next at Desert Vista of Arizona.
Menlo-Atherton (Atherton) 1-0
Defeated Bellarmine (San Jose) 48-34 on Saturday. The Bells were No. 5 in Bay Area coming in, but Jurron Dickey got eligible for M-A and scored four TDs. Dickey played the last three seasons at Valley Christian of San Jose.
Murrieta Valley (Murrieta) 1-0
Defeated Great Oak (Temecula) 52-14. Tough game looming at Apple Valley.
Norco 0-1
The Cougars succumbed to a strong second half by Santa Margarita and went on to a 36-14 defeat.
Oaks Christian (Westlake Village) 1-1
Defeated No. 18 Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) 40-14. Devin Tate threw for a pair of touchdowns and then Johnny Thompson rolled up two TD runs. Oaks lost its first game to Chaminade (West Hills).
Rancho Cucamonga 2-0
Defeated Apple Valley 13-12. Both teams were in our State TOP 50. Good win should help the Cougars move up close to or inside the State TOP 25.
Salinas 1-0
Cal commit Nyziah Hunter outran three defenders on a 60-yard touchdown pass and was smooth for Salinas in 21-14 win vs Clayton Valley of Concord.
San Joaquin Memorial (Fresno) 2-0
Defeated No. 17 Central (Fresno) 23-21. San Joaquin Memorial had a 23-14 lead after three quarters and needed a diving pass break up from Brandon Ramirez on fourth down to seal the victory. Ramirez also had two touchdowns in the game.
Simi Valley 2-0
Defeated Knight (Palmdale) 51-0. It may be a few weeks until the Pioneers get much of a test.
St. Bonaventure (Ventura) 1-1
Defeated Pacifica (Oxnard) 46-41. The Tritons were said to be a possible 10-0 team for regular season if they could beat Seraphs. They didn’t. St. Bonaventure pulled ahead on 9 yd TD run by Delon Thompson with 1:44 left, then Jared Barlow saved the bacon by getting an interception in end zone with six seconds left.
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