Ross Dwelley is a 6-foot-5, 200-pound tight end/receiver for state-ranked Oak Ridge of El Dorado Hills. He came up with several big catches when the Trojans beat Burbank in last week’s CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division I semifinals.
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Open Division: The top 10 teams that would be ranked by CalHiSports.com for the CIF Open Division in Northern California would be:
1. De La Salle (Concord); 2. Folsom; 3. Bellarmine (San Jose); 4. Elk Grove; 5. Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills); 6. James Logan (Union City); 7. Granite Bay; 8. Franklin (Elk Grove); 9. Marin Catholic (Kentfield); 10. St. Ignatius (San Francisco). Note: Franklin season complete and ineligible for bowl game.
With assistance from Harold Abend and Paul Muyskens, here are the Week 14 rankings for each of Northern California’s CIF bowl game divisions (previous ranking in parentheses; after games of Saturday, Nov. 24):
DIVISION I NORTH
1. (1) De La Salle (Concord) 12-0
2. (3) Folsom 13-0
3. (4) Bellarmine (San Jose) 11-1
4. (5) Elk Grove 12-1
5. (7) Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills) 12-1
6. (11) James Logan (Union City) 12-1
7. (10) Granite Bay 10-3
8. (2) Franklin (Elk Grove) 12-1
9. (6) Luther Burbank (Sacramento) 12-1
10. (12) St. Ignatius (San Francisco) 9-3
11. (14) Del Oro (Loomis) 7-6
12. (9) Buhach Colony (Atwater) 10-3
13. (NR) Serra (San Mateo) 9-3
14. (8) California (San Ramon) 9-3
15. (NR) Freedom (Oakley) 9-3
Drops: Previous No. 13 Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) lost to St. Ignatius (San Francisco) 25-22; No. 15 Amador Valley (Pleasanton) lost to De La Salle 49-0.
Bubble Teams: Amador Valley (Pleasanton) 8-5*, Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) 8-4*, Downey (Modesto) 10-2*, Grant (Sacramento) 5-6*, Lincoln (Stockton) 8-4*, Oak Grove (San Jose) 10-1*, Palma (Salinas) 8-3*, Palo Alto 8-3*, Pittsburg 8-4*, Pleasant Grove (Elk Grove) 7-5*, San Ramon Valley (Danville) 6-6*, St. Mary’s (Stockton) 9-3*.
*Indicates season complete and ineligible for CIF bowl game.
No. 1 Team Result: De La Salle (Concord) defeated Amador Valley (Pleasanton) 49-0 in CIF North Coast Section Division I semifinals.
Cal-Hi Sports Projected Bowl Game Matchups: De La Salle vs. Folsom for Open Division; CCS Open Division winner (Bellarmine or St. Ignatius) vs. Sac-Joaquin Division I winner (Oak Ridge or Granite Bay) for Division I.
If De La Salle gets upset in NCS D1 final: It would be hard to envision any other team other than Logan that would get that Open Division berth. Sure, Logan’s early-season loss to Del Oro would get mentioned, but becoming the first NorCal team in 20 years to beat DLS would and should overwhelm everything else.
If Folsom gets upset in SJS D2 final: Elk Grove could be the choice for the Open Division, but if Granite Bay beats Oak Ridge, it would have a win over Franklin of Elk Grove, which would be the only team Elk Grove has lost to in that scenario.
DIVISION II NORTH
1. (1) Clayton Valley (Concord) 11-1
2. (2) Rancho Cotate (Rohnert Park) 12-0
3. (3) Oakdale 12-1
4. (4) Vista del Lago (Folsom) 11-1***
5. (6) St. Francis (Mountain View) 7-5
6. (5) Inderkum (Sacramento) 10-3*
7. (9) Milpitas 9-3
8. (7) Northgate (Walnut Creek) 9-3*
9. (NR) Enterprise (Redding) 9-3**
10. (NR) Los Gatos 8-4
*Indicates season complete and ineligible for CIF bowl.
**Indicates season complete, section champ and eligible for CIF bowl.
***Default win not included.
Drops: Previous No. 8 American Canyon lost to Oakdale 42-19; No. 10 Paradise lost to Enterprise (Redding) 35-34 in CIF Northern Section Division I championship.
Bubble Teams: American Canyon 11-2*, Casa Grande (Petaluma) 7-4*, Chico 8-4*, Concord 10-3*, Cosumnes Oaks (Elk Grove) 9-3*, Foothill (Palo Cedro) 8-4*, Lincoln (San Francisco) 9-1**, Newark Memorial (Newark) 9-3*, Paradise 8-4*, Sierra (Manteca) 10-2*, Wilcox (Santa Clara) 8-4.
*Indicates season complete. **Indicates two wins by default not included; team also eligible for CIF bowl game due to winning CIF San Francisco Section title.
No. 1 Team Result: Clayton Valley (Concord) defeated Concord 49-22 in CIF North Coast Section Division II semifinals.
Cal-Hi Sports Projected Bowl Game Matchup: Clayton Valley (North Coast Section Division II top seed) vs. Oakdale (Sac-Joaquin Section Division III top seed).
If Clayton Valley loses to Rancho Cotate or Oakdale loses to Vista del Lago: The winning team in either situation look like a lock to move into the NorCal bowl game. Hard to see any line of thinking that’s going to potentially push a five-loss St. Francis of Mountain View or CIF Northern Section D1 champ Enterprise past either the NCS D2 champ or the SJS D3 champ.
DIVISION III NORTH
1. (1) Marin Catholic (Kentfield) 12-1
2. (2) El Cerrito 13-0
3. (3) Sutter 13-0**
4. (8) Escalon 11-2
5. (9) Placer (Auburn) 11-1*
6. (NR) Sacred Heart Prep (Atherton) 11-1
7. (5) Cardinal Newman (Santa Rosa) 11-2*
8. (7) Los Banos 11-2*
9. (6) Analy (Sebastopol) 12-1*
10. (NR) Valley Christian (San Jose) 6-6
*Indicates season complete and ineligible for CIF bowl game.
**Indicates season complete, section champ and eligible for CIF bowl game.
Drops: Previous No. 4 Seaside lost to Menlo School (Atherton) 41-27; No. 10 West Valley (Cottonwood) lost to Sutter 38-31 in OT in CIF Northern Section Division II championship.
Bubble Teams: Arcata 11-2*, Aptos 10-2, Argonaut (Jackson) 11-1*, Campolindo (Moraga) 10-2*, Carmel 9-2*, Center (Antelope) 10-3*, Justin-Siena (Napa) 11-2, Menlo School (Atherton) 10-2, Ripon 11-1*, San Marin (Novato) 7-6, Seaside 11-1*, Sobrato (Morgan Hill) 8-4*, Soquel 9-3*, West Valley (Cottonwood) 11-2*.
*Indicates season complete and ineligible for bowl game.
No. 1 Team Result: Marin Catholic (Kentfield) defeated Miramonte (Orinda) 59-6.
Cal-Hi Sports Projected Bowl Game Matchup: CIF North Coast Section Division III champion (No. 1 Marin Catholic is playing No. 2 El Cerrito) vs. Sutter (won CIF Northern Section Division II title and is top-ranked team overall in the section).
If Escalon wins CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV title: It’s then probable that the Cougars could make a strong argument and perhaps steal the spot that as of now would go to Sutter. If the Cougars can beat Central Catholic in that game, it wouldn’t avenge an earlier loss but would be against a team that has a win over St. Mary’s of Stockton. Escalon also did avenge one of its other losses with a win last week over Los Banos. In addition, the Cougars knocked out Placer of Auburn (11-1 with an early-season win over Central Catholic) in their quarterfinal game.
If Sacred Heart Prep beats Menlo again to win CCS Division IV crown: That would be a big win for the Gators over a Menlo team that helped clear the field in this division with its win last week over previously unbeaten Seaside. SHP’s only loss also is by just 20-13 to CCS Open Division team Terra Nova of Pacifica. Even if Central Catholic takes care of Escalon, Sutter could still face a tough challenge for that second bowl bid from Sacred Heart Prep. Valley Christian of San Jose might even be better than all of them but with six losses it may be too difficult for the section commissioners to pick that team over another team that is unbeaten.
DIVISION IV NORTH
1. (1) Central Catholic (Modesto) 11-2
2. (2) McClymonds (Oakland) 9-3**
3. (3) Ferndale 12-1**
4. (6) Brookside Christian (Stockton) 10-2**
5. (7) Capital Christian (Sacramento) 10-2*
6. (9) Le Grand 11-2**
7. (4) St. Vincent de Paul (Petaluma) 10-3*
8. (8) California School for the Deaf (Fremont) 10-2*
9. (NR) Portola 10-1***
10. (10) Willows 9-4**
*Indicates season complete and ineligible for CIF bowl game.
**Indicates season complete, section champ and eligible for CIF bowl game.
***Indicates season complete, section champ, eligible for bowl game and has one default win not included.
Drops: Previous No. 5 Foresthill lost to Brookside Christian (Stockton) 60-26.
Bubble Teams: Chester 9-2**, Foresthill 10-2*, Hamilton (Hamilton City) 9-4*, Maxwell 8-3*, Pierce (Arbuckle) 11-1*, Ripon Christian 9-3*, St. Bernard’s (Eureka) 7-5*, Tomales 6-5*, Valley Christian (Dublin) 8-3*, Waterford 9-3*.
*Indicates season complete. **Season complete and default win not included.
No. 1 Team Result: Central Catholic defeated Center (Antelope) 34-13.
Cal-Hi Sports Projected Bowl Matchup: Central Catholic of Modesto (slight favorite in CIF Sac-Joaquin Division IV title game) vs. McClymonds of Oakland (CIF Oakland Section champion).
If Central Catholic loses to Escalon in CIF Sac-Joaquin D4 final: Not just in NorCal but in SoCal too all D4 bowl-eligible teams should breathe a sigh of relief. The way we see it, Central Catholic is playing for the state title in its game against Escalon because if the Raiders get through they would be heavy favorites to win the NorCal bowl game and then the state bowl game.
If Central Catholic wins in the SJS D4 final: Then the CIF section commissioners may have a tough choice to make between McClymonds and Ferndale. We like McClymonds due to strength of schedule (losses to Bishop O’Dowd by 7, Oak Grove by 7 and West Valley by 2) and ease by which the Warriors won their third straight Oakland Section title with a 38-13 triumph over Oakland Tech. However, Ferndale put a 53-14 whipping on St. Vincent de Paul of Petaluma in its section final and beat McClymonds last year in a head-to-head matchup. Ferndale’s loss was to Argonaut of Jackson, a team that was unbeaten but lost in the second-round of the SJS Division IV playoffs. Ferndale and McClymonds winning last week also seems to have eliminated any other teams in the region from getting a bowl bid in this division.
Comments or corrections? Email markjtennis@gmail.com.
16 Comments
If Escalon wins there SOS would seem to be stronger than Sutters no disrespect to Sutter.
I’m not sure which SOS carries the most weight but, no one in contention for the #2 slot has a higher SOS than Sutter. Even if strength of schedule was the same, easy math 2 losses for Escalon 0 losses for Sutter. Victories for Sutter include the NS DI Champion and a SJS DII playoff team. Calpreps shows no who will be eligible even close to Sutter as the #2 Norcal DIII team. What SOS source are you guys using Mark to base your comments on?
My comments about Escalon having a shot aren’t based on a computer program but I know how good of a presenter that Pete Saco is for his teams in those meetings. If Escalon beats Central Catholic, he’ll make a strong case for that team, based on avenging a loss, showing how good Placer has been at times during the season, based on Escalon having won state before and other factors. I’m not saying that we agree with it (we do have Sutter ranked higher) but if Escalon wins it’s not a slam dunk for Sutter.
Thanks, good information as we all know that unfortunately, politics often trump fact!
Hey, Mark – I am a bit confused by the seeming up and down movement of teams between divisions, thinking playoffs and such are based on school size. Example: How can a school be in your D3 rankings but yet be projected to go to a D2 bowl game? Please clarify and thanks for your time.
I’m sorry but I don’t see a school that fits your question. Which school are you confused about?
I’m really hoping Ferndale gets a shot in the bowl game. I have a feeling they can do some damage.
How do you have Marin C ranked #1 in D3 over El Cerrito? El Cerrito is the #1 seed in the NCS MC is #2. Please explain this?
We’ve just had it that way for a long time and didn’t think we should change due the seedings being different. We figured the two would play so doesn’t really matter. Marin Catholic has a win over St. Ignatius and a loss to Vacaville, both of which are solid D1 schools. El Cerrito has yet to play a team as good as SI. Should be a great game. Too bad it’s happening at the same time that DLS is playing Logan.
Mark – What about the possible scenario that the SJS D3 champion could end up playing in the NorCal D2 bowl game? Why wouldn’t they be considered for D3 NorCal? Thanks again for the info.
The divisional numbers from section to section don’t match up for the bowl games. Never have. The SJS D3 champion has been eligible for D2 North for several years and has never been considered for D3 North. Last year’s SJS D3 champion was Del Oro, which had a win over SJS D1 champ Granite Bay and was therefore chosen for the D2 state bowl game opposite Helix. This year, the SJS D3 champion seems certain to play the NCS D2 winner in the NorCal bowl because the Northern Section doesn’t have a contender and its doubtful that a team with five losses (St. Francis) is going to be chosen over any of the two teams left in either the NCS or SJS.
I think Sutter deserves it. They beat Enterprise (a good SOS win). Besides the Trans Valley league is the toughest small school league in the state. And Eski is tops there (Poor Ripon) they’ll be back to state and they’ll probably embarrass another So-Cal school. Eventually everyone else will figure it out. In 2000 Central Catholic was in the TVL too, Los Banos was D-I until Pacheco came along.They’d fit in well in the TVL.
what do you think the chances are for Ferndale to get pick for the small regional game?
If Escalon beats Central Catholic in Saturday afternoon’s Sac-Joaquin D4 final, then Ferndale is a lock. If Central Catholic wins, then it’s in the D4 NorCal game and would play either Ferndale or McClymonds. We have McClymonds higher (strength of schedule) but Ferndale has better record and did beat McClymonds last year (Mack won in game between the two in 2010). I think that’s a vote that could go either way.
Lets go Escalon. If Central Catholic wins is there any chance they will get picked for the D3 regional game? Or is there no way they go up.
No way the CIF sends Central as D III. Besides De La, Central is the North’s best chance at a North win. Plus you would bump out Sutter which has been begging for a shot at State since ’06. This will finally quiet them down.
No Wildcat, IMO it is down to you guys and Mack to be fed to the wolves in the D IV NorCal game. Good Luck!