Top 10 Southern California high school football games to watch Week 3 (9/5/2023): Another week of interstate blockbusters
For the second week in a row, California high school football has a fantastic slate of interstate games that not many weeks in recent years can rival. So far in 2023, California has dominated interstate play, and the Golden State's top teams will continue to try to represent in Week Three.
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Here are the top ten games to watch this week (Sept. 2-9) throughout California. Numbers preceding teams refer to their placements in SBLive's California weekly Power 25.
TOP 10 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GAMES TO WATCH WEEK 3:
(Games are 7 p.m. Friday unless noted)
10. Kahuku (HI) at #1 Mater Dei
Photo by Heston Quan
One has to hand it to Kahuku for playing one of the toughest schedules in the country out of Hawaii. In addition to playing a slew of Hawaii's best teams per usual, Kahuku is one of two non-California teams this season playing Mater Dei and St. John Bosco, the incumbent top two teams in the country.
Kahuku played Bosco last year and impressed with both its defense and its fanfare despite losing 34-7. The Red Raiders, ranked 23rd in the country, face long odds to put a scare into Mater Dei, but are strong enough that even the top-ranked team in the country can't afford to overlook them. If things do go sideways for Kahuku, they can't let the wheels fall off, because they turn around and play St. John Bosco next week. Like Kahuku, Mater Dei enters 3-0 after playing arguably its best game yet last week in a 62-0 win over Georgia heavyweight Creekside.
9. St. Frances Academy (DC) at #2 St. John Bosco
The other team that scheduled both Mater Dei and St. John Bosco this year? St. Frances Academy, which is no stranger to taking on a reigning national champion from the Trinity League. When St. Frances Academy played Mater Dei in 2019, it was the most hyped-up game of the regular season, and a battle between the two top-ranked teams in the country. Mater Dei won convincingly by a score of 34-18, although St. Frances did look the part of a consensus top-three team in the nation.
This time, St. Frances is a heavy underdog after starting the season 0-3. It was still ranked well inside the national top 25 until this week, but is in dire need of a win after getting upset by East St. Louis (IL) last week. St. John Bosco is coming off statement wins against Florida's St. Thomas Aquinas (20-7) and Washington D.C.'s Friendship Collegiate Academy (48-12), and has a chance for another in Week Three.
8. St. Bonaventure at Archbishop Riordan – Saturday at 2 p.m.
Photo by Lance Smith
So far so good for Archbishop Riordan, which entered the season with heavy expectations for a banner year. In lopsided wins over Sacred Heart Prep and Moreau Catholic, the offense has put up 96 points, and sophomore quarterback Michael Mitchell Jr. looks like the real deal. Now with St. Bonaventure coming to town, it's time to see what the new-look Crusaders are really made of.
It's been a tough start for St. Bonaventure, which is coming off a 24-13 loss against Pacifica (Oxnard) and a 49-12 loss to Lincoln (San Diego). But the Seraphs have the time and talent to turn things around, especially with starting quarterback Anthony Wolter expected to come back from injury in the next month or so. Both teams are still a work in progress with a lot of talented but inexperienced underclassmen in key roles, and it's hard to say what to expect. Certainly, both have enough high-end talent to make this a great game.
7. Notre Dame Prep (AZ) at St. Augustine
Despite taking its first loss of the season last week, 24-21 against Granite Hills (El Cajon), St. Augustine is still off to a strong start with lopsided wins over Patrick Henry and Poway. Like St. Augustine, reigning AIA 5A state semifinalist Notre Dame Prep is coming off a close loss against a very good team, and this should be an evenly-matched game. In order for the Saints of California to pull out the win against the Saints of Arizona, they'll need to contain the battery of 3-star quarterback Noah Trigueros and 4-star receiver Cooper Perry.
6. Gonzaga Prep (WA) at Inglewood
Photo by Connor Morrissette
After a 29-6 loss against Carlsbad and a blowout win against Dorsey, it's still too early to see what new-look Inglewood has in store this year after making the CIFSS D2 finals last season. What is clear though is that Inglewood has a formidable passing nucleus of 3-star senior recruits, comprised of quarterback Damon Wrighster, who just committed to UC Davis, and receivers Bain Eiseman (Cal Poly) and Terrell Bradshaw Jr. They'll look to put on a show this week against Washington's Gonzaga Prep, which, like Inglewood, is a proven program that is still finding its footing in 2023.
5. Casteel (AZ) at #7 Carlsbad
Photo by Justin Fine
With 5-star Alabama commit Julian Sayin in his final year, Carlsbad entered 2023 with massive expectations. And through three games, lopsided wins against Inglewood, Mater Dei Catholic, and San Pasqual, the Lancers look quite scary. Week Three could be their biggest test of the regular season with Arizona stalwart Casteel coming to town. Casteel came up just short of a 6A state finals appearance last season, and is 2-0 so far this fall. Sayin is tasked with passing against a secondary that includes 4-star cornerback Jeremiah Newcombe (Oklahoma) and safety Gerayas Grimes (Northern Arizona), but Carlsbad is the favorite here.
4. Servite vs. #10 Los Alamitos at Cerritos College
Photo by Lance Smith
Just a year ago, Servite was a reigning CIFSS D1 finalist, and Los Alamitos was in the midst of one of the best seasons in school history in which it would go on to make the D1 semifinals. After its 2021 peak, Servite graduated nearly every player that saw the field, and went through a serious rebuild in 2022 that resulted in a 1-9 record. Los Al, on the other hand, both brought back and transferred in enough young talent since last season to avoid a full reset year, and is off to a good 3-0 start. The football world is pining to know exactly what to make of these new-look Orange County powerhouses, and Friday will give us all some good insight.
3. #4 Orange Lutheran at Chandler (AZ)
Photo by Dennis Lee
With hopes of continuing its ascent, Orange Lutheran put together a national schedule for 2023. And it's safe to say that it couldn't possibly be going much better. The Lancers have played Serra (Gardena), De La Salle, and Washington heavyweight Eastside Catholic, and have beaten all three by a combined 102-33. That puts them in the national top 25 for the first time in a long time, and they might not be done rising. However, Chandler could be their biggest test yet.
Longstanding Arizona alpha dog Chandler last won an AIA 6A state championship in 2020, when it finished the season ranked as a top-five team in the country. And it remained in contention in 2021 and 2022 despite coming up short. This year, the Wolves have a long list of D-1 recruits that's comparable to Orange Lutheran's list, headlined by senior running back and 4-star Illinois commit Ca'Lil Valentine. They're 2-0 with blowout wins against in-state foes that never had a chance, but it's still too early to know just how good this Chandler squad is. One could make a case for either of these teams as a slight favorite or underdog, and we see this as a tossup with a good chance to be the best game of the week.
2. #9 Long Beach Poly at #14 Serra
Photo by Heston Quan
Last year, Long Beach Poly surprised a lot of people by going 2-0 against its non-league rivals, Serra (Gardena) and Mission Viejo. On Friday, the Jackrabbits will be favored to again make it 2-0 for the year against their non-league rivals – although this time around, nobody should be too surprised. Long Beach Poly proved that it's still among SoCal's elite last week winning a 32-28 thriller against Mission Viejo, which means Serra has its work cut out.
In fact, after the Cavaliers lost 47-19 to Orange Lutheran in Week Zero, one could call them heavy underdogs this week. However, they've since gained some momentum on both sides of the ball by beating Warren 27-0 and Cathedral 47-14. Look for them to play their best game yet in Week Three against Long Beach Poly; the question is, will it be enough for them to have a chance?
1. #3 Corona Centennial at Bishop Gorman (NV)
Photo by Steven Silva
Bishop Gorman is widely considered a top-five team in the country, and some have the Gaels ranked closer to one than five. Last week, it won on a last-minute touchdown against another top-ten team in the nation, Miami Central, in an instant classic. That makes Corona Centennial, ranked 17th in the nation, the heavy underdog here. But make no mistake – this is one of the most exciting regular season matchups of 2023, and Centennial should not be counted out. It's still too early in the season to have an exact read on Centennial's ceiling, but the Huskies' offense showed out last week as they beat Punahou, another team on national radars, 50-43.
MORE FROM CENTENNIAL VS. PUNAHOU: HIGHLIGHTS | PHOTOS | INTERVIEW WITH HUSAN LONGSTREET
This game comes with considerable national championship considerations that should give both teams extra motivation. Bishop Gorman is dead-set on a national title in 2023, and knows that this game is one of its best chances all season to make its case. And recent history asserts that if Corona Centennial goes on to complete an underdog CIF State Open Division championship run, its 28-14 loss to Mater Dei in Week Zero doesn't mean the Huskies are out of the running. That means there are multiple possible scenarios in which we could later look back at this matchup as the one that decided the national title race.
MORE GAMES TO WATCH:
In any given week of California high school football, there are dozens of great games to watch between top programs. Here are some other exciting matchups happening this week.
(Numerals are state rankings by SBLive. Games are 7 p.m. unless noted.)
THURSDAY
#15 Santa Margarita at Bishop Amat
Cajon at Aquinas – 7:30 p.m.
West Ranch vs. St. Paul at College of the Canyons – 7:30 p.m.
Fountain Valley at Tustin
Charter Oak at Yorba Linda
FRIDAY
Poway at Ramona (Ramona)
Cathedral Catholic at Saint Ignatius
#22 Helix at Madison
Corona del Mar at #16 San Clemente
Liberty (Winchester) at Del Norte (San Diego)
Orange Vista at Mission Hills
Newport Harbor at San Juan Hills
Torrance at San Pedro
Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks) at #11 JSerra
Fairfax at Crenshaw
Garfield at Golden Valley (Santa Clarita)
Valencia (Valencia) at #13 Rancho Cucamonga
San Marcos (San Marcos) at Torrey Pines
Leuzinger at Loyola
Western at Banning (Wilmington)
Point Loma at University City
Edison (Huntington Beach) at Palos Verdes – 3:15 p.m.
Granada Hills Charter at Kennedy (Granada Hills)
Oak Hills at Citrus Valley
La Costa Canyon at Mira Mesa
Upland at Millikan
Mount Carmel at Scripps Ranch
Warren at Woodford County (KY) – 7:30 p.m.
Rancho Bernardo at La Jolla
La Serna at Tesoro
Steele Canyon at El Capitan
Damien at Mira Costa
Oceanside at Westview
Cathedral at Chaminade
St. Francis at St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy
Lawndale at Cypress
Victor Valley at Apple Valley
Ventura at Rio Mesa
Chino Hills at Colony
#21 Etiwanda at Jurupa Hills
Beckman at Laguna Hills
Trabuco Hills at Irvine
El Modena at Segerstrom
Paraclete at Westlake
SATURDAY
Thousand Oaks at Garces Memorial
Bonita vs. San Dimas at Citrus College
