Serra-San Mateo, Riordan record lopsided WCAL wins: Northern California high school football Top 10 games roundup
As league play begins in most areas, there's also a smattering of big intersectional games throughout Northern California.
Below are the 10 biggest games we've identified played involving teams from the following sections: Central, Central Coast, San Francisco, Oakland, North Coast, Sac-Joaquin and Northern.
Come back throughout the night for updates from nine of the games played on Friday night.
SBLive/SI NorCal section rankings: Central | Sac-Joaquin | NorCal Coast | Northern
Calif. football scores Sept. 28-30: NCS | CCS | SFS | OS | SJS | CS | NS | SS | SDS | LAC
10. Jesuit 26, Clayton Valley Charter 0
The visiting Marauders not only got the redemption it had hoped, but scored an impressive shutout. Last season, Clayton Valley won in Carmichael by a 35-21 count. On Friday, the Marauders scored two touchdowns in the first quarter and tacked on two more in the second half to improve to 5-1. Clayton Valley dropped to 2-3.
The host Ugly Eagles one of the few Bay Area teams who regularly take on Sac-Joaquin Section rivals. They beat Jesuit last season 35-21, so the Marauders, led by former SPSV coach Marlon Blanton, might carry little edge.
9. Clovis West 33, Buchanan 7
Tyler Patrick threw for touchdown passes of 51, 14, 60 and 15 yards to live the Golden Eagles (5-1) to the decisive win at Buchanan (2-4). Washington State-bound star Landon Wright caught three of the touchdowns.
Pregame: One of three Tri-River Athletic Conference (TRAC) games on this elite list, the visitors have won four straight since opening with a humbling loss at St. Mary's-Stockton. The Golden Eagles, led by Fresno State-bound two-way standouts Tytus Khajavi and Marshel Sanders, along with Washington State-bound two-way athlete Landon Wright, won't be fooled by Buchanan's record. The Bears have played a bear of a nonleague schedule.
8. De La Salle 21, McClymonds 0
Dominic Kelley rushed for 70 yards and two touchdowns and Derrick Blanche Jr. added 84 yards on 10 carries while the host Spartans' defense recorded the 115th shutout in school history. Kelley scored on runs of 5 and 18 yards for the Spartans (4-2), who recorded their fourth straight win after two losses. McClymonds dropped to 2-2. De La Salle came away scoreless on four other red zone chances, including losing a fumble in the end zone.
7. Granite Bay 63, Del Oro 28
Carter Jackson scored on runs of 64, 38 and 57 yards as the host Grizzlies went on a 25-point barrage in the second quarter to take control. Caden Pinick had given Granite Bay (5-1) a 7-0 lead on a 4-yard pass to Luke Galer. But Granity Bay scored the next three touchdowns, incouding a 58-yard run by Lucas Gruia, who also had a 50-yard TD pass to Carson Perry. Granite Bay improved to 4-2.
Pregame: Del Oro is ranked No. 7 in SJS rankings Granite Bay is No. 10. The Golden Eagles are very well-balanced with senior quarterback Caden Pinnick completing a remarkable 77 percent of his passes for 1,208 yards and 13 touchdowns. Three runners have rushed for at least 200 yards, including Pinnick, who has rushed for five TDs. Granite Bay has looked good since a 41-21 loss to Pittsburg with wins over Antelope (51-14) and Vacaville (34-13). This matchup has been remarkably close, with Del Oro winning 12 of the last 21, though Granite Bay has won the last three of four. The teams split two meetings last season.
6. Serra 45, Saint Francis 17
According to San Jose Mercury News, Maealiuaki Smith threw for 321 yards and accounted for four touchdowns as the host Padres (5-0, 2-0 West Catholic Athletic League) raced to a 38-3 lead by midway in the third quarter en route to the lopsided victory. After Nano Latu opened the scoring with a 4-yard run and two-point conversion, Smith scored on two 1-yard sneaks before throwing TD passes of 1 yard to Braden Agosta and 70 yards to Cole Harrison. Andrew Scharrenberg and Kingston Keanaaina had second-half TD runs for Saint Francis (2-3, 1-1). Serra is No. 1 in the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Northern California Coast rankings and the Lancers No. 12.
Pregame: One of the WCAL’s and Bay Area’s top rivalry games, Serra has won 13 of the last 23 games, including four of the last five. CalPreps has Serra as a 35-point favorite, but don’t count on that. St. Francis looked good in a 42-20 home win over Mitty last week. Serra, meanwhile, trounced Sacred Heart Cathedral, 61-0.
5. Clovis 38, Central-Fresno 37 (OT)
David Marquez completed a 16-yard pass to Zeb White to close to 31-30 before an extra points tied the game for Central at 31-31 with less than a minute to play. In overtime, Nate Reinhold knocked down a two-point conversion try give Clovis the win.
Pregame: Clovis is led by sophomore quarterback Deagan Rose, who already holds offers from Utah, Pittsburg and Houston. He's passed for 1,217 yards and 12 touchdowns. Noah Luginbill leads the defense with 12.4 tackles per game. Central has played well above the curb, largely on offense because of junior QB Earl Riley (1,314 yards, 15 TDs) and game-breaker Braylen Hall (32 catches, 594 yards, nine TDs).
4. Riordan 42, Valley Christian 17
According to @kasselMedia, sophomore quarterback Mike Mitchell Jr. set a West Catholic Athletic League and school record six touchdowns including two to Cynai Thomas in the home victory. Judge Nash, Tyrone Jackson, Chris Lawson and Wesley Winn had the other TD catches. Lawson, a 4-star junior two-way standout, also had two interceptions. The Crusaders, No. 11 in the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Northern California Coast rankings, improved to 4-1 and 2-0 in West Catholic Athletic League play. Sixth-ranked Valley Christian dropped to 4-1 and 1-1.
The teams have nearly doubled their combined win total from last season (4). Riordan broke a 14-game losing streak to Valley Christian last season with a 16-10 win. Both teams look completely different, especially Valley Christian on defense, which has given up just 33 points. Dealing with Riordan’s dynamic sophomore QB Mike Mitchell, freshman RB Isi Tuugamusu, who rushed for five touchdowns in a 41-34 win over St. Ignatius last week, and a huge offensive line will be a big challenge.
3. Pittsburg 37, Los Gatos 27
A great matchup between section powers lived up to all the hype as Marley Alcantarna threw three touchdowns on the road to lift Pittsburg to 5-0. His scoring tosses with 8 yard to Makari Kenion, 32 to Noah Quesada and 12 to Jewelous Walls plus 5-yard TD run by Elijah Bow kept the Pirates in front from state to finish despite two TD runs by Boxer Kopcsak and two TD passes by A.J. Minyard. Read excellent game story by Glenn Reeves in the SJMN.
Pregame: Probably the top game of the week in the Bay Area pits longtime NCS and CCS powers that have never played. The visiting Pirates, who were so dominating the first two weeks, have pulled out two wins by a field goal each. Los Gatos has won a game by a point (35-34 over Liberty), lost one by a point (22-21 to Grant-Sacramento) and recorded two blowouts.
2. Folsom 41, Oak Ridge 21
Sophomore quarterback Ryder Lyons accounted for five touchdowns and Brian Ray III contributed three big plays Friday night, leading Folsom to a tougher-than-it-sounds 41-21 Sierra Foothill League win at Oak Ridge. After Oak Ridge's Erick Orme contributed his third rushing touchdown of the night to close to 28-21, Ray took a pass from Lyons and rambled 85 yards to put Folsom in control, 35-21 with 3 minutes to go. Game story
Pregame: At long last, the Sierra Foothill League kicks off this week, and every game is a doozy. Yes, every league says this sort of thing. But in this league, heavy on Placer County teams and topped by Folsom and Oak Ridge of El Dorado Hills, it rings true. Folsom has won six SFL titles since entering the league before the 2014 season with Rocklin taking it in 2021. It's no sure thing for Folsom this season, by any stretch. Oak Ridge wants to crown coach Casey Taylor with his 200th career victory, 149 of those coming when he led Del Oro. For the first time all season, Oak Ridge will be at full strength.
1. Clovis North 31, Clovis East 21
The top-ranked Broncos used a pounding ground game that amassed 186 yards and a fourth quarter interception to defeat the Clovis East Timberwolves, 31-21. Andrew Chavez and Vincent Cordoba led the Broncos offense each finishing with two touchdowns. Chavez finished the game with 15 carries for 67 yards, while Cordoba had four receptions for 98 yards. Game story
Pregame: Clovis North has risen to No. 15 in SBLive’s state rankings after handily defeating JSerra 23-7 on Sept. 15. The reason for Clovis North’s success? A massive offensive line (averages 280 pounds), a hard-nosed defense (allowed four TDs all season) and the running back duo of Jackson Cinfel (68-726-8) and McKay Madsen (26-397-8). The upstart Timberwolves of Clovis East's rejuvenation is in full force after a 5-0 start and an impressive 42-21 win over Sanger. In his third season at quarterback, junior Ty Miller has passed for 1,395 yards and an 18-4 touchdown to interception ratio. Tommy Nix (24-509-7) and Harold Duvall (12-412-6) have been Miller’s top targets.
