He’s just a sophomore, but Folsom QB Jake Browning is already getting used to TV cameras and bright lights.
13. (12) UPLAND 7-0
Why This Ranking: A week after moving up a spot to No. 12, the Highlanders are back at No. 13 as a result of two teams needing to go higher (Mater Dei, El Toro) after winning huge games. Upland’s best scenario for a huge rankings boost will be to beat Corona Centennial, Vista Murrieta and perhaps both in the CIFSS Inland Division playoffs.
Weekend Result: Facing a Glendora squad that also opened up Baseline League play with a win, it was the Highlanders who remained undefeated in league action with a 47-26 home win on Friday night. Nate Romine had a night to remember as he completed 16 of his 28 pass attempts for 287 yards and two touchdowns while carrying the ball nine times for 137 yards and four touchdowns. Anthony Romero also caught four passes for 106 yards that included an early 83-yard touchdown reception for the first points of the game.
Up Next: First place in the Baseline League will be on the line this Friday night when Upland goes on the road to take on Los Osos of Rancho Cucamonga, which is also 2-0 in league play after a 41-7 road win over Alta Loma.
14. (16) FRANKLIN (ELK GROVE) 7-0
Why This Ranking: For the second week in a row, the Wildcats move up two spots in the rankings as they took care of business in dominating fashion to remain undefeated and ranked second in the Sacramento area.
Weekend Result: Not getting caught looking ahead, the Wildcats who entered their game against Davis averaging just over 31 points per game, exploded for a season-high 72 points in a 72-7 win over the Blue Devils. Kyran Harris ran for 128 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries while Christian Fonbuena was more than good carrying the ball as he gained 123 yards and scored twice on his 12 carries. For the night, the Franklin rushing attack gained 423 yards on 50 carries and scored nine touchdowns.
Up Next: Coach Mike Johnson and team will have a chance to jump more than a few spots in the rankings next week if it can remain undefeated in this Friday’s road game at No. 8 Elk Grove. It also will be a matchup of the top two ranked teams in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section.
15. (7) TESORO (RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA) 6-1
Why This Ranking: A loss to any team ranked lower than you will drop you in the rankings, but a loss to an El Toro squad that was previously ranked No. 21 isn’t enough to drop the Titans out of this week’s rankings.They still have a season log that has already seen them hand No. 25 Hart of Newhall and No. 16 Chaparral of Temecula their only losses this season.
Weekend Result: If we did a player of the week, running back Nate Tago would have been one of the frontrunners as he had a career night in the 41-31 loss to El Toro. Tago carried the ball 39 times for 320 yards and four touchdowns. Tesoro forged a double-digit lead in the second half and Tago’s final touchdown on the night gave the Titans a 31-27 lead with under seven minutes left. They were simply unable to stop Conner Manning and the Chargers the rest of the way.
Up Next: In a key game not just for the state rankings but for CIFSS Pac-Five playoff chances, the Titans will host No. 4 Mission Viejo on Friday night.
16. (14) CHAPARRAL (TEMECULA) 6-1
Why This Ranking: Despite an easy win, the Pumas (who had previously moved up five spots in the previous two weeks) had to drop two spots in this week’s rankings in order to stay behind No. 15 Tesoro and to make room for rising El Toro. The Titans handed Chaparral its lone loss this season .
Weekend Result: Jumping out to a 35-0 lead by halftime, the Pumas defeated Temecula Valley of Temecula 42-6 in a Southwestern League contest. Kellen Mataafa completed 10 of his 16 pass attempts for 171 yards and two scores and Patrick Clifford was his leading receiver with four catches for 101 yards and a score. Leading the rushing attack that gained 237 yards was senior Skyler Seibold, who ran for 117 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries.
Up Next: The Pumas should be able to increase their current winning streak to four games this week when they play on the road against Great Oak of Temecula before two tough games against undefeated Murrieta Valley of Murrieta and Vista Murrieta of Murrieta in the final two weeks of the regular season.
17. (15) OCEANSIDE 6-1
Why This Ranking: Coach John Carroll and the boys got a two-spot bump two weeks ago but have to go back to where they were despite the fact the Pirates won big over Vista. The reason for the drop is due to a head-to-head loss to Chaparral, a team that has to drop this week to stay behind Tesoro.
Weekend Result: As predicted, it was a little ugly in a 44-0 win over Vista. The Pirates scored 21 points in both the first and second quarters to lead 42-0 at halftime. Carroll emptied the bench and the teams agreed to a running clock in the second half. Quarterback Israel “Tofi” Paopao played two quarters and only threw nine passes completing seven with two for scores. The game took less than two hours.
Up Next: The Pirates face non-league opponent Ramona in what could at least be a decent contest. Ramona comes off a 37-21 loss to a Poway team Oceanside beat 23-13 on the road.
18. (19) FOLSOM 7-0
Why This Ranking: Still the solid third team in the Sac-Joaquin Section and Sacramento area, the Bulldogs scored 56 points for the second time in their past three games and are averaging 47.7 points per game. We can see Folsom moving up next week in front of the loser of the game played between No. 8 Elk Grove and No. 14 Franklin of Elk Grove.
Weekend Result: It was the Bulldogs who came out victorious in a 56-35 shootout on the road against Jesuit of Carmichael on Saturday afternoon. Super soph Jake Browning completed 29 of his 37 pass attempts for 368 yards and six touchdowns while also rushing for a score as the Bulldogs led 35-7 at halftime and 56-21 after three quarters of play. Troy Knox had five catches for 64 yards and two touchdowns while junior Rodney Ellison had a team-high nine catches for 94 yards and a score.
Up Next: Returning home on Friday night, the Bulldogs will host Sheldon of Sacramento. Last season, Folsom won at Sheldon 63-40.
19. (20) LOMPOC 7-0
Why This Ranking: The Braves continued their slow ascent in the rankings with a 49-0 blasting of Santa Maria. As we said before, don’t expect any nail-biters the rest of the regular season, as Lompoc’s immediate goals are to stay injury free and get RB Lavon Coleman completely healthy for a playoff run.
Weekend Result: It was already 35-0 with eight minutes left in the first half when the running clock began against Santa Maria, which is coached by former Cabrillo of Lompoc star lineman Don Willis. Coleman sat out another game.
Up Next: Lompoc will look to extend the state’s longest winning streak (27 and counting) against 1-6 Santa Ynez in its homecoming game.
20. (24) EDISON (HUNTINGTON BEACH) 6-1
Why This Ranking: The Chargers continue to move up after breaking into the rankings two weeks ago. Their lone loss to Mater Dei by six points is looking much better now, plus they just posted a big win on the road at Los Alamitos.
Weekend Result: In a game that was scoreless at halftime, the Chargers were limp on offense, and being on the road at and in front of a large crowd at Long Beach City College they could have folded. Instead they scored 17 fourth-quarter points to take home a 24-14 victory despite only completing one pass in the second half. The story was that the defense was stout and the running game took over in the final two quarters. Marquis Ross rushed for 165 yards and a touchdown and Donald Rice scored a pair of rushing touchdowns.
Up Next: Crosstown Sunset League rival Marina comes in off a 31-3 loss to Huntington Beach. In its 3-4 record, Marina also has a 46-0 loss to Los Alamitos. This could be a blowout.
21. (22) BELLARMINE (SAN JOSE) 5-1
Why This Ranking: The Bells are the epitome of how hard it is to stay in the rankings and move up after escaping with an overtime win at previous No. 25 Serra (San Mateo). The team’s only loss was to No. 1 De La Salle, but the score was 41-7.
Weekend Result: Host Serra had won a game at Atwater Buhach Colony by successfully making a 2-point conversion, but when they tried this time the Bells were ready and snuffed it out to preserve a 35-34 victory on the road in San Mateo. The Bells almost blew a 28-14 lead but it was the work of Vanderbilt-committed quarterback K.J. Carta-Samuels that got it done once again. After pulling the Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) game out in the final moments two weeks ago, the 6-foot-2, 210-pounder was even better against Serra. Carta-Samuels, who was making only his sixth varsity start and who’d been a little inconsistent in the first few games, was 12 of 15 for 210 yards and two TDs, including a 10-yard pass to Austin Changras on the first play of overtime. He also ran for two scores, a 5-yard bootleg around right end, and a spinning move from two yards out that caught Serra off guard. “I definitely got more confidence this game,” Carta-Samuels said. “I told myself to cut loose and the guys supported me.”
Up Next: The Bells are now tied for first place in the WestCatholic Athletic League at 3-0 with a St. Ignatius (San Francisco) team that just posted a 22-7 win on the road against a St. Francis (Mountain View) squad that faces the Bells this Friday night at San Jose City College.
22. (NR) CRENSHAW (LOS ANGELES) 6-1
Why This Ranking: Owning a head-to-head win over Oaks Christian of Westlake Village, which was No. 4 in the state at the time, is just one reason we like the Cougars for this position. Three other quality wins also stand out – against Norco (win over La Serna), against Corona Santiago (win over Norco) and super-talented Fresno Edison. The only loss was by just 44-41 to Westlake early on and before Westlake started stumbling in three straight losses. Crenshaw also looks like it may end up as the top competition for new No. 2 Narbonne in the CIF L.A. City Section playoffs.
Weekend Result: It wasn’t one of the Cougars’ tougher opponents, but they had no trouble in dispatching Locke of Los Angeles 42-8. Corey Walker and Mossi Johnson both scored a pair of touchdowns while Max Lyons reached the end zone on a 45-yard interception return.
Up Next: Coach Robert Garrett’s squad takes on arch-rival Dorsey on Friday at home. And while Dorsey has had its struggles, this is one of those rivalries in which you just have to throw out the win-loss records, rankings and probabilities.
23. (NR) OAKS CHRISTIAN (WESTLAKE VILLAGE) 6-1
Why This Ranking: Other than the puzzling loss to Crenshaw, the Lions have at times certainly looked like they’re among the most talented squads in the state. Their early-season wins over Del Oro of Loomis (40-0) and Granite Bay (48-13) still carry weight but the win over Chaminade (46-30) has become more significant since Chaminade’s two recent wins over Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks and Serra of Gardena.
Weekend Result: Like St. Bonaventure, the Lions also had their bye week. Junior quarterback Brandon Dawkins enters this week with 1,400 yards passing and 12 TDs plus another 255 rushing and three scores. He has thrown 10 interceptions, however, and will likely need to cut those down if there’s to be much of a deep run in the CIFSS Pac-Five playoffs.
Up Next: Oaks Christian travels to play Calabasas on Friday in what should be an easy matchup. The following week, though, should be different against Moorpark.
24. (NR) CHAMINADE (WEST HILLS) 6-1
Why This Ranking: Coach Ed Croson’s squad has bounced back from a loss to Oaks Christian in the fourth game to post three impressive wins. The first two of those wins knocked out foes from the Top 25 (35-27 vs. Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks and 28-20 vs. Serra of Gardena) while last week’s was with no problem (63-6) vs. St. Paul of Santa Fe Springs.
Weekend Result: Standout running back Terrell Newby had a quiet game, but he’s still well over 1,200 yards for the season. The St. Paul win instead was more about quarterback Brad Kaaya, who passed for two scores and ran for another. Donovan Lee also took back a kickoff return for a touchdown.
Up Next: The Eagles will get a test in their first game of the season as a Top 25 state-ranked team when they travel to play 6-1 Harvard-Westlake of North Hollywood. After an opening loss to Loyola of Los Angeles, Harvard-Westlake has sizzled behind the prolific passing of quarterback Chad Kanoff.
25. (23) HART (NEWHALL) 6-1
Why This Ranking: Even though the Indians rolled over Golden Valley of Santa Clarita, they still have to drop two spots in this week’s rankings because their lone loss – which was 10-7 to Tesoro – doesn’t carry as much strength as it did before. Tesoro was unbeaten and No. 7 last week but is now No. 15 after suffering its first loss. We’re just glad that enough other teams lost so that Hart can stay in the Top 25.
Weekend Result: The Golden Valley win was by 56-14 and it was another strong outing for quarterback Brady White. He went 14 of 20 for 228 yards and two touchdowns. Connor Wagenroth also scored twice on short runs and threw a 64-yard scoring pass to Trent Irwin.
Up Next: Hart will probably play the last of its easy Foothill League games this Friday at College of the Canyons against Saugus. After that, the final two league games against Valencia and Canyon of Canyon Country figure to be much different.
TEAMS THAT DROPPED
Previous No. 17 Crespi (Encino); No. 18 Central (Fresno); No. 25 Serra (San Mateo).
TEAMS ON THE BUBBLE
Bakersfield 6-1
Bishop Amat (La Puente) 5-1-1
Central (Fresno) 6-1
Charter Oak (Covina) 6-1
Citrus Hill (Perris) 7-0
Clovis North (Clovis) 7-0
Clovis 6-1
Crespi (Encino) 7-1
Deer Valley (Antioch) 6-1
Helix (La Mesa) 5-1
La Costa Canyon (Carlsbad) 6-1
La Serna (Whittier) 6-1
Luther Burbank (Sacramento) 7-0
Lutheran (Orange) 6-1
Marin Catholic (Kentfield) 7-1
Monte Vista (Danville) 6-1
Moorpark 6-1
Murrieta Valley (Murrieta) 7-0
Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks) 5-3
Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills) 6-1
Palos Verdes (PV Estates) 4-3
Placer (Auburn) 7-0
Rancho Cucamonga 5-2
Serra (Gardena) 5-2
Serra (San Mateo) 5-1
Serrano (Phelan) 7-0
St. Ignatius (San Francisco) 5-1
St. Mary’s (Stockton) 5-2
Tustin 8-0
Westlake (Westlake Village) 5-3
Comments or corrections? Email markjtennis@gmail.com.
