Football Playoff Preview of State Championships
The state finals of high school football action in the State of California are upon us. A loaded slate of state playoffs games highlight action in the California this weekend.
Friday’s slate features a pair of games between teams from different sections. Helix of La Mesa faces Folsom in the Division 1AA game. Cajon of San Bernardino faces Serra of San Mateo in the 2AA game.
Mater Dei vs. De La Salle is the premier game and the highlight of our State Saturday Preview of the three games at Sacramento State, which we will have full coverage of.
Saturday’s action features a pair of CIF Southern Section teams in Mater Dei and Grace Brethren, with Los Angeles City Section power Narbonne also playing.
Here’s a preview of Saturday’s state championship games in Sacramento:
Division 1AA: Mater Dei Monarchs vs. De La Salle Spartans at 8 pm.
The state’s premier matchup and one of the premier games in the country is at Hornet Stadium. Mater Dei (14-0) is looking for its first state title. The Monarchs are the top ranked team by Maxpreps and USAToday and are on the verge of a mythological national championship.
Bruce Rollinson is also looking for this first victory against the Spartans having gone 0-4, with the last game in 2001.
The Monarchs are making their first trip to state and are loaded, especially on offense. The nation’s top ranked junior and USC commit JT Daniels has four D1 wide outs, led by the third ranked senior in the country Amon-Ra St. Brown, and has Alabama commit Tommy Brown on the offensive line.
The defense has D1 talent at each level, led by top 100 senior recruit Solomon Tuliaupupu at linebacker, 16 sack Nathan Logoleo on the defensive line, and 5-interception Stephon Robins as the senior leader of a young talented secondary.
De La Salle (11-1) has rolled through the North Coast Section once again for its 26th consecutive section title. Senior star running back Kairee Robinson could be back following an injury but Shamar Garrett and Henry To’oto’o have filled in admirably.
To’oto’o, a junior, has played both ways this season and is one of California’s top junior defensive players. Both he and Garrett had touchdowns in the Spartans’ 24-7 win over 1A state finalist Pittsburg on December 2nd.
The Spartans are also looking to avenge a loss in the state final last year to St. John Bosco.
The Pick: Mater Dei
Division 1A: Narbonne Gauchos vs Pittsburg Pirates at 4 pm.
A pair of powers from Los Angeles County and the East Bay face off in the state title game. Narbonne (11-3) of Harbor City is looking for its second title and first since 2015.
The Gauchos rolled through the City Section and last week’s game against Paraclete, winning 9 straight games by at least 34 points after a 2-3 challenging non league schedule.
The duo of Rutgers commit Jalen Chatman and Jermar Jefferson leads the team at quarterback and running back with Jefferson’s 225 yards and 4 scores last week against Paraclete.
USC commit Raymond Scott leads the defense at linebacker, along with Logan Taylor’s 10 interceptions in the defensive backfield.
Pittsburg (9-2) advances to its first state title after a convincing 37-14 win over Granite Bay. Justin Boyd threw three touchdowns in the win. They rebounded from a loss to De La Salle in the North Coast Section Open Division Final.
Boyd’s older cousin A’jae Boyd is the leading receiver and is second on the team in interceptions on defense. Junior Jack Lacy III is the leading tackler with 4 star junior Jacob Bandes at defensive lineman.
The common opponent for both teams is a rough evening in Corona with Matt Logan’s Centennial Huskies handing each a 40+ point blowout. The Pirates’ defeat was 4 points less.
The Pick: Narbonne
Division 2A: Grace Brethren Lancers vs Saint Francis Lancers at 12 noon.
The first of two private school showdowns on Saturday involves Grace Brethren (13-2) of Simi Valley traveling to Sacramento to face Saint Francis (10-4) of Mountain View.
Grace Brethren went undefeated through the Tri-Valley League and won the Division 8 CIF Southern Section Championship.
Grace Brethren advanced in a 24-8 win over Aquinas last week. They have incorporated freshman Michael Zele and his 21 touchdowns with a strong rushing game with two 1,000+ yard rushers in fellow freshman Seven McGee and Lontrelle Diggs.
Josh Henderson and Justin Skidmore are tied for the team lead in tackles with 154. Senior Jauqine Vukobradovich leads the defensive backfield with 8 interceptions. Talented sophomore Brandon Jones is part of the group.
Greg Calcagno’s Saint Francis team rebounded from a loss to Serra in the CIF Central Coast Section Open Division 2 final last week with a win against Manteca in the Division 2A State Regional Final.
The team survived a difficult West Catholic Athletic League en route to a third place finish.
Darrell Page had 2 rushing touchdowns last week in the regional final. He has 2,206 rushing yards this season and sets the tone for the offense.
The defense is led by a pair of highly rated recruits. US Army All-American Tyler Manoa is an impact defensive lineman, while junior outside linebacker Joshua Pakola is a top 100 recruit.
The Pick: Saint Francis.