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.
De La Salle vs. St. John Bosco is the premier game and highlights our preview of four of the five games on the two-day slate at Cerritos College.
Friday at Cerritos College
DIVISION 2–AA Aquinas vs. Clayton Valley at 4:00 p.m.
A pair of teams looking for their first state title meet up in the first game of Friday’s slate at Cerritos College.
The CIF Southern Section Division 5 winning Aquinas (13-2) fell just short of the state final in 2017, losing in the regional final. The Falcons of San Bernardino are coming off a 24-10 win over San Juan Hills last week and are on a 13-game winning streak. Senior running back Terayon Sweet rushed for three scores last week and forms a potent offensive duo with BYU wide receiver commit Terence Fall.
Clayton Valley (9-5) advanced to the state final following a CIF North Coast Division 2 Championship and a 28-26 thrilling win over Elk Grove in the regional final last week. The team from Concord is looking for its first state title after two appearances in 2015 and 2014. They are led on offense by the running back duo of junior Omari Taylor and senior Makhi Gervais. The duo each has over 1,000 yards and seven touchdowns.
DIVISION 1–AA Sierra Canyon vs. Fresno Central at 8:00 p.m.
Friday’s final game features a pair of top teams in Sierra Canyon and Central of Fresno.
Sierra Canyon is 2-1 in the state final and the Chatsworth team is looking to avenge last year’s loss in the Division 1A game to Liberty of Brentwood. Jon Ellinghouse’s team is 14-1 and Division 2 champion from the Southern Section. They are coming off a 38-20 win at Helix in the regional final.
They are led by two-way junior DJ Harvey, who shines at wide receiver and defensive back. Junior quarterback Chayden Peery has also improved throughout the season, throwing for 3,132 yards.
Central is 14-0 and champions of the Tri-River League and CIF Central Section Division 1. The Grizzlies got over a hurdle last week beating Oak Ridge in the regional final 38-32. Their season the past two years had ended to Folsom in the regional final.
The offense is led by the senior duo of quarterback Jameson Silva and wide receiver Jeremiah Hunter. Silva has thrown for 41 touchdowns and just one interception. The Cal commit Hunter has 1,070 receiving yards and 15 scores. The defense is led by senior linebacker Shando Lopez, who leads the team in tackles with 77.
Saturday at Cerritos College
DIVISION 1–A Corona Del Mar vs. San Mateo Serra at 4:00 p.m.
A pair of teams looking for their second state title meet up in the 4 PM game on Saturday as Corona Del Mar faces Serra of San Mateo.
The story of this game will be if Serra can slow the Corona Del Mar offense which averages 44 points per game and has been held under 40 points just twice this season, most recently in last week’s 14-7 win over Oceanside. Serra’s defense allows just under 13 points allowed.
Corona Del Mar (15-0) is the Division 3 champion from the Southern Section and is looking for its first state title since 2013. They are led by Washington commit Ethan Garbers. The senior quarterback has a loaded corp around him such as Stanford wide receiver commit John Humphreys, Washington tight end commit Mark Redman, and seniors Simon Hall and Bradley Schlom.
Serra is looking for its second state title in three years. They won the 2-AA title in 2017 over Cajon of San Bernardino. The Padres are 13-1 and won the CIF Central Coast Section Division 1 Championship. They beat San Joaquin Memorial 28-18 last week to advance to Cerritos.
Sophomore Dominique Lampkin has played well since replacing the injured Daylin Mclemore in late October. His top receiving target is senior Terence Loville who had a pick-six on defense last week in the win.
Open Division: De La Salle vs. St. John Bosco at 8 pm Cerritos College
A pair of top ten ranked teams in the country face off as MaxPreps.com’s eighth ranked De La Salle Spartans travel south to the play the top ranked St. John Bosco Braves. This is a rematch of the 2013 and 2016 Open Division final both won by St. John Bosco.
De La Salle is 12-1 and Division 1 champions of the CIF North Coast Section. Their lone loss this season is to the fifth ranked team in that same poll St. Thomas Aquinas in the opening week of the season. They are looking to break a three-season losing streak in the Open Division final.
Senior San Jose State commit Shamar Garrett is a threat at both running back and also defensive back. He along with James Coby lead the way on the ground with the dual threat ability of junior quarterback Dorian Hale, who has made strides in the passing game throughout the season.
St. John Bosco (12-1) avenged its league loss to Mater Dei last week in the CIF Southern Section Championship. The Braves are loaded on offense and are led by the second ranked senior in the country by Rivals.com Clemson commit DJ Uiagalelei at quarterback with senior UCLA commit Nathaniel Jones at running back. Oregon commit Kris Hutson and UCLA commit Logan Loya headline the wide receiving corp.
The defense is led up front by USC defensive line commit Kobe Pepe. USC junior commit Ma’a Gaoteote leads the linebacking corp. The secondary has a trio of Pac-12 commits in UCLA commits Jake Newman and Jonathan Vaughns, and Washington commit James Smith. Senior Josh Alford is also a Division 1 player.
