League championships and playoff berths will be clinched this week for high school football teams across Southern California. TeamFB7 highlights the top matchups to watch this week involving SoCal teams in Week 10.
Don’t go printing your brackets based on playoff projections yet because a whole lot will be shaken up this week with some huge high school football games to be played in Southern California. Several league championships will be decided this week and some teams face win-or-go-home scenarios.
Breaking Down the Top High School Football Matchups in Southern California for Week 10
St. John Bosco vs. Mater Dei
Eight CIF championship games have been played between these two teams in the last 12 years and one of these schools has competed for every CIF championship between 2011 and 2025. This game will likely decide who gets second place in the Trinity League. Both teams run the ball well and have running backs coming off career games. Maliq Allen ran for 136 yards with 4 touchdowns for St. John Bosco against Servite last week. Asir Nembhard ran for a school-record 339 yards against Orange Lutheran last week.
Both defenses are hitting their strides right now. Mater Dei can stop the run with Ezekiel Su’a and Michael Davis at linebacker and DJ Clanton has been a top pass rusher in the league. Josiah Poyer is a run stopper for St. John Bosco and the secondary has been good despite major injuries. TeamFB7 broke down this game with some players to watch here.
San Juan Hills vs. Mission Viejo
San Juan Hills shut out San Clemente last week to set up this Alpha League championship game. The Stallions held a shorthanded San Clemente offense to 60 yards passing and had 2 interceptions, including a 52-yard pick-six by Arthur Tuverson to seal the win. San Juan Hills has been playing with a backup quarterback in Parker Armstrong, but he was a two-year starter at Scripps Ranch and has experience. Armstrong completed 16 of 19 passes for 168 yards last week against San Clemente. Texas State commit Luke Frith has 944 yards receiving with 14 touchdowns. Edge Maxwell Porter has 20 tackles for a loss with 8 sacks for the Stallions’ defense.
Mission Viejo has scored 127 points in three league games despite missing its starting running back. Carson Vandermade is back at running back this week and San Jose State committed receiver Jack Junker filled in nicely at the position with 424 yards and 7 touchdowns in three league games. Vandermade’s return moves Junker back to receiver and makes the offense more explosive for quarterback Brett Burnor. Maddox Mataele has had a breakout season with 11.5 sacks and I expect to see top cornerback Jordan Hicks manned up on Frith frequently in this one.
Bishop Amat vs. Sierra Canyon
Sierra Canyon has outscored its Mission League opponents 203-6 this season. Demarco Hernandez has been a pleasant surprise at quarterback for the Trailblazers with 15 touchdown passes and 5 rushing touchdowns. Cal commit Jaxsen Stokes has 8 rushing touchdowns and Micah Slade has been a top target for Hernandez. Sierra Canyon’s defensive line makes the headlines and rightfully so. Kasi Currie (Texas commit) and Marcus Fakatou (Ohio State commit) have been particularly dominant. Faruq Muhammad leads Sierra Canyon in tackles and Myles Baker has been dominant in the secondary.
Bishop Amat has just one loss this season, a nonleague loss to JSerra. Domenico Doran runs the offense effectively and the Lancers typically run the ball well, but won’t be able to do that this week. Matthew Blalock has 63 tackles with 14 for a loss for Bishop Amat. KJ Paea has 10.5 sacks and 2 forced fumbles. Bishop Amat is in line to be a top seed in Division 2 but may move up to Division 1 with a strong performance here.
Trabuco Hills vs. Newport Harbor
These teams have two of the better passing offenses in Orange County and this game will decide the Epsilon League championship. Trabuco Hills sophomore quarterback Jackson Verplancke has thrown for 204 yards per game with 22 touchdowns, just 2 interceptions and 7 rushing touchdowns. Luke Hoffman runs the ball well with 915 yards and 8 touchdowns.
Newport Harbor quarterback Jordan Spigarelli has thrown for 1,051 yards in four league games and the Sailors have scored 46 points per game in league play. Spigarelli spreads the ball around well and has two top receivers in Ryan Palmer and Shane McKibbin. Jackson Stremick has 2 interceptions on defense and is one of the top scorers on offense.
Lincoln vs. Cathedral Catholic
Lincoln was written off by many people after losing four of its first five games with some blowouts mixed in. The Hornets play two quarterbacks: Mount Miguel transfer Andre Jackson and Perris transfer Xavier Cruz. Dareyen Bridges has 794 yards receiving with 11 touchdowns. Seth Fanua leads Lincoln with 123 tackles and 20 for a loss. Freshman Davon Dunn leads the secondary with 3 interceptions along with Jaeveyion Allen.
Cathedral Catholic has won four consecutive games. USC commit Honor Fa’alave Johnson has been mostly relegated to defense but may be deployed more at running back in this game. JSerra transfer Koa Smith-Mayall has played well at quarterback with San Diego State commit Isaac Cook as his top target. New Mexico commit Ryder Molchanoff has 14.5 sacks to lead Cathedral Catholic’s defense.
