There are multiple potential league championship games across Southern California this week. TeamFB7 highlights the top high school football games to watch this week involving SoCal teams.
We are getting a good idea of where teams stand in their respective leagues and there are some crucial matchups this week. The Trinity League and Alpha League championships will likely be decided this week and there are plenty of other intriguing games.
Breaking Down the Top High School Football Matchups in Southern California for Week 8
Bishop Amat vs. Notre Dame/Sherman Oaks
Bishop Amat’s defense was excellent last week in a 28-7 win over Chaminade where it allowed fewer than 100 yards of offense and didn’t allow an offensive touchdown. Brandon Billups has been leading Bishop Amat’s secondary and KJ Paea had 2 sacks with 2 forced fumbles last week. The Lancers’ offense struggled a bit and had fewer than 150 yards of offense. Quarterback Domenico Duran didn’t play for Bishop Amat last week and the offense is better with him on the field.
Notre Dame is 7-0 and dominated Loyola offensively last week. Noel Washington ran for 152 yards with 4 touchdowns and Tahj Skinner has thrown 18 touchdowns with just 2 interceptions this season. The Knights have forced 18 turnovers this season and Skinner leads the defense with 3 interceptions.
Corona del Mar vs. Capistrano Valley
Corona del Mar is 7-0 and features a ton of two-way skill players who make a big impact. Nolan Scott leads the Sea Kings in receiving and has 2 forced fumbles with 2 interceptions on defense. Princeton commit Tucker Murray has 2 interceptions with a pick-six, a kick return touchdown and has 4 receiving touchdowns. John David Annett has separated himself as the starting quarterback after splitting reps to start the season.
Capo Valley suffered its first loss of the season last week against Crean Lutheran. Talon Spencer throws for 194 yards with 14 touchdowns and has rushed for 12 touchdowns. Tight end Colin Hooper leads the Cougars in receiving and their defense has forced 14 turnovers.
JSerra vs. Orange Lutheran
Both teams are coming off losses where they were dominated at times. Orange Lutheran fell 28-14 against St. John Bosco and struggled offensively with the exception of a 78-yard touchdown run by Ryan Christianson. Reagan Toki has been taking all the snaps at quarterback after splitting time through the first five games. King Rich Johnson has 3 interceptions with 2 pick-sixes to lead Orange Lutheran’s defense.
JSerra was dominated on both sides of the ball in a 41-7 loss to Mater Dei last week. Hayes Cloutier threw for 164 yards but turned the ball over twice and was pressured 14 times. The matchup to watch in this game is UCLA commit Godschoice Eboigbodin at defensive end facing Orange Lutheran’s left tackle Lucas Rhoa, a Texas commit.
Mission Viejo vs. San Clemente
This game will likely decide the Alpha League championship. The teams have two common opponents with the glaring difference being San Clemente beating Yorba Linda 28-0 while Mission Viejo had to scratch and claw to beat Yorba Linda 27-26 last week. Mission Viejo is a little banged up and had to use receiver Jack Junker at running back last week. Junker delivered with 180 yards and 2 touchdowns. Maddox Mataele is near the top of the Southern Section leaderboard in sacks this season and Jordan Hicks is a lock down cornerback.
San Clemente is 7-0 and Preston Beck is running its offense well completing 70 percent of his passes for 194 yards per game with 12 touchdowns. Ryan Matheson leads the Tritons in receiving and is tough to bring down for a receiver. BYU commit Jaxson Rex has 4 receiving touchdowns and leads the defense with 49 tackles, 3 interceptions and 2 pick-sixes. Mission Viejo allowed over 200 yards rushing to Yorba Linda last week but San Clemente has battled injuries at running back all season so it may be tough to exploit the Diablos’ run defense.
Santa Margarita vs. St. John Bosco
I broke down players to watch in this game in this story here. Santa Margarita has won 13 consecutive games, which is the most in the state, and its last loss came against St. John Bosco. The Eagles have been dominant on defense at all three levels. Freshman Aydan Steen leads the team in tackles and is second in sacks. He has a lot of help from defensive linemen Kingston Jimmerson, Isaia Vandermade and Kaleb Herndon in stopping the run. Santa Margarita’s offense isn’t as dominant but Fletch Palmer had a nice game against Servite last week at quarterback. Freshman Kiyan Callis has been the Eagles’ top receiver and Grant Van Raaphorst has been a big play threat for the Eagles.
St. John Bosco can match the Eagles defensively and is led by Washington safety commit Isala Wily-Ava. Tustin transfer Kingston Fatu has played very well since debuting two weeks ago for the Braves. Richard Orosco is the senior leader on a young defensive line that does a good job getting in the backfield. St. John Bosco quarterback Koa Malau’ulu threw for 289 yards with 4 touchdowns against Santa Margarita last season.
