It’s the third week of action for Central Coast Section prep football and the contenders are starting to separate from the pretenders, heading into Week 1 of league for most alignments. Here is a look at some interesting games this week:
Half Moon Bay (2-0) at Cap (1-1)
7 p.m. Friday
Capuchino earned its first victory of 2016, holding off South San Francisco 27-20 last Friday. The Mustangs led 27-0 at halftime. Cap fell to Woodside 19-0 in its opening game.
Cap is led by Teisina Fifita who is a better runner than passer. Fifita rushed for 54 yards on 15 carries in the opening loss to Woodside. Other Mustangs to keep an eye on are running back Abnan Grajeda who ran for a touchdown against South City and Brandon Malangi who had a touchdown rushing and receiving against the Warriors.
The Mustangs are conservative offensively and do not have much of a passing game. Cap is coached by Ben White whose father George White has the football field at Galileo High named after him. Cap is bringing in portable lights for this game.
Half Moon Bay will counter with its trio of junior offensive stars, running back Chase Hofmann who has rushed for more than 300 yards in two games, quarterback Gavin Tomberlin and receiver Hayden Von Almen. The Cougar defense has been porous at times and prone to giving up big plays.
Serra (0-2) at Pittsburg (2-0), 7 p.m. Friday
Visiting Serra has suffered blowout losses to St. Mary’s-Stockton and De La Salle, both state-ranked teams, yielding more than 100 points in the process. The Padres have been porous against the run but could get a lift if senior linebacker TC Lavulo is fully healthy. He’s had a strained hamstring. The Padres are dangerous on offense with Leki Nunn either at quarterback or moving to running back or receiver and Isaiah Kendrick and Lavulo are tough ball-carriers. Joe Damelio and Luke Bottari have both spelled Nunn at QB this season and both would start behind center at a lot of schools. The Padres have committed too many careless mistakes so far, including a punt for minus yardage, an errant punt snap, etc. They can’t afford that against a good Pirate team.
Pittsburgh has rolled over Mitty and Logan in non-league play, outscoring the Monarchs and Colts 97-6 over their final six quarters. Montaz Thompson has rushed for 463 yards and seven touchdowns in two games and benefits from a huge offensive line. Iffy Joyner leads the Pittsburg defense with two sacks, five tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
Sacred Heart Prep (0-2) vs. Palma (0-2), 7:30 p.m. at Monterey Peninsula College on Friday
Palma is winless but put up a gallant fight last week in an 8-7 loss to WCAL favorite St. Francis. The Lancers needed a fourth-quarter touchdown to win it.
Sacred Heart Prep has been out-scored 49-15 in its two non-league games, including a 30-12 loss to San Benito. The Gators have won four consecutive section titles and made a state playoff bowl title game last season. Palma defeated SHP 31-28 last season.
Emilio Martinez leads Palma, rolling up more than 300 yards on the ground so far.
Milpitas (2-0) vs. North Salinas (1-1), 7:30 p.m. Friday at Rabobank Stadium
The visiting Trojans are led by quarterback Tyree Bracy and his brother Tariq, a pair of playmakers. Milpitas is coming off a strong effort, scoring 49 points in a win against Antioch. The Trojans are huge up front, with two offensive linemen who are 6-foot-8 and more than 300 pounds each. Tim Burkhardt had two touchdowns last week for North Salinas and is the Vikings’ top threat.
San Benito (2-0) at Los Gatos (1-1), 7 p.m. Friday
San Benito is coming off an impressive 42-14 win against Palo Alto. Los Gatos is trying to rebound from a loss at home to Corona del Mar which defeated Sacred Heart Prep for the 2013 state playoff bowl title. The host Wildcats are paced by QB Kyle Reid who has thrown for 253 yards and two scores in two games, running backs Will Fordyce and Ben Grasty and receiver Jake Tonges (nine catches, 164 yards, two TDs).
San Benito is paced by running backs Hunter Nye and Albert Lopez, who have both rushed for more than 100 yards and scored a touchdown.
Del Oro (2-0) vs. Bellarmine College Prep at San Jose City College, 7 p.m. Friday
The Bells have re-loaded with 16 new starters and have stormed to non-league wins against Menlo-Atherton (34-20) and Clovis North (32-21).
Third-year starters Jackson Burrill (fullback/linebacker) and Bobby Facchino (guard) lead the Bells, who are also paced by two-way lineman Cade Hall and quarterback Ike Ogbogu.
Bellarmine edged Del Oro 34-31 last season in Loomis. The Golden Eagles won last season’s state Division II-AA playoff bowl. Del Oro is paced by QB Stone Smartt, running backs Camrion Davis and Dalton Gee and receiver/defensive back Mason Hurst.
