As part of the first week of the Central Coast Section playoffs, Prep2Prep will be previewing each playoff bracket, releasing our previews throughout the week. This feature focuses on the Open Division II bracket.
OVERVIEW
WCAL tri-champion St. Francis is the top seed for the Open 2 division, leading to an intra-city opener against Mountain View, a rare meeting between the public and private schools in the city. Mountain View got into the field via coin toss on Sunday, and is in the playoffs for the first time in five years, and first time ever under coach Shelley Smith.
The winner of that game will face the winner of Serra at Leigh. The Longhorns are hosting that game, but they face a red-hot Serra team which has won six straight since an 0-4 start(against elite competition), including a 48-13 rout of Bellarmine last week. Serra's win streak includes a 41-40 overtime victory against top-seed St. Francis, the lone blemish on the Lancers' slate. Leigh has won four in a row since a loss to Oak Grove.
Speaking of Oak Grove, the 8-2 Eagles will host Archbishop Mitty in the quarterfinals. Mitty is just 5-5 overall, but common opponent results suggest this could be a tight game. Both teams lost to St. Francis, while both won handily against Palo Alto. Oak Grove went unbeaten in the BVAL-Mount Hamilton, while Mitty finished the season with a 56-0 rout over Riordan and a seven-point loss to Bellarmine. The Monarchs also went to double overtime in a loss to Valley Christian.
Los Gatos hosts Palo Alto in the last quarterfinal for the bracket, with the winner advancing to play either Oak Grove or Mitty. Both teams lost to San Benito, but the Wildcats also beat Saratoga and Milpitas, both programs which handed losses to Palo Alto. Los Gatos is on a six-game winning streak, having captured the SCVAL-De Anza title.
Click here for the full printable bracket.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
St. Francis RB/DB Cyrus Habibi-Likio, St. Francis WR/DB Bennett Williams, St. Francis QB Reed Vettel, St. Francis OL/DL Tyler Manoa, Los Gatos QB Kyle Reid, Los Gatos RB Will Fordyce, Los Gatos TE/DE Jake Tonges, Los Gatos LB Kyle Smith, Oak Grove QB Tyler McGovern, Oak Grove RB Jarmar Julien, Jr., Oak Grove TE/LB Grady Ryan, Oak Grove RB/LB Deangelo Hester, Oak Grove OL/DL Dillan Misaalefua, Leigh QB Jared King, Leigh RB Michael Brohn, Leigh WR Mason Peterson, Leigh FS Leland Ledger
Serra QB/ATH Leki Nunn, Serra FB/LB TC Lavulo, Serra RB/DB Isiah Kendrick, Serra WR/DB Shane Villaroman, Mitty QB Phillip Tran, Mitty RB/LB Zondre Faraj-Washington, Mitty WR/DB Austin Kause, Mitty DE Nick Alftin, Mitty OL/DL Gabriel Meza, Palo Alto RB Paul Jackson III, Palo Alto OL/LB Peter Snodgrass, Palo Alto OL/DL Alec Cohen-Schisler, Mountain View RB/DB Elias Davidson, Mountain View QB Colin Dickerson, Mountain View LB Race Modderman
SLEEPER TEAM
It sounds weird to identify them as a sleeper team after the high pre-season expectations, but Serra fits the bill as arguably the most dangerous five-seed in any playoff bracket. The Padres played an elite non-league schedule (St. Mary's-Stockton, De La Salle, Pittsburg), and had to open with league play with Valley Christian, a seven-point loss.
Since then, Serra has gotten healthy (Lavulo was banged up early, along with Nunn), and gone on a tear. A Serra vs St. Francis semifinal should be epic, and any of the four semifinalists will have a strong shot at the division title.
TITLE GAME PREDICTION
St. Francis over Los Gatos
