While the majority of the focus in the Central Coast Section this week will be on the Los Gatos-Wilcox showdown, which is featured in our NorCal Games of the Week, there are multiple key matchups with league title implications on tap as the calendar turns to October.
Terra Nova (3-1) @ No. 11 Sacred Heart Prep (3-1), Friday, 3 p.m.
A matchup that’s typically decided second place in the PAL Bay Division behind Menlo-Atherton, the Tigers and Gators always seem to be a good bet for a tight game. Both teams have experience in tight games against WCAL teams as Terra Nova opened with a 26-24 loss to Riordan and SHP beat St. Ignatius 28-21 on Sept. 7. In a league with just five games, there’s absolutely no margin for error for teams gunning for a league championship. While the winner will have a chance to take down M-A, the loser will be in a serious hole.
No. 17 Aptos (1-3, 0-1 PCAL Gabilan) @ No. 15 Carmel (3-1, 1-0), Saturday, 2 p.m.
A major dichotomy of styles will be the theme on Saturday afternoon as the Padres play their first home Gabilan Division game. While Carmel likes to strike quickly with quarterback Kai Lee and running back Dakota Mornhinweg, Aptos runs the same wing T system as always, though it hasn’t generated the same results as last year after graduating quarterback Hunter Matys and running back Marcos Reyes. Fullback Josh Powell is still powering his way through the defenders for the Mariners, and he’ll need to do more of that on Saturday if Aptos wants to avoid falling to 0-2 in league play.
Lincoln (2-1, 1-0 BVAL Mt. Hamilton) @ No. 22 Leland (2-2, 1-0), Thursday, 7 p.m.
Aside from the same blue-and-gold color schemes, it would be hard to find more different teams than Leland and Lincoln. The Chargers have just 27 men on their roster and rely on the quarterback play of Carson Yates, who has already thrown for 865 yards and rushed for another 313. Younger brother Corbin is his top target, with 16 catches for 279 yards and four touchdowns, but he also has a major deep threat in Siddhant Thadani, who has 246 yards on 12 receptions.
Running back Jesse Cavanna averages 8.2 yards per carry when Yates isn’t running himself, and even with their thin roster, the Chargers have averaged over 40 points per game so far this year. However, they’ve also allowed 139 points through four games, and it won’t be easy to stop Lincoln’s rushing attack. With 49 players, the Lions have a clear advantage in depth and a bell cow in Adam Arenas, who has already gained 550 yards on 71 carries. Junior Rolando Prado (40 carries-242 yards) and sophomore Epoki Fakosi (25-231) round out the run game for a Lions team that can eat up yards, dominate time of possession and keep the Leland offense off the field while controlling the game.
Arroyo Grande (4-2) @ No. 5 Menlo-Atherton (1-3), Friday, 7 p.m.
While facing Arroyo Grande won’t be quite as ridiculous a task as the Bears have faced the last three weeks, they’re still going to face yet another strong opponent to close nonleague play. The Eagles took Fresno power Bullard to overtime before falling last week, and they’ll roll into town Friday night with an elite running back in Caleb Tomasin, who ran for 240 yards in an Aug. 30 win over Centennial-Bakersfield. Slowing him down will be a major point of emphasis for a Menlo-Atherton defense that has allowed at least 38 points in each of its last three games, though those struggles are understandable when considering the quality of competition the Bears have dealt with lately.
No. 10 Half Moon Bay (4-0) @ San Mateo (4-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
For all the momentum the Bearcats have stockpiled through nonleague play, they’ll be running into a buzzsaw Friday night when they host a Cougars team that has trounced any and all competition thus far, including an eye-popping 40-0 win over Sacred Heart Prep. San Mateo also has a shutout win over a Bay Division team, beating a rebuilding Aragon squad 34-0.
The San Mateo defense is the best in the section so far this year, allowing just 16 points in four games, but Half Moon Bay not only has the ability to strike quickly but often does so with tremendous field position. The Cougars are a phenomenal punt blocking team, with quarterback William Moffitt perhaps even better on special teams than he is running the triple option.
Saratoga (4-1, 1-0 SCVAL El Camino) @ Monta Vista (4-1, 1-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
What was supposed to be a rebuilding year for the Matadors took an enormous positive turn last week with a convincing win over Gunn, instilling faith that the Monta Vista program is entering a golden age under second-year head coach Caezar Agront. Having allowed just 22 points in their past four games, the Matadors will have an enormous test on defense when Saratoga rolls into town with quarterback Payton Stokes, who has torched opposing secondaries so far on the year as the No. 2 passer in the entire section in terms of yards per game. He only trails highly-touted college prospect Carl Richardson of Salinas, throwing for an average of 345.2 yards.
Saratoga has four receivers with at least 250 yards already on the year, but the two that merit the most attention are Max Muilenburg (32 catches-529 yards, 7 touchdowns) and George Bian (25-415, 4 TDs). Tyler Prowse has just 15 catches but has found the end zone on five of those, and with so much focus on the passing game, running back Tyler Chaffin-Price has averaged 8.4 yards per carry.
Best of the Rest
Hillsdale (3-1) and Menlo (2-2) open PAL Ocean play Friday afternoon just down the road from the Terra Nova-SHP game in a matchup showcasing a bevy of two-way starters.
Mountain View (4-0) travels to Milpitas (1-4, 0-1 SCVAL De Anza) with a chance to crack the upper echelon of the SCVAL while the Trojans will try to bounce back from a blowout loss at Los Gatos.
In the WCAL, St. Ignatius (3-1, 1-0) will host Valley Christian (4-0, 1-0) Saturday afternoon and St. Francis (1-3, 0-1) will host Sacred Heart Cathedral (0-4, 0-1) in a matchup where both teams will be playing with a sense of urgency. The Fightin’ Irish have struggled on defense while St. Francis has had a hard time putting points on the board, getting only a kick return touchdown in last week’s loss to Valley Christian.
