The first week of action in the North Coast Section gave us an idea of where teams are to start the season. The stakes are raised for many in a second week full of big-time games. We once again break apart our games of the week into two segments, and focus now on the biggest games between NCS schools and other programs outside the section.
St. Mary’s-Stockton (0-0) at Cardinal Newman (1-0), Friday, 7 pm: The Cardinals were not tested in a 62-19 rout over Del Norte last week, as junior quarterback Jordan Brookshire threw three first-half touchdowns and Damian Wallace scored four touchdowns, including a return on the opening kickoff.
St. Mary’s, meanwhile, did not play last week and has had all summer to prepare for Cardinal Newman’s zone read attack. The Rams made things difficult for Brookshire last year in a 35-15 St. Mary’s victory. Attempting to slow down the Cardinals’ offense this year will be a Ram defense led by standout defensive lineman David Corralejo.
A top weapon to watch offensively for St. Mary’s will be junior receiver Keaton Hampton, while junior offensive lineman Popo Aumauve is another player to watch up front in this game.
While high-profile out-of-section games such as this one rarely have a huge impact on future playoff seeding, both teams are preparing for difficult league schedules, and would love nothing more than to use a win in this game as a launching pad for a successful season.
De La Salle (0-1) at Serra (0-0), Friday, 7 pm: Senior running back Antoine Custer was explosive in last week’s 26-21 loss, accounting for 226 yards from scrimmage, but Spartans’ coach Justin Alumbaugh was undoubtedly less than pleased by the tackling performance put forth by the De La Salle defense, not to mention a few crucial turnovers from the offensive side of the ball.
That being said, there is always a sentiment within the De La Salle program that a loss is an opportunity to improve each day, and fix whatever errors may have been, so Serra and coach Patrick Walsh are sure to anticipate a Spartans’ team that has improved in both areas over the past week.
The Padres, meanwhile, have to be eager to hit the field after an off-season filled with discussion regarding section sanctions. The offensive trio of quarterback Leki Nunn, running back Kelepi Lataimua, and receiver Brandon Monroe will look to provide some fireworks for Serra, which has the benefit of getting De La Salle in its second straight out-of-section road game to start the year.
As Prep2Prep's John Murphy noted in his CCS preview, Serra has played the Spartans better at home, including two years ago, when the Padres led by a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter.
Milpitas (0-0) at Antioch (1-0), Friday, 7 pm: Antioch was quick to illustrate last week that it is far from a one-man show, as nine different Panthers carried the ball in a 62-7 win over Acalanes.
Antioch ran for 506 yards as a team, led by junior Najee Harris’ 187 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries. Senior Nick Perry also topped the 100-yard mark, going for 123 yards and two scores on just nine carries.
The Panthers’ defense will be tasked with playing big against a Milpitas team that won its league last year. The big side of things, though, will come from Trojans’ offensive and defensive lineman Christian Haangana, who measures 6-6, 380. Haangana will look to pave the way for quarterback Oliver Svirsky, a transfer from Palo Alto, and running back Cros Chavez.
Will C Wood (1-0) at Concord (1-0), Friday, 7 pm: Concord is coming off a tense one-point victory over an experienced Benicia team, 14-13, and now gets to face another veteran team in Wood.
The Wildcats raced past a solid Vista del Lago team last week, 47-22, and return nearly their entire offense from last year.
“We are coming off one hard-fought game and heading into another one,” said Concord coach Mark Bywater. (Wood) will provide a big challenge for our young players with the number of starters they return on offense. Both clubs played well last year and we expect nothing less this Friday night.”
Senior running back Harold Tidwell carried the load for Concord last week, running for 204 yards and both Minutemen scores in the win over Benicia. The run-oriented look for the Minutemen could prevent a repeat of last year, when Concord defeated the Wildcats in a 52-39 shootout.
St. Ignatius (0-0) at Campolindo (1-0): The Cougars started slow last week, trailing 6-0 after one quarter to Hayward, but eventually pulled away for the 34-14 win.
Junior quarterback Jacob Westphal paced the Campo offense, going 11-of-15 for 185 yards and two touchdowns. Senior Madison Young stepped up as a top target for the Cougars, with four catches for 69 yards. Campolindo will look to improve in the turnover category, however, after losing the ball three times last Friday.
Despite being a returning state champion, the Cougars are viewing this game against last year’s CCS Division III finalists as a major challenge for their program.
“This game is a nice ‘reach’ for our program, stepping up to play a traditional WCAL power,” said Campolindo coach Kevin Macy. “Their style of play is much like ours. We have a lot of inexperienced players that will have to grow up fast in a game like this. Though it’s early in the season, a game like this will impact the growth rate of our confidence moving forward.”
Best of the Rest ...: Marin Catholic (0-1) looks to shake off a season-opening shutout loss to Cosumnes Oaks when it faces Menlo-Atherton (0-0). The Wildcats reached the red zone four times in the loss, without anything to show for it.
Best of the Rest 2 ...: El Cerrito (0-1) travels to Sac-Joaquin power Inderkum, which routed Fairfield 71-6 in the opener. El Cerrito led 14-0 at one point before falling to defending Northern Section Division II champion Sutter, 28-21.
