MaxPreps Top 10 Football Games of the Week

Six of the MaxPreps Top 10 Games of the Week feature teams in the Xcellent 25 rankings. Four ranked teams aim for regular season championships while the other two are already on to the postseason.

The action kicks off tonight when No. 11 DeSoto (Texas) travels more than 125 miles east to take on Longview. The winner takes home the District 11-5A title. Highlighting Friday night's action is an Indiana 5A sectional final with No. 15 Warren Central (Indianapolis) hosting Carmel in a rematch of a game decided by two points earlier this season. On Saturday, No. 22 Harrison (Farmington Hills, Mich.) continues defense of its Division 2 state title when it hosts perennial power Brother Rice (Bloomfield Hills) in a second-round playoff grudge match.

Dueling 7-3 records last week allowed Jamie DeMoney and Stephen Spiewak to remain tied at the top of the standings in our season-long predictions contest at 74-36 overall. Steve Montoya and Kevin Askeland share third place two games off the pace. Mitch Stephens remains in the cellar but is only six games behind the leaders. You can track our overall results and standings all season long by clicking here.

MAXPREPS TOP 10 FOOTBALL GAMES OF THE WEEK

No. 15 Warren Central (Indianapolis) at Carmel (Ind.)

It's rematch time in the Indiana 5A sectional finals, pitting the top two teams in the state who played a thriller earlier in the season. Warren Central won the Sept. 30 meeting at Lucas Oil Stadium, 22-20, on a field goal in the closing seconds of the game. It was the Warriors' third win over Carmel since 2009. Deionte Buckley, who is committed to Cincinnati, leads Warren Central's offense with 1,439 rushing yards and 26 touchdowns this season.

Carmel (10-1) was clicking on all cylinders when it beat Lawrence Central last week, 34-14. The Greyhounds got more than 100 rushing yards from senior back Jalen Duncan and their defense became first unit to hold Lawrence Central to less than 27 points all season. Carmel is coached by Kevin Wright, who led Warren Central to three consecutive state titles from 2003-05.

Mitch Stephens: Carmel 24, Warren Central 21
Steve Montoya: Warren Central 28, Carmel 26
Stephen Spiewak: Warren Central 24, Carmel 21
Kevin Askeland: Warren Central 50, Carmel 21
Jamie DeMoney: Carmel 26, Warren Central 21

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No. 11 DeSoto (Texas) at Longview (Texas)

DeSoto figures to have its hands full against Longview, whose only loss was to No. 21 Allen. This game, which was moved to today for television, will decide the outright District 11-5A championship. These teams shared the title a year ago after DeSoto lost the head-to-head matchup on the final week of the regular season. While the Eagles were prolific on offense last season (averaging 47 points per game), they were almost equally ineffective on defense, giving up 32 points per outing. But this year DeSoto is dominant on both sides of the ball, averaging 49 points per game while allowing an average of just 15.

Longview (8-1) is eying an eighth consecutive district championship, with titles coming at both the 5A and 4A levels. The Lobos will try to use their strong running game to keep the ball away from DeSoto's explosive offense and control the tempo of the game. Junior running back Tory White had a breakout game last week, running for more than 100 yards in a 45-19 blowout of Lee (Tyler).

Mitch Stephens: Longview 24, DeSoto 21
Steve Montoya: Longview 21, DeSoto 7
Stephen Spiewak: DeSoto 35, Longview 21
Kevin Askeland: DeSoto 48, Longview 34
Jamie DeMoney: DeSoto 41, Longview 35


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St. Joseph Regional (Montvale, N.J.) at Wayne Hills (Wayne, N.J.)

St. Joseph Regional ended Wayne Hills' 55-game winning streak in 2009 (17-15) and beat the Patriots again last season, 35-14. This year, St. Joseph Regional is 6-1, with only a 30-17 setback to Bergen Catholic (Oradell) in its loss column. The Green Knights bounced back from that loss with a 42-3 shellacking of previously unbeaten Pascack Valley (Hillsdale) last weekend, a game delayed one day by the Northeast snowstorm.

Wayne Hills has only three losses since 2005, and two are to St. Joseph Regional. This year, the Patriots are 8-0 and led by one of the top junior signal callers in Kevin Olsen. The 6-foot-2, 198-pounder is the son of coach Kevin Olsen and younger brother of Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen. Last week, the Patriots escaped an upset bid from Ramapo (Franklin Lakes), whom they trailed 21-10 in the second half before pulling away with a 31-24 win.

Mitch Stephens: St. Joseph Regional 28, Wayne Hills 21
Steve Montoya: Wayne Hills 28, St. Joseph Regional 21
Stephen Spiewak: St. Joseph Regional 28, Wayne Hills 17
Kevin Askeland: St. Joseph Regional 35, Wayne Hills 28
Jamie DeMoney: St. Joseph Regional 35, Wayne Hills 21

Watch more videos of Wayne Hills football
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Belen Jesuit (Miami) at No. 16 Central (Miami)

The winner will emerge with the 6A District 16 championship. Belen Jesuit is 7-1, losing only to former Xcellent 25 squad Columbus (Miami) on Sept. 9, 31-21. Last Friday, the Wolverines whipped Mater Academy (Hialeah Gardens), 43-7, one week after they erased a 21-point deficit to defeat Northwestern (Miami), 36-28. Belen Jesuit features a Wing-T ground attack led by FBS running back prospect Imani Davis.

Central also relies heavily on its run game. The Rockets have one of the nation's top sophomores at tailback in Joe Yearby, who had 292 rushing yards and five touchdowns in a 37-34 win over Columbus (Miami) on Sept. 30. Last week, Central beat rival Northwestern, 31-18, and in the process eliminated the Bulls from the playoffs for the first time in 20 years.


Mitch Stephens: Central 35, Belen Jesuit 21
Steve Montoya: Central 34, Belen Jesuit 14
Stephen Spiewak: Central 28, Belen Jesuit 17
Kevin Askeland: Central 28, Belen Jesuit 27
Jamie DeMoney: Central 30, Belen Jesuit 22

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Phoebus (Hampton, Va.) at Hampton (Va.)

Phoebus has taken six straight in this rivalry including a pair of wins last season – all part of the Phantoms' 52-game winning streak that was subsequently halted two weeks ago in a 14-9 loss to Woodside (Newport News, Va.). Last Friday, Phoebus bounced back with a 42-7 rout of Gloucester. Dezmond Bellfield and Tony Pittman each ran for more than 100 yards with two touchdowns, according to the Newport News Daily Press.

Hampton has won its last five games to improve to 7-2 for the season. The Crabbers have played great defense of late, limiting six of their last seven opponents to eight points or less. They have four shutouts on the year. Hampton leads the all-time series with Phoebus 29-13.

Mitch Stephens: Hampton 14, Phoebus 13
Steve Montoya: Hampton 17, Phoebus 14
Stephen Spiewak: Phoebus 17, Hampton 10
Kevin Askeland: Phoebus 40, Hampton 30
Jamie DeMoney: Hampton 20, Phoebus 17


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No. 6 Gaffney (S.C.) at Spartanburg (S.C.)

This season Gaffney has looked unstoppable, invincible, unbeatable – just about any "ble" that describes dominant play you could think of. The Indians' offense averages more than 52 points while its defense is allowing a little more than 10 points per game – a six-touchdown margin of victory per game. First-year starting quarterback Joey Copeland has been a breakout star. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound senior has completed more than 68 percent of his passes for 2,845 yards with 33 touchdowns and only six interceptions. He's also run for more than 400 yards and 15 scores.

Spartanburg hopes home-field advantage will help improve its fortunes against Gaffney. The Vikings have lost six of the last eight meetings in the series. Though Gaffney is undefeated and Spartanburg is 3-1 in 4A Region III (8-2 overall), the Vikings can claim a share of the region title with a win on Friday.

Mitch Stephens: Gaffney 35, Spartanburg 28
Steve Montoya: Gaffney 38, Spartanburg 24
Stephen Spiewak: Gaffney 42, Spartanburg 30
Kevin Askeland: Gaffney 52, Spartanburg 14
Jamie DeMoney: Gaffney 37, Spartanburg 17

Watch more videos of Gaffney football
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No. 18 Lake Travis (Austin, Texas) at Cedar Park (Texas)

A win would give Lake Travis its third undefeated regular season in four years and the outright championship in District 25-4A. The Cavaliers are seventh in the MaxPreps Freeman Rankings. They have scored more than 50 points in six of the last seven games and are averaging more than 51 points this season. Junior quarterback Baker Mayfield has completed more than 68 percent of his passes for 2,338 yards with 29 touchdowns and just five interceptions.

Cedar Park knocked off Lake Travis, 35-21, to claim the 25-4A title a year ago but then was beaten by the Cavaliers in the playoffs, 21-20. The Timberwolves are 8-1 this season and haven't lost since falling to 5A Westwood (Round Rock) on Aug. 26, 21-13.


Mitch Stephens: Lake Travis 35, Cedar Park 21
Steve Montoya: Lake Travis 28, Cedar Park 21
Stephen Spiewak: Lake Travis 48, Cedar Park 24
Kevin Askeland: Lake Travis 56, Cedar Park 21
Jamie DeMoney: Lake Travis 49, Cedar Park 17

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Wheaton-Warrenville South (Wheaton, Ill.) at Lincoln-Way East (Frankfort, Ill.)

As the Illinois playoffs enter their second week, back-to-back defending champion Wheaton-Warrenville South is playing its best football of the season. The Tigers have won six straight games after starting off with a 1-3 record. Northwestern-bound running back Dan Vitale ran for 223 yards and three touchdowns on 34 carries in a 23-16 win over Providence (New Lenox) last week, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Lincoln-Way East hopes to reverse a recent trend of losing its second game in the playoffs, which it has done the last three seasons. This year, the Griffins went undefeated in the regular season for the first time since 2006 and  hope to capture their first state title since 2005. Senior quarterback Blake Winkler threw three touchdown passes in their 35-7 victory against Plainfield South in round one of the playoffs.

Mitch Stephens: Lincoln Way East 21, Wheaton-Warrenville South 17
Steve Montoya: Lincoln-Way East 41, Wheaton-Warrenville South 20
Stephen Spiewak: Lincoln-Way East 28, Wheaton-Warrenville South 14
Kevin Askeland: Wheaton-Warrenville South 30, Lincoln-Way East 28
Jamie DeMoney: Lincoln-Way East 24, Wheaton-Warrenville South 21

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Loyola (Los Angeles) at Alemany (Mission Hills, Calif.)

The Serra League crown goes to the winner. For Loyola, a victory would also help cap a major turnaround season. The Cubs enter the game with a 7-1 record – already a huge improvement from their 3-7 mark a year ago. Loyola battled past Bishop Amat (La Puente) last week, 14-3. Junior running back Wyatt Bradford had his fourth game with more than 100 rushing yards of the season.

Last week, Alemany (6-2) slipped past Crespi (Encino), 30-28, with a 41-yard fourth-quarter field goal by John Sanchez providing the margin of victory. According to the Los Angeles Daily News, junior quarterback Devon Dunn had 259 yards passing with a touchdown and also ran for 74 yards and two scores.

Mitch Stephens: Alemany 28, Loyola 21
Steve Montoya: Loyola 17, Alemany 10
Stephen Spiewak: Loyola 17, Alemany 14
Kevin Askeland: Loyola 48, Alemany 42
Jamie DeMoney: Alemany 28, Loyola 23

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Brother Rice (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.) at No. 22 Harrison (Farmington Hills, Mich.)

Brother Rice is in the same position it was a year ago: playing at top-ranked and undefeated Harrison in the second round of the Division 2 playoffs. The Warriors hope the outcome is different compared to their 37-27 loss in 2010. As a team, Brother Rice is probably better than its 6-4 record would indicate. The four losses were by a combined margin of just 12 points and all were against tough competition. Two weeks ago, the Warriors beat Chandler Park Academy (Harper Woods), 38-2, to give coach Al Fracassa his 400th career victory.

Last week, Harrison opened the playoff portion of its Division 2 state title defense with a comfortable 35-0 win over Seaholm (Birmingham). It was the Hawks' third shutout of the year and sixth since their 24-game winning streak began last season. Receiver Aaron Burbridge, a Michigan State commit, had more than 100 yards receiving and a touchdown.

Mitch Stephens: Harrison 28, Brother Rice 20
Steve Montoya: Harrison 42, Brother Rice 31
Stephen Spiewak: Harrison 42, Brother Rice 21
Kevin Askeland: Harrison 26, Brother Rice 0
Jamie DeMoney: Harrison 23, Brother Rice 20


Jamie DeMoney is National Content Manager for XOS Digital PlayerOnDemand. He has covered high school sports and recruiting for more than 15 years.