MaxPreps Top 10 High School Football Games of the Week

Eight of this week's MaxPreps Top 10 Games of the Week involve teams ranked in the latest MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Football Rankings presented by the Army National Guard. Included is No. 3 Santa Margarita's matchup with fellow unbeaten St. Bonaventure (Ventura, Calif.). The Eagles scored a combined 127 points the last two games but should get a much sterner test this Friday.

Out east, Bergen Catholic (Oradell, N.J.) jumped to No. 6 in this week's rankings after it won at Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) last Friday. The Crusaders are now back in the Garden State to take on St. Joseph Regional (Montvale) in the conference opener for both teams.

The nationally ranked team on the biggest upset alert of the week might be Trinity (Louisville, Ky.). In order to extend their winning streak to 30 games, the ninth-ranked Shamrocks must win on the road against two-time defending Indiana 4A champion Indianapolis Cathedral.

With four weeks of our season-long contest in the books, Leland Gordon and Jamie DeMoney have correctly predicted 31 out of 40 winners and share a slim advantage over the rest of the field. Stephen Spiewak is only one game behind and Mitch Stephens, Steve Montoya and Kevin Askeland are each just two games off the pace.



Here's a look at this week's Top 10 Games of the Week along with predictions by MaxPreps staff writers and contributors Mitch Stephens, Steve Montoya, Stephen Spiewak, Kevin Askeland, Leland Gordon and Jamie DeMoney.

MaxPreps Top 10 Football Games of the Week

St. Bonaventure (Ventura, Calif.) at
Santa Margarita (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.)

After opening the year with a 48-0 rout of Garfield (Los Angeles), St. Bonaventure beat Inland Division powers Centennial (Corona, Calif.), 40-35, and Redlands East Valley (Calif.), 18-7. The Seraphs then improved to 4-0 by hammering Atascadero last week, 56-23. Arizona recruit Zachary Green led the way with three touchdown runs.

Read National Football Editor Stephen Spiewak's game preview

Santa Margarita won its last three games by a combined score of 162-6. Last week, the Eagles got six touchdowns and 168 rushing yards on only 16 carries from senior Ryan Wolpin in a 72-0 massacre of Carson. Nebraska-bound quarterback Johnny Stanton accounted for three touchdowns in the game and now has 14 this season.

This game will be featured on our new Friday Night Live web program, presented by American Family Insurance. Check out last week's Friday Night Live show and see what the new program has in store for you.



Mitch Stephens: Santa Margarita 38, St. Bonaventure 25
Steve Montoya: St. Bonaventure 28, Santa Margarita 27
Stephen Spiewak: Santa Margarita 31, St. Bonaventure 28
Kevin Askeland: Santa Margarita 45, St. Bonaventure 12
Leland Gordon: Santa Margarita 48, St. Bonaventure 35
Jamie DeMoney: Santa Margarita 41, St. Bonaventure 22


{PAGEBREAK}
Bergen Catholic (Oradell, N.J.) at St. Joseph Regional (Montvale, N.J.)

Bergen Catholic soared into the Top 10 of the latest MaxPreps Xcellent 25 rankings after earning a 42-35 road win over then-No. 10 Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) last week. Quarterback Jonathan Germano had his second-straight outstanding game, throwing for 308 yards and three touchdowns. The 5-foot-11, 195-pound senior has completed 68 percent of his passes for 626 yards and seven scores this year.

See the Bergen Catholic vs. St. Joseph Regional series history in the MaxPreps record book

St. Joseph Regional bounced back in a big way after losing 14-10 to Our Lady of Good Counsel (Olney, Md.) in Week 1. The Green Knights steamrolled Boston-area power Xaverian Brothers (Westwood, Mass.) last Saturday, 62-0. Junior quarterback Spencer Aukamp threw two touchdown passes in the first half as SJR built a commanding 41-0 advantage at intermission.

Mitch Stephens: Bergen Catholic 39, St. Joseph Regional 25
Steve Montoya: Bergen Catholic 35, St. Joseph Regional 21
Stephen Spiewak: Bergen Catholic 42, St. Joseph Regional 24
Kevin Askeland: Bergen Catholic 35, St. Joseph Regional 14
Leland Gordon: Bergen Catholic 35, St. Joseph Regional 27
Jamie DeMoney: Bergen Catholic 49, St. Joseph Regional 42


{PAGEBREAK}
Trinity (Louisville, Ky.) at Indianapolis Cathedral

With a 14-13 win over St. Xavier (Cincinnati) last week, Trinity held on to a spot in the national rankings and extended its multi-season winning streak – but just barely. Senior running back Dalyn Dawkins scored a 3-yard touchdown with less than a minute to play, securing the Shamrocks' 29th-straight win and 11th in a row over an out-of-state opponent.



Trinity is the No. 1 team in the South region in our Regional Computer Rankings

With only a 2-3 record, host Cathedral might be the most dangerous sub-.500 team in America. Last season, a similar three-loss Cathedral played undefeated and nationally ranked Moeller (Cincinnati) and came away with a 26-24 upset victory.

Mitch Stephens: Trinity 35, Cathedral 25
Steve Montoya: Trinity 42, Cathedral 29
Stephen Spiewak: Trinity 35, Cathedral 28
Kevin Askeland: Trinity 48, Cathedral 14
Leland Gordon: Trinity 24, Cathedral 21
Jamie DeMoney: Cathedral 32, Trinity 27


{PAGEBREAK}
Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati) at St. Xavier (Cincinnati)

It's only Week 1 of conference play, but the winner will have an early foothold in the Greater Catholic League standings. The teams have split the last six meetings in the series. In 2011, Moeller beat St. Xavier in the regular season but the Bombers got revenge in the Region 1 championship game.

See the Archbishop Moeller vs. St. Xavier series history in the MaxPreps record book

It is the first game of the season against an Ohio team for No. 11 Moeller. Last week's 34-27 victory at St. Xavier (Louisville, Ky.) was the Crusaders' lowest-scoring output in four victories. Cincinnati St. Xavier has a hard-luck 2-2 record with both losses coming to undefeated teams on scoring plays in the last minute of the game and with a total margin of defeat of just four points.



Mitch Stephens: Moeller 25, St. Xavier 23
Steve Montoya: Moeller 21, St. Xavier 14
Stephen Spiewak: St. Xavier 28, Moeller 24
Kevin Askeland: Moeller 35, St. Xavier 14
Leland Gordon: Moeller 17, St. Xavier 14
Jamie DeMoney: Moeller 28, St. Xavier 24


{PAGEBREAK}
Hoover (Ala.) at Northridge (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)

To have a legitimate chance at pulling an upset against 16th-ranked Hoover, Northridge will probably need a gigantic effort from bell cow junior running back Bo Scarborough. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound recent Alabama commit has 84 carries for 537 yards and six touchdowns so far for the 3-0 Jaguars.

See the Hoover High Preseason Xcellent 25 photo gallery

Hoover got its third-straight blowout win when it crushed Jackson-Olin (Birmingham, Ala.) last week. By the end of the first quarter, the Bucs had already built a 37-0 advantage. This season Hoover has outscored three regular-season opponents by a combined 130-16.

Mitch Stephens: Hoover 35, Northridge 18
Steve Montoya: Hoover 31, Northridge 20
Stephen Spiewak: Hoover 31, Northridge 10
Kevin Askeland: Hoover 48, Northridge 21
Leland Gordon: Hoover 35, Northridge 24
Jamie DeMoney: Hoover 28, Northridge 16


{PAGEBREAK}
Narbonne (Harbor City, Calif.) at Serra (Gardena, Calif.)

California commit A.J. Richardson returned two punts for touchdowns and also scored on running and receiving plays in Narbonne's nationally televised 61-6 blowout of Lakewood (Calif.) last week. Washington-bound quarterback Troy Williams has five rushing and four passing touchdowns for the 20th-ranked Gauchos, who have outscored their first three opponents by a combined 158-6.



See the MaxPreps Southern California Top 25 Football Rankings

The key to Serra's offense is, without question, quarterback Jalen Greene. The 6-3, 204-pound junior leads the undefeated Cavaliers in both passing and rushing yards and accounted for 12 touchdowns in three games. If comparative scores are an indicator of future results, Serra could be in trouble. The Cavaliers beat Long Beach Poly, 20-12, on Aug. 31. One week later, Poly was annihilated by Narbonne, 56-0.

Mitch Stephens: Narbonne 45, Serra 23
Steve Montoya: Narbonne 45, Serra 35
Stephen Spiewak: Narbonne 40, Serra 24
Kevin Askeland: Narbonne 56, Serra 12
Leland Gordon: Narbonne 49, Serra 21
Jamie DeMoney: Narbonne 37, Serra 21


{PAGEBREAK}
Cedar Hill (Texas) at DeSoto (Texas)

Cedar Hill continues to navigate through a brutal stretch in its early-season schedule, facing its third-straight opponent that has been ranked in the Xcellent 25 this season. The Longhorns are 1-2 with losses to No. 18 Allen (Texas) and to former Top-10 squad Washington (Miami) last Saturday.

This game is listed on the top Texas football games of the week

DeSoto, which debuted in the Xcellent 25 at No. 21 this week, was almost unstoppable on offense against top-notch competition en route to its 3-0 start to the season. Last week, the Eagles beat Trinity (Euless), 42-21, with 5-7, 135-pound junior quarterback Desmond White and Oregon-bound senior running back Dontre Wilson combining for more than 200 rushing yards and six touchdowns. It is only the second time since 2004 that Trinity surrendered 40 or more points in a game.



Mitch Stephens: DeSoto 34, Cedar Hill 20
Steve Montoya: DeSoto 35, Cedar Hill 21
Stephen Spiewak: DeSoto 38, Cedar Hill 21
Kevin Askeland: DeSoto 35, Cedar Hill 7
Leland Gordon: DeSoto 28, Cedar Hill 24
Jamie DeMoney: DeSoto 35, Cedar Hill 24


{PAGEBREAK}
Cass Tech (Detroit) vs. St. Mary Prep (Orchard Lake, Mich.)

After three straight easy wins against overmatched public school opponents, No. 22 Cass Tech (4-0) must ratchet up its focus as it prepares to meet another Catholic Central League power. Cass Tech – the defending Division 1 state champion – beat Brother Rice (Bloomfield Hills), 25-18, in the opener for its third-straight win over a CCL opponent.

See the MaxPreps game preview for Cass Tech vs. St. Mary Prep

In the last meeting between these teams, St. Mary Prep defeated Cass Tech, 28-6. That was in the opening weekend of the 2007 season. The reigning Division 3 champion Eagles have three consecutive blowout wins after dropping their opener at Muskegon on Aug. 24. Senior fullback Grant Niemiec ran for more than 200 yards with three touchdowns as OLSM pounded University of Detroit Jesuit last week, 43-7.

Mitch Stephens: Cass Tech 27, St. Mary Prep 25  
Steve Montoya: St. Mary Prep 21, Cass Tech 20
Stephen Spiewak: Cass Tech 28, St. Mary Prep 27
Kevin Askeland: Cass Tech 28, St. Mary Prep 24
Leland Gordon: Cass Tech 31, St. Mary Prep 21
Jamie DeMoney: St. Mary Prep 31, Cass Tech 28



{PAGEBREAK}
Hermitage (Richmond, Va.) at Varina (Richmond, Va.)

This No. 1-vs.-No. 2 matchup in Richmond could develop into a defensive struggle of sorts. Hermitage has allowed just seven points in its first two games and Varina surrendered only one touchdown in each of its first two outings. Hermitage has won the last four meetings in the series by a combined total of only 32 points.



View photos of Hermitage's season-opening win over Fork Union Military Academy

Hermitage's top player is MaxPreps Top 100 recruit Derrick Green, a 6-foot, 218-pound running back who had more than 2,000 rushing yards and scored 25 touchdowns as a junior. Varina has one of the nation's top defensive back prospects in Tim Harris, a 6-2, 173-pound Virginia commit, and will host its crosstown rival in one of the state's most titanic matchups.

Mitch Stephens: Hermitage 19, Varina 10
Steve Montoya: Hermitage 21, Varina 7
Stephen Spiewak: Hermitage 17, Varina 7
Kevin Askeland: Hermitage 14, Varina 7
Leland Gordon: Varina 21, Hermitage 20
Jamie DeMoney: Hermitage 24, Varina 12


{PAGEBREAK}
Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) vs. Servite (Anaheim, Calif.)

This will be Bishop Gorman's 25th game of the last nine seasons versus a non-Nevada opponent. The Gaels are 15-9 in the previous out-of-state matchups, including a 2-1 record this season. Their first loss of the year was last week at home to nationally ranked Bergen Catholic, 42-35.

View photos from last year's Bishop Gorman vs. Servite matchup

Servite wants to avenge a 31-28 loss to Bishop Gorman from last season and get its train back on the tracks after starting the year with a disappointing 1-2 record. The Friars were shut out for the first time since 2004 when they fell to Edison (Huntington Beach, Calif.) last week, 6-0.



Mitch Stephens: Bishop Gorman 36, Servite 16
Steve Montoya: Bishop Gorman 48, Servite 21
Stephen Spiewak: Bishop Gorman 35, Servite 17
Kevin Askeland: Bishop Gorman 35, Servite 7
Leland Gordon: Bishop Gorman 38, Servite 21
Jamie DeMoney: Bishop Gorman 28, Servite 14


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