The Mount Miguel Matadors will take on the Steele Canyon Cougars at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
On Friday, Mount Miguel came up short against Granite Hills and fell 29-16. The Matadors have struggled against the Eagles recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive lost matchup.
The match pitted two dominant signal callers against one another in Jeremiah Loper and Zachary Benitez. Benitez had a great game and threw for 296 yards and two TDs. Meanwhile, Loper did his best for the losing side, rushing for 39 yards and one score, while also throwing for 148 yards and one touchdown.
Meanwhile, Steele Canyon strolled into their game last Friday with a perfect record and they left with the same. Everything went their way against El Capitan as they made off with a 35-14 win. Given the Cougars' advantage in MaxPreps' California football rankings (they are ranked 202nd, while the Vaqueros are ranked 459th) , the win wasn't entirely unexpected.
Mount Miguel better focus on containing Gavin Caha and Abel Lopez as the pair were huge in Steele Canyon's win. Caha threw for 238 yards and three TDs, while Lopez rushed for 63 yards and one score. That's the most passing touchdowns Caha has posted since back in October of 2024.
Wins are hard to come by when you can't run the rock, something Steele Canyon proved: they limited El Capitan to a paltry 3.1 yards per carry. While three picked up at least four total tackles, Tyree Zarkaryan stood above the rest. He made four total tackles. Steele Canyon's run defense has been on the up-and-up: they allowed 5.08 yards per carry earlier this season, but they've only allowed 5.6 on average over their last five games.
Steele Canyon's defense didn't let Hayden Passanisi, get away unscathed either: they got into the backfield for four sacks. The team can thank three different players for their defensive prowess: Jose Leyva, Salim Underwood, and Logan Page, who each picked up one sack apiece. Steele Canyon received some extra help from Seabastian Castellon, whose fumble return for a touchdown made for one of the most unforgettable moments.
Steele Canyon's victory bumped their record up to 7-0. As for Mount Miguel, their defeat dropped their record down to 5-3.
Everything went Mount Miguel's way against Steele Canyon in their previous meeting back in October of 2024, as Mount Miguel made off with a 57-35 win. Will the Matadors repeat their success, or do the Cougars have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
