Northern California Top 25 high school football rankings: No. 1 Folsom looks to finally get past De La Salle

On Friday, it'll be "When Titans Clash" in Sacramento County as longtime Northern California No. 1 De La Salle takes on current NorCal top dog Folsom in a non-league high school football game with state-game selection ramifications.
No. 2 Serra and No. 3 Saint Francis are members of the rugged West Catholic Athletic League. No. 6 Rocklin is a member of the Sierra Foothill League and plays SFL front-runner Folsom on Oct. 15.
MaxPreps Northern California Top 25 rankings1 (Last week: 2) Folsom, 6-0
Last week: Beat Del Oro 58-6
Next: De La Salle, Friday
Update: The Bulldogs rolled with Tyler Tremain hitting six different receivers for touchdowns, and the league winning streak stretched to 55 since 2011 and 48th in succession in the Sierra Foothill League. An earlier win was 37-17 over Pittsburg and a 56-7 effort over Jesuit. Folsom has won eight Sac-Joaquin Section and four CIF State titles since 2010.



2. (2) Serra (San Mateo), 4-0
Last week: Beat Bellarmine, 41-7
Next: Riordan, Saturday
Update: The Padres rolled a strong Bellarmine team but suffered a major blow when star RB/Slot Hassan Mahasin went down with an ACL injury. The season opener against Pittsburg was canceled due to poor air. The West Catholic Athletic League includes fellow NorCal-ranked Saint Francis, Valley Christian and Bellarmine.

3. (3) Saint Francis (Mountain View), 4-0
Last week: Beat Sacred Heart Cathedral, 37-13
Next: Valley Christian, Friday
Update: The Lancers moved to 2-0 in the West Catholic Athletic League as Camilo Arquette and Viliami Teu combined for four touchdowns and nearly 300 yards rushing. The monstrous win was the 31-28 effort against De La Salle, the first NorCal loss by the Spartans north of Fresno since 1991. Saint Francis has won a record 17 Central Coast Section titles.

4. (4) De La Salle (Concord), 3-2
Last week: Lost to St. Frances Academy, 42-28
Next: Folsom, Friday
Outlook: The Spartans lost to the top-ranked team in Maryland, leaving coach Justin Alumbaugh to say earlier this week as the showdown at Folsom looms, "we can get better and we have to get better." The other loss was to Saint Francis, halting a 318-game unbeaten streak that dated to 1992. DLS has not lost to a North Coast Section team since 1991, a streak of 253 games. It has gone a gaudy 403-6-2 against NorCal teams North of Fresno since 1984. De La Salle has won 28 consecutive section championships and has reached a record 14 successive CIF State finals since the state finals were introduced in 2006.

5. (5) Pittsburg, 2-1
Last week: Game canceled
Next: Heritage, Friday
Update: The Pirates opened the season with a canceled game because of poor air quality, had a bye week before last and had its contest against McClymonds canceled due to COVID issues with that school. The loss was at Folsom, 34-17. Pittsburg is the last North Coast Section program to beat De La Salle, doing so in the 1991 NCS finals.

6. (6) Rocklin, 6-0
Last week: Beat Granite Bay, 26-6
Next: Oak Ridge, Friday
Update: The Golden Eagles are unbeaten in the Sierra Foothill League and found a solid passer in reserve Joey Roberts, who had three touchdown passes in filling in for injured star Kenny Lueth (knee). This is Rocklin's best team since the 2009 group that reached the CIF State Division II finals.

7. (7) Central (Fresno), 5-0
Last week: Beat Clovis, 27-20
Next: Buchanan, Thursday
Update: The Grizzlies are the top-ranked team in the Central Section and Imari Conley saw to it his team held that spot when he returned a kickoff 97 yards late. The Tri-River Athletic Conference is a good race.

8. (8) Buchanan (Clovis), 5-1
Last week: Beat Clovis West, 44-14
Next: Buchanan, Thursday
Update: The Bears are a threat in the Tri-River Athletic Conference as they prepare to host Central this week. The bad news is star RB Caden Rodgers left the game with an injury. The loss was to state-ranked Los Alamitos 34-31.



9. (9) Valley Christian (San Jose), 5-1
Last week: Beat St. Ignatius, 28-12
Next: Saint Francis, Friday
Update: The West Catholic Athletic League is deep, including these Warriors, led by Jurrion Dickey and Jakson Berman on offense. The loss was to Pittsburg, 48-20.

10. (10) Jesuit (Carmichael), 5-1
Last week: Beat Franklin (Elk Grove), 47-16
Next: Cosumnes Oaks, Saturday
Update: Offense, defense, special teams — it's all working for the surging Marauders who lost an opener big to Folsom and have rolled ever since. Garrett McGriff scored three rushing touchdowns for Jesuit. One of the big wins for the Delta League favorites was 28-14 over Granite Bay.

11. (13) Los Gatos, 6-0
Last week: Beat Santa Clara, 35-0
Next: Homestead, Friday
Update: The Wildcats prevailed behind Jake Boyd, who passed for 327 yards and four touchdowns, two to Yuma Raux-Moriwaki. This has been a longtime power in the Central Coast Section.

12. (12) Bellarmine College Prep (San Jose), 4-1
Last week: Lost to Serra, 41-7
Next: Mitty, Friday
Update: The Bells lost to the top team in the Central Coast Section in Serra but are still a factor in the West Catholic Athletic League as long as they don't lose again, no easy task, certainly. Big nonleague wins include Menlo-Atherton (56-41) and Central Catholic (28-21).

13. (14) Central Catholic (Modesto), 5-1
Last week: Beat Oakdale, 32-14
Next: Kimball, Friday
Update: The Raiders won a big one in the Valley Oak League and have another this week against unbeaten upstart Kimball. Aiden Taylor rushed for two scores and 125 yards against Oakdale. Earlier big wins were over San Ramon Valley 21-14 and St. Mary's (Stockton), 41-27. The loss was to Bellarmine, 28-21

14. (15) Menlo-Atherton (Atherton), 3-2
Last week: Beat Oak Ridge, 35-24
Next: Half Moon Bay, Friday
Update: The Bears earned another big nonleague win in taking out Oak Ridge in El Dorado Hills as Matt Macleod passed for 241 yards and two touchdowns. Another big win was topping McClymonds. The losses were to Bellarmine 56-41 and to Oregon power Tualatin, 44-33.

15. (11) Granite Bay, 5-2
Last week: Lost to Rocklin, 26-6
Next: Grant, Friday
Update: The Grizzlies led Rocklin 6-0 after the first quarter of a Sierra Foothill League game before their three-game winning streak was halted. The other loss was 28-14 to Jesuit. An earlier big win was over Vacaville.

16. (16) McClymonds (Oakland), 3-1
Last week: Did not play
Next: Oakland, Oct. 15
Update: Mack did not play Pittsburg due to COVID test issues and now has an off week before starting Oakland Athletic League play. The loss was to Menlo-Atherton. A big win was over Marin Catholic, 32-22.



17. (17) San Ramon Valley (Danville), 4-1
Last week: Beat Foothill (Pleasanton), 42-0
Next: Amador Valley, Friday
Update: The Wolves rolled behind Jack Quigley's three touchdown passes and three rushing scores from Za'darion Nardi, and a tough defense. The loss was to Central Catholic, 21-14.

18. (18) Edison (Stockton), 6-1
Last week: Beat Stagg, 70-0
Next: Bear Creek, Oct. 15
Update: The Vikings opened league play with a bang, blasting Stagg for a 63-0 halftime lead. This could be the top team in Stockton, if not St. Mary's across town. The loss was to Central Section No. 1 Central (Fresno) 17-10. The Vikings loom as a threat in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division I race.

19. (19) Clovis, 4-2
Last week: Lost to Central, 27-20
Next: Clovis North, Friday
Update: The Cougars gave the top team in the Central Section all it could handle, reflective of how deep the Tri-River Athletic Conference is. The other loss was to Bullard, 35-12.

20. (21) Salinas, 4-0
Last week: Beat San Benito, 17-14
Next: Seaside, Thursday
Update: The Cowboys prevailed despite being short-handed. Nyziah Hunter had a touchdown catch and played strong defense. The signature win was a 42-14 rout of previously unbeaten Aptos.

21. (22) St. Mary's (Stockton), 4-2
Last week: Beat Tracy, 56-13
Next: Lodi, Friday
Update: The Rams have won four consecutive games after opening with losses to De La Salle and Central Catholic. The Rams had nearly 500 yards against Tracy, 173 from do-all talent Jadyn Marshall. One one was 34-14 over Cardinal Newman.

22. (23) Cardinal Newman (Santa Rosa), 4-2
Last week: Did not play
Next: Ukiah, Friday
Update: The Cardinals had a bye. The losses were to San Leandro, 20-17, and St. Mary's, 34-14 A big win was a 20-13 win over Vacaville.



23. (24) Vacaville, 4-2
Last week: Beat Fairfield, 43-0
Next: Armijo, Friday
Update: The Bulldogs blasted their longtime Monticello Empire League rivals as Lucca Sartorio had two touchdown catches. An early win was 17-10 over Oak Ridge. The losses were 20-13 in overtime to Cardinal Newman and 14-9 to Granite Bay.

24. (25) Marin Catholic (Kentfield), 4-1
Last week: Did not play
Next: San Rafael, Saturday
Update: The Wildcats had a bye. The loss was to McClymonds, 33-22.

25. (27) Manteca, 6-0
Last week: Beat East Union, 40-34 (OT)
Next: Weston Ranch, Friday
Update: The Buffaloes rallied to beat rival Manteca as Blake Nichelson won it with an interception return for a score. This could be the class of the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III field.

The next 10
26. California (San Ramon), 5-0
27. Del Oro (Loomis), 4-3
28. Clayton Valley Charter (Concord), 4-1
29. Aptos, (5-1)
30. Kimball (Tracy), 6-0
31. Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills), 2-4
32. Inderkum (Sacramento), 4-1
33. Monte Vista (Danville), 5-0
34. San Benito (Hollister), 5-1
35. Oakdale, 4-1

Joe Davidson has covered high school sports for The Sacramento Bee since 1988. He was named a CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Distinguished Award winner in April. Follow him on Twitter: SacBee_JoeD and through sacbee.com.