There is an old saying that goes like this: "Revenge is a dish best served cold," and in high school football, there is nothing quite as satisfying as exacting a measure of sweet revenge.
Take the
Folsom Bulldogs.
The top-ranked team in Northern California by MaxPreps stormed to a 28-7 halftime lead against
Mission Viejo, a state-ranked powerhouse from Orange County that rolled Folsom a year ago in an early showdown of elite programs.
This time, Folsom prevailed, 35-21, to stick it to the only program that stuck the Bulldogs with a defeat in 2025. Folsom went on to win its sixth CIF state championship since 2010, and the Bulldogs are 2-0 now.
Cal-committed quarterback
Brody Rudnicki rushed 25 times for 123 yards and three touchdowns, and he passed for 244 yards and two scores, hitting
Travis Beatty for 12 yards.
Nick Wegner recorded 14 tackles to lead Folsom, which opened the season with a 23-17 overtime win over
Cardinal Newman (Santa Rosa).
The Folsom Bulldogs remained atop the MaxPreps Northern California rankings after avenging the team's lone loss from a year ago to Mission Viejo on Friday. (PHOTO: Mark Nunez)
1.
Folsom, (2-0)
2.
De La Salle (Concord), (2-0)
3.
Central East (Fresno), (2-0)
4.
Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills), (1-1)
5.
Pittsburg, (1-1)
6.
Junipero Serra (San Mateo), (1-1)
7.
Grant (Sacramento), (1-1)
8.
Del Oro (Loomis), (2-0)
9.
Saint Francis (Mountain View), (1-1)
12.
San Ramon Valley (Danville), (2-0)
14.
Granite Bay, (2-0)
15.
Central Catholic (Modesto), (1-1)
16.
Woodcreek (Roseville), (1-0)
17.
St. Ignatius College Preparatory (San Francisco), (2-0)
18.
Edison (Stockton), (2-0)
19.
St. Mary's (Stockton), (1-1)
20.
Acalanes (Lafayette), (2-0)
21.
Los Gatos, (2-0)
22.
Monte Vista (Danville), (2-0)
23.
Tracy, (2-0)
24.
American Canyon, (2-0)
25.
Manteca, (0-2)
Pittsburg, Oak Ridge show a lot in defeatLongtime North Coast Section power Pittsburg played host to state-ranked heavy
St. John Bosco (Bellflower), ranked third in the state by MaxPreps, and dropped a fiercely competitive 26-14 game. The Pirates led 14-13 at the half and showed that the gap between the best in Southern California and the East Bay is not too far, at least on this night.
Meanwhile, up past Sacramento, Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills) battled Central East (Fresno) to the wire. The Bengals prevailed, 20-14, denying the Trojans on their home turf on downs late after Oak Ridge had advanced the ball to the Central East 30.
Central East rolled Grant (Sacramento), 42-12, in a season opener. Oak Ridge is a longtime league rival of Folsom and is ranked second by The Sacramento Bee behind the Bulldogs.
Serra wins in HawaiiMaxPreps NorCal No. 6 Junipero Serra (San Mateo) made it a road trip to remember, defeating Hawaii state-ranked No. 3
Kahuku (Hawaii), 28-21, a game sealed by an interception return for a touchdown by
Jared Wong. Serra led 21-0 at the half.
Next is a rematch against St. Mary's (Stockton), the team that beat Serra last season in a CIF Northern California title game. St. Mary's went on to win a state crown.
Freshmen lead RiordanArchbishop Riordan (San Francisco) recovered from its opening loss to
West (Salt Lake City) of Utah to drill
Clayton Valley Charter (Concord), 47-7, thanks in large part to a freshman.
Kalvin Bishop completed 10 of 14 passes for 157 yards and three touchdown, one to fellow frosh
Jeffrey Palega. Next is a showdown at Cardinal Newman.
Grant breaks in new fieldGrant (Sacramento) introduced its sparkling new field, track and press box, and then impressed in a 21-7 win over
Cathedral (Los Angeles). Fresno State-bound RB
Jayson Williams ran for two touchdowns and Sacramento State-committed receiver
Koby "Cheese" Shabazz scored on an end-around play to lead the Pacers.
The new field bears the name of the program's late, great coach, Mike Alberghini, a 282-game winner who guided the Pacers to seven CIF Sac-Joaquin Section crowns and to the 2008 CIF State Open Division championship. Grant remains the only public school to reach the CIF Open finals, and the only one to win it. The state playoffs started in 2006.
Joe Davidson has covered high school sports for The Sacramento Bee since 1989. He is a member of the California High School Football Hall of Fame and has been honored by the with the CIF Distinguished Service award and was the National Football Foundation legacy winner.
