MaxPreps Sac-Joaquin Section Top 25 High School Football Rankings

MaxPreps Sac-Joaquin Section Top 25 Football Rankings

1. Franklin (Elk Grove) (2) 8-0
Beat previous No. 1 Elk Grove 17-7 with superb offensive balance and an attacking, unyielding defense. The Wildcats are No. 1 for the first time by The Sacramento Bee and here in the MaxPreps Sac-Joaquin Section Rankings - and eager and motivated to finish strong. The Wildcats can run the spread, run power football, pick teams apart with the pass with steady senior leader Trent Spallas and defend with quickness. The Delta Valley Conference is all but a given now, with bigger prizes looming such as a first-time trip to the Division I section finals. How the Wildcats handle this ranking will be telling. Expect them to handle it just fine under coach Mike Johnson. Play Laguna Creek (Elk Grove) on Friday.

2. Folsom (3) 8-0
Beat Sheldon (Sacramento) 49-13 to remain perfect in the Delta River League along with rival Pleasant Grove, with those teams squaring off in Week 10 for the title. Jake Browning passed for 314 yards and five touchdowns, three to Trace Noble, with no interceptions, thanks in great part to more superb offensive line play. Harry Lipnosky rushed for 124 yards, Bailey Laolagi 88 and Josiah Deguara 57 as the Bulldogs piled up 582 yards. At Ponderosa on Friday.

3. Elk Grove (1) 7-1
Lost to Franklin 17-7 in the Delta Valley Conference title game, ending a 17-game regular-season winning streak. The Thundering Herd did not have the services of two-year starting quarterback Tommy Arnold, who isn't to be confused with Tom Brady with 40 attempts a game, but is very effective in the wing-T and has a number of 50-yard strikes down field this season. The junior sat for his role in a fight to retrieve his cell phone, and he vowed to learn from it and grow. Host Monterey Trail (Sacramento) on Friday.

4. Burbank (Sacramento) (4) 8-0
Blasted Rosemont 65-12 on Homecoming night to maintain absolute control of the Metropolitan Conference. Quarterback Ernest Jenkins rushed for 177 yards and two touchdowns, Keith Marcus ran for 125 and a score and Isiah Williams raced for 115 and three. Taniela Finau and Jarad Hill each returned interceptions for touchdowns as the Titans limited the Wolverines to five yards rushing. Play McClatchy on Friday at Hughes Stadium.

5. St. Mary's (Stockton) (6) 6-2
Rolled West (Tracy) 49-3 in inching closer to another Tri-City Athletic League championship. Junior quarterback Kaleb Parrish completed all 10 of his passes for 194 yards with two touchdowns - all in the first half. The defense forced three turnovers. Play No. 20 Stagg (Stockton) for the league title and the title of the town's best. Losses are to Central Catholic (Modesto) 28-21 and De La Salle (Concord) (21-13)

6. Buhach Colony (Atwater) (7) 6-2
Beat Golden Valley (Merced) 49-16 in Central California Conference play as the Thunder aim to three-peat here, having gone 12-1 in each of the previous two seasons. BC has three successive impressive wins since the crushing 36-35 home loss to NorCal power Serra (San Mateo), which won it with a two-point run. At Turlock on Friday.

7. Granite Bay (8) 5-3
Following its double-overtime 41-34 win over Rocklin, the Grizzlies made it four wins in a row with a satisfying 21-7 effort over chief Sierra Foothill League rival Del Oro. Grant Caraway passed for 121 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 100. John Cooley and Tony Ellison rushed for 60 and 58 yards, respectively, as the Grizzlies ran it 47 times for 249 yards. At Woodcreek (Roseville) on Friday before finishing SFL play with Nevada Union. Losses are to Westlake, Oaks Christian and Pittsburg (Antioch).

8. Placer (Auburn) (5) 7-0
A week after squeezing past Bear River 14-7 with two first-half touchdowns, the Hillmen needed a Dominic Granieri 17-yard field goal with 7.8 seconds remaining to beat Lincoln in Pioneer Valley League game. Placer drops a bit in these rankings as the Hillmen will be the first to admit their offense has stalled of late, though the defense headed by USC-commit Eddie Vanderdoes remains dominant. A Week 10 showdown with surging upstart Center (Antelope) looms, but first it's a rivalry game against defending champion Colfax.

9. Central Catholic (Modesto) (9) 6-2
Belted Livingston 77-7 with 42 second-quarter points as Rey Vega accounted for four touchdowns and Ray Lomas had three touchdowns. Wins include St. Mary's (28-21) with losses to Placer and Downey. At Livingston on Friday.

10. Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills) (10) 7-1
Beat decades-long rival Ponderosa (Shingle Springs) 20-17, rallying from 17-7 down in the fourth to keep its Delta River League title hopes alive. Jason Samuels had a touchdown pass to Ross Dwelley and Blake Martin had a 73-yard touchdown run. The defense was strong again as it vowed to be after being beaten by Folsom. Play Pleasant Grove in a battle of DRL-title hopefuls on Friday.

11. Oakdale (11) 7-1
Routed Weston Ranch (Stockton) 64-0 in rolling to a 47-0 halftime lead with more run and team defense dominance, the keys to success in this program's Valley Oak League title defense. Spencer Thomas also tossed two touchdowns. At Manteca on Friday. Loss was to San Diego-area No. 1 Oceanside in SoCal showcase.

12. Pleasant Grove (Elk Grove) (12) 6-2
After beating then 5-1 Ponderosa 35-7, the Eagles surged in the second half to down Jesuit 38-21 behind emerging junior quarterback Dre Terrell, who passed for 149 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 79 and two more. He also had an interception from his defensive back spot. Isaiah Saunders, on a tear of late, rushed for 172 yards and two scores. Host Oak Ridge on Friday in what is shaping up to be a Delta River League thriller. PG is the defending champion.

13. Merced (19) 5-3
Rolled Pitman 44-13 in a Central California Conference game in a throwback showing from yesteryear when the Bears won the CCC in the 1980s, '90s and from 2006-09. Eli Gutierrez had two touchdown passes and a scoring run and the defense bounced back strong from its 42-21 loss to Buhach Colony. Hard to believe the Bears are coming off three successive 4-6 seasons - and no postseason dates - but that string will end this fall. At Atwater on Friday. Wins include Downey, 45-41. Losses are to Fresno teams Edison and Clovis North, who are a combined 13-3.

14. Downey (Modesto) (21) 6-1
Beat Enochs (Modesto) 45-14 in a battle of Modesto Metro League unbeatens behind another fine effort from Aaron Zwahlen, who tossed three touchdowns for a NorCal-leading 36 on the season. The senior is poised and a team leader who doesn't mind letting others play in the second half of routs. Play host to Grace Davis (Modesto) on Thursday in inching closer to the league title.

15. Del Campo (Fair Oaks) (13) 6-2
Beat Christian Brothers (Sacramento) 41-38 in a Capital Valley Conference thriller as the Cougars inched closer to another title. Derek Rodigo passed for a touchdown and ran for 45 yards, Josh Blumgold continued his hot rushing season with 193 more yards and three total scores, and backfield mate Austin Brown went for 144 and two. Mike Hatfield, Adrian Rocha and Mason Voge each had interceptions. Losses were to Elk Grove 20-16 and to North Section power Enterprise (Redding) 45-21. At Bella Vista on Friday.

16. Rocklin (Rocklin) (16) 4-4
Recovering nicely from a 41-34 double overtime loss to Granite bay, the Thunder rolled Woodcreek (Roseville) 42-17 in another showcase effort for emerging junior quarterback Logan Webb, who passed for 402 yards and four touchdowns, three to Dominic Giampaoli and one to Daniel Kniffin, who started the season at quarterback before going down with a shoulder injury. Host Roseville and then play Del Oro for what could be a playoff game of sorts with the winner in the postseason and the loser out. Suffered close early losses to Pleasant Grove (35-21), Oak Ridge (16-7) and Del Campo (21-20).

17. Nevada Union (Grass Valley) (17) 5-3
The bad loss against Rocklin now faded, the Miners responded with a rout of Woodcreek 45-7 and on Friday took down Roseville 52-19 to keep pace in the Sierra Foothill League race. Kyle Cota passed for 304 yards and three touchdowns and the defense was superb for the second week in a row. At Del Oro on Friday in what feels like a sudden elimination game.

18. Yuba City (18) 7-1
Beat Woodland 35-20 to stay perfect in the Tri-County League in its quest to win a league title for the first time since 1987. Taylor Elkins passed for 128 yards, Nate Van Dusen rushed for 114 and two touchdowns and Alex Inskeep scooted for 82. At Natomas on Friday. Loss was to Placer 42-33. Wins include 49-42 over Inderkum (Sacramento), the five-time league champion.

19. Whitney (Rocklin) (21) 7-1
The Wildcats beat El Camino 38-21 to maintain their unbeaten status in the Capital Athletic League with the CAL title showdown with Antelope looming. Drew Romo passed for two touchdowns, Sutter Choisser ran for 159 and a score and J.R. Robinson ran for two touchdowns. The loss was 6-0 to Rocklin. At Cordova on Friday.

20. Stagg (Stockton) (22) 8-0
Beat 6-1 Tokay (Lodi) 33-16 to maintain best start in years for the Delta Kings, which followed a 41-29 effort over 5-1 McNair (Stockton). Next is the true test, on Friday against longtime power St. Mary's, which has owned this town and this Tri-City League.

21. Del Oro (Loomis) (14) 3-5
The Golden Eagles had their three-game winning streak halted with a 21-7 loss to chief Sierra Foothill League rival Granite Bay, and it's come to this now for the defending section D-III champions: win out to maintain any playoff hopes or the season comes to an end in a hurry. Brandon Monroe tore off an 80-yard touchdown against Granite Bay, and he'll have to be on his game against Nevada Union which visits Loomis on Friday. Losses are also to state-ranked power Westlake (16-13 in overtime), Burbank (28-23) and Grant (31-30) before beating then NorCal No. 3 Logan (Union City) 20-13 in overtime.

22. Center (Antelope) (NR) 7-1
Welcome aboard Cougars of the Capital Athletic League. Center is off to its best start in years, thanks in large part to coach Digol J'Beily, a star athlete for the school in the late 1980s. Center has a win over Rio Linda and just clobbered 6-1 Bear River (Lake of the Pines) 36-0 a week after Bear River fell at Placer 14-7. Center and Placer face off for the Pioneer Valley League title in Week 10. First it's a date with Foothill (Sacramento) on Friday.

23. Lincoln (Stockton) (25) 5-3
Belted Tracy 62-32 in storming to a 49-20 halftime lead in a battle for first place in the San Joaquin AA race. Justin Davis rushed for 268 yards and six touchdowns. Host Franklin (Stockton) on Friday. Losses are to Elk Grove, St. Mary's and Granite Bay. This is very much a D-I playoff threat.

24. Vacaville (25) 5-3
Beat rival Napa 35-14 in Monticello Empire League play by rushing 39 times for 284 yards, with Curtis Goins going for 119 and two touchdowns. The defense was steady again and has come on strong since losing to NorCal-ranked Granite Bay, Oak Ridge and Deer Valley (Deer Valley). Host Fairfield on Friday with a chance to defend Section D-II title around the corner.

25. Vista del Lago (Folsom) (NR) 8-1
The Eagles are soaring, having won eight straight since opening with a 42-6 loss to Oak Ridge in a game that was 14-6 at the half. This is a relatively new program led by a veteran coach in Chris Jones who won three Sac-Joaquin Section D-II titles at Oak Ridge. Vista just clinched the program's first Sierra Valley Conference title, beating Cosumnes Oaks 35-34 in a thriller as sophomore quarterback Matt Jimison passed for 355 yards and four touchdowns, two to Brad Rittenhouse. Next is a bye, then a regular-season finale at 1-7 Union Mine (El Dorado).

(TIE) 25. Cosumnes Oaks (Elk Grove) (16) 6-2
After steaming through the Sierra Valley Conference, the Wolfpack fell at home to Vista del Lago 35-34 in a thriller in what amounts to the league title game. A bright spot for CO was a monster showing by junior national recruit Alex Van Dyke, who had 200 yards receiving and three touchdowns. At Liberty Ranch (Galt) on Friday.

(TIE) 25. Los Banos (Los Banos) (NR) 7-1
The Tigers, a longtime factor in this section, are again a team for foes to fear under first-year coach Dustin Caropreso. Rolled Central Valley (Ceres) 29-0 in Western League play. The team is led by quarterback Chris Corpuz and tailback James Sams and seeks a fourth consecutive D-III playoff berth, having gone 10-2 last season. At Livingston on Friday. Loss was 35-14 to Central Catholic after it was tied 14-14 at the half.

On the bubble: Inderkum (Sacramento) (6-2), Rio Linda (7-1), Antelope (7-1), Grant (Sacramento) (3-5), Ripon (9-0), Argonaut (Jackson) (8-0), Amador (Sutter Creek) (7-1), Sierra (Manteca) (7-1), Dixon (7-1), American Canyon (7-1), Capital Christian (Sacramento) (7-1), Calaveras (San Andreas) (7-1), Benicia (6-2), Pitman (Turlock) (6-2), Escalon (6-2), Atwater (6-2).

Sac-Joaquin Section news and notes...

* Franklin takes over as the new No. 1 here and in The Sacramento Bee after downing previous No. 1 Elk Grove 17-7 in a Delta Valley Conference showdown. Elk Grove was without starting quarterback Tommy Arnold, who sat for his role in a locker-room fight with a junior varsity player who ransacked his backpack and stole his cell phone. Arnold said he understands he needed to use better tact. Still, Franklin was the better team on defense as it smothered and swarmed the Thundering Herd in snapping a 17-game regular-season winning streak. For more, go to The Sacramento Bee story here.

* Granite Bay beat Del Oro 21-7 to for its fourth consecutive victory. Granite Bay is the defending Division I section champion that started this season 1-3. Grant Caraway has played well in place of graduated three-year starter Brendan Keeney, now at Cal. The Grizzlies are led on defense by recruit defensive end/linebacker Beau Hershberger.

* Grant beat Monterey Trail 14-7 to maintain its micro-thin chances of extending its section-leading playoff streak to 22 consecutive seasons. Only De La Salle's on-going mark of 30 consecutive playoff seasons is a longer active streak. Grant finishes the regular season in Delta Valley Conference play against Davis and Laguna Creek and needs victories in each to finish 5-5, and then will wait to see if it squeezes into the Division I playoff fold. Sheldon, Jesuit and Rodriguez each made the D-I postseason last season. For more, read The Sacramento Bee story here.

* A total of 43 coaches and athletes were inducted into the Section Hall of Fame, with Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson offering a hilarious keynote address. Here's The Sacramento Bee story.

* Junior national recruit receiver Alex Van Dyke and tackle Kameron Schroeder of Cosumnes Oaks (Elk Grove) were sideline guests at The Big Game between Stanford and host Cal on Saturday. Van Dyke and Schroeder visited the Cal facilities and met with coaches. They will do the same for a Stanford game next month. Van Dyke is the son of former Nevada All-American and NFL receiver Alex Van Dyke, an assistant basketball coach and strength and conditioning coach with the Sacramento High girls basketball program.

Joe Davidson has covered high schools with The Sacramento Bee since 1988. Follow him on Twitter: @SacBee_JoeD; on Facebook: sacbeepreps; and online: sacbee.com/preps; and radio podcasts: ESPN1320.net.