CIF Southern Section high school football playoff brackets

National No. 3 Santa Margarita earns Division 1 top seed as Eagles look for back-to-back section crowns.

Thumbnail image of this articles writer: Aaron Williams
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Nov 1, 2026, 10:45am
The Southern Section released the high school football playoff brackets Sunday for all 14 divisions. Division 1 features five teams ranked in the MaxPreps Top 25.

The postseason begins Nov. 6 with subsequent rounds on Nov. 13 and 20 with the section finals Nov. 27 at various locations, including the Division 1 final at the famed Rose Bowl.

All games can be streamed on the NFHS Network.

Southern Section football brackets
Division 1 | Division 2 | Division 3 | Division 4 | Division 5 | Division 6 | Division 7 | Division 8 
Division 9 | Division 10 | Division 11 | Division 12 | Division 13 | Division 14 | 8-man Division 1 | 8-man Division 2 
Mater Dei sophomore tight end Tyler Fritz caught a huge pass for the game-winning two-point conversion on Friday as the No. 18 Monarchs stunned No. 11 St. John Bosco. Both SoCal powers enter the Southern Section Division 1 postseason along with top seeds Santa Margarita and Sierra Canyon. (PHOTO: Rene Morales)
Mater Dei sophomore tight end Tyler Fritz caught a huge pass for the game-winning two-point conversion on Friday as the No. 18 Monarchs stunned No. 11 St. John Bosco. Both SoCal powers enter the Southern Section Division 1 postseason along with top seeds Santa Margarita and Sierra Canyon. (PHOTO: Rene Morales)
The eight-team Division 1 field features five MaxPreps Top 25 squads, headlined by No. 3 Santa Margarita (Rancho Santa Margarita) and No. 4 Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth). The field also includes No. 11 St. John Bosco (Bellflower), No. 18 Mater Dei (Santa Anaa) and No. 24 Centennial (Corona). 

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