MaxPreps Top 10 High School Football Games of the Week

Video: Top 10 Games of the Week
Top 25 matchups in Miami and the DMV lead this week's slate of games.

This week's slate of games is one of the best of the year. District and league titles are on the line and a couple of Top 25 matchups are featured.

No. 4 Miami Central hosts No. 12 Carol City (Miami) with the 6A-District 16 title up for grabs.

No. 3 St. John's (Washington, D.C.) travels to Maryland to take on No. 23 DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.) in a big-time WCAC showdown.

Two Golden State games are featured — one in Southern California and the other a NorCal showdown. No. 5 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) closes out its regular season with a matchup against Ryan Hilinski and Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.), while No. 24 Folsom (Calif.), which hasn't lost a Sierra Foothill League game since joining in 2012, takes on a 9-0 Del Oro (Loomis, Calif.) squad with first place on the line in the SFL.

A couple of marquee Peach State showdowns are featured. An 8-0 Hillgrove (Powder Springs, Ga.) team faces  Marietta (Ga.) with the winner clinching at least a share of the 7A Region 3 district title. No. 9 Colquitt County (Norman Park, Ga.) puts its perfect record on the line against rival Tift County (Tifton, Ga.) with the winner clinching, at worst, a share of the 7A Region 1 title.

The ILH Open Championship is up for grabs between Honolulu powers No. 10 St. Louis and Punahou. These two met back in September and St. Louis held on for a 35-28 win in its toughest game of the year.

The playoffs get started this week in Indiana and defending 6A state champs Ben Davis (Indianapolis) takes on the favorite to win it all in 2018 - No. 14 Warren Central (Indianapolis). The Warriors put a 70-spot on the Giants just over a month ago in a 43-point win.

The final two games feature Alabama and a lot can still happen in the 7A Region 3 standings. Mountain Brook, Hoover, Hewitt-Trussville and Thompson are all 5-1 in league play. Hoover takes on Mountain Brook and Thompson faces Hewitt-Trussville with both winners clinching a share of the league title.
MaxPreps Top 10 Games of the Week

No. 12 Carol City (Miami) @ No. 4 Central (Miami)
Friday, 7 p.m. (All times local)

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Top Players

Carol City: RB Nayquan Wright (5-8, 190), CB Jarvis Brownlee (5-9.5, 170), OT Wardrick Wilson (6-4, 305), QB Daniel Richardson (5-11, 200), DT Malcolm Ray (6-2, 245)

Miami Central: CB Henry Gray (5-11.5, 170), QB Maurice Underwood (6-3, 170), OG Maurice Smith (6-2, 275), DE Jesus Machado (6-1, 205), LB Tatum Bethune (6-0, 215)

This is one of the biggest games of the year featuring two of the best teams from South Florida. Carol City has dominated all year, winning by nearly 40 points per game. Miami Central played one of the toughest schedules in the nation with its only loss coming in five overtimes against No. 3 St. John's. The Rockets already beat two of the top teams from the Sunshine State by double-digits: Cardinal Gibbons and No. 13 St. Thomas Aquinas. This will be the 15th meeting between the two since 2004 and they've alternated wins and losses the last four times with Miami Central winning 26-13.

No. 3 St. John's (Washington, D.C.) @ No. 23 DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.)
Friday, 7 p.m.

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Top Players

St. John's: WR Rakim Jarrett (6-0, 180), RB Keilan Robinson (5-9, 185), DT Tre’ Williams (6-1.5, 310), QB Sol-Jay Maiava (6-0.5, 185), ATH Quinten Johnson (5-11, 190)

DeMatha: S Nick Cross (6-0.5, 205), S DeMarcco Hellams (6-1, 205), RB MarShawn Lloyd (5-10, 210), DT Coziah Izzard (6-3, 265), WR Jermaine Johnson (5-10, 165)

DeMatha has been one of the hottest teams in high school football over the last month, reeling off six straight including back-to-back WCAC wins over Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) and Our Lady of Good Counsel (Olney, Md.). St. John's is 8-0 and the Cadets wins over No. 4 Miami Central, Hoover (Ala.), Marietta (Ga.), Christian Brothers (St. Louis) and Good Counsel. If they beat the Stags live on NFHS Network at 7 p.m. Friday St. John's will clinch its second consecutive WCAC league title.

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Tift County (Tifton, Ga.) @ No. 9 Colquitt County (Norman Park, Ga.)
Friday, 7:30 p.m.

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Top Players

Tift County: LB KD McDaniel (6-2, 220), WR Tyler Ajiero (5-9, 165), LB Deontae Overstreet (5-9, 185), RB Mike Jones (5-11, 180), DE Tyre West (6-4, 225)

Colquitt County: RB Daijun Edwards (5-11, 185), RB Ty Leggett (5-10, 170), LB Rashard Revels (6-0, 195), CB Jay Ward (6-1, 175), OG Kamaar Bell (6-3, 320)

Colquitt County has proven to be the best team in Georgia so far in 2018. The Packers are 8-0 and have won every game by double digits with an average margin of victory of 33.5 points. Tift County snapped the Packers eight-game winning streak against them in 2017 and if the Blue Devils make it two in a row against Colquitt County they would clinch at least a share of the 7A Region district title.

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Punahou (Honolulu) @ No. 10 St. Louis (Honolulu)
Saturday, 6 p.m. @ Aloha Stadium

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Top Players

Punahou: LB Maninoa Tufono (6-3, 225), OG Duke Clemens (6-3, 270), S Kaulana Makaula (6-3, 190), QB Hugh Brady (6-3, 200), CB Marist Liufau (6-2, 175)

St. Louis: DT Faatui Tuitele (6-4, 300), LB Jordan Botelho (6-3, 220), QB Jayden DeLaura (6-0, 180), DE Gino Quinones (6-2, 280), WR Matt Sykes (6-3, 195)

St. Louis has proven to be at Top 10 team and the one school who hung with them this year was Punahou. There are bigger implications this time as the ILH championship is up for grabs. The winner advances to the Open Division state tournament and the loser goes home. The Crusaders bring in a 23-game winning streak and have won four in a row against the Buff n' Blue.

No. 14 Warren Central (Indianapolis) @ Ben Davis (Indianapolis)
Friday, 7 p.m.

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Top Players

Warren Central: WR David Bell (6-2, 185), RB Romeir Elliott (5-7, 175), QB Jayden George (6-2, 185), S Randy Wells Jr. (5-10, 195), TE Montrez Stanley (6-2, 215)

Ben Davis: OT Dawand Jones (6-8, 360), RB Delbert Mimms III (5-11, 200), CB Capone Powell (5-9, 170), DE Rayvion Tharpe (6-4, 220), ATH Daylan Carnell (6-1, 175)

Warren Central's quest for the school's ninth state title begins on the road against the defending 6A state champs. The Warriors enter Friday night averaging more than 50 points per game and the trio of George, Bell and Elliott has been unstoppable in 2018. Warren Central cruised to a 70-27 win in its first meeting against Ben Davis in mid-September and George threw for nearly 400 yards and five touchdowns with three going to Bell.

No. 5 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) @ Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.)
Friday, 7 p.m. @ Orange Coast College

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Top Players

Mater Dei: ATH Bru McCoy (6-2.5, 215), CB Elias Ricks (6-2, 180), QB Bryce Young (6-0, 175), CB Darion Green-Warren (6-0, 165), DT Keyon Ware-Hudson (6-2, 305)

Orange Lutheran: QB Ryan Hilinski (6-4, 240), WR Logan Loya (5-11.5, 170), WR Josiah Hawkins (5-9, 160), LB Jackson Cloyd (6-2, 225), CB KJ Trujillo (6-0, 170)

Some people were concerned about Mater Dei after its 23-point loss to No. 1 St. John Bosco. They answered all those questions emphatically with a 42-7 win over a very good JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.) team. The Monarchs finish out the regular season against Orange Lutheran and have their eyes set on a rematch with the Braves on Thanksgiving weekend in the CIF Southern Section Open Division championship game.

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No. 24 Folsom (Calif.) @ Del Oro (Loomis, Calif.)
Friday, 7 p.m.

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Top Players

Folsom: WR Joe Ngata (6-3, 210), RB Daniyel Ngata (5-9, 180), QB Kaiden Bennett (6-0, 170), WR Elijhah Badger (6-1, 185), DT Tyler Hardeman (6-2, 260)

Del Oro: ATH Dawson Hurst (6-0, 195), RB Sheldon Conde (5-10, 175), WR Matthew Smart (6-0.5, 185), LB Charlie Rogers (6-2, 220), CB Carson Westlake (6-1, 190)

Folsom has dominated the Sierra Foothill League since joining in 2012. The Bulldogs haven't lost a league game, but Del Oro is hoping to change that on Friday. The Golden Eagles are 0-4 against the Bulldogs since 2014 and haven't knocked off Folsom since 2009 when they won 43-42 in the CIF Southern Section Division-II semifinals. Folsom jumped back into the Top 25 a few weeks ago and has won eight in a row since a season opening loss to No. 11 De La Salle (Concord, Calif.).

Marietta (Ga.) @ Hillgrove (Powder Springs, Ga.)
Friday, 7:30 p.m.

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Top Players

Marietta: QB Harrison Bailey (6-4, 215), ATH Arik Gilbert (6-5, 250), WR Ramel Keyton (6-3, 180), OT Jake Wray (6-5, 290), DE BJ Ojulari (6-4, 215)

Hillgrove: S Jaylen McCollough (6-0, 195), DE Myles Murphy (6-4, 230), S Lance Wise (5-8, 185), LB/TE Isiah Grant (6-1, 210), WR Tre Walker (5-9, 185)

Marietta played one of the toughest schedules in high school football — a slate that prepared the Blue Devils for the 7A state playoffs. They started the season 1-4, but have reeled off three straight and a win over Hillgrove would clinch at least a share of the 7A Region 3 district title. The Hawks have been one of the best teams in Georgia in 2018. They are a perfect 8-0 and have won every game by double digits.

Hewitt-Trussville (Trussville, Ala.) @ Thompson (Alabaster, Ala.)
Friday, 7 p.m.

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Top Players

Hewitt-Trussville: OT Pierce Quick (6-5, 290), QB Paul Tyson (6-4.5, 220), WR Dazalin Worsham (6-0, 170), RB Armoni Goodwin (5-8, 190), WR Ja'Varrius Johnson (5-8.5, 165)

Thompson: QB Taulia Tagovailoa (5-11, 205RB ), OT Amari Kight (6-6.5, 315), RB Shadrick Byrd (5-9, 210), WR Michael Pettway (6-0, 170), LB Will Conner (6-2, 220)

The 7A playoff bracket in Alabama is going to be one of the best in high school football. Hewitt-Trussville and Thompson both want to prove they can beat Hoover when it matters most. Thompson beat Hoover during the regular season in 2017 and Hewitt-Trussville knocked off the Bucs earlier this season, but neither has beat them in the playoffs. The Bucs took out the Huskies in the 7A quarterfinals and the Warriors in the semifinals en route to winning its second consecutive state title. This is a huge matchup for Hewitt-Trussville and Thompson because the winner will clinch a share of the league title and earn a higher playoff seed.

Mountain Brook (Birmingham, Ala.) @ Hoover (Ala.)
Friday, 7 p.m.

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Top Players

Mountain Brook: RB AJ Gates (5-7, 180), LB Clark Griffin (5-9, 185), CB Alex Washington (6-1, 180), QB Strother Gibbs (6-1, 190), LB Edward Cain (5-9, 180)

Hoover: WR George Pickens (6-3.5, 190), QB Robby Ashford (6-4, 210), RB Larry McCammon (5-10, 200), LB Nick Curtis (6-5, 205), CB Jabari Moore (6-0, 180)

Mountain Brook gets another crack to show why it belong with the big boys in Alabama. The Spartans knocked off Hewitt-Trussville two weeks ago but lost 31-7 to Thompson last week for their first loss of the season. Things don't get any easier as they take on a red-hot Hoover team which has reeled off four wins in a row. The Bucs always play their best ball as it gets closer to November. They have won six state titles since Josh Niblett took over 10 years ago.

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