De La Salle (Concord, Calif.), the reigning national football champion according to the
MaxPreps computer rankings, will play defending Utah 4A state champion
East (Salt Lake City, Utah) and perhaps the nation's top recruit from the Class of 2017 it was just announced at the Spartans' year-end banquet Sunday night.
Isaiah Randle (34) will likely be DLS's QB
next season.
File photo by Dennis Lee
The Spartans, who lose most of their top players to graduation including 4-star standouts
Devin Asiasi and
Boss Tagaloa, will host East in Week 3 of the season.
East (11-2), ranked 159th nationally, return 5-foot-8, 200-pound running back
Jaylen Warren who averaged almost 200 yards rushing per game.
De La Salle will see the nation's top running back
Najee Harris the following week when the Spartans host
Antioch (Calif.), which finished 12-1 last season. Harris, a 6-foot-2, 222-pound Alabama commit, was a first-team MaxPreps All-American after rushing for 2.744 yards and 37 touchdowns.
There's a possibility the Spartans could also see Antioch and Harris in the North Coast Section Division I playoffs.
The rest of the nonleague schedule features
Serra (San Mateo, Calif.),
Servite (Anaheim, Calif.) and
James Logan (Union City, Calif.).
Though De La Salle, the two-time defending state Open Division champion, loses plenty to graduation, the Spartans will return a stable of talented running backs led by current sophomore
Kairee Robinson and
Jonathan Hackett and all-around athlete
Isaiah Randle will likely move to quarterback.
The Spartans might not see Antioch running back Najee Harris once, but twice if the teams meet again in the NCS playoffs.
File photo by Ernie Abrea
