CCS Final Top 10 and year in Review

[PALbooster]

Four organizations have put out some form of preseason rankings that include CCS schools. The Bay Area News Group has a top 25 ranking the includes only CCS, NCS schools, Oakland and SF . Norcalpreps has a top 20 ranking that also includes SJS and Northern section schools. CalHi does state wide rankings, and Calpreps ranks teams on a statewide and national basis.

Remember that the Calprep rankings will be a large component of how teams are selected for the CCS play-offs and how they are seeded for the play-offs. The top 8 CCS teams at the end of the year will square of in the CCS Division I Play-offs. Here are the different pre-season polls.


Cal Preps
School CCS Norcal State

Valley Christian 1 5 30
Menlo-Atherton 2 7 42
Wilcox 3 16 70
St. Francis 4 24 88
Mitty 5 29 97
Aptos 6 32 108
Serra 7 38 128
Salinas 8 42 139
Palo Alto 9 44 143
Burlingame 10 45 147

CalHi
School CCS Norcal State

Valley Christian 1 4 17
Menlo-Atherton 2 6 27
Serra 3 8 30
Wilcox 4 9 36
St. Francis 5 15 50
Mitty 6 16-25 51-70*

* only CCS team of 20 teams mentioned on bubble for CalHi ranking

Norcalpreps
School CCS Norcal

Valley Christian 1 4
Serra 2 5
Menlo-Atherton 3 6
St. Francis 4 9
Wilcox 5 13

Bay Area News Group/San Jose Mercury

School CCS CCS/NCS/Oakland/SF

Valley Christian 1 3
Serra 2 4
Menlo-Atherton 3 5
Wilcox 4 8
St. Francis 5 10
Mitty 6 17
Salinas 7 19
Sacred Heart Prep 8 21
Aptos 9 22
Palo Alto 10 23
Burlingame 11 24

In terms of the 5 A leagues, the WCAL and Gabilan are covered well in other threads that have already been posted.

The other 3 A leagues are the Deanza, PAL-Bay and Mt. Hamilton.

Deanza - Not a lot on the board posted about Wilcox who went 14-1 last year beating Valley Christian and winning a norcal and state bowl game. Their only loss was a close section final loss to Menlo-Atherton. Last year's team was very balanced between the junior and senior classes. Wilcox lost a lot but also returns a lot (leading rusher, half of their starting lines and half of the leading tacklers from a very good defense). Probably not quite as strong as last year, but are favored to win their league again. All the pre-season polls have Palo Alto second and on the fence between being in Division I and II in the play-offs. No love for Los Gatos in the polls, but it worth noting that they have the number 1 or 2 top ranked CCS college prospect (some list USC commit Los Gatos' OL Dewerk #1 and some have VC's Moon as #1) in the class of 2020 and the consensus # 2 class of 2021 CCS college prospect (DE Schweitzer) with a solid coaching staff and team and they could challenge Palo Alto for the second spot. Milpitas still seems to be below their top historical levels.

PAL-Bay - Menlo-Atherton is the prohibitive favorite but Burlingame and Sacred Heart Prep figure to compete for second place and might grab a lower spot int he Division I Play-off. Menlo-Atherton has two key players out for the first part of the season. Raymond Price who was SHP's starting QB as a sophomore and led them to a CCS final will be ineligible for the first four games and Andre Bishop who transferred from St. Francis and was one the WCAL's leading running backs last year is injured and will miss at least the first half of the season. With these two players potentially joining the team for the second half of the year, Menlo-Atherton may look different come play-off time than they did in the preseason.

Mt. Hamilton - Looks to be a three team race between Live Oak, Oak Grove and Leland. This league really had no impressive non-conference wins last year and haven't scheduled too many tough pre-season games that will boost their standing in the cal preps rankings which weights strength of schedule fairly heavily. Live Oak plays Burlingame, Christopher and Gilroy; Oak Grove plays St. Francis, Los Gatos and Oakland Tech while Leland plays Wilcox, Los Gatos and Aragon.

For one of these teams to have a chance at the top play-off division they will likely need to finish their pre-season at least 2-1 if not 3-0.

Division I based on pre-season consensus is predicted to be the top 4 WCAL schools (VC, SF, Serra, Mitty), Menlo-Atheron, and Wilcox. The final two spots are likely to go to the Gabilan champion (Salinas, Aptos and maybe Palma) and then the runner-up from the Pal-Bay (SHP/Burlingame) runner-up in the Gabilan or runner-up in the Deanza (Palo Alto/Los Gatos)

 

[colhenrylives]

...continue to wonder why the Terra Nova head coach was not brought back...odd...

 

[LecheDeMiPalo]

...continue to wonder why the Terra Nova head coach was not brought back...odd...

It's not that he wasn't brought back, he was. They fired him after the fact. Was it idiotic? Absolutely.

 

[colhenrylives]

What was the cause?

 

[PALbooster]

CCS CalPrep Top 10 Rankings After Week 1

Rank School (last week) State Rank
1 Valley Christian 1 27
2 Menlo-Atherton 2 42
3 Wilcox 3 68
4 St. Francis 4 83
5 Mitty 5 94
6 Serra 7 102
7 Salinas 8 144
8 Aptos 6 166
9 St. Ignatius NR 171
10 Sacred Heart Prep NR 172
Dropped from top 10: Palo Alto, Burlingame

Every CCS team that plays a top 100 team gets two extra bonus points and if they play a team between 101-150 they get one additional bonus point. WCAL teams will be racking up lots of bonus points which will elevate their final season standing and seeding for the CCS play-offs. There is a limit to six teams per league in the CCS play-offs.

Key results from last week:

Valley Christian 23 Wilcox 13 - both teams appeared to affirm their pre-season raking

Serra 58 Pittsburg 21- Not clear how strong Pittsburg is this year but an impressive opening win none the less.

Saint Ignatius 23 Palo Alto 7 - teams traded places in top 10 from this result. Palo Alto did not score a touchdown on offense.

Live Oak 22 Burlingame 16 - Live Oak could very well run the table during the regular season

Los Gatos 44 Oak Grove 0 - It was 37-0 at halftime. Not sure if Los Gatos is that good or if Oak Grove is that bad.

Key Week 2 Games:

Two top 10 match-ups as Menlo- Atherton plays Serra at Levi's Stadium and the two newcomers to the top 10 face-off against each other as Saint Ignatius plays Sacred Heart Prep.

Other interesting match-ups that figure to have a meaningful impact on how CalPreps will rank teams within their respective leagues will be Leland vs Los Gatos which both figure to be near the top of their respective A leagues. Palma vs Sacred Heart Cathedral could calibrate where the Gabilan division stands relative to the lower half of the WCAL.

 

[FBAddict]

CCS CalPrep Top 10 Rankings After Week 1

Rank School (last week) State Rank
1 Valley Christian 1 27
2 Menlo-Atherton 2 42
3 Wilcox 3 68
4 St. Francis 4 83
5 Mitty 5 94
6 Serra 7 102
7 Salinas 8 144
8 Aptos 6 166
9 St. Ignatius NR 171
10 Sacred Heart Prep NR 172
Dropped from top 10: Palo Alto, Burlingame

Every CCS team that plays a top 100 team gets two extra bonus points and if they play a team between 101-150 they get one additional bonus point. WCAL teams will be racking up lots of bonus points which will elevate their final season standing and seeding for the CCS play-offs. There is a limit to six teams per league in the CCS play-offs.

Key results from last week:

Valley Christian 23 Wilcox 13 - both teams appeared to affirm their pre-season raking

Serra 58 Pittsburg 21- Not clear how strong Pittsburg is this year but an impressive opening win none the less.

Saint Ignatius 23 Palo Alto 7 - teams traded places in top 10 from this result. Palo Alto did not score a touchdown on offense.

Live Oak 22 Burlingame 16 - Live Oak could very well run the table during the regular season

Los Gatos 44 Oak Grove 0 - It was 37-0 at halftime. Not sure if Los Gatos is that good or if Oak Grove is that bad.

Key Week 2 Games:

Two top 10 match-ups as Menlo- Atherton plays Serra at Levi's Stadium and the two newcomers to the top 10 face-off against each other as Saint Ignatius plays Sacred Heart Prep.

Other interesting match-ups that figure to have a meaningful impact on how CalPreps will rank teams within their respective leagues will be Leland vs Los Gatos which both figure to be near the top of their respective A leagues. Palma vs Sacred Heart Cathedral could calibrate where the Gabilan division stands relative to the lower half of the WCAL.

Thanks for the early start this year. No doubt the Calprep points will bounce around in early season. Its good to get a feel for how seeding will take place this year.

 

[colhenrylives]

With all due respect, SI seems a bit too high.

 

[PALbooster]

SI's current ranking is a function of Palo Alto being so highly ranked in the pre-season ranking. This will balance itself out as the year progresses. Their next two non-league game are against team of almost equal ranking. I think there is a lot of parity among about 8-10 teams after you get past the first 6 or 7 teams this year. I was impressed at how SI totally shut down Paly's run game.

With the new point system though a team like SI is likely to get 6 to 7 bonus points from its schedule (as will almost every other WCAL team). When you consider that historically most play-off teams get between 18 and 24 points for the season this is a huge boost. It basically guarantees six WCAL teams will make the play-offs and they will all be in Division I or II.

 

[WM483]

I know it's early but I would slot Serra in at # 3. I was at the game Saturday and they looked sharp ! I thought the fitness level shown by Serra in that heat was impressive and Pitt was out of gas by half.

 

[cityfan]

I know it's early but I would slot Serra in at # 3. I was at the game Saturday and they looked sharp ! I thought the fitness level shown by Serra in that heat was impressive and Pitt was out of gas by half.

Yes. Serra’s conditioning showed well in the 2nd half, considering that heat shouldn’t be an excuse forPittsburg since they practice in
90+degrees in the summer.
.

 

[PALbooster]

Calpreps will continue to show pretty dramatic changes week to week until you get into week 5 or 6 and there is enough data from this season that one week's results don't have such a big impact.

This week's games between top 10 CCS teams where Serra handily beat MA 38-13 and Sacred Heart Prep beat SI 28-21 had the most impact on section rankings. Mitty and Aptos both dropped in the rankings after losses to out of section opponents Marin Catholic and Oakdale.

CCS Rankings based on Calpreps:

Team Rank (Last week) Norcal Rank State Rank

Valley Christian 1 (1) 4 26
Serra 2 (6) 7 36
Wilcox 3 (3) 22 81
St. Francis 4 (4) 24 85
Menlo-Atherton 5 (2) 25 88
Los Gatos 6 NR 37 132
Sacred Heart Prep 7 (10) 38 133
Mitty 8 (5) 42 144
Salinas 9 (7) 46 154
Kings Academy 10 (NR) 55 178

Dropped from top 10 Aptos (8), Saint Ignatius (9)

While none of the top ten CCS teams play against each other. Four teams go on the road to play out of section teams ranked in the state's top 150

Menlo-Atherton travels to Utah to play East who would be 35th in CA.
Valley Christian goes to Clovis to play Clovis West ranked #70
Serra travels to Stockton to play St. Mary's ranked #63
Salinas travels to Clovis to play Clovis ranked #111

 

[PALbooster]

Calpreps CCS Rankings After Week 3

Team Rank (Last week) Norcal Rank State Rank

Serra 1 (2) 4 24
Valley Christian 2 (1) 5 27
St. Francis 3 (4) 18 77
Los Gatos 4 (6) 22 97
Wilcox 5 (3) 24 103
Half Moon Bay 6 NR 31 127
Menlo-Atherton 7 (5) 33 129
Mitty 8 (8) 38 140
Saint Ignatius 9. NR 39 144
Palma 10 NR 49 168


Dropped from top 10 SHP (7), Salinas (9), Kings Academy (10)

 

[PALbooster]

Calpreps CCS Rankings After Week 3

Team Rank (Last week) Norcal Rank State Rank

Serra 1 (2) 4 24
Valley Christian 2 (1) 5 27
St. Francis 3 (4) 18 77
Los Gatos 4 (6) 22 97
Wilcox 5 (3) 24 103
Half Moon Bay 6 NR 31 127
Menlo-Atherton 7 (5) 33 129
Mitty 8 (8) 38 140
Saint Ignatius 9. NR 39 144
Palma 10 NR 49 168


Dropped from top 10 SHP (7), Salinas (9), Kings Academy (10)

 

[PAL Booster]

Calpreps CCS Rankings After Week 3

Team Rank (Last week) Norcal Rank State Rank

Serra 1 (2) 4 24
Valley Christian 2 (1) 5 27
St. Francis 3 (4) 18 77
Los Gatos 4 (6) 22 97
Wilcox 5 (3) 24 103
Half Moon Bay 6 NR 31 127
Menlo-Atherton 7 (5) 33 129
Mitty 8 (8) 38 140
Saint Ignatius 9. NR 39 144
Palma 10 NR 49 168


Dropped from top 10 SHP (7), Salinas (9), Kings Academy (10)

Week 3 produced a lot of significant results as most WCAL, Mt. Hamilton, and Gabilan teams wrapped up their preseason schedules and have byes next week.

Serra - With their 56-28 win over St. Mary's Serra hd their third impressive win all by over 20 points against quality opponents and edged out Valley Christian to gain the #1 ranking based on having a slightly harder schedule and greater margins of victory. Serra and VC play a common se too opponents of the rest of the year and of course are likely to settle the #1 regular section ranking when they meet head to head on November 2nd. Serra has a bye this week

Valley Christian - Dropped to #2 despite an impressive 34-12 win over a good Clovis West team on the road. VC has a bye this week.

St. Francis - moved up to #3 with a 44-12 win over Oak Grove. Difficult to really calibrate the quality of team after pre-league schedule. St. Francis wasn't competitive against Corona Del Mar or De La Salle that are both in top 15 of the state rankings and better than any team in the CCS and then blew out a fairly week Oak Grove team. Currently they are ranked about 20 points below VC and Serra and about 10 points ahead of Mitty and SI. They have a bye this week.

Los Gatos - closed out their preseason with an impressive 35-8 win over San Benito and crept ahead of Wilcox based on better performance against two common opponents. Los Gatos beat San Benito 35-8 (Wilcox 34-20) and Leland who Los Gatos beat 56-21 (Wilcox beat Leland 49-34). These two teams should settle who wins the Deanza when they meet on October 4th. Los Gatos closes out their preseason schedule against B league rival Saratoga this week.

Wilcox - Dropped to #5 this week from #3 despite a 49-34 win over Leland. Wilcox takes on the biggest challenge of section teams this week when they travel to Pittsburg to finish their preseason schedule. A win will likely move them up in the section rankings next week.

Half Moon Bay - HMB took the biggest jump in the rankings leaping up to the #6 spot. This was based on a 40-0 upset route over Sacred Heart Prep. The win was a mild upset but the final score was pretty surprising as SHP was coming off a 28-21 win over Saint ignatius. HMB plays in the B league PAL Ocean and will be a heavy favorite to close out the season 10-0. It will be interesting in this new play-off format if they can accumulate enough points to be in the Division I play-offs or not.

Menlo-Atherton - Lost their second straight game on the road falling to an East team 49-20 that is ranked on the level of a Serra (who beat MA last week 35-13) and VC. This dropped MA to #7 in the rankings. It doesn't get any easier for MA who goes on the road after a bye week to take on the #2 ranked team in Northern California Folsom.

Mitty - Stayed at #8 after easily defeating an undermanned Oakland High team. Mitty has a bye week before starting WCAL play.

Saint Ignatius - Came back into the top top 10 at number 9 after beating a good Gonzaga Prep team from Spokane, WA 37-22. SI has a bye before starting WCAL play.

Palma - Makes their first appearance in the top 10 after an impressive 28-14 win on the road over Oakdale. Palma figures to slug it out with Salinas and Aptos for the Gabilan title. Aptos and Palma had common opponents the last two weeks with Aptos losing at home to Oakdale 21-19 while beating SHC 35-14 at home (Palma beat SHC the week before 35-21 in SF).

Salinas dropped out of the top 10 with a 52-28 loss to Clovis on the road and takes on Milpitas this week to close out their pre league schedule. SHP dropped out after being crushed 40-0 by Half Moon Bay and Kings Academy dropped a spot from 10 to 11 despite beating Monte Vista Christian 36-8 and continue their pre league schedule with a game against Homestead this week.

 

[Cal 14]

St. Francis wasn't competitive against Corona Del Mar or De La Salle that are both in top 15 of the state rankings and better than any team in the CCS...

Whoa there, Charlie... DLS, yes, but I’m not ready concede that CdM is better than anyone in the CCS. I suspect both Serra and VC will whip the Lancers just as bad as did the Sea Kings.

 

[ARHS Stats]

Whoa there, Charlie... DLS, yes, but I’m not ready concede that CdM is better than anyone in the CCS. I suspect both Serra and VC will whip the Lancers just as bad as did the Sea Kings.

Corona del Mar lost to Grace Brethren in a Southern Section Division 4 Championship game, last season. CdM was the #1 seed and Grace Brethren was the #3 seed in the SS Division 4 Playoffs. CdM has lost in the SS Division 4 Championship game the last 2 of the last 3 seasons (Sierra Canyon in 2016), this season CdM has been moved up to Division 3. In the 2017 season, CdM lost in a Division 4 second round playoff game to Downey
NOTE: The Southern Section had 13 Divisions for football, last season.

10 starters returned on the offensive side of the ball. Starting Center graduated. 6 starters returned on the defensive side of the ball.

Teams CdM has defeated this season and where they are ranked in the state of California: Palos Verdes #33, St. Francis #77, Downey #255, and Lakewood #455 [Palos Verdes lost in the SS Division 5 Championship Game, last season. Downey lost to the #2 seeded Citrus Hill in the second round of the SS Division 3 playoffs]

Teams Serra has defeated this season and where they are ranked in the state of California: Pittsburg #66, Menlo-Atherton #129, and St. Mary's (ST) #94 [St. Mary's (ST) lost to Folsom in the SJS Division 1 semi finals. Menlo-Atherton won the CCS OPEN Division 1 Championship Game. (No WCAL teams in the division) Pittsburg lost to De La Salle in the NCS OPEN Division semi finals.]

Teams Valley Christian has defeated this season and where they are ranked in the state of California: Wilcox #103, Pleasant Valley #135, and Clovis West #86 [Wilcox lost to Menlo-Atherton in the CCS OPEN Division 1 Championship Game. Pleasant Valley won the NS Division 2 Championship Game. Clovis West lost to #2 seeded Buchanan in the first round of the CS Division 1 playoffs, CW was the 15th seed.]

Rankings are current the MaxPrep computer rankings.

 

[jordan24]

Corona del Mar lost to Grace Brethren in a Southern Section Division 4 Championship game, last season. CdM was the #1 seed and Grace Brethren was the #3 seed in the SS Division 4 Playoffs. CdM has lost in the SS Division 4 Championship game the last 2 of the last 3 seasons (Sierra Canyon in 2016), this season CdM has been moved up to Division 3. In the 2017 season, CdM lost in a Division 4 second round playoff game to Downey
NOTE: The Southern Section had 13 Divisions for football, last season.

10 starters returned on the offensive side of the ball. Starting Center graduated. 6 starters returned on the defensive side of the ball.

Teams CdM has defeated this season and where they are ranked in the state of California: Palos Verdes #33, St. Francis #77, Downey #255, and Lakewood #455 [Palos Verdes lost in the SS Division 5 Championship Game, last season. Downey lost to the #2 seeded Citrus Hill in the second round of the SS Division 3 playoffs]

Teams Serra has defeated this season and where they are ranked in the state of California: Pittsburg #66, Menlo-Atherton #129, and St. Mary's (ST) #94 [St. Mary's (ST) lost to Folsom in the SJS Division 1 semi finals. Menlo-Atherton won the CCS OPEN Division 1 Championship Game. (No WCAL teams in the division) Pittsburg lost to De La Salle in the NCS OPEN Division semi finals.]

Teams Valley Christian has defeated this season and where they are ranked in the state of California: Wilcox #103, Pleasant Valley #135, and Clovis West #86 [Wilcox lost to Menlo-Atherton in the CCS OPEN Division 1 Championship Game. Pleasant Valley won the NS Division 2 Championship Game. Clovis West lost to #2 seeded Buchanan in the first round of the CS Division 1 playoffs, CW was the 15th seed.]

Rankings are current the MaxPrep computer rankings.

Throw out rankings! Lol! That’s they play the games!
Is it Sept 27th yet!?!

 

[Cal 14]

Corona del Mar lost to Grace Brethren in a Southern Section Division 4 Championship game, last season. CdM was the #1 seed and Grace Brethren was the #3 seed in the SS Division 4 Playoffs. CdM has lost in the SS Division 4 Championship game the last 2 of the last 3 seasons (Sierra Canyon in 2016), this season CdM has been moved up to Division 3. In the 2017 season, CdM lost in a Division 4 second round playoff game to Downey
NOTE: The Southern Section had 13 Divisions for football, last season.

10 starters returned on the offensive side of the ball. Starting Center graduated. 6 starters returned on the defensive side of the ball.

Teams CdM has defeated this season and where they are ranked in the state of California: Palos Verdes #33, St. Francis #77, Downey #255, and Lakewood #455 [Palos Verdes lost in the SS Division 5 Championship Game, last season. Downey lost to the #2 seeded Citrus Hill in the second round of the SS Division 3 playoffs]

Teams Serra has defeated this season and where they are ranked in the state of California: Pittsburg #66, Menlo-Atherton #129, and St. Mary's (ST) #94 [St. Mary's (ST) lost to Folsom in the SJS Division 1 semi finals. Menlo-Atherton won the CCS OPEN Division 1 Championship Game. (No WCAL teams in the division) Pittsburg lost to De La Salle in the NCS OPEN Division semi finals.]

Teams Valley Christian has defeated this season and where they are ranked in the state of California: Wilcox #103, Pleasant Valley #135, and Clovis West #86 [Wilcox lost to Menlo-Atherton in the CCS OPEN Division 1 Championship Game. Pleasant Valley won the NS Division 2 Championship Game. Clovis West lost to #2 seeded Buchanan in the first round of the CS Division 1 playoffs, CW was the 15th seed.]

Rankings are current the MaxPrep computer rankings.

Great, but still not convinced CdM is definitely better than either Serra or VC. Calpreps may have them higher, but they’re currently #3 among this group according to Cal-Hi.

 

[colhenrylives]

Whoa there, Charlie... DLS, yes, but I’m not ready concede that CdM is better than anyone in the CCS. I suspect both Serra and VC will whip the Lancers just as bad as did the Sea Kings.

Not entirely certain of that presumption.

 

[Rmbr26]

I agree with colhenry in that I'm not going to concede too quickly that Serra "will whip the Lancers just as bad as the Sea Kings did.".
First of all I watched that SF vs CdM game and that SoCal team looked very, very good - some talented athletes on that team. Secondly when it comes to SF vs Serra there is a long, LONG history of SF wins even in years of Serra being favored with the "Curse" resurfacing [SF beating Serra 32 years in a row]. I remember one such game where a talented Serra team hosted SF on the only night game of the season during which it started raining. The heavy Serra home crowd excitement was quieted rather quickly when the SF "D" stifled Serra and the SF special teams excelled [one of SF's traits over the years]. Most of my memory of that game now consists of going home soaking wet thinking "those Lancers did it to us yet again! - will we EVER beat those guys??". Luckily I was at Serra when DeLeon Eskridge leaped over the pile at the goal line on 4th down in the closing minute to break "The Curse" - one of the BEST HS football games I ever attended and with one of my Serra grad sons'.

 

[Cal 14]

I agree with colhenry in that I'm not going to concede too quickly that Serra "will whip the Lancers just as bad as the Sea Kings did.".
First of all I watched that SF vs CdM game and that SoCal team looked very, very good - some talented athletes on that team.

St. Francis is not a great football team. They're a one-trick pony on offense, even more-so than in previous years. If they can't bludgen you up front on offense, they have no other option. Their secondary lacks the speed to play tight man coverage. Serra will be faster than CdM.

Sure, the Lancers may win a handful of games because they'll physically overpower those weaker teams like Bellarmine and Sacred Heart Cathedral, but that won't work against anyone who is any good.

 

[colhenrylives]

Don't be misled: When it comes to St. Francis football, Padre paranoia runs deep.

 

[PALbooster]

Here is the top 10 for CCS via Calpreps after Week 4 - The only changes were that Wilcox dropped from #5 to #7 after a close loss on the road to Pittsburg 35-31 and SHP jumped back into the top 10 with their 42-7 win over Hillsdale and bumped Palma from the 10
spot.

School, CCS rank, Last week, Norcal rank, State rank

Serra 1 (1) 4 22
Valley Christian 2 (2) 5 29
St. Francis 3 (3) 18 78
Los Gatos 4 (4) 24 105
Half Moon Bay 5 (6) 36 128
Menlo-Atherton 6 (7) 38 129
Wilcox 7 (5) 39 134
Mitty 8 (8) 39 135
Saint Ignatius 9 (9) 45 144
Sacred Heart Prep 10 (NR) 51 152

Dropped out Palma NR (10) 53 161

Current projected DI and DII CCS Play-offs

Division 1

8. Half Moon Bay 10-0 (63.5) at 1. Serra 10-0 (85.5)
5. Menlo-Atherton 7-3 (69) at 4. Los Gatos 10-0 (71)
6. Mitty 6-4 (66.5) at 3. St. Francis 6-4 (73)
7. Wilcox 7-3 (64) at 2. Valley Christian 9-1 (77)

Division 2

8. Leland 7-3 (52) at 1. Palma 9-1 (63.5)
5. Live Oak 10-0 (57) at 4. Sacred Heart Prep 7-3 (58)
6. Salinas 8-2 (55.5) at 3. Kings Academy 9-1 (58)
7. Palo Alto 7-3 (55) at 2. Saint Ignatius 5-5 (60)

The B and C leagues and initial projections for Divisions 3-5 soon to come.

With the exception of the PAL leagues. The other 10 leagues have wrapped up their non-league schedules and dive into league play starting next week. Here is a league by league picture following non-league play for the 5 A leagues.

WCAL - Serra (3-0) and Valley Christian (3-0) showed themselves to be the class of the league and the title should be decided between them. Serra's strength of schedule was a little harder and their point differential in their wins were greater. St. Francis (1-2) is currently rated third, but they haven't had a competitive game yet after suffering two blow out losses to top 15 teams in the state and then blowing out Oak Grove. St. Francis figures to battle Mitty (2-1) and Saint Ignatius (2-1) for the 3-5 positions with all three teams making the play-offs. The 6th place team from the WCAL will make the play-offs and it figures to be an intriguing battle between Bellarmine (1-2), Riordan (2-1) and Sacred Heart Cathedral (0-3) for 6th place. The Bells and SHC challenged themselves with a tougher pre-season slate while Riordan faced off against mid-level teams. The league went 14-10 in non-league play with Serra posting the two best wins over Pittsburg and St. Mary's.

DeAnza - The league went 18-10 in non-league play. There were no signature wins with both Los Gatos and Wilcox beating Leland and San Benito. Los Gatos (4-0) and Wilcox (2-2) are the league favorites with Palo Alto (3-1) a clear third. Milpitas (1-3) and Mountain View (4-0) figure to battle for the league's fourth automatic spot. Mountain View is highly likely to be an at-large team even if they finish 5th. Santa Clara and Fremont are projected for the bottom of the league and Santa Clara is unlikely to get an at-large bid with a 6th place finish.

Gabilan - The league went 10-14 in non-league play with no one emerging undefeated. Palma (2-1) and Salinas (2-1) are the top ranked teams with Aptos (1-2) rated slightly behind the top two. Palma had the leagues most impressive pre-season wins over Oakdale and SHC (Aptos beat SHC as well, but lost a close game to Oakdale). Carmel (2-1) and San Benito (1-2) are projected to battle it out for the last automatic berth with the 5th place team almost certain to qualify for the play-offs. Alvarez (2-1) and Christopher (0-3) should battle for 6th and 7th. Gilroy (0-3) will struggle to get a league win.

Mt. Hamilton - The league went 8-15 in non-league play. Live Oak went 3-0 and beat Burlingame and Christopher. Leland and Oak Grove are projected to battle for 2nd and 3rd spots, with the league's final spot likely to go to the winner between Pioneer (1-2) and Piedmont Hills (0-3). It is unlikely a team will get an at-large form this league.

PAL-Bay - Still has a week of non-league play to go but to date their non-league record to date is 12-8. The league's best pre-season wins to date have been SHP beating SI and Menlo-Atherton thrashing Bellamrine. Menlo-Atherton (1-2) is still the league favorite, but don't look as strong as last year. Kings Academy (3-0) and SHP (3-1) look like the leading contenders for the leagues #2 and #3 spots. The last play-off spot should be between Burlingame (1-2) and Terra Nova (3-1) with 5th place team making the play-offs as an at-large. Aragon has struggled through the non-league schedule and looks destined to finish last in this league.

 

[FBAddict]

Here is the top 10 for CCS via Calpreps after Week 4 - there might be some slight changes after the results from a light Saturday schedule. The only change was that Wilcox dropped from #5 to #8 after a close loss on the road to Pittsburg 35-31

School, CCS rank, Last week, Norcal rank, State rank

Serra 1 (1) 4 22
Valley Christian 2 (2) 6 30
St. Francis 3 (3) 18 78
Los Gatos 4 (4) 24 105
Half Moon Bay 5 (6) 36 127
Menlo-Atherton 6 (7) 38 129
Mitty 7 (8) 39 133
Wilcox 8 (5) 40 134
Saint Ignatius 9 (9) 45 144
Palma 10 (10) 51 160

Current projected DI and DII CCS Play-offs

Division 1

8. Half Moon Bay 10-0 (63.5) at 1. Serra 10-0 (85.5)
5. Menlo-Atherton 7-3 (69) at 4. Los Gatos 10-0 (71)
6. Mitty 6-4 (67.5) at 3. St. Francis 6-4 (73)
7. Palma 9-1 (64.5) at 2. Valley Christian 9-1 (77)

Division 2

8. Leland 7-3 (52) at 1. Wilcox 7-3 (63)
5. Sacred Heart Prep 7-3 (56) at 4. Live Oak 10-0 (57)
6. Salinas 8-2 (55.5) at 3. Kings Academy 9-1 (59)
7. Palo Alto 7-3 (55) at 2. Saint Ignatius 5-5 (60)

The B and C leagues and intiial projections for Divisions 3-5 soon to come.

With the exception of the PAL leagues. The other 10 leagues have wrapped up their non-league schedules and dive into league play starting next week. Here is a league by league picture following non-league play for the 5 A leagues.

WCAL - Serra (3-0) and Valley Christian (3-0) showed themselves to be the class of the league and the title should be decided between them. Serra's strength of schedule was a little harder and their point differential in their wins were greater. St. Francis (1-2) is currently rated third, but they haven't had a competitive game yet after suffering two blow out losses to top 15 teams in the state and then blowing out Oak Grove. St. Francis figures to battle Mitty (2-1) and Saint Ignatius (2-1) for the 3-5 positions with all three teams making the play-offs. The 6th place team from the WCAL will make the play-offs and it figures to be an intriguing battle between Bellarmine (1-2), Riordan (2-1) and Sacred Heart Cathedral (0-3) for 6th place. The Bells and SHC challenged themselves with a tougher pre-season slate while Riordan faced off against mid-level teams. The league went 14-10 in non-league play with Serra posting the two best wins over Pittsburg and St. Mary's.

DeAnza - The league went 18-10 in non-league play. There were no signature wins with both Los Gatos and Wilcox beating Leland and San Benito. Los Gatos (4-0) and Wilcox (2-2) are the league favorites with Palo Alto (3-1) a clear third. Milpitas (1-3) and Mountain View (4-0) figure to battle for the league's fourth automatic spot. Mountain View is highly likely to be an at-large team even if they finish 5th. Santa Clara and Fremont are projected for the bottom of the league and Santa Clara is unlikely to get an at-large bid with a 6th place finish.

Gabilan - The league went 10-14 in non-league play with no one emerging undefeated. Palma (2-1) and Salinas (2-1) are the top ranked teams with Aptos (1-2) rated slightly behind the top two. Palma had the leagues most impressive pre-season wins over Oakdale and SHC (Aptos beat SHC as well, but lost a close game to Oakdale). Carmel (2-1) and San Benito (1-2) are projected to battle it out for the last automatic berth with the 5th place team almost certain to qualify for the play-offs. Alvarez (2-1) and Christopher (0-3) should battle for 6th and 7th. Gilroy (0-3) will struggle to get a league win.

Mt. Hamilton - The league went 8-15 in non-league play. Live Oak went 3-0 and beat Burlingame and Christopher. Leland and Oak Grove are projected to battle for 2nd and 3rd spots, with the league's final spot likely to go to the winner between Pioneer (1-2) and Piedmont Hills (0-3). It is unlikely a team will get an at-large form this league.

PAL-Bay - Still has a week of non-league play to go but to date their non-league record to date is 12-8. The league's best pre-season wins to date have been SHP beating SI and Menlo-Atherton thrashing Bellamrine. Menlo-Atherton (1-2) is still the league favorite, but don't look as strong as last year. Kings Academy (3-0) and SHP (3-1) look like the leading contenders for the leagues #2 and #3 spots. The last play-off spot should be between Burlingame (1-2) and Terra Nova (3-1) with 5th place team making the play-offs as an at-large. Aragon has struggled through the non-league schedule and looks destined to finish last in this league.

Excellent review!!!

 

[Defense_Rules]

I think the Serra win over St. Mary’s loses a little of its luster after the beat down SM took Against Mission Viejo (63-0 at half).

 

[colhenrylives]

Would agree if Folsom beats Menlo-Atherton by 40-plus this week. Then you have a real comparison.

 

[pc2986]

I think the Serra win over St. Mary’s loses a little of its luster after the beat down SM took Against Mission Viejo (63-0 at half).

Yah u think? Do you know how many players from SM are out for them from Serra game? Also, SM knew they were gonna lose and played conservatively with backups after HT. The QB’s dad is a family friend. Looking forward to our battle on 11/2 and then it’s just math til we play Folsom

 

[pc2986]

Don't be misled: When it comes to St. Francis football, Padre paranoia runs deep.

This is true!! We are more concerned about SF game than VC honestly.

 

[colhenrylives]

This is true!! We are more concerned about SF game than VC honestly.

Is Silk eligible for Riordan game?

 

[remc]

Yes. Serra’s conditioning showed well in the 2nd half, considering that heat shouldn’t be an excuse forPittsburg since they practice in
90+degrees in the summer.
.

True, probably hotter in Pittsburg than San Mateo most summer days from my experience

 

[pc2986]

Is Silk eligible for Riordan game?

Yes is he a good hoop player?

 

[remc]

I think the Serra win over St. Mary’s loses a little of its luster after the beat down SM took Against Mission Viejo (63-0 at half).

Yeah, but SM might have gotten beaten up by Serra the week before and basically limped into it’s game with Mission Viejo. There were posts talking about how SM was down quite a few starters due to injury

 

[PALbooster]

Here are the projections for the D3, 4 and 5 play-offs with the new CCS play-off format and a look at the sections B&C leagues heading into league play.

Division 3

8. Carmel 6-4 42.5 at 1. Aptos 6-4 51
5. Saratoga 9-1 43.5 at 4. Soquel 10-0 48
6. Oak Grove 6-4 43 at 2. Bellarmine 3-7 48
7. Burlingame 5-5 42.5 at 2. Seaside 10-0 50

Division 4

8. Willow Glen 9-1 31.5 at 1. San Mateo 8-2 41
5. Mountain View 7-3 35 at 4. Carlmont 7-3 35.5
6. Terra Nova 4-6 34.5 at 3. Branham 10-0 36.5
7. San Benito 4-6 34 at 2. Monterey 8-2 38

Division 5

8. Evergreen Valley 8-2 20 at 1. Monte Vista Christian 6-3 28.9
5. Gunn 8-2 23 at 4. Jefferson 8-2 26
6. Pioneer 4-6 22.5 at 3. King City 7-3 26
7. Pacific Grove 7-3 20 at 2. Overfelt 6-4 27.5

Pal Ocean - Still some non-league games left but the league is 17-6 in preseason to date. Half Moon Bay (4-0) has demonstrated that they are the best B league team in the section with decisive wins over Sacred Heart Prep and Burlingame and might make the division 1 play-offs if they run the table. Carlmont (2-2 with losses to Palo Alto and SHP) and San Mateo (4-0 against mainly C league teams) should battle for the second automatic spot with the loser having a great chance for an at-large berth. Hillsdale (3-1) should be competitive in this league as well. Menlo (2-2) and Sequoia 2-1 should struggle in league play.

Santa Teresa - Went 15-8 in preseason. League race looks to be highly competitive between Branham (3-0), Willow Glen (3-0) and Overfelt (1-2) who played a tough pre-league slate getting blown out by Palo Alto and Clayton Valley. The third place finisher here should get an at-large berth. The remainder of the league looks to be a level below the top three although Sobrato is 2-0 to date.

Mission - The Mission went 13-14 in pre-season This league gets three automatic berth (Cypress below gets only one). Seaside finished a strong preseason 4-0 with an unexpected win over Bishop O'Dowd and is favored to win the league title. Monterey (2-2) and Monte Viste Christian (2-1) are favored for the other two automatic spots with Soledad as a potential challenger.

Cypress - The Cypress went an impressive 18-10 in preseason play including going 6-5 against what is supposed to be a stronger Mission League. Soquel (4-0) has emerged as the favorite for the league championship and the sole automatic qualifying spot ahead of King City (3-1), Gonzales (3-1) and North Monterey County (3-1). The second place team has a good chance at an at-large berth.

El Camino - Went 15-13 in pre-league play. Saratoga looks to be the class of this league with a strong offense that put up 38 pints in a loss to Los Gatos. Gunn (4-0) is currently ranked second in the league against an exceptionally soft pre-league schedule. Gunn should battle with Monta Vista, Homestead, Cupertino and Los Altos for the second at-large spot.

The sections three C league teams struggled as expected with their non-league schedules. The Santa Lucia went 5-21, West Valley 5-19, and PAL-Lake went 6-18. Pacific Grove is a strong favorite in the Santa Lucia, with Jefferson, Mills and possibly Capuchino fighting for the Lake division crown. The West Valley is very balanced with Evergreen Valley, Prospect and Hill being slight favorites. All these qualifiers will likely be in the Division 5 play-off bracket.

 

[NorCalSportsFan]

Salinas, Palma and Aptos are probably top 10. I think Calpreps started their rating way too low at the start. Seems they under rated a lot of CCS. CCS is relatively strong this season - NCS down, Sac-SJ down at the top.

 

[northbayfb]

Salinas, Palma and Aptos are probably top 10. I think Calpreps started their rating way too low at the start. Seems they under rated a lot of CCS. CCS is relatively strong this season - NCS down, Sac-SJ down at the top.

Salinas has two wins against teams that are a combined 1-7 and weren’t competitive in a 24 point loss to a 3-2 Clovis team ranked 94 in state. I think they are probably where they should be for now

 

[carmelkyd]

Salinas, Palma and Aptos are probably top 10. I think Calpreps started their rating way too low at the start. Seems they under rated a lot of CCS. CCS is relatively strong this season - NCS down, Sac-SJ down at the top.

NorCal...Appreciate your "homerism" but in the past week, Palma moved from 168th in the state to 161st. Number 10 in CCS right now is Sacred Heart Prep at 152nd in the state. Reasonable to believe the Palma can move into the Top 10 in CCS before the end of the season. More difficult to see Salinas (ranked 207 in the state) and Aptos (ranked 234) getting there.

 

[Cal 14]

Salinas has two wins against teams that are a combined 1-7 and weren’t competitive in a 24 point loss to a 3-2 Clovis team ranked 94 in state. I think they are probably where they should be for now

That's actually not true. 17 points were due to three special teams incidents alone. Offense vs defense, the game actually was quite competitive.

 

[colhenrylives]

The key is signature non-league wins. So far, would you say the PCAL has at least a couple vs. a current NorCal power or two? i see one: Palma over Oakdale. Aptos has a couple of impressive close losses but they are L's nonetheless. Seaside beat a bad O'Dowd unit, a shell of what it's been in the recent past. Is there another important non-league W?

 

[northbayfb]

That's actually not true. 17 points were due to three special teams incidents alone. Offense vs defense, the game actually was quite competitive.

I love anyone that supports their team fervently. I do. Salinas scored with less than a minute to go to reduce the margin of victory from 31 to 24. That’s not competitive in anyone’s book

 

[PALbooster]

Salinas, Palma and Aptos are probably top 10. I think Calpreps started their rating way too low at the start. Seems they under rated a lot of CCS. CCS is relatively strong this season - NCS down, Sac-SJ down at the top.

I think it is hard to say that the preseason calpreps rankings were too low for the Gabilan teams when Aptos started the year ranked #6 and Salinas was ranked #8. Aptos had a preseason ranking above Serra. Do you really think they deserved to be ranked higher? Their non-league performances showed they were over ranked, not under ranked to start the season.

It will be exceptionally difficult for all three teams to reach the top 10 as they all play each other and will all either go 1-1 against each other or will end up with one team 2-0, one team 1-1 and one team 0-2. I don't see any of these teams with 2 more losses moving into the top 10 and if they split their games it will keep them about where they are.

The league went 10-14 in their non-league schedule, going 5-10 against other A level opponents, 4-4 against B level teams and 1-0 against C teams. Calpreps ranked the league behind the WCAL, Deanza, and PAL-Bay and just ahead of the PAL-Ocean for the season so far. Given that there is minimal out of league games left this equation usually doesn't change again until after the play-offs. It is very hard for the 4th ranked league to end up with 3 top ten teams. There was one signature win (Palma beating Oakdale who is #129 in state). The next best win for the league was Aptos and Palma beating SHC which is currently ranked #428 in the state.

For the top Gabilan teams to see an elevation in their rankings they are going to need to see their non-league opponents shine for the rest of the season. For example if SHC ends up in 4th or 5th place in the WCAL their rating will rise dramatically. Similarly it will help if teams like Mitty, Clovis, Newport Harbor finish much higher than currently projected in their difficult leagues.

Finally, teams ahead of Gabilan teams are going to need to under perform during league season. In the end, I think it will be likely that the top Gabilan team will be ranked anywhere between 8-11 and the second third place teams will likely finish between 11 and 20 in the next ten.