PCAL Week 6

Lots to talk about this week. It all starts this Thursday night with Hollister visiting the PIT to take on Salinas. This game was close to being canceled as the Cowboys just came out of COVID protocol Tuesday morning. Be curious to see who is playing for Salinas and see how rusty they are with out practice for 10 days.

Carmel answered some questions, and it was not good. They fell behind early to Gilroy and the offense never got on track. This is not your typical Carmel team with a bunch of skilled athletes running all over the field. The team has some speed, but most of their skilled players are playing in their 2nd varsity game. Very green. I expect them to improve as the season goes, but they should have scheduled a game on their bye week after missing their previous 2 games to COVID. Their playoff hopes took a big hit.

Speaking of Playoffs, there will be none for RLS. St Francis CC took them to the woodshed. The Sharks are clearly the top team in the Sant Lucia division. I thought after the close loss to PG that RLS would be better. But maybe PG is not that good as they fell to Rancho San Juan. Big props for the Trailblazers in securing the first win in the program’s history!!! And best of all it was vs PG. 😊

Not a good week 8-6 last week 52-18 Overall



Gabilan

Thu 09/30 San Benito (Hollister, CA) at Salinas (CA), 7:30pm- Game of the week in the PCAL. I have picked against Salinas in 2 of there 3 games. Not anymore, I am jumping on that bandwagon even if it has some COVID cases. Cowboys make another statement. Salinas 28-14

Fri 10/01 Aptos (CA) at Alvarez (Salinas, CA), 7:30pm – Aptos should have very little issue with a rebuilding Alvarez program. Aptos 45-7

Fri 10/01 Christopher (Gilroy, CA) at Seaside (CA), 7:30pm – I thinks Seaside comes out of the bye a little stronger, not strong enough but they keep it close. Christopher 20-16

Sat 10/02 Palma (Salinas, CA) vs Alisal (Salinas, CA) at Salinas Sports Complex (Salinas, CA), 4:00pm – Alisal will look to control the clock and the trenches v Palma's high octane offense. It did not work vs Hollister wont work here either. Palma 35-14



Mission

Fri 10/01 Monterey (CA) vs Soledad (CA) at Monterey Peninsula College (Monterey, CA), 7:00pm – Both these teams got blown out last week. Monterey by Santa Cruz (no surprise) Soledad by North Salinas (big Surprise!). Monterey wins but not a blowout. Monterey 21-17

Fri 10/01 Santa Cruz (CA) vs North Salinas (Salinas, CA) at Salinas Sports Complex (Salinas, CA), 7:00pm- NS surprised me by beating up on Soledad last week. Probably not happening this week. Santa Cruz 28-7

Fri 10/01 Gilroy (CA) at Soquel (CA), 7:30pm- Gilroy looked great in the first half vs Carmel, and were able to keep the Carmel offense in check. I think this game maybe closer but the get past Soquel. Gilroy 28-20

Sat 10/02 Gonzales (CA) at Carmel (CA), 2:00pm – Lets see how Carmel responds. Defense stepped it up in the 2nd half and held Gilroy to 3 Points. Offense needs to be better, way better. They have a quick RB1 and some small fleet receivers, but line play was not good. They should rebound here. Carmel 45-21



Cypress

Thu 09/30 Rancho San Juan (Salinas, CA) at King City (CA), 7:00pm – Rancho is on their first ever winning streak, while King City is undefeated. KC has not played anybody good this year, 2 Lucia division teams and an underperforming Gonzales team, but none of the games have been close. That does not change this week. King City 35-8

Fri 10/01 Scotts Valley (CA) at North Monterey County (Castroville, CA), 7:30pm – NMC had a great win last week, but Scott’s Valley is really tough. Scott’s Valley 21-0

Fri 10/01 San Lorenzo Valley (Felton, CA) at Watsonville (CA), 7:00pm – Cal Preps has Watsonville winning easily. I like SLV here, maybe not to win but it will be a good game. Watsonville 24-20



Santa Lucia

Fri 10/01 St. Francis (Watsonville, CA) vs Greenfield (CA) at Santa Cruz (CA), 7:30pm – St. Francis destroyed RLS after falling behind 12-0 last week and established themselves as the team to beat in the Sant Lucia. I don’t see Greenfield slowing them down. St Francis 35-7

Sat 10/02 Stevenson (Pebble Beach, CA) at Pajaro Valley (Watsonville, CA), 2:00pm – My beloved Pirates will try and lick their wounds and bounce back from last weeks beat down. All you can do now is play for Pirate pride. RLS 28-21

San Mateo is the new No. 1 team in the state followed by San Francisco at No. 2.

Other state ranked teams are Fresno City (#9), Modesto (#10), Diablo Valley (#11), American River (#17), Contra Costa (T18), Feather River (T18), Butte (#20) and Laney (#22).

The Brett Callan Memorial Tournament at Casa Grande HS (Petaluma) has an opening for this year’s tournament. The dates are December 16-18,
2021. This is a well-run, competitive tournament. Players are fed after each game, there is a hospitality room for coaches, all-tournament team, etc.

Current field: Montgomery (Santa Rosa), Windsor, West County (Sebastopol), Petaluma, Casa Grande (Petaluma), Urban (SF) and George Washington (SF).

For more information, please contact tournament director, Rick Duarte, at r.duarte@att.net

Welcome to 2021!!!!!!

I just heard Shawn Hippol is out at Berkeley. Can anyone confirm? Seems kinda crazy to be one and done at a school like Berkeley but then again, you never know with administration being a revolving door...

Bill Flitter, De La Salle frosh coach, might be the new guy in charge.

Evolve Performance is one of the premier athletic training facilities in Northern California. Based in Oakland, will be hosting an invitational combine for high school boys basketball players. This combine is essential for the student athlete to show case their measurements, strength, plus athletic ability which is highly valued to college coaches and will gain a competitive edge on recruitment. The database will be shared with over 300+ college coaches and posted through multiple media outlets. Event will take place Oct. 2 with testing done at Evolve training facility at 4137 Peidmont Ave, Oakland, CA from 8 A - 12 P. Basketball Competition will be held at John Muir Ultimate Field House 2675 Mitchell Dr. Walnut Creek, CA from 1 P - 5 P. This has been an invitational event only with some of the top basketball athletes participating across Northern California. Proof of vaccination is required, or a negative COVID test done in the last 7 days to enter the facilities. If interested in viewing the event or have questions. Please email evolveperformance22@gmail.com. Seating will be limited. COVID guidelines will be enforced. Hope to see a 45 inch vertical or a 7 FT wingspan!

Here are the games for this week. Picks are due by 7:00 PM on Friday

El Cerrito at Monte Vista
Cardinal Newman at St. Mary's-Stockton
Vanden at Rancho Cotate
Granite Bay at Oak Ridge
Oakdale at Kimball
McClymonds at Menlo-Atherton
Wilcox at Los Gatos
Live Oak-Morgan Hill at Oak Grove
Heritage at De Anza
Inderkum at Jesuit

The welcome opening of the WCAL kicks off this weekend - who do you got? Also, your picks for order of finish.
Hoping our friend, Rmbr26, can provide his excellent insight and assessment for the 2021 campaign.
Week 1 WCAL Picks:
Friday Night - 7pm
Riordan @ Bellarmine
Valley Christian @ Sacred Heart Cathedral (Kezar)
St. Ignatius @ St. Francis
Saturday - 1pm
Serra @ Mitty

Predicted Order of Finish:

1. Serra
2. St. Francis
3. Valley Christian
4. Bellarmine
5. St. Ignatius
6. Riordan
7. SHC
8. Mitty

First time I have seen an ad by someone I watched play in HS! Good for him!

The great victory by St. Francis last night opens up some interesting possibilities;

* Let's assume DLS responds as they usually do when they lose and shows improvement the rest of the year to be the DLS we know.
* DLS is able to beat Folsom and even perhaps St. Frances Academy of Baltimore.
* St. Francis or Serra win the WCAL.

In that scenario, which two teams face off in the Nor Cal Game to be the rep in the State Open Game? I would think that if DLS beats Folsom (again), we would probably see the WCAL winner face off vs. DLS.

A lot will happen the next two months, but it will be very exciting.

1. Centennial (Corona)
2. Folsom
3. Mission Viejo
4. Norco
5. Los Alamitos
6. Inglewood
7. Vista Murrieta (Murrieta)
8. Carlsbad
9. Edison (Huntington Beach)
10. Pittsburg
11. Abraham Lincoln (San Diego)
12. Rocklin
12. Earl Warren (Downey)
13. Corona Del Mar (Newport Beach)
14. Central (Fresno)
15. Buchanan (Clovis)
16. Mission Hills (San Marcos)
17. Villa Park
18. San Pedro
19. Los Gatos
20. McClymonds (Oakland)
21. Torrey Pines (San Diego)
22. Rancho Cucamonga
23. Apple Valley
24. Simi Valley
25. Citrus Valley (Redlands)

Next 5 up

26. Etiwanda (Rancho Cucamonga)
27. Ruben Ayala (Chino Hills)
28. Edison (Stockton)
29. Murrieta Valley (Murrieta)
30. Oakdale

PCAL Week 5

First things first: Congratulations to PG for beating RLS, now I know how @pastyfastquick3 feels after losing to DLS 😉 . Anyways PG played better most of the game, RLS made too many mistakes, but I did admire their grit and they had the ball with a chance at the end, really all you can ask for. I still like their chances to win the Lucia division.

In other news, apparently Salinas is like really good. I don’t know if they are St. Francis/Serra good, but is seems they could/should be CCS top 5 good. Aptos had a hell of 3 game stretch, and I don’t know if Salinas would beat them by that much again, but it appears Salinas is the best team in the Gabilan. They get an unscheduled bye this week as COVID has canceled the Alisal game. With the 10-day quarantine protocols in place, not sure if they will get in enough adequate practice time for the big match up with Hollister next week

Carmel will put it’s undefeated (1-0) record on the line for the first time in 4 weeks as it returns from 2 COVID cancelations and a scheduled bye week this Saturday vs Gilroy. Lots of questions about this Padre team, curios to see how they perform against Gilroy.

Here is the link to CCS playoff rules. Section 5 explains seedings and how at large works for teams playing less than 10 game.. Not sure if CCS is going to change for this year due to multiple teams playing less than 10 games.

http://cifccs.org/sports/fball/2021-22/football_bylaws_2021-22.pdf



All four division’s start league games this week.

Not a great week last week, 8-5 Overall 44-12



Gabilan



Fri 09/24 Salinas (CA) at Alisal (Salinas, CA), 7:30pm: Canceled due to COVID

Fri 09/24 San Benito (Hollister, CA) at Alvarez (Salinas, CA), 7:30pm: This should be a walkover for Hollister, but in years past Hollister has lost these types of games. New Year new Haybalers. Hollister 34-7

Fri 09/24 Seaside (CA) at Aptos (CA), 7:30pm: Aptos takes out its Salinas Frustration vs an undermanned Spartan team. Aptos 45-6

Fri 09/24 Christopher (Gilroy, CA) at Monte Vista Christian (Watsonville, CA), 7:30pm Probably the Closest matchup this week, battle for 5th. Christopher 24-14


Mission

Fri 09/24 Soquel (CA) at Gonzales (CA), 7:30pm- Both these teams have struggled a bit this year. Going with the visiting Knights. Soquel 24-10

Fri 09/24 Santa Cruz (CA) vs Monterey (CA) at Monterey Peninsula College (Monterey, CA), 7:00pm- 2 Undefeated teams met up in an early league showdown. Santa Cruz has looked really good, Monterey has looked good, but pretty week schedule. Santa Cruz 35-21

Fri 09/24 North Salinas (Salinas, CA) at Soledad (CA), 7:30pm – Two teams coming off wins last week. Pretty even matchup, taking the home team. Soledad 21-18

Sat 09/25 Gilroy (CA) at Carmel (CA), 2:00pm- Gilroy has 3 games under its belt with 1 win, Carmel 1 game with 1 win. Carmel’s 1 victory seems a little bit better than Gilroy’s. I expect Carmel to come out slow with some mistakes but rebound and their speed and athleticism will start to take over. Carmel 42-31


Cypress

Fri 09/24 Watsonville (CA) at Scotts Valley (CA), 7:30pm- Watsonville has 2 wins vs bad teams, Scott’s Valley has a dominate defense. Scott’s Valley 21-0

Sat 09/25 Pacific Grove (CA) vs Rancho San Juan (Salinas, CA) at Alvarez (Salinas, CA), 12:00pm- Freaking PG, beat my beloved Pirates. They win again, over a young Rancho San Juan team. PG 30-6

Sat 09/25 North Monterey County (Castroville, CA) at San Lorenzo Valley (Felton, CA), 4:00pm- Old SCCAL rivals meet up. Pretty Even match up, taking the home team Cougars. SLV 17-14


Santa Lucia

Sat 09/25 Washington (San Francisco, CA) at Harbor (Santa Cruz, CA), 6:00pm- Harbor at 4-1? Have not seen that in a long time. We will see it Saturday Night. Harbor 24-6

Sat 09/25 Greenfield (CA) at Pajaro Valley (Watsonville, CA), 2:00pm- Greenfield has a nice win vs Gonzales, Pajaro has no wins and some big losses. Greenfield 35-20

Sat 09/25 St. Francis (Watsonville, CA) at Stevenson (Pebble Beach, CA), 2:00pm- With all due respect to Harbor, these are probably the best 2 teams in the division. This will be their first of 2 games and will count as a league game. I think RLS will be too athletic for the small but Mighty Sharks. RLS 32-21

With Folsom’s game coming up against Grant...I thought of a unique scenario....and this goes for any team where the favored team is so superior on every level, that the game feels like it shouldn’t be played...

would it be disingenuous for Folsom or any similar team to not even play their starters (or just q1) out of respect for the other team if the gap is that big or should the team play their starters to the end of the first half and then play second string?

i have a lot of respect for grant and their old coach A...and it is very sad to see the team tumble to where it has...but if folsom plays their starters to end of q2...i expect it to be more than a shellacking than even the 40 - 0 halftime lead vs OR was. Is that really fair to Grant? Imagine DLS playing Dublin (do they have a team) or playing Nevada Union.

South San Francisco HS Boys Freshmen are looking for games. Please contact Isaiah Igafo
(415) 635-1489
igafoi@gene.com

Danny Peters threw for 321 yards and five touchdowns an ran for a score in Palo Alto's 63-13 win over Santa Clara.

Leigh improved to 4-0 with a 48-21 win over Westmont. Sam Betz had four rushing touchdowns.

Ryan Richardson is the new head coach at Benicia.

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2025 PG Ava Rawlins of Folsom HS/Team Forbes received her third D1 offer from BYU this week after picking up offers from Cal and Utah this spring and summer. Looking like another major prospect coming out of Nor Cal!

Unofficial that PCAL losing 2 teams 2022-2023 season.

Going into this weekends games, Maxpreps had dropped DLS all the way to 23rd in the state rankings, one spot below St. Francis, who had beaten them the previous week. Since DLS drubbed state ranked #8 Cathedral Catholic, how far will DLS rise back in the rankings, and what do you do with St. Francis if DLS gets a big jump in the rankings?

Ripon Christian almost made a trip to Texas this season.

Permian also reached out to Stellar Prep for a game