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State championship bowl games

Helmut to helmut and no call. Hope he is okay.He is out cold.Happened to my nephew on last play of a playoff and took a year to get through the effects
 
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SV scores 3Q but extra point failed. 1 minute left SV 13-6
 
Grant should be up in this one. Without starting QB will be tough. Should have been penalty on that hit. Grant just needs to give the ball to their two RBs
 
Halftime La Serna 14 Grant 13. Grant looks more like their regular season self. Now with Alexander out, Grant might struggle.
 
Grant’s QB is likely out for the game after what looked like to be a helmet to helmet. I believe their backup is a freshmen? Did I hear that right?

They’re going to run the entire 2nd half.
 
Ferndale is back in the game. Scoring with 15-21 lead by Fairfax.
 
Grant’s QB is likely out for the game after what looked like to be a helmet to helmet. I believe their backup is a freshmen? Did I hear that right?

They’re going to run the entire 2nd half.
The Pacers will be fine if they don't panic. If I am them (I understand I am not) take a deep breath. And remember Reed how good of a coach you are. Weeks back you planned for this. When others questioned your decision making to use your back up freshman QB to get reps at the end of a blow-out, you were preparing yourself for such a moment. Good job, now lets go execute!

But, yes sir, giving it to the two backs for the rest of the game is a great option
 
This La Serna team is for real! Their defense is keeping a high powered Grant offense nickel and diming its way down the field and away from the big strike play culminating in a fumble recovery in which they scored a td and aggressively went for the 2 pt conversion and its first lead of the ball game at 14-13 halftime.With Grants QB taking a helmet to helmet hit the Pacers may be without his services in 2nd half,we pray Alexander will be ok!Grant needs to come out and make a statement in 2nd half and stop La Serna as they receive 2nd half kickoff. Grant is in a ball game vs a very aggressive and physical,well coached La Serna team! Lets go Pacers!
 
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In the 1Q I said this Ferndale/Fairfax game was pretty much over when Fairfax scored on every possession and they were 21-0 over Ferndale. Since that moment, Fairfax has failed to score and Ferndale has scored 29 unanswered points. Ferndale 29-21 with 5 minutes left in the game.
 
The 2 pt conversion fails. 2 minutes left in the game a Grant is down by 2.
 
Open Division: San Mateo Serra vs. Santa Ana Mater Dei

Everyone and their mothers recognizes that the Monarchs of Mater Dei are among the very top teams in the country, but Serra isn't really chopped liver, either. I believe the first quarter will dictate how this game will go. In other instances where a NorCal team was a distinct underdog, good early defensive play has tended to lull their opposition to sleep (until they turn the ball over and wake them up, but we won't go into that). The Padre defense has generally been really solid this year, so the hope is that they can withstand the Monarch onslaught early on to at least give them something to think about as the game progresses. Will that be enough? Probably not. Mater Dei 38, Serra 10

D-1AA: Concord De La Salle vs. Mission Viejo

I've been saying that the Diablos of Mission Viejo are the class of this division for a while and I still do believe that. But while this is not your father's Spartan team, they've showed at times that they still have some of that magic. It's just that they've also shown that they have had issues in the passing game and with turnovers. Mission Viejo will be steady and are a fairly complete team... not unbeatable, just steady. They've lost some games and I certainly think that De La Salle is capable of pinning another one on them, but I think the lack of consisting passing game may be their undoing. Mission Viejo 27, De La Salle 20

D-1A: Folsom vs. Ventura St. Bonaventure

This is where the impact of the placement of Clovis North starts to come into play. DLS vs. MV will be an interesting game, but I also think Folsom vs. MV would be interesting. However, here the Bulldogs will be taking on the Seraphs of St. Bonaventure. It's not that St. Bonny hasn't seem teams around the level of Folsom, it's that they've pretty much lost to every one of them. The SJS D-I champ play has also been a little shaky over the last few weeks, too, but they have persevered against multiple teams either at or above the level of the Seraphs. Calpreps is predicting a 14-point win for Folsom, which could be about right, but I also suspect that this is one they could blow open as they did in their early match-up with Oak Ridge. Folsom 41, St. Bonaventure 20

D-2AA: Sacramento Grant vs. Whittier La Serna

The Lancers of La Serna were in trouble early in their SoCal regional game against a physical Orange Vista team. Key execution in the 4th quarter brought them back and into this CIF state bowl game. The problem for this is that the physicality and speed they will see in the Pacers will be on another level. Grant only had a few opportunities to see high-level competition during the regular season and had mixed results. In the playoffs, however, they have really rounded into form with four consecutive blowouts, including against a very well-respected Rocklin Thunder team. Calpreps is only predicting a 7-point win for Grant, but I see it being a little more than that. Grant 41, La Serna 24

D-2A: Los Gatos vs. Visalia Central Valley Christian

Watching the SoCal regional bowl game for the Cavaliers of Central Valley Christian, I was reminded of two CIF bowl winners from the Central Section (Washington Union over Campolindo in 2011 and Bakersfield over Del Oor in 2013). In each of those game, the speed from the valley teams was largely was the difference and Central Valley Christian has that. The thing is that Los Gatos has also seen teams with speed and while they've held their own, they haven't entirely been able to overcome it. That said, among the big differences between Pittsburg or Grant and the Cavaliers is defense, which definitely has been a sticking point that the Wildcats can exploit. Los Gatos has demonstrated that they can win high- or low-scoring affairs, but I'm not entirely confident in the 14-point win that Calpreps is predicting. I do think that the Wildcats will emerge victorious, but I could also see an upset in this division. Los Gatos 45, Central Valley Christian 37

D-3AA: Lafayette Acalanes vs. Van Nuys Birmingham

In my projections for the bowl divisions, I felt that Simi Valley and the Patriots of Birmingham were generally interchangeable in their placement. While, as an outsider, it didn't make a significant difference to me that the CIF reversed the order from what I listed, I think it certainly made a pretty big difference for SVHS and BHS as I don't think either would have beaten CVC. Instead, Birmingham was able to hang around against the San Diego Section's Del Norte long enough to pull off a dramatic Hail Mary at the end to steal the victory. I don't anticipate the same dramatics against Acalanes as the Dons have been playing very well during these playoffs, winning comfortably against teams I consider to be about at the Patriot's level (San Marin and Escalon). I suspect that Birmingham has generally enjoyed a speed advantage against most of their opponents this year, but I don't think that's going to be the case in this one. Acalanes 31, Birmingham 17

D-3A: Kentfield Marin Catholic vs. Lakewood Mayfair

This is where teams start to come from somewhat stronger leagues, but who finished mid-pack. The Monsoons of Mayfair had to face Warren and Downey during league play, so a third-place finish shouldn't be too surprising. However, neither game was especially competitive against those teams, who approximate the strength of Marin Catholic. The Wildcats didn't face anyone of this level until their final regular season game, which they dropped against San Marin. Still, wins over Cardinal Newman and McClymonds demonstrate they're ready for this game. Mayfair is decent on offense, so Marin Catholic will probably want to avoid a shootout, but their defense has yielded quite a bit of points this year. Calpreps has an over/under of 49 for this game, but I anticipate the scoring to be higher. Marin Catholic 38, Mayfair 24
Another big miss on Grant. Grant turned out to be over hyped, and maybe the entire section as well. La Serna is a local neighborhood school from a wealthy suburb (Whittier). Grant was definitely playing down in the SBG divisions and La Serna was playing up. La Serna was a D-4 school a couple years ago and haven't won anything recently.
 
Final Ferndale wins 29-21 over Fairfax.
Small town boys! Congrats! Too bad the legendary HC Kim Jorgensen never got the chance for a state title. He has legit teams in the 90s-early 10s. He was getting teams with calpreps rankings 15+ yearly and 20+ often at a 150 student rural school. IMO one of the best coaches ever in the NCS.
 
Key plays that loom large in a close game: Missed extra point making a two-point conversion mandatory, as opposed to possible overtime (they might have gone for two anyway). Fumble stopping a drive and giving La Serna a short field leading to a TD. And the most critical, losing the QB and also possible points at the end of the first half. La Serna could load the box knowing Grant had to run and were physical enough to hold them down. A lot of what-ifs but in the end the comeback was not enough.
 
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Not watching the games but here is the question: when did Alexander get hurt / when did he get ruled out? I don’t care how things may have looked before half, if he’s not yet hurt, you can make adjustments to give him and the pass game a better chance of success? If he’s hurt and ruled out before the half then I don’t care what you draw up, it ain’t gonna work.
 
No offense Sammy, but when when did you predict this?…. 🤣
I predicted it on the National site, but I thought La Serna would be playing Folsom at the time. (Nov. 26)

On 11/26/2023 at 8:13 PM, Extremely Humble said:

Folsom will beat a terrible Pitt program that hasn't won a big game since 1991. Then Folsom will get rolled by a local Public school named La Serna.
 
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