WEST VALLEY DIVISION
Last year’s champion: first year of the division
Top seeds: No. 1 Upland; No. 2 Mission Viejo; No. 3 Chino Hills; No. 4 Tesoro
Championship game: Saturday, Dec. 6, at Angel Stadium
5 predictions for the West Valley Division
*Teams listed in order of how they appear on the playoff bracket.
UPLAND (No. 1 seed)
8-2 overall, 5-0 in Baseline League
Outlook: The Highlanders were much the best in the Baseline League, with all their wins by double digits (average margin of victory was 24.6 points). Their two losses were early in the season and both by 28-14 margins to Mater Dei and Tesoro, which they could get another shot at in the playoffs. Upland last won a CIF-SS title in 2009 (Central Division).
Player to watch: Tyler Hilinski, Sr., QB. A four-star recruit headed to Washington State, the 6-foot-3 signal caller came into the final week of the regular season with 1,819 passing yards and a sparkling touchdown-interception ratio (17-4).
Others to watch: Kameron Powell, Sr., DB; Joshua Woods, Sr., LB; Malik Yoakum, Sr., WR; Donnie Greene, Sr., OL; Elijah Jones, Sr., DB; Nathan Tilford, So., RB.
SAN JUAN HILLS
4-6 overall, 1-3 in South Coast League
Outlook: The Stallions weren’t close in losses to fellow West Valley teams Los Alamitos, El Toro, Mission Viejo and Tesoro, so any type of postseason run would be surprising. San Juan Hills’ four victories came against teams with a combined 9-31 record.
Player to watch: Jacob Huff, So., WR. One of the youngest contributors for the Stallions, Huff was fourth in the South Coast League with 665 receiving yards.
Others to watch: Mike Miscione, Sr., RB; Patrick O’Brien, Jr.,QB; Tim Newman, Jr., DE/LB; Jacob Venegas, Sr., LB; Griffin Grutz, Sr., DB; Kolton McCluskey, SR., WR.
EDISON
7-3 overall, 4-1 in Sunset League
Outlook: The three losses on the Chargers’ schedule came to quality teams – Servite, Mater Dei and Los Alamitos – but all were by significant margins. Edison’s only win over a team with a winning record was Garfield, who finished 8-2 and won the City Section’s Eastern League.
Player to watch: Jake Favreau, Sr., WR/DB. A knee injury knocked Favreau out two games into the 2013 season and he missed three games this year as well, but when he’s healthy, he’s a game-changer. In seven games, he has 603 receiving yards and eight touchdowns, and two interceptions and 43 tackles on defense.
Others to watch: Grant Lowary, JR., QB; Manase Time, Sr., DE; Jacob Marines, Jr., RB; AJ Beynon, Sr., WR/DB; Jeff Evans, Jr., LB; Bobby Jinkins, Jr., K/P.
HART
7-3 overall, 4-1 in Foothill League
Outlook: The Indians got high praise in the preseason, but plummeted back to earth with early disheartening losses to Chino Hills and Chaminade. What happened after those two losses, however, was a seven-game win streak until their loss to Valencia on Friday.
Player to watch: Brady White, Sr., QB. The Arizona State-bound, four-star recruit has put up his share of numbers this season – 3,127 yards and 39 touchdowns through the air. He also has more than 400 rushing yards this season.
Others to watch: Trent Irwin, Sr., WR; Nelson James, Jr., RB; Nick Moore, So., DB; Andrew Nielson, Jr., K; Devin Norton OL/DL; Michael Cespedes, Jr., LB.
VISTA MURRIETA
8-2 overall, 5-0 in Southwestern League
Outlook: The Broncos are rolling after a 2-2 start to the season. Winners of six straight, Vista Murrieta wasn’t really challenged in league play, outscoring opponents 229-60 in five games, including a 42-7 victory over second-place Great Oak. They also have a quality nonleague win over San Diego squad St. Augustine.
Player to watch: Kyle Williams, Jr., QB. The Vista Murrieta offense runs through the converted wide receiver, who has more than 1,000 yards rushing and passing.
Others to watch: Shannon Walsh, Sr., LB; Tevita Mo’unga, Sr., DT; Jamie Nunley, Sr., WR; Colin Baker, Sr., WR; Seth Acda, Sr., RB; Brandon Worthy, Sr., DB.
CANYON OF CANYON COUNTRY
5-5 overall, 3-2 in Foothill League
Outlook: The Cowboys took their lumps early, with losses to Westlake, Thousand Oaks, St. Francis and Hart in their first six games, but rallied to win three of their last four to earn the Foothill League’s last automatic playoff berth.
Player to watch: Travis Clarke, JR., LB. Despite missing a game early in the season, Clarke still finished the season as Canyon’s leading tackler.
Others to watch: Miles Fallin, So., QB; Jordan Sykes, Sr., OL/DL; Myron Mcafee, Sr., RB; Liam Cabrera, Sr., WR; Israel Cabrera, Sr., WR; Markeill Taylor, Jr., DB.
TESORO (NO. 4 SEED)
8-2 overall, 3-1 in South Coast League
Outlook: With their two losses (to La Mirada and Mission Viejo) coming with a combined margin of five points, the Titans should be more than a formidable opponent in the postseason. Two-touchdown wins over Corona del Mar and an Upland squad that went on the win the Baseline League, also help.
Player to watch: Devon Modster, Jr., QB. With more and more colleges taking notice of the 6-2, 215-pound Modster, an extended playoff run will only attract more attention.
Others to watch: Anthony Battista, Jr., RB; Jake Smeltzer, SR., WR; Josh Nelson, Sr., DB; Justin Matlin, Sr., K; Matt Buoncristiani, Sr., S.
NEWPORT HARBOR
5-5 overall, 3-2 in Sunset League
Outlook: The Sailors squeaked into the playoffs with a dramatic one-point victory over Fountain Valley on Friday. Newport will be an underdog against almost every potential opponent in the West Valley playoffs.
Player to watch: Cole Norris, Sr., QB. Norris was the Sunset League’s top passer this season, with 2,196 yards, 28 touchdowns and a 65.6 completion percentage.
Others to watch: Keaton Cablay, senior wide receiver/linebacker; Riley Gaddis, senior wide receiver/linebacker, Cole Kinder, sophomore running back; Michael Schultz, senior kicker.
CHINO HILLS (NO. 3 SEED)
8-2 overall, 4-1 in Baseline League
Outlook: A 12-point loss to Upland in the defacto Baseline championship game is the only real blemish on the Huskies’ schedule. An early loss to JSerra, which ended up as the second-place finisher in the Trinity League, is nothing to be ashamed of and Chino Hills also has significant wins over Hart (63-48) and Mission League co-champion Bishop Amat (45-28). The Huskies should not be taken lightly.
Player to watch: Trent Goens, Sr., DE. Quarterbacks beware. Goens, who has committed to Northwestern, has 11 sacks on the season and is second on the team in total tackles (57).
Others to watch: Zac Sturdivant, senior quarterback; Grady O’Donnell, junior running back; Anthony Rosales, junior linebacker; Curtis Price, junior running back; Vos Price, sophomore wide receiver; Konnor Zickefoose, senior linebacker.
GREAT OAK
8-2 overall, 4-1 in Southwestern League
Outlook: The Wolfpack’s resume looks awfully good, except for two aberrations – a 69-21 loss to Rancho Verde and a 42-7 loss to Southwestern League rival Vista Murrieta. Other than those two blowout losses, Greak Oak doled out the punishment. Seven of its eight victories were by 10 points or more.
Player to watch: Brandon Presley, SR., WR. Presley finished the regular season with 1,111 receiving yards and set and Inland Empire record for touchdown receptions with 17 on the season.
Others to watch: Nick Fisher, senior running back/defensive back; Kevin Knight, senior linebacker; Laquan Williams, senior quarterback; Demetric Felton, junior wide receiver; Jonathan Hernandez, senior safety; Seth Knowlton, junior linebacker.
LOS ALAMITOS
9-1 overall, 5-0 in Sunset League
Outlook: It’s hard to gauge the Griffins’ chances. The record looks great, but the loss to 6-4 Narbonne doesn’t. Then came a comfortable run through the Sunset League, where their average margin of victory was 33.6 points. Was it a down year in the Sunset? I guess we’ll find out.
Player to watch: Matt Locher, Sr., LB. The 6-foot-3, 250-pounder has interest from Harvard and Yale – as well as some Pac-12 programs – to go along with a staggering 138 tackles this season. He also has nine touchdown runs on just 30 carries.
Others to watch: Blake Johnson, senior punter/linebacker; Denzal Brantley, senior running back; Will Armstrong, junior defensive end; Jack Telenko, junior quarterback; Connor Iris, senior wide receiver; Joe Wysocki, senior tight end.
EL TORO
7-3 overall, 2-2 in South Coast League
Outlook: The Chargers were a slam dunk for an at-large berth with good nonleague wins over La Habra, Capistrano Valley and Trabuco Hills, who all finished with winning records. Consider single-digit losses to Mission Viejo and Tesoro, and El Toro might be a threat for an upset or two.
Player to watch: Trey Tinsley, Sr., QB. Orange County’s most prolific passer, with 3,205 passing yards, Tinsley will need big games and to minimize mistakes for an El Toro playoff run.
Others to watch: Marcus DeSantis, senior running back; Taylor Dodds, senior wide receiver/defensive back; Joshua Sanchez, senior linebacker; Kaleb Fossum, senior wide receiver; Colin Kentros, junior wide receiver; Dillon Sherman, junior linebacker.
VALENCIA OF VALENCIA
8-2 overall, 5-0 in Foothill League
Outlook: The Vikings have never won a CIF-SS title, but have advanced to the section title game three times. They cruised through Foothill League play until their season finale with Hart, where they trailed the Indians 27-0 in the third quarter. Valencia rallied to score 28 unanswered points to clinch the league title. Nonleague excursions were hit or miss for Valencia. The Vikings looked great in lopsided wins over Palmdale, Highland and Santa Monica, but struggled in losses to Chaminade and Centennial of Corona.
Player to watch: Cole Parkinson, Jr., QB. Parkinson has 2,355 yards and 24 touchdowns on the season with only three interceptions.
Others to watch: Jay Jay Wilson, senior wide receiver/defensive back; Sean Teems, senior linebacker; Stone Jackson, senior running back; Bradley Prizer, senior wide receiver; Jermaine Brown, junior linebacker; Ty’ree White, senior safety.
RANCHO CUCAMONGA
6-4 overall, 3-2 in Baseline League
Outlook: It’s hard to see the Cougars doing too much damage in the postseason. Of their six wins, only one (Trabuco Hills) came against a team with a winning record. Double-digit losses to Chino Hills (35-7) and Upland (28-10), don’t help their cause, either.
Player to watch: Angel Matute, Jr., QB. The 6-foot-4 junior is at his best spreading the ball around to his many talented offensive weapons.
Others to watch: Aaron Manning, junior running back; Ray Surry, senior wide receiver; Israel Fonua, senior linebacker; Jerry Chaney, senior wide receiver/defensive back; Blake Fisher, senior wide receiver; Jaylon Redd, sophomore defensive back/running back.
MISSION VIEJO (NO. 4 SEED)
8-2 overall, 4-0 in South Coast League
Outlook: After an 0-2 start to the season, the Diablos peeled off eight straight victories en route to their sixth straight South Coast League title. One-score victories over Tesoro and El Toro during league might have people still thinking Mission Viejo is vulnerable, though.
Player to watch: Connor Hill, Sr., WR. Hill has been quarterback Brock Johnson’s top target this year, with 35 receptions for 706 yards and seven touchdowns.
Others to watch: Cole Smith, senior offensive lineman; Brock Johnson, junior quarterback; Abrae Booker-Currin, senior defensive back/wide receiver; Isaiah Miller, junior running back; Rome Innocenzi, senior running back.
TEMECULA VALLEY
6-4 overall, 2-3 in Southwestern League
Outlook: The Golden Bears survived a three-way tie for third place to get into the playoffs with the Southwestern League’s final automatic playoff berth. It’s hard to see Temecula Valley making any significant waves in the postseason.
Player to watch: Manny Burgess, senior linebacker. The senior captain had 124 tackles in the regular season and also led the team in tackles for loss.
Others to watch: Joshua Cortez, senior linebacker/running back; Olita Palmer, sophomore running back; Austin Fisher, senior quarterback; Matt Foley, senior offensive line; Dominique Maiden, senior wide receiver; Caleb Harmond, senior safety.
