Bay Area high school football 2023: Week 4 preview, schedule
Will McClymonds turn back San Ramon Valley for the second year in a row? De La Salle gets a shot to avenge last season's loss at St. Mary's-Stockton? Will Pittsburg cool off red-hot California?
Week 4 of the high school football season is here.
And the two matchups that looked good when practices started in August still look good as McClymonds at San Ramon Valley and St. Mary’s of Stockton at De La Salle are the big games of the weekend.
The lineup also includes a solid matchup in Pleasanton between Monte Vista and host Amador Valley and another in San Mateo when Hillsdale plays host to Sacred Heart Prep.
The Bay Area News Group will have complete coverage this weekend and all season. If you have not already, please sign up for a digital subscription. Your contributions keep us going.
Here are this week’s top matchups and schedule:
Friday
St. Mary’s-Stockton (3-0) at No. 2 De La Salle (1-2), 7:30 p.m.: A year after losing to the Rams in Stockton, De La Salle will try to get back to .500 in Concord. Following seven scoreless quarters against Orange-Lutheran and Serra, the Spartans snapped out of an offensive funk in a 35-17 victory at St. Francis last week. De La Salle quarterback Toa Faave rushed for three touchdowns and junior RB Dominic Kelley (135 yards) had the Spartans ground game looking like DLS of old. The visiting Rams are coming off a bye after they won their first three games. Senior three-star recruit Omari Gayles and junior three-star Ahmyri McGee-Hall lead a talented St. Mary’s secondary. Senior RB Asante Carter has run for 305 yards and eight touchdowns, and sophomore WR Kenneth Moore averages 92 yards per game. The Spartans defense includes sophomore DB Jaden Jefferson, who has two interceptions. De La Salle had won seven straight against the Stockton school before last season’s 45-35 defeat. The Spartans jumped out to a 14-0 lead in that game before St. Mary’s outscored DLS by 31 over the next 32:57 minutes. — Joseph Dycus
No. 6 McClymonds (2-0) at No. 3 San Ramon Valley (3-0), 7 p.m.: Something will have to give in this marquee matchup. McClymonds has not allowed a point this season, shutting out Bellarmine 40-0 and Bishop O’Dowd 45-0. San Ramon Valley — led by QB Luke Baker, last season’s Bay Area News Group player of the year — is averaging 43.7 points per game. In his team’s 45-7 rout on the road over Elk Grove last week, Baker completed 16 of 18 passes for 384 yards and six TDs. Owen Scott is Baker’s top target. He has 18 receptions for 390 yards and three TDs. Hudson Brinton has caught four TD passes. John Pau Mendoza (151 yards, four TDs) leads the Wolves rushing attack and LB Marco Jones stands out for the defense. Mack limited Bellarmine to just 12 yards and O’Dowd to 29. Tajir Golden and Sharky Tamale each had two rushing TDs last week against O’Dowd. Last season in Oakland, Mack outlasted SRV 45-42 but Baker threw for 513 yards and five touchdowns. Mack coach Michael Peters compares the 5-foot-11 Baker to former NFL star Drew Brees. The calpreps.com computer predicts SRV to win 31-22. — Darren Sabedra
No. 19 California (2-1) at No. 4 Pittsburg (3-0), 7 p.m.: The Grizzlies may have started the year under the radar, but that’s not the case anymore. Last Friday, California pushed around unbeaten Escalon 42-21. Senior QB Jayden Macedo threw more TD passes (five) than incomplete ones (three). RB Devan Love carried nine times for 116 yards. Junior receivers Nick Fox and Chase McGill combined for seven catches and all five TD passes from Macedo. On defense, secondary stalwarts Stavi Booras and Cole Fokas equally divided 14 tackles. The Calpreps.com computer was impressed enough to rank the Grizzlies No. 5 overall in the section. One of the teams they’re behind is Pittsburg, which sits at No. 3. The Pirates hammered their first two opponents, Sacred Heart Cathedral and Granite Bay, by a combined 90-34 score, both on the road. Last week in their home opener, the Pirates needed a fourth-quarter field goal to edge Monterey Trail 10-7. Monterey Trail would be a Top 25 team in the Bay Area News Group poll if it wasn’t located in Elk Grove. So don’t read too much into the Pirates’ close call. This is a team bursting with talent, but it’s young. Pitt has at least four players with Power 5 offers. They’re all underclassmen. Safety Jadyn Hudson, LB Etene Pritchard and edge Jewelous Walls are juniors. WR/DB Truly Bell is a sophomore. Junior QB Marley Alcantara has been relying on fellow junior Makari Kenion and senior Noah Quesada to catch most of his passes. Junior Elijah Bow is the No. 1 running back. – Mike Lefkow
No. 12 Monte Vista (3-0) at No. 16 Amador Valley (2-1), 7 p.m.: Two East Bay Athletic League members will play a non-league game because they are in different divisions. Monte Vista is in the Mountain, considered the stronger of the two EBAL divisions. Amador Valley is in the Valley. While the EBAL has separated the schools (the Dons were in the Mountain last year), both will be among the 11 teams in Division I for the North Coast Section playoffs. So this contest will have huge ramifications on how the eight-team D-1 bracket is seeded, and what three unlucky schools miss the postseason. Calpreps.com lists the host Dons as underdogs, picking Monte Vista to win 19-14. Amador Valley will be without starting QB Tristan Tia for two more games. He had to sit out Amador Valley’s first five contests after transferring from Granada, and the Dons have only scored 27 points in three games. Monte Vista’s lowest output was 40 points last Friday in a win over Bellarmine. The Dons have played the tougher schedule thus far. The Calpreps.com computer gives Amador Valley a 10.2 rating for its strength of schedule. Monte Vista receives a minus-7.4. Those ratings will change as the season moves on. The Dons will rely on LB Sean Cervantes, 6-3 junior FS Nate Jetter and defensive linemen Gio Kovacs (6-4, 290) and Cooper Longmire (6-2, 275) to slow down the Mustangs, who do have some horses on offense. RB Julian McMahan is averaging 114 yards per game and has scored six TDs. The junior has offers from Cal, Arizona and No. 8 Washington. TE Kellan Ford also has offers from the Golden Bears and U-Dub. QB Brayden Turner has thrown for 720 yards and nine TDs. – Mike Lefkow
No. 18 Sacred Heart Prep (2-1) at No. 23 Hillsdale (3-0), 7 p.m.: Hillsdale will get the biggest test of its non-league schedule in this one. Sacred Heart Prep has beaten Sacred Heart Cathedral and Palo Alto, both by double figures, since opening the season with a blowout loss at Archbishop Riordan. Hillsdale has wins over Livermore 24-20, El Camino 49-7 and Woodside 28-12. In last week’s win over Woodside, Erick Waugh threw for 314 yards and four TDs. Kyle King caught six of Waugh’s passes for 99 yards and a touchdown. Elliott Regan (145 yards, three TDs) is Hillsdale’s top rusher. Anthony Noto and Ravu Savali lead SHP’s offense. Noto has rushed for 244 yards and four touchdowns. Savali has run for 206 yards and three TDs. SHP is 3-3 against Hillsdale since 2016. Calpreps.com’s computer projects SHP to win this one 27-14. — Darren Sabedra
Piedmont Hills (1-1) at Silver Creek (3-0), 7:15 p.m.: Silver Creek has ridden a dynamic rushing attack to an unbeaten start in which it has defeated opponents by an average of 33 points. Senior RB Gabriel Lim has rushed for 326 yards and four touchdowns, and senior Dominic Lim and sophomore Alijah Guzman both have rushed for over 100 yards. Senior quarterback Trajan Sinatra has thrown for three touchdowns. Piedmont Hills’ defense should provide a challenge, though, with junior standouts Alonzo Johnson and Bubba Ortiz bookending the defensive line. The computer at CalPreps.com favors Piedmont Hills. — Joseph Dycus
Schedule
Thursday, Sept. 14
EAST BAY
Non-league
Williams at Concord, 7 p.m.
SOUTH BAY/PENINSULA
Non-league
El Camino at Capuchino, 7 p.m.
Overfelt at Christopher, 7:15 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 15
EAST BAY
Non-league
American at Washington-Fremont, 7 p.m.
Bethel vs. Benicia at Vallejo, 7:30 p.m.
California at Pittsburg, 7 p.m.
Cardinal Newman at De Anza, 7 p.m.
Castro Valley at Deer Valley, 7 p.m.
College Park at Antioch, 7 p.m.
Dublin at Windsor, 7 p.m.
Foothill at El Cerrito, 7 p.m.
Freedom at Rancho Cotate, 7 p.m.
Granada at Berkeley, 7 p.m.
Hayward at Montgomery, 7 p.m.
Heritage vs. Vintage at Memorial Stadium in Napa, 7 p.m.
Kennedy-Richmond vs. Healdsburg at Rec Park in Healdsburg, 7 p.m.
Las Lomas at Alhambra, 7 p.m.
Marin Catholic at Logan, 7 p.m.
Monte Vista at Amador Valley, 7 p.m.
Moreau Catholic at Livermore, 7:30 p.m.
Mt. Eden at Newark Memorial, 7 p.m.
Piedmont at Encinal, 7 p.m.
Pinole Valley at Miramonte, 7 p.m.
San Lorenzo at Mt. Diablo, 7 p.m.
SOUTH BAY/PENINSULA
PAL Lake
South San Francisco at Mills, 7 p.m.
BVAL Santa Teresa-Foothill
Piedmont Hills at Silver Creek, 7:15 p.m.
Non-league
Carlmont at Aragon, 7 p.m.
Half Moon Bay at Burlingame, 7 p.m.
Homestead at Mountain View, 7 p.m.
Leigh at Santa Teresa, 7:15 p.m.
Lynbrook at Branham, 7 p.m.
Mt. Pleasant at Oak Grove, 7:15 p.m.
Palo Alto at Los Gatos, 7 p.m.
Sacred Heart Prep at Hillsdale, 7 p.m.
San Mateo at Los Altos, 7 p.m.
Santa Clara at Milpitas, 7 p.m.
Sequoia at Woodside, 7 p.m.
Terra Nova at Fremont-Sunnyvale, 7 p.m.
Westmont at Lincoln-San Jose, 7 p.m.
Willow Glen at Leland, 7 p.m.
INTERSECTIONAL
Castlemont at Bishop O’Dowd, 7 p.m.
Clayton Valley at Turlock, 7 p.m.
Fremont-Oakland at Liberty, 7 p.m.
Hercules at Oakland, 7 p.m.
Irvington at Lick, 7 p.m.
McClymonds at San Ramon Valley, 7 p.m.
Oakland Tech at Tennyson, 7 p.m.
Richmond at Skyline, 7 p.m.
St. Mary’s-Stockton at De La Salle, 7:30 p.m.
Washington-San Francisco at Ygnacio Valley, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 16
EAST BAY
Non-league
St. Mary’s-Berkeley at Arroyo, 2 p.m.
St. Patrick-St. Vincent at Berean Christian, 12:30 p.m.
SOUTH BAY/PENINSULA
Non-league
Live Oak at Sobrato, 1 p.m.
Menlo-Atherton at Menlo School, 2 p.m.
INTERSECTIONAL
Dougherty Valley at Lowell, 2 p.m.
Independence at San Juan-Citrus Heights, 5 p.m.
Vallejo at Lincoln-San Francisco, 2 p.m.