Huntley’s Regional Championship Picks
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BIRMINGHAM VS. DEL NORTE Birmingham won its fourth consecutive LA City Section Open Division championship last week against Garfield. The Patriots ran for 401 yards on 38 carries with four touchdowns in the win. Sophomore Ronnell Hewitt Ronnell Hewitt 6'0"…
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Continue ReadingBIRMINGHAM VS. DEL NORTE
Birmingham won its fourth consecutive LA City Section Open Division championship last week against Garfield. The Patriots ran for 401 yards on 38 carries with four touchdowns in the win. Sophomore Ronnell Hewitt Ronnell Hewitt 6'0" | 215 lbs | LB Birmingham | 2026 State CA ran for 174 yards and junior Dredon Fowles ran for 116 with two touchdowns. Quarterback Kingston Tisdell Kingston Tisdell 6'1" | 190 lbs | QB Inglewood | 2025 State CA threw for 183 yards on just 9 completions with two touchdowns. Del Norte beat La Jolla to win the San Diego Section Division 2 championship last week. Jack Schneider completed 14 of 17 passes for 223 yards with two touchdowns for Del Norte in the win. Ryan Remigio ran for eight yards per carry with a touchdown to lead the running game. Del Norte’s pass rush was excellent with six sacks and a forced fumble. This is a big step up in competition for Birmingham but they are no stranger to teams outside of the City Section.
The pick: Birmingham
MOUNT MIGUEL VS. MAYFAIR
Mayfair’s defense made key plays when it needed to in a 31-28 win over El Dorado to win the Southern Section Division championship, the school’s first since 2001. Jeremiah Calvin Jeremiah Calvin 6'0" | 170 lbs | QB Mayfair | 2025 State CA had a big game at quarterback with 319 yards with a touchdown. Chaz Gilbreath Chaz Gilbreath 6'0" | 170 lbs | DB Mayfair | 2026 State CA was the best two-way player on the field and made big plays after the catch. He had 180 yards receiving on 9 catches and made several deflections at cornerback. Miles Mitchell led Mayfair’s defense with 13 tackles with a sack. Mount Miguel cruised to a 35-14 win over Chula Vista to win the San Diego Section Division 4 championship. Matthew Barton had five touchdown passes and Jeremiah Castillo Jeremiah Castillo 5'10" | 170 lbs | WR Mt. Miguel | 2024 State CA had 88 yards receiving with three touchdowns. Mount Miguel was an over-qualified Division 4 team and is better than most Division 4 champions in San Diego. Mayfair is the best team Mount Miguel has played since Mid-September.
The pick: Mayfair
ORANGE VISTA VS. LA SERNA
Orange Vista won a high-scoring game against Newbury Park to win the Southern Section Division 5 championship. Arizona State commit Sire Gaines Sire Gaines 6'0" | 190 lbs | ATH Orange Vista | 2024 State CA has been outstanding at running back through the playoffs and ran for 312 yards with four touchdowns in the championship game. Khalil Abdul-Aziz Khalil Abdul-Aziz 6'3" | 185 lbs | QB Orange Vista | 2026 State CA threw for 197 yards with a touchdown and had a 65-yard touchdown run. La Serna ran for 315 yards in a 49-29 win over Corona del Mar to win the Southern Section Division 4 championship. Idaho commit Owen Long Owen Long 6'1" | 190 lbs | DB La Serna | 2024 State CA ran for 160 yards with four touchdowns in the win. Quarterback CJ Ceron was the team’s second leading rusher and also threw a touchdown pass. Adrian Castro led the defense with 15 tackles and two for a loss. La Serna has played a more challenging schedule than Orange Vista.
The pick: La Serna
ST. BONAVENTURE VS. ST. AUGUSTINE
St. Augustine had a 13-0 shutout win over Mission Hills to win the San Diego Section Division 1 championship. Sophomore Parker “PJ” Johnson Parker “PJ” Johnson 6'0" | 185 lbs | WR Cathedral Catholic | 2026 State CA led the St. Augustine defense with 10 tackles and Bronx Letuligasenoa Bronx Letuligasenoa 6'2" | 240 lbs | DL Cathedral Catholic | 2026 State CA added a sack. Isaiah Hasten had two big interceptions and had 96 yards receiving. Brady Palmer Brady Palmer 6'2" | 190 lbs | QB Cathedral Catholic | 2026 State CA threw for 154 yards and freshman Honor Faalave Honor Faalave 6'0" | 180 lbs | ATH Cathedral Catholic | 2027 State CA -Johnson had two rushing touchdowns. St. Bonaventure beat a loaded Warren team 24-21 to win the Southern Section Division 3 championship. Koen Glover ran for 130 yards with three touchdowns. Anthony Wolter Anthony Wolter 6'1" | 190 lbs | QB Saint Bonaventure | 2024 State CA struggled with two interceptions, but is a quality quarterback. St. Bonaventure’s defense had three interceptions.
The pick: St. Augustine
GRANITE HILLS VS. MISSION VIEJO
Granite Hills beat Lincoln to win the San Diego Section Open Division championship two weeks ago. Maxwell Turner Maxwell Turner 5'8" | 185 lbs | RB Granite Hills | 2025 State CA ran for 92 yards with a touchdown for Granite Hills in the win over Lincoln. Freshman quarterback Zachary Benitez Zachary Benitez 6'2" | 205 lbs | QB Granite Hills | 2027 State CA threw for 224 yards with two touchdowns. Josh Zander had a big game receiving with 116 yards on four receptions with two touchdowns. Nokoi Maddox Nokoi Maddox 6'0" | 200 lbs | DB Granite Hills | 2024 State CA had an interception for the second consecutive games and four different players recorded double-digit tackles. Tyler Bertalen and Jordan Glaze Jordan Glaze 5'10" | 185 lbs | DB Granite Hills | 2024 State CA each had 14 tackles and Damarrion White Damarrion White 6'4" | 215 lbs | LB Granite Hills | 2024 State CA had 10. Travis Ford Travis Ford 6'2" | 235 lbs | LB Granite Hills | 2024 State CA had a sack along with Pablo Jackson. Mission Viejo dominated Servite to win the Southern Section Division 2 championship. Luke Fahey Luke Fahey 5'10" | 180 lbs | QB Mission Viejo | 2026 State CA was excellent at quarterback and Vance Spafford Vance Spafford 5'11" | 175 lbs | WR Mission Viejo | 2026 State CA has been his favorite target all-season long. Jack Matranga Jack Matranga 6'1" | 210 lbs | LB Mission Viejo | 2024 State CA had a big game on defense and scored on a fake field goal. Dijon Lee Dijon Lee 6'3" | 180 lbs | DB Mission Viejo | 2025 State CA and Jeron Jones Jeron Jones 6'0" | 165 lbs | WR Mission Viejo | 2026 State CA had interceptions and Travis Anderson Travis Anderson 6'0" | 175 lbs | DB Mission Viejo | 2024 State CA and Titus Miller Titus Miller 6'2" | 260 lbs | DL Mission Viejo | 2024 State CA added sacks. Jaden Williams Jaden Williams 6'4" | 240 lbs | DL Mission Viejo | 2025 State CA is the best pass rusher in Orange County and may make things difficult for the freshman quarterback. Granite Hills was the underdog against Carlsbad and Lincoln in the Open Division playoffs and came out on top so they are no stranger to playing tough competition.
The pick: Mission Viejo
Huntley’s Playoff Record: 21-7
Overall record: 74-31