Huntley’s Week 0 Picks

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Each week I will pick the top seven games in Southern California and break them down. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last season I had an overall record of 75-30.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>CENTENNIAL VS. MATER DEI</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The season kicks off on Thursday with a matchup between two of the top three teams in the state. Mater Dei is the No. 1 team in the nation and will be playing its first game under new head coach <strong>Raul Lara</strong>. It will be interesting to see transfer quarterback from Chaparral [player_tooltip player_id='270900' first='Dash' last='Beierly'] run the offense. It was reported earlier this week that Centennial quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='406636' first='Husan' last='Longstreet'] is battling an injury and will be a game-time decision. If he is less mobile, I expect Mater Dei's pass rush, let by [player_tooltip player_id='282774' first='Nasir' last='Wyatt'], [player_tooltip player_id='723702' first='Semi' last='Taulanga'] and [player_tooltip player_id='212233' first='Shaun' last='Scott'] to pressure Longstreet. It will be up to Centennial offensive linemen [player_tooltip player_id='406700' first='Drew' last='Hill'], [player_tooltip player_id='1000969' first='Jakob' last='Mckindley'] and [player_tooltip player_id='212213' first='Benjamin' last='Tameifuna'] to protect the quarterback. A kew matchup to watch is Centennial's strong secondary led by [player_tooltip player_id='282775' first='LaRue' last='Zamorano'], [player_tooltip player_id='401271' first='Justin' last='Lewis'], [player_tooltip player_id='1161242' first='Cade' last='Paterson'] and [player_tooltip player_id='533261' first='Kuron' last='Jabari Jr']. against Mater Dei's receiving corps of [player_tooltip player_id='284103' first='Chris' last='Henry Jr']., [player_tooltip player_id='401273' first='Kayden' last='Dixon-Wyatt'] and [player_tooltip player_id='282711' first='Marcus' last='Harris']. Centennial always plays Mater Dei close but if Longstreet isn't 100 percent, it will be an uphill climb.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Mater Dei</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/MDFootball/status/1826636617089778132","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/MDFootball/status/1826636617089778132 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>GRANITE HILLS VS. MISSION HILLS</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Granite Hills is coming off a CIF-San Diego Section Open Division championship but has a lot of roster turnover. Two key returning offensive players are back though in sophomore quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='691923' first='Zachary' last='Benitez'] and senior running back [player_tooltip player_id='612834' first='Maxwell' last='Turner']. The offensive line is led by a trio of juniors in [player_tooltip player_id='1270416' first='Jeremiah' last='Maze'], <strong>Keaton Boyce</strong> and [player_tooltip player_id='206565' first='Julian' last='Bailey']. Mission Hills is led by junior Penn State commit [player_tooltip player_id='401299' first='Troy' last='Huhn'] at quarterback. Both teams graduated a ton of talent and this was a close game last season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Granite Hills</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/HonorBowl/status/1825948411549593903","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/HonorBowl/status/1825948411549593903 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>SIERRA CANYON VS. JSERRA</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sierra Canyon has already played a game and cruised to a 30-7 win over Punahou of Hawaii. [player_tooltip player_id='282703' first='Dane' last='Dunn'] ran for 135 yards with a touchdown and [player_tooltip player_id='282687' first='Wyatt' last='Becker'] had a big day through the air. Last season, Sierra Canyon beat JSerra 9-7 in a defensive battle. [player_tooltip player_id='1197202' first='Richard' last='Wesley'] had three sacks in his varsity debut and [player_tooltip player_id='1182984' first='Mikhal' last='Johnson'] had two. <strong>Kale Webb</strong> had an interception for JSerra in that game and [player_tooltip player_id='282705' first='Madden' last='Faraimo'] had seven tackles. I expect a low-scoring game again. It will be tough for the JSerra receiving corps to get open against [player_tooltip player_id='401278' first='Madden' last='Riordan'] and [player_tooltip player_id='723731' first='Jae'on' last='Young'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Sierra Canyon</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/maddenriordy/status/1824934141118615926","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/maddenriordy/status/1824934141118615926 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>OAKS CHRISTIAN VS. CHAMINADE</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I saw Oaks Christian at the Mission Viejo passing tournament and they had some of the more impressive athletes I saw during the day. Junior running back [player_tooltip player_id='212217' first='Deshonne' last='Redeaux'] is one of the best in his class and receiver [player_tooltip player_id='406657' first='Stevie' last='Amar'] looked great. <strong>Axel Eason</strong> is committed to UC Davis and is getting the reigns at quarterback for the first time. Edge rusher [player_tooltip player_id='282732' first='Hayden' last='Lowe'] (USC commit) is one of the more physically dominant edge rushers in the area. Chaminade has new sophomore starter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1611412' first='Cameron' last='Pooley']</strong> at quarterback and returners [player_tooltip player_id='1000963' first='Niles' last='Davis'] and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='406667' first='Jackson' last='Tyler']</strong> at running back. [player_tooltip player_id='282693' first='Logan' last='Carpenter'] and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='212218' first='Devin' last='Olmande']</strong> will be the leading receivers. The strength of Chaminade is its secondary led by Washington State commit [player_tooltip player_id='723746' first='Ishmael' last='Gibbs'] and [player_tooltip player_id='723732' first='Le'Roi' last='Lewis'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Oaks Christian</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/NadeFootball/status/1826300796499304912","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/NadeFootball/status/1826300796499304912 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>MURRIETA VALLEY VS. RANCHO CUCAMONGA</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>These are two top teams in the Inland Empire and both have marquee players. Murrieta Valley is led by Stanford commit [player_tooltip player_id='282686' first='Bear' last='Bachmeier'] at quarterback. All four leading receivers from last season are back: <strong>Julian Treadwell, Derrick Johnson, Camden Connor</strong> and [player_tooltip player_id='976907' first='Brandon' last='Gilbert']. They added two big transfers in [player_tooltip player_id='282683' first='Jacob' last='Alvarez'] (Chaminade) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1319918' first='Brandon' last='Ortega'] </strong>(Centennial). The offensive line is led by Michigan State commit [player_tooltip player_id='976878' first='Drew' last='Nichols']. <strong>Troy Karg</strong> and [player_tooltip player_id='282681' first='Ethan' last='Adams'] lead the defense. [player_tooltip player_id='1000930' first='Jacob' last='Chambers'] and [player_tooltip player_id='406733' first='Emiliano' last='Villarreal'] is a great quarterback for Rancho Cucamonga who is under a new head coach. St. John Bosco transfer [player_tooltip player_id='723682' first='Kamryn' last='Jones'] leads the receiving corps. Cameron Sermons and [player_tooltip player_id='401288' first='RJ' last='Sermons'] are strong players and the offensive line is stacked with [player_tooltip player_id='1261748' first='Derrick' last='Cooper'] and [player_tooltip player_id='401281' first='Malik' last='White']. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Rancho Cucamonga</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/ChadSimmons_/status/1825957727816077557","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/ChadSimmons_/status/1825957727816077557 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>ORANGE LUTHERAN VS. SERRA</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I covered this game last season and Orange Lutheran running back [player_tooltip player_id='282694' first='Steve' last='Chavez'] had a breakout game along with receiver Tyler Hennessey. Orange Lutheran has arguably the best offensive line in the Southern Section led by [player_tooltip player_id='780266' first='Samuelu' last='Utu'] and [player_tooltip player_id='976915' first='Nehemiah' last='Johnson']. [player_tooltip player_id='283686' first='Talanoa' last='Ili'] leads the defense. Serra has <strong>Jimmy Butler </strong>returning at quarterback along with running back <strong>Camron Willcot</strong>. <strong>CJ Mcbean</strong> is back along with transfer [player_tooltip player_id='282751' first='Jadyn' last='Robinson'] at receiver. Cal commit [player_tooltip player_id='282713' first='Tre' last='Harrison'] leads the defense with [player_tooltip player_id='780328' first='Khary' last='Wilder'], [player_tooltip player_id='283646' first='Marcellous' last='Ryan'] and [player_tooltip player_id='408802' first='Duvay' last='Williams']. Orange Lutheran dominated this game last season but this is an improved Serra team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Orange Lutheran</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/OLuFootball/status/1821849045477798317","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/OLuFootball/status/1821849045477798317 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>SANTA MARGARITA VS. MISSION VIEJO</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is the marquee game of the week. Mission Viejo dominated a game in Hawaii and as expected, junior receiver [player_tooltip player_id='283692' first='Vance' last='Spafford'] had a huge game. The matchup to watch in this game is Mission Viejo's receiving corps: Spafford, [player_tooltip player_id='282688' first='Phillip' last='Bell'], <strong>Cash Semonza</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1344462' first='Max' last='Markofski']</strong> against Santa Margarita's secondary ([player_tooltip player_id='1288067' first='Logan' last='Hirou'], <strong>Luke Anderson</strong>, [player_tooltip player_id='401277' first='Lennie' last='Brown'], [player_tooltip player_id='283684' first='Siua' last='Holani'], [player_tooltip player_id='977697' first='Ca'ron' last='Williams']). Santa Margarita has the edge in the trenches and I think the Eagles can run the ball with [player_tooltip player_id='406660' first='John' last='Gazzaniga'] and <strong>Elijah Robinson</strong>. The other key matchup to watch is Santa Margarita receiver [player_tooltip player_id='283690' first='Trent' last='Mosley'] potentially squaring off against Alabama commit [player_tooltip player_id='723683' first='Dijon' last='Lee'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Mission Viejo</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/latsondheimer/status/1825531684009496684","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/latsondheimer/status/1825531684009496684 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed -->