Huntley’s Week 2 Picks

<p>Each week I will pick the top seven games in Southern California and break them down.</p>   <p>I had a great week last week going 6-1.</p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>PACIFICA/OXNARD VS. NEWBURY PARK</strong></h2>   <p>Newbury Park has arguably the best quarterback in the state in [player_tooltip player_id='282755' first='Brady' last='Smigiel']. The junior threw for 214 yards with a pair of touchdowns last week in a 35-7 win over Arroyo Grande. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1338396' first='Kayin' last='Booker']</strong> and [player_tooltip player_id='406725' first='Shane' last='Rosenthal'] are top targets for Smigiel and <strong>Tyler Stromsoe</strong> is the top running back. Pacifica has a solid quarterback of its own in <strong>Dominic Duran</strong> and an elite receiver in [player_tooltip player_id='282760' first='Savion' last='Taylor']. The Tritons' defense forced three fumbles last week in a win over Oxnard. Pacifica dominated Newbury Park the last time these two teams played in 2019, but that was pre-Smigiel.</p>   <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Newbury Park</p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/socalfootbal/status/1829741983692476506 </div></figure>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>MADISON VS. LA JOLLA</strong></h2>   <p>Madison had a nice win over Steele Canyon last week and <strong>Isaac Logo Diaz</strong> threw four touchdown passes. <strong>Ryan Jackson </strong>caught three of those touchdowns and <strong>Kameran Wafer</strong> had a touchdown catch. La Jolla beat Torrey Pines last week and <strong>Hank Hansen</strong> ran for 112 yards with two touchdowns. The senior also threw a 32-yard touchdown pass. <strong>Brady Stjohn</strong> had a forced fumble and fumble recovery for La Jolla and Galo Sanchez had an interception. Madison has won seven consecutive games against La Jolla dating back to 2008. That streak ends Friday.</p>   <p><strong>The pick: </strong>La Jolla</p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>CAPISTRANO VALLEY VS. HUNTINGTON BEACH</strong></h2>   <p>Capo Valley is 2-0 but hasn't played anybody near its level yet. Huntington Beach is by far the best offense Capo Valley will play in its nonleague slate, but is defensively challenged. [player_tooltip player_id='415341' first='Brady' last='Edmunds'] threw for 377 yards with four touchdowns in a loss to Trabuco Hills last week. [player_tooltip player_id='797142' first='Troy' last='Foster'] is a tough receiver to cover and <strong>Faris Shehadeh</strong> had 100 yards receiving last week. [player_tooltip player_id='595827' first='Tommy' last='Acosta'] is putting up big numbers at quarterback for Capo Valley and his receivers are all two-way athletes. I expect a lot of points in this one but Capo Valley is a much better team at this point.</p>   <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Capo Valley</p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/TommyAcosta_/status/1829981854331748509 </div></figure>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>HIGLEY (AZ) VS. SAN JUAN HILLS</strong></h2>   <p>Higley is a top ten team in Arizona and San Juan Hills is a quality Southern California public school team. Higley quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='368911' first='Luke' last='Haugo'] is committed to Arizona and threw four touchdown passes last week against Campo Verde. [player_tooltip player_id='1145487' first='JD' last='DeCausmaker'] is a top receiver along with [player_tooltip player_id='1145497' first='Jaden' last='Taylor']. [player_tooltip player_id='1145490' first='Boston' last='Tilton'] leads Higley's defense. San Juan Hills quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='283687' first='Timmy' last='Herr'] was efficient in a win over Roosevelt last week but Higley is heads and shoulders better than Roosevelt. UCLA commit [player_tooltip player_id='155848' first='Weston' last='Port'] leads the defense along with top cornerback [player_tooltip player_id='406736' first='Chris' last='Williams']. This is the biggest test for San Juan Hills in its nonleague slate.</p>   <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Higley</p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/HSFBamerica/status/1832081549224706055 </div></figure>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>DOWNEY VS. MILLIKAN</strong></h2>   <p>Millikan recovered from a tough loss in week zero with a rout of Carson last week. [player_tooltip player_id='1203247' first='Anthony' last=''] League ran the ball very well. Junior receiver <strong>Landon Ross</strong> had a breakout game for the Rams and [player_tooltip player_id='282737' first='JP' last='Mialovski'] threw three touchdown passes. Purdue commit quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='283681' first='Oscar' last='Rios'] for Downey is an excellent dual threat quarterback. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1611185' first='Damani' last='Porras'] </strong>had 113 yards with a pair of touchdowns receiving and Western transfer <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1236177' first='Desmin' last='Joshway-Fairley']</strong> had two interceptions. There is a ton of skill talent in this game but I think Downey is a little better on defense.</p>   <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Downey</p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/ZachCav/status/1827207830895784207 </div></figure>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>DAMIEN VS. ST. PAUL</strong></h2>   <p>St. Paul had a massive win over San Gabriel Valley foe Bishop Amat last week. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='338540' first='Gabriel' last='Castaneda'] </strong>threw for 184 yards with a touchdown and ran for two more in that win. <strong>Joseph Lafferre</strong> is a big-time two-way player for St. Paul and <strong>Marcus Munoz</strong> had an interception. Damien is 2-0 with impressive wins despite a late coaching change. Spartans quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='212219' first='Isaiah' last='Arriaza'] threw for 357 yards with four touchdowns last week in a win over Loyola and [player_tooltip player_id='1382568' first='Travon' last='Garrison'] had a huge game receiving. If St. Paul knocks off the consensus top two teams in the San Gabriel Valley in back-to-back weeks, it will be very impressive.</p>   <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Damien</p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/SGVNSports/status/1829735422358065377 </div></figure>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>BISHOP GORMAN VS. MATER DEI</strong></h2>   <p>For an in depth breakdown of this game, <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2024/09/bishop-gorman-vs-mater-dei-preview/">click here to read </a>the preview. Bishop Gorman has one of the best offensive lines in the country and will be a challenge for Mater Dei. Both teams are coming off a bye and should be healthy. These are the top two teams in the nation according to MaxPreps. Mater Dei is 3-0 all-time against Bishop Gorman.</p>   <p><strong>The pick: </strong>Mater Dei</p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/SCNext/status/1832152694548840600 </div></figure>   <p><strong>HUNTLEY'S RECORD: </strong>11-3</p>

Each week I will pick the top seven games in Southern California and break them down.