A preview and prediction for each of the top football games in Orange County this week. The teams are listed by their ranking in the Orange County Top 25.
GAME OF THE WEEK
NO. 12 TUSTIN (2-2) VS. NO. 7 YORBA LINDA (4-0)
Where, when: Yorba Linda High, Friday, 7 p.m.
Analysis: Tustin was off to a strong start with wins over San Clemente 30-17 and neighborhood rival Foothill 44-0. Then came a 28-27 loss to Long Beach Poly and last week’s 24-7 loss to Damien. Damien is 4-0 and is the No. 1 team in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune’s area rankings. The Tillers have plenty of star power, including Texas-committed linebacker Taven Epps, safety Khalil Terry and lineman Jeremiah Williams on defense. Yorba Linda has a solid defense that includes junior defensive back Andrew Maldonado, who has a team-high 16 solo tackles, and senior defensive lineman Blake Thorp. Yorba Linda will exert the same defensive pressure on Tustin sophomore quarterback Ayden Edwards that Damien did last week, and the Mustangs’ defensive backfield is very good. Yorba Linda beat Tustin in a close one last year 35-31. Look for a similar score this year.
Winner: Yorba Linda
SIERRA CANYON (4-0) VS. NO. 4 ORANGE LUTHERAN (3-1)
Where, when: Orange Coast College, Thursday, 7 p.m.
Analysis: Sierra Canyon is No. 4 in the HSratings.com California rankings and the CalHSports.com state rankings have Sierra Canyon at No. 6. Sierra Canyon has outscored opponents 192-7, including last week’s 49-7 win over Downey. Sierra Canyon has two exceptional senior cornerbacks in Havon Finney Jr., who committed to LSU, and Brandon Lockhart, who committed to USC. The Trailblazers get after the quarterback, too, with four players who have at least two sacks. Orange Lutheran has been a terrific second-half team. The Lancers, No. 7 in the state rankings by HSratings.com, made a great comeback effort two weeks ago in a 30-24 loss to Basha in Arizona and last week beat Serra of Gardena 35-17 by outscoring Serra 28-7 in the second half. Junior quarterback Reagan Toki has been good. Sophomore defensive end Marcus Fukatou (6-6, 275), tagged as the No. 1 football recruit in California, is that player you keep the binoculars on all night. Sierra Canyon has more binoculars-attracting athletes, though … maybe as many as any team in the Southern Section.
Winner: Sierra Canyon
NO. 3 MATER DEI (2-1) VS. BISHOP GORMAN (2-1)
Where, when: Bishop Gorman High, Las Vegas, Friday, 7 p.m.
Live coverage: MaxPreps.com
Analysis: “What’s up with Mater Dei?” is the most-seen subject line in the inbox and the first words of the text messages. What’s up is what’s down – concentration and discipline. The evidence is the seven turnovers in last week’s 43-36 loss at Corona Centennial, and the sideline and end zone misbehavior of recent years. The two weeks remaining before Trinity League play begins offers plenty of time to get it together. Getting it together for this week’s game is a tough task, given the quality of the opponent and with the game being an out-of-state game. Bishop Gorman is No. 3 in the HSratings.com national rankings, behind No. 1 St. John Bosco and No. 2 St. Frances Academy of Baltimore. (Bosco beat St. Frances 21-14 on Sept. 5.) The comparative scores dump doubts on Mater Dei’s chances, too. Mater Dei beat Kahuku 21-18, on the Monarchs’ home turf at Santa Ana Stadium. Gorman went to Kahuku and won 38-0.
Winner: Bishop Gorman
LEUZINGER (2-2) VS. NO. 10 JSERRA (2-2)
Where, when: JSerra High, Friday, 7 p.m.
Analysis: Leuzinger, a public school in Lawndale, has not played since a 61-0 win over Palmdale on Aug. 29. Leuzinger’s other win was 14-3 over Long Beach Poly. So the question is, have the two weeks off made Leuzinger stale or do the Olympians come into this one fresh and hungry for battle? JSerra started the season 0-2. Those losses were 35-0 to No. 4 Sierra Canyon and 34-31 to Damien. JSerra has wins of 38-20 over Kamehameha in Hawaii and 24-21 over Oak Hills last week in Hesperia. The Lions have a sophomore quarterback, dual-threat Gino Wang, who is getting better weekly. JSerra’s program lost some good ones through transfer activity, so new players are benefiting from each game of varsity experience. JSerra at the moment looks like the No. 6 team in the six-team Trinity League. But the Lions are good enough to win this home game and will be a tough beat when league starts in a couple of weeks.
Winner: JSerra
NO. 22 LAGUNA BEACH (3-0) VS. EL DORADO (3-1)
Where, when: Valencia High, Friday, 7 p.m.
Analysis: These teams have some recent history. Laguna Beach slammed El Dorado 40-0 last year at Laguna Beach High. In 2023 El Dorado beat Laguna Beach 21-7 in a playoff game at Laguna. El Dorado started this season 2-0 with wins of 30-0 over Diamond Bar and 31-6 over Redondo Union followed by a 28-21 loss to El Toro and last week’s 36-0 win over Valencia. The loss to El Toro is the most impressive game for the Golden Hawks, given that El Toro last week beat Trabuco Hills 56-14. El Dorado’s defense has been good, led by leading tacklers Cooper Larson and Dante Selway. Laguna Beach entered the county Top 25 after a 36-15 win last week over then-No. 22 Tesoro. Junior quarterback Jack Hurst threw three touchdown passes, all to junior receiver Brady Stringham, who had 109 receiving yards. Wyatt Bogdan had 11 solo tackles. Laguna Beach also has wins of 45-7 over Chino and 42-0 over Santa Monica. That’s a solid Breakers defense that will produce similar results in this one.
Winner: Laguna Beach
Fryer last week: 3-2
Fryer for the season: 12-8