Previews for five of the Orange County teams playing in the first round of the CIF Southern Section football playoffs Friday, Nov. 7:
CIF-SS FOOTBALL PLAYOFFS
First round
DIVISION 2
Beaumont (8-2) at San Clemente (6-4), Friday, 7 p.m.
Outlook: San Clemente’s defense is always among the best in the county and this season is no exception. Patrick Norman leads the team with 83 tackles and Joshua Kerst has 10.5 sacks with two forced fumbles. The Tritons are 3-0 with sophomore Preston Beck as the starting quarterback and he is the son of former NFL quarterback John Beck. Jaxson Rex is one of the better two-way players in the county and has 735 yards receiving with 10 touchdowns. Beaumont is the second place team from the Citrus Belt League. Jeremiah Duhu averages 203 passing yards per game with 22 touchdowns and has rushed for five touchdowns. Braedon Miller has 1095 yards receiving with 15 touchdowns and Jeremiah McCarty leads the defense in interceptions.
Leuzinger (8-1) at Crean Lutheran (10-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
Outlook: Crean Lutheran is one of just two undefeated teams in Orange County and won all but one of its games by multiple touchdowns. Junior quarterback Caden Jones averages 279 yards per game with 29 touchdowns and zero interceptions. Bryce Coleman and Ty Johnson are lengthy receivers and Hawaii commit Dillon Booth is a versatile receiver the Saints get the ball to in many ways. The defensive line trio of Ryder Barnes, James Carrington and Anthony Jones gets in the backfield frequently and Javari Nash leads the team in tackles and interceptions. Leuzinger won the competitive Bay League and won every game by at least 11 points. Journee Tonga leads the team in rushing touchdowns, has four receiving touchdowns and played quarterback when needed recently. Edge rusher Samu Moala is one of the top recruits in the 2026 class and is committed to Texas A&M.
DIVISION 3
Inglewood (5-5) at Capistrano Valley (8-2), Friday, 7 p.m.
Outlook: Capistrano Valley entered the season with a young and inexperienced team but still managed to finish second in the Delta League for the second consecutive season. Talon Spencer has thrown 21 touchdown passes this season and ran for nine touchdowns. Brody Saavedra and Colin Hooper are Spencer’s top two targets and they have combined for over 700 yards with 13 touchdowns. Damon Epstein leads the defense with 11.5 sacks and Jake Beisel has 64 tackles with eight sacks. The Cougars have 15 interceptions and have forced six fumbles. Inglewood is the third place team in the Bay League. Oaks Christian transfer Lincoln Jahn averages 263 passing yards per game and has 25 touchdowns. Tight end Andre Nickerson is committed to SMU and cornerback Iroc Cordova is committed to Harvard. Stanford commit Sarrel Howard has 91 tackles with 20 for a loss and Myels Smith has 10 sacks.
DIVISION 4
Villa Park (6-4) at Westlake (10-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
Outlook: Villa Park earned the third automatic qualifying spot from the Bravo League after San Juan Hills forfeited seven of its wins this season. Freshman Jacob Titchenal made his varsity debut at quarterback last week for the Spartans in a win over Newport Harbor and threw three touchdown passes. Luvie Clark had two long touchdown catches in that game and former quarterback Vince Lagatte had a long touchdown on a hook-and-ladder play. Maverick Declark leads the defense in tackles and Clark has three interceptions. Westlake was 0-10 last season but is 10-0 under first-year coach Rick Clausen, who was formerly an assistant at Oaks Christian, Calabasas and Alemany. Freshman Ford Green averages 196 yards per game with 28 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. Demanie Bell has rushed for 1,425 yards with 18 touchdowns.
DIVISION 8
Mary Star (8-2) at Brea Olinda (7-3), Friday, 7 p.m.
Outlook: Brea Olinda was an overtime loss away from winning its second consecutive Kappa League championship. Gavyn Nicholson is a dual-threat quarterback who has 11 passing touchdowns and six rushing. Kolotolu Liti has 11 rushing touchdowns and Ryan Nero has 719 receiving yards with eight touchdowns. Nolan Santana leads the defense with 91 tackles and eight sacks. Dalton Tagaloa leads the secondary with five interceptions. Mary Star won the Camino Real League and has scored 134 points in its last two games. Tanner Rollins averages 196 passing yards per game with 18 touchdowns and Johnny Rivera has rushed for 1,055 yards with 16 touchdowns. Mary Star lost in overtime in the Division 12 semifinals last season.
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