ORANGE COUNTY FOOTBALL TOP 25 POLL
Notable this week: Mater Dei supported its No. 1 national ranking early by taking a huge first-half lead over St. Thomas Aquinas of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., and hung on for a 26-23 win. … Orange Lutheran is in a tie for the No. 3 position after a 17-13 win in Florida over Miami Northwestern. … Los Alamitos pops into the Top 10 after a 2-0 start. … Aliso Niguel moves into the No. 25 spot after a 38-3 win over Beckman. … The first poll of the season has four sets of ties. There will be fewer, if any, as weeks go by and more games are played.
1. Mater Dei 1-0 (75 points)
Senior quarterback Ryan Hopkins, a transfer from JSerra, had a fine debut for the Monarchs in their season opener. He threw three touchdown passes in the first half as Mater Dei constructed a huge lead in Florida to beat St. Thomas Aquinas 26-23. Chris Henry Jr. had two touchdown catches. Mater Dei plays Bishop Montgomery (0-1) on Friday at Santa Ana Stadium.
Previous ranking: 1
2. Mission Viejo 4-0 (72)
Luke Fahey’s third-quarter touchdown pass to Jack Junker and a late goal line stand led the Diablos to a 7-3 win over Santa Margarita. It was Mission Viejo’s sixth straight win over the Eagles. Fahey connected with Junker, who played at Santa Margarita last season, on a 32-yard scoring pass. Santa Margarita made a late fourth-quarter drive but an incompletion on fourth-and-1 from the Mission Viejo 7 with 26 seconds left secured the win for the Diablos. They play at St. Paul on Friday.
Previous ranking: 2
3T. Orange Lutheran 1-0 (68)
Reagan Loki threw two touchdown passes to Nico Bland as the Lancers beat Northwestern of Miami 17-13. Northwestern was No. 11 in last week’s MaxPreps national rankings. The game was played in Florida. Orange Lutheran plays Rancho Cucamonga on Friday at Orange Coast College.
Previous ranking: 4
3T. Santa Margarita 0-1 (68)
The defense was fine but the offense was lacking for the Eagles in their 7-3 loss to Mission Viejo. Santa Margarita outrushed the Diablos 94-29 but could not come up with the big plays when they were needed. Santa Margarita plays Centennial of Corona on Thursday at Trabuco Hills High.
Previous ranking: 3
5. Servite 0-1 (62)
The Friars fell behind early and were unable to keep up with Centennial in a 42-14 loss. Servite coach Matt Reinert said afterward: “(There) were a lot of self-inflicted mistakes.” Servite has a home game Friday against Murrieta Valley at Mt. San Antonio College.
Previous ranking: 5
6. San Juan Hills 1-0 (61)
Senior quarterback Timmy Herr threw for 255 yards and three touchdowns and ran for a touchdown in the Stallions’ 38-33 win over Chaparral. Elijah Ayala rushed for 134 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries. The Stallions play at Roosevelt of Eastvale on Thursday.
Previous ranking: 6
7T. Edison 1-0 (54)
The Chargers, who were CIF Southern Section and CIF State champions last year, opened the season with a 20-13 win over Clovis West. Edison plays Yorba Linda, also a county top 10 team, on Thursday at Huntington Beach High.
Previous ranking: 7
7T. Tustin 1-0 (54)
Tustin rushed for 158 yards and passed for 166 yards in a30-17 win over San Clemente. Tillers sophomore quarterback Ayden Edwards completed 11 of 15 passes and two touchdowns. Junior Eli Robinson rushed for 97 yards. Tustin plays Foothill on Friday at Tustin High.
Previous ranking: 8
9. Yorba Linda 1-0 (51)
The Mustangs did everything well in a 41-0 win over Mayfair at SoFi Stadium. Jack Lopez returned an interception 50 yards for a touchdown and Thomas Knutson scored on a 55-yard punt return. Yorba Linda plays Edison on Thursday at Huntington Beach High.
Previous ranking: 10
10T. Crean Lutheran 1-0 (46)
Caden Jones passed for 288 yards and three touchdowns in a 30-14 win over visiting Mullen of Denver, Colo. Bryce Coleman had six receptions for 94 yards and a touchdown. Dillon Booth had five catches for 81 yards and two touchdowns. The Saints play in their on-campus stadium Friday against St. Pius X-St. Matthias.
Previous ranking: 9
10T. Los Alamitos 2-0 (46)
The Griffins are 2-0 after a34-31 win over Kapolei in Hawaii. After two games, senior Lenny Ibarra has a team-high 23 tackles, has rushed for two touchdowns, has kicked two field goals and is averaging 43 yards a punt. Los Alamitos plays at Narbonne on Thursday.
Previous ranking: 12
12. JSerra 0-1 (43)
Previous ranking: 13
13. San Clemente 0-1 (40)
Previous ranking: 11
14. La Habra 1-0 (38)
Previous ranking: 14
15T. Capistrano Valley 1-0 (26)
Previous ranking: 15
15T. Villa Park 1-0 (26)
Previous ranking: 19
15T. Western 1-0 (26)
Previous ranking: 17
18T. Corona del Mar 1-0 (25)
Previous ranking: 21
18T. Huntington Beach 1-0 (25)
Previous ranking: 18
20T. Dana Hills 1-0 (17)
Previous ranking: 16
20T. Newport Harbor 0-1 (17)
Previous ranking: 20
22T. Tesoro 1-0 (12)
Previous ranking: 25
22T. Trabuco Hills 0-0 (12)
Previous ranking: 22
24. Troy 1-0 (7)
Previous ranking: 24
25. Aliso Niguel 1-0 (3)
Previous ranking: Not ranked
Also receiving votes: El Modena 0-1 (2)
About the poll: There are three reporters who vote each week in the Orange County poll.