Bay Area high school football 2025: Week 13 preview, schedule

The stage is set for an epic weekend of high school football across the Bay Area De La Salle and Pittsburg will play on Friday night for the North Coast Section s Open Division championship In the Central Coast Section Archbishop Riordan and Serra will meet Friday for an Open title as well The winners will advance to the state playoffs The losers will play next week for section Division I titles But that s only part of this weekend s story Semifinal games will be held in numerous divisions with the winners moving on to section finals and a step closer to the regionals All section champions in the NCS and CCS qualify for NorCals HSRatings com which projects winners for each encounter doesn t have multiple blowouts in its forecast this weekend It says of the games that include at least one unit from the Bay Area News News Group s coverage area will be decided by one outcome Here is a breakdown of the top matchups Friday No Serra - vs No Archbishop Riordan - in CCS Open Division final at San Jose City College p m A rematch two weeks in the making will bring together the West Catholic Athletic League s two best teams this season to decide the CCS Open title There are no secrets between these two Riordan s prolific offense runs through quarterback Michael Mitchell Jr a four-year starter who has rewritten the WCAL record books But Riordan s defense led by linebacker Skylar Tiatia also made several key stops as the Crusaders won the league championship on the road over Serra on Nov Serra is expected to start freshman QB William Orr after he split reps with junior Caleb Bandel last time the teams played This is not an elimination tournament The loser will play Los Gatos or Palma for the CCS Division I title next week HSRatings com projects Riordan to prevail - Christian Babcock No Pittsburg - vs No De La Salle - in NCS Open Division final at Diablo Valley College p m De La Salle s last loss to an NCS opponent came in to Pittsburg Can the Pirates do it again It will be an uphill battle De La Salle has looked dominant all season behind a rushing attack that includes speedy North Carolina commit Jaden Jefferson productive Brady Smith and junior standout Duece Jones-Drew who is healthy after returning to action last week De La Salle s defense anchored by defensive tackle Mya Telona shut out San Ramon Valley last week and is holding opponents to an average of points per battle Pittsburg s potent offense is led by two quarterbacks sophomore Javale Jones and senior Carlos Torres who share time Arizona-bound wide receiver RJ Mosley will be a focal point for the De La Salle defense as he s already eclipsed the -yard mark for the year De La Salle has won consecutive NCS titles all in the section s highest division and overall Their record against NCS teams since the Pittsburg loss in is - - The loser Friday will play Cardinal Newman or Acalanes for the NCS Division I title next week HSRatings com projects De La Salle to win - Nathan Canilao No Palma - at No Los Gatos - in CCS Open Division I semifinal p m Can Los Gatos defeat the Monterey Peninsula area s best unit Palma established itself as the class of the southern end of the CCS late this season and will now get the chance to test itself against another CCS blueblood The Chieftains beat Soquel twice though the Knights were without star quarterback Sam Whelan in the majority of both contests Palma QB Patrick Driscoll has completed of his passes But the Chieftains offense runs through junior RB Eli Dukes who has Division I offers from Cal and Stanford among others Dukes has rushed for yards and touchdowns on carries this season Los Gatos is known for its balanced offense but had a strong defensive performance and a game-winning goal-line stand last week against St Francis The Wildcats may have to play their best tournament of the season to win These traditional CCS powers have met just once in the MaxPreps era -present a - Los Gatos conquest in HSRatings com projects another Los Gatos win on Friday - Christian Babcock No Acalanes - at No Cardinal Newman - in NCS Open Division I semifinal p m Acalanes has been one of the Bay Area s top teams this season with wins over Mitty St Ignatius Menlo-Atherton Clayton Valley and Campolindo Can the Dons continue to roll in a matchup against the North Bay s best When these teams met in a NCS Division IV semifinal Cardinal Newman won - This season under first-year coach Joel Isaac Acalanes has passed every test behind an explosive offense and stout defense Junior quarterback Tyler Winkles threw for five touchdowns and ran for two last week as the Dons routed another North Bay power Marin Catholic - The receiving core of Finley Rivera Grant Ricker and Andrew Upp will look to keep the offensive humming this week Cardinal Newman s defense is particularly strong in the secondary as Ka vaughn Emoni Penney and Kordel Strane each have six interceptions The Cardinals offense is led by running back Malakai Pathoumnourack who has accounted for touchdowns HSRatings com projects Acalanes to advance - Nathan Canilao No Clayton Valley Charter - at No Campolindo - in NCS Division II semifinal p m Campo was within three yards of a winning touchdown when time expired in the first meeting between these teams about a month ago on the same field where they ll play Friday Final Clayton Valley Campo Campo drove inside the Ugly Eagles -yard line four times that night but was held to one touchdown on those possessions The rematch figures to be just as tight Both teams survived in the opening round last week with Clayton Valley defeating Windsor - and Campo edging Livermore - Clayton Valley s Jhadis Luckey had a big championship in the first meeting with Campo rushing for yards and a touchdown in carries Campo s Micah Parker carried times for yards in that event HSRatings com projects Clayton Valley to win Friday - Darren Sabedra No Lincoln-San Jose - at No Willow Glen - in CCS Division IV semifinal p m Two of the three oldest residents schools in San Jose will meet for the second time this season this time with much higher stakes When the teams played in a season opener at Lincoln on Aug the home side won - as Kyan Phillips ran for yards and three touchdowns Willow Glen s Aiden Akery threw for yards and four TDs that night Lincoln lost three of its last four regular-season games in the highly competitive BVAL Mt Hamilton Division the league s A tier and edged Scotts Valley - to open the playoffs All three of Lincoln s losses have been by one result Willow Glen finished first in one of the BVAL s B divisions and last week extended its win streak to nine games with a - first-round triumph over San Lorenzo Valley HSRatings com projects Lincoln to win - Darren Sabedra Saturday No Oakland Tech - vs No McClymonds - in Silver Bowl at Castlemont High School p m McClymonds will be heavy favorites once again as the Warriors seek their th Silver Bowl championship When these teams plated on Oct McClymonds got off to a slow start but eventually cruised to a - mastery at Laney College The trio of quarterback Berell Staples wide receiver Prince Staten and running back Dominic Davis lead the West Oakland school s offense Senior defensive tackle Koi Taiese will anchor a McClymonds defense that has been dominant particularly in OAL play Oakland Tech will look to counter with dynamic quarterback Elijah Rucker and speedy receiver Vernard Scott Jr HSRatings com has McClymonds winning - Nathan Canilao Schedule CCS playoffs Open Division I Open final No Serra - vs No Archbishop Riordan - at San Jose City College Friday p m Division I semifinal No Palma - at No Los Gatos - Friday p m Division II Semifinals No Santa Teresa - vs No Sacred Heart Cathedral - at Kezar Stadium Saturday p m No Menlo School - at No St Ignatius - Friday p m Division III Friday s semifinals No Sacred Heart Prep - at No Menlo-Atherton - p m No San Mateo - at No Live Oak - p m Division IV Friday s semifinals No Lincoln-San Jose - at No Willow Glen - p m No Half Moon Bay - at No Branham - p m Division V Semifinals No Terra Nova - at No Sobrato - Saturday p m No Jefferson - at No Piedmont Hills - Saturday p m NCS playoffs Open Division I Open final No Pittsburg - vs No De La Salle - at Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill Friday p m Division I semifinal No Acalanes - at No Cardinal Newman - Friday p m Division II Friday s semifinals No California - at No Monte Vista - p m No Clayton Valley Charter - at No Campolindo - p m Division III Friday s semifinals No El Cerrito - at No Rancho Cotate - p m No Ukiah - vs vs No Vintage - at Memorial Stadium in Napa p m Division IV Friday s semifinals No Redwood - at No Miramonte - p m No Granada - at No Hayward - p m Division V Saturday s semifinals No Salesian - at No Ferndale - p m No Maria Carrillo - at No St Vincent de Paul - p m Division VI Semifinals No Bishop O Dowd - at No St Helena - Friday p m No Fortuna - at No St Bernard s - Saturday p m Division VII Friday s semifinals No Willits - at No Piedmont - p m No Concord - at No Middletown - p m Oakland Section Silver Bowl No Oakland Tech - vs No McClymonds - at Castlemont HS Saturday p m