The CIF-SS football playoffs are starting a new week with several Orange County teams getting ready to play in the quarterfinals while there’s a different group dealing with the sudden end to their season after losing in the first round.
Monday morning seemed like a good time to have the OCVarsity Blitz chase down reporters Steve Fryer, Dan Albano and Michael Huntley, who are the three voters in the Orange County football Top 25, to hear what they have to say about the playoffs.
Here is the OCVarsity Playoff Blitz: Quarterfinals Round …
Which winning teams stood out to you in the first round of the playoffs?
Dan Albano: Foothill, Century and Portola. The Knights edged host Moorpark 30-28 in Division 5 to extend the run of retiring coach Doug Case at least one more week. In Division 14, the Centurions edged Arroyo 30-29 in Division 14 for their first postseason win since 1992. And Portola knocked off top-seeded Don Lugo 31-20 in Division 11.
Steve Fryer: Santa Margarita. Whew! I covered Santa Margarita’s 56-29 win over Inglewood. The Eagles offense is on fire, with elite receiver Trent Mosley back in action. And it seems they have decided that tight end Fisher Melton is a worthwhile weapon. The defense was ferocious, too, on Friday. Crean Lutheran’s 20-17 win over Moore League champion Long Beach Millikan in Division 3 was another one. San Juan Hills’ 34-0 win over Beaumont in Division 2 was more one-sided than anticipated. And Yorba Linda beating Chaparral 42-32 and San Clemente beating Damien 42-7 were also impressive.
Michael Huntley: Crean Lutheran’s win over Millikan was extremely impressive considering Millikan averaged nearly 50 points per game this season and won its first outright Moore League championship in many years. The Saints’ Mason McCullough had 14 tackles with a forced fumble and Ben Byszewski had a crucial interception. Irvine beating Los Osos with two special teams touchdowns also stood out to me as well as Portola beating top-seeded Don Lugo with two interceptions from Malachi Moore.
And which losing teams stood out to you?
Albano: All teams in the playoffs stand out just for making the postseason, especially considering how much tougher league play is now in Orange County. I was surprised Tustin lost so decisively to Loyola 30-13. I’ll admit, I didn’t give the Cubs the credit for the nonleague schedule they played before the challenging Mission League. Loyola also has a few former O.C./Trinity League players — WR Markus Kier (Mission Viejo) and QB Ashton Pannell (St. John Bosco) — that I should have been more aware of as impact guys. Tustin deserves credit for winning the Delta League but the Tillers might need to toughen their nonleague schedule next season.
Fryer: Tustin. No way did I think Tustin, at 9-1, would lose in the first round again. The Tillers were 10-0 last season and were eliminated in the first round. Also eliminated much earlier than expected were Capistrano Valley and Villa Park.
Huntley: I was surprised to see Tustin lose to Loyola by such a wide margin. The Tillers led at halftime but allowed 27 consecutive points. Tustin wants to dominate the line of scrimmage and run the ball down its opponents’ throats, but the Tillers only had one offensive touchdown. Brea Olinda lost in overtime to Palos Verdes, but it was good to see the Wildcats, who jumped up five divisions from last season, nearly pull out a win.
Was there a player who stood out in the first round?
Albano: Huntington Beach QB Brady Edmunds. I covered the sophomore this season for the first time and came away impressed. He showed outstanding arm talent — which I have seen in summer passing action — but I was more taken by his poise, accuracy under some pressure — he was well protected — and throwing ability on the run. Bonus selection: WR Jake Junker of Santa Margarita with three TD catches.
Fryer: Sonora’s Anthony Abad rushed for 311 yards and four touchdowns in the Raiders’ 41-25 win over Alemany in Division 9.
Huntley: I’m going to cheat and mention three quarterbacks who stood out with excellent performances in round one. Andrew Waiss of Costa Mesa threw four touchdown passes and ran for another. Huntington Beach’s Brady Edmunds threw four touchdown passes in a win over Western and John Gazzaniga had a dominant performance for Santa Margarita against a talented Inglewood team. Defensively, Zach Schutt of Foothill returned an interception for a touchdown and recovered a fumble to end the game against Moorpark. Xander Rex and Josh Kearst each had three sacks for San Clemente in a dominant win over Damien in Division 2.
Best matchup this week in Division 1?
Albano: It’s got to be Mission Viejo-Centennial at Mission Viejo High. It’s the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds playing for the unofficial title of best public school in California. I suspect both programs have championship aspirations despite the likelihood that the winner plays Mater Dei in the semifinals.
Fryer: JSerra vs. Orange Lutheran on Friday at Orange Coast College. Orange Lutheran defeated JSerra 23-17 in a Trinity League game at OCC last month.
Huntley: I think three of the four games will be very close, but I’m going to give it to the two public schools, Mission Viejo vs. Centennial. Mission Viejo blew through a very good Alpha League and can beat you multiple ways offensively. Centennial has won eight consecutive games and if Texas A&M commit Husan Longstreet is healthy at quarterback for the Huskies, they have a chance to win. Mission Viejo ended Centennial’s season the last time the two teams met in 2022.
Pick two games this week — outside of Division 1 — that fans should check out.
Albano: If you want a fun time Friday in Orange County — and can skip the Paul-Tyson prelims — head to San Clemente and watch the Tritons try to upset 11-0 Newbury Park and QB Brady Smigiel in Division 2. The junior is committed to Florida State — will that stick? — and might be the best Class of 2026 QB in SoCal. Or on Thursday, you could head to Garden Grove High and check out 11-0 Los Amigos and O.C. coach of the year candidate Romel Guess.
Fryer: La Habra at Simi Valley, Division 3, Friday. And on Thursday, undefeated Los Amigos plays El Rancho in a Division 11 game at Garden Grove High.
Huntley: Earlier this season, El Modena beat Thousand Oaks in overtime. The two teams will meet again in the Division 4 quarterfinals this week. El Modena quarterback Xzavior Guess is a little banged up, but he extends plays better than most high school players I’ve seen and has no quit in him. Dana Hills hits the road to play a good San Dimas team in Division 6. San Dimas just ran for 464 yards and six touchdowns against an Aliso Niguel team that battled a lot of injuries. Now San Dimas has to play another Foxtrot League team in Dana Hills that had a high-scoring win over Barstow in round one.
Describe your reaction to the criticism you’ve seen about the playoff system? You agree? Disagree? Laugh? Ignore it?
Albano: Orange County has a ton of smart football coaches, ex-coaches, fans and media. I try to listen to all their points and see where they’re coming from. Yeah, maybe Inglewood should not have been in Division 1. Maybe Laguna Beach was too highly-rated by Calpreps from the start? No playoff system is perfect and for the most part, the competitive equity model seems to be delivering what is was designed to do: produce close games.
Fryer: If schools don’t like it they can change it. Competitive equity playoffs structures were approved by more than 90 percent of CIF Southern Section member leagues. If they don’t like the way it is, they can change it. There has not been, nor will there ever be, a system that meets 100 percent approval by everyone out there.
Huntley: I understand the criticism that some traditionally strong programs have bad seasons and get rewarded by playing in a lower playoff division. It’s good that teams are grouped together based on CalPreps ratings, but there should be a floor each team has. For example, a team like Long Beach Poly should never be allowed to dip below Division 3 or a Trinity League school should only be in Division 1. I do think that the pros of this playoff system outweigh the cons. The first round games are much more competitive than they used to be. El Modena coach Matt Mitchell told me prior to Thursday’s game against Santa Barbara, “I don’t know how the computer works, but all the teams in Division 4 are pretty equal. Whoever wins it all will be very deserving.” He’s absolutely right and I will take this over seeing a bunch of running clock fourth quarters in the first round like we used to see.
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