There are nine high school football teams from Orange County playing in CIF-SS semifinals Friday night.
The stakes are high, as the winning teams will advance to play for a CIF-SS championship next week.
Here is a look at a key player for each team in the semifinals:
MATER DEI: DIVISION 1
Kodi Greene, OL: Mater Dei ran for 211 yards in its season-opening win over Centennial and the Monarchs will likely try to establish the run again this week. Greene, an Oregon-committed junior, has been a consistently dominant performer on Mater Dei’s offensive line this season.
ORANGE LUTHERAN: DIVISION 1
AJ Ia, TE: Ia caught eight passes for 82 yards with two touchdowns earlier this season in Orange Lutheran’s 28-24 loss to St. John Bosco. The Arizona State commit has been a top target for quarterback TJ Lateef in Trinity League play and I expect him to get some targets against St. John Bosco’s young defense this week.
YORBA LINDA: DIVISION 2
Thomas Knutson, DB: Knutson leads Yorba Linda in interceptions and also makes a lot of tackles in the passing game. Yorba Linda plays undefeated Newbury Park and its star quarterback Brady Smigiel this week so Knutson will have his work cut out for him against a tough passing offense.
EDISON: DIVISION 3
Jeremiah Ross, LB: Edison has two shutouts thus far in the playoffs and faces a versatile offense in Vista Murrieta this week. Ross led Edison with 16 tackles in its win over Bonita last week and he had 1.5 sacks.
FOOTHILL: DIVISION 5
Brady Holcomb, LB: Holcomb has 123 tackles this season which is the sixth best in the county. Foothill plays Palos Verdes and dual threat quarterback Ryan Rakowski this week so Holcomb will be tasked with preventing big plays in the scramble and run game.
DANA HILLS: DIVISION 6
Charlie Eckl, TE/DE: The 6-foot-4 two-way star has receiving touchdowns in each of Dana Hills’ playoff wins thus far. The Dolphins play Glendora this week and might face sophomore quarterback Brandon Coronado. Dana Hills will want to pressure Coronado and Eckl leads the Dolphins in sacks with 11 this season.
PACIFICA: DIVISION 10
James Anema, QB: Anema threw for 236 yards with three touchdowns in Pacifica’s win over Brentwood last week. Pacifica’s opponent St. Anthony gave up 180 passing yards last week against Shadow Hills, but the Saints do force turnovers so Anema has to take care of the ball for the Mariners to win.
PORTOLA: DIVISION 11
Malachi Moore, WR/DB: Moore had a receiving touchdown in the first round against Don Lugo and also had two interceptions in that game. Portola will need Moore and the defensive backs to play well against Baldwin Park’s very good quarterback Jake Garcia.
ANAHEIM: DIVISION 13
Jason Garrett, QB: Garrett is a dual-threat quarterback who has 10 passing touchdowns and 14 rushing touchdowns this season. Gahr shut down a dual-threat quarterback from Artesia last week and the Colonists will need a big game from Garrett to keep pace with Gahr’s high-powered offense.