Pittsburg quarterback Marley Alcantara (12) looks to pass the ball against Archbishop Riordan in the second quarter of their game at Pittsburg High School in Pittsburg, Calif., on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
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OUR MIDSEASON HONORS
Just like that, the Bay Area high school football season has reached its halfway point.
From nail-biting games to standout performances, this season has delivered non-stop action.
With five more weekends left before the playoffs start, here are the Bay Area News Group’s mid-season awards:
PLAYERS OF THE YEAR
Marco Jones, San Ramon Valley: The four-star Texas A&M commit has been impossible to block as a senior for the undefeated Wolves. The linebacker has 18 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks and a forced fumble.
Kingston Keanaaina, St. Francis: St. Francis’ bruising feature back has had several outstanding performances this season. On Friday, he ran for 319 yards in the Lancers’ 30-27 win over Archbishop Mitty. In Week 2, he compiled 336 yards on the ground in a victory over McClymonds.
Marley Alcantara, Pittsburg: The 5-foot-7 standout has been excellent for Pittsburg. He has thrown for 898 yards and nine touchdowns through Pittsburg’s first five games.
COACHES OF THE YEAR
Rae Jackson Sr., Ygnacio Valley: The Wolves have gone from winless in 35 straight games to possible league title contender under Jackson, who is in his third season as head coach. Aided by a strong play from freshman quarterback Jalen Fayad, YV (4-2) has won its past three games.
Lenny Vandermade, St. Ignatius: Has led the Wildcats to upper-echelon of West Catholic Athletic League with victories over Serra and Riordan. The second-year coach also guided the team to victory at San Diego powerhouse Cathedral Catholic.
Adam Hazel, Christopher: The first-year coach had a tough act to follow as he took over from Darren Yafai, who led the Cougars to the CCS Division II championship game in his final season. But Hazel has picked up the baton and kept Christopher moving forward – the Cougars are 4-1 and look like the favorite in the Blossom Valley Athletic League’s Mt. Hamilton Division.
SURPRISE TEAMS
Irvington: The team with a movie actor as head coach (Anthony Jackson) is off to its best start in decades. The 5-0 Vikings have won every game by doubledigits.
Gunn: With a rushing attack that’s built to last, the Titans have dominated the Peninsula Athletic League Lake Division thus far. Picked to finish seventh in the league during the preseason, Gunn is blowing out PAL Lake teams left and right, most recently pasting Cupertino 47-0 on the road.
Arroyo: The San Lorenzo school has quietly been one of the best teams in the East Bay, winning games over Antioch, Washington-Fremont and St. Mary’s-Berkeley. Head coach Jeffery Pride has the Dons on track to have their first winning season since 2012.
TOP NEWCOMERS
Kenny Ward, Pittsburg: Has shown signs of brilliance through the first five games of his high school career. Breakout game came against Riordan when he had a 74-yard pick-six and a 31-yard receiving touchdown.
Duece Jones-Drew, De La Salle: Son of Spartans legend Maurice Jones-Drew rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown in his debut against Grant-Sacramento. He’s the most explosive part of three-headed backfield.
Wesley Winn Jr., Riordan: The sophomore speedster has made his mark in multiple games. He caught seven passes for 86 yards against McClymonds, eight balls for 179 yards against St. Bonaventure-Ventura, six for 58 against Pittsburg and five for 82 against Sacred Heart Cathedral.
IMPACTFUL TRANSFERS
Zayne St. Laurent, Branham: The Bellarmine transfer has been the engine for Branham’s passing game. He has compiled 641 receiving yards in six games played and has been a consistent and prolific contributor for the Bruins in the early season.
Jonathan Craft, El Cerrito: A transfer from James Logan, Craft has given El Cerrito a true dual-threat at quarterback. He dominated in El Cerrito’s 49-0 win over Campolindo in Week 4, throwing for three scores.
Berell Staples, McClymonds: The addition from Edison-Stockton has added a passing element to run-heavy McClymonds. Junior dual-threat passed for two touchdowns against Riordan.
GAMES OF THE YEAR
St. Ignatius 21, Serra 20: Serra hadn’t lost a WCAL matchup, and it didn’t look like they were going to lose this one. But a two-touchdown fourth-quarter comeback by SI ended with Jarious Hogan’s heroic 30-yard rushing score with 1:14 left, and pandemonium ensued in the Sunset.
Half Moon Bay 52, Foothill 45: A battle of contrasting styles saw Adler Halterman rush for 323 yards and a HMB record seven touchdowns. Foothill’s Jason Knight passed for 455 yards in the high-scoring thriller.
Pittsburg 56, Riordan 42: It was a battle of two of the top offenses in Northern California, and the game did not disappoint. Pittsburg fended off a fierce Riordan comeback behind 156 yards and four touchdowns from Washington State-bound running back Jamar Searcy.
UPSETS OF THE YEAR
Northgate 35, Las Lomas 21: Northgate came into the annual Battle of the Creek game as heavy underdogs against a Las Lomas team that was undefeated through five games. The Broncos defeated Las Lomas at home, capturing their first win over the Knights in a regular season game since 2017.
Serra 21, Folsom 20: After three years as NorCal’s top team, the Padres went into Week 1 having to replace 18 starters with zero transfers. The new-look Padres then traveled to Folsom and beat the powerhouse Bulldogs on a last-second field goal.
Burlingame 19, Wilcox 18: Wilcox was riding high after a big win over Sacred Heart Cathedral at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco, but Burlingame brought the Chargers back down to earth in a hurry. A goal-line stand and subsequent 99-yard touchdown drive set the tone for the Panthers to secure the road upset in Santa Clara.
— Joseph Dycus, Nathan Canilao, Christian Babcock
MIRAMONTE: GOOD LUCK CHARLIE
Charlie Metherd’s first varsity start was one to remember for the Miramonte junior quarterback. With 45 seconds left on the clock and down by three points to College Park, he threw a touchdown pass to Jack Quinnild to give the Matadors a 41-37 victory.
Miramonte coach Nick Safir said that Metherd didn’t know he was going to start in place of the injured Carson Blair until Wednesday, and that the young man was “understandably nervous.”
“Charlie’s teammates gave him all the confidence that he would succeed immediately,” Safir said. “They praised his success in practice and all went out of their way to tell him how much they believed in him. He came out and played with a confidence we had not seen in him before.”
Metherd completed 10 of 18 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns and also rushed for 41 yards and another score.
Just a year removed from sharing the JV quarterback job with two freshmen, Metherd has now proven that even though Blair is expected to be back soon, that Miramonte now has someone ready to produce if called upon.
– Joseph Dycus
HERITAGE: BEST TEAM IN SCHOOL HISTORY?
Heritage coach Dave Fogelstrom believes he has something special with this year’s team. Sitting at 4-1, the Patriots have stacked impressive wins over Granada, Terra Linda and Livermore.
“I told the kids at the start of the season that they had the potential … to be one of the best teams in school history,” the coach said.
Fogelstrom was on the Heritage staff for the only team in school history to beat league powerhouse Pittsburg in the MaxPreps era when the Patriots defeated the Pirates in the 2010 North Coast Section playoffs. The coach believes there are similarities between this year’s team and the one 14 years ago.
The day after improving to 4-1 with victory over Livermore on Sept. 27, Fogelstrom said, “At the bye week in 2010, we were 4-1 and I told them last night, ‘You are right where that team was and now you get a week to get healthy.’ They’re similar in that both teams really were hard workers in practice, senior heavy and had high expectations for themselves.”
– Nathan Canilao
CHRISTOPHER: QB LOVES TO RUN
Jaxen Robinson is known for throwing the football, and he’s pretty good at it. Christopher’s 6-foot-5, 225-pound senior quarterback has made a name for himself as an accomplished pocket passer who holds Division I scholarship offers from Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo and Northern Arizona.
But in a recent win over Branham, a lesser-known element of his game entered the equation. Faced with well-covered receivers on multiple occasions, Robinson scrambled four times, gaining 57 yards on the ground and converting multiple key first downs.
“It’s huge,” Robinson said afterward. “Obviously, we’re known as a passing team, so I’ve got to step up in the pocket and make some plays, and that’s what I did tonight.”
It’s not exactly something that makes Christopher’s coaches comfortable. But Robinson enjoys being an all-around player, and he wants to fill out his game as much as possible before heading to college.
“My coaches don’t like it, but I love doing it,” Robinson said. “So I don’t work on it a lot at practice, but I usually do it in the game and just be a playmaker.”
Robinson’s prodigious size certainly makes him tough to tackle. And while he’s not invincible, he’s definitely a load to deal with in the open field.
“I like him running,” said Christopher coach Adam Hazel. “I just want to make sure he gets what he can and then protects himself. Anytime he’s running for a first down on third-and-12 and getting himself out of bounds and protecting himself, I’m all for that. We don’t want him sticking his nose into a mike linebacker.”
– Christian Babcock
PEEK AHEAD TO WEEK 7
Tuesday
De La Salle (5-0) vs. NFL Academy at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, 10 a.m.: The Spartans play their first game ever outside of the United States.
Friday
San Ramon Valley (6-0) at California (6-0), 7 p.m.: SRV’s Texas A&M-bound Marco Jones vs. Cal running back Jhadis Luckey is one of the top individual matchups of the week.
Sacred Heart Prep (3-2) at Palo Alto (4-1), 7 p.m.: Both teams are coming off byes and should be ready entering this first game of PAL Bay Division play.
Clayton Valley Charter (3-2) at Las Lomas (5-1), 7 p.m.: Clayton Valley’s first league game back in the DAL will be against a Las Lomas team coming off a stunning loss at the hands of Walnut Creek rival Northgate.
Serra (3-2) at St. Francis (4-1), 7 p.m.: The Lancers are seeking their first victory over Serra since blowing out the Padres during the 2021 regular season.
Los Gatos (4-1) at Menlo-Atherton (4-1), 7 p.m.: The Wildcats have routed Menlo-Atherton in each of the past two seasons.
Archbishop Riordan (2-3) at Valley Christian (3-2), 7 p.m.: Will Riordan rebound after blowing a 21-0 lead in a loss to St. Ignatius? Doing so up on the hill at run-heavy Valley will be difficult.
Campolindo (2-3) at Amador Valley (3-3), 7 p.m.: Campolindo’s senior-laden secondary will try to slow down Tristan Tia and Amador’s air-raid attack.
Half Moon Bay (5-0) at Milpitas (3-2), 7 p.m.: Half Moon Bay’s two-pronged rushing attack of Connor Heath and Adler Halterman will both be well-rested coming off a bye as HMB opens PAL Ocean Division play.
— Joseph Dycus
Originally published at Joseph Dycus, Nathan Canilao, Christian Babcock