2024 Football Week 9: It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s Penalty Flags!

They were flying last week.

John Maffei, The San  Diego Union high school expert, noted the many infractions and uneven play in the Western League showdown between Lincoln and Cathedral.

“It was choppy,” observed Maffei.

Perhaps that was because there was an officiating crew of seven instead of the standard six.  Play was interrupted 19 times because of a penalty.

With the  27-7 victory (coach David Dunn’s 100th) Lincoln remained No. 1  in the weekly Top 10 voting and likely clinched top seed in the Open Division playoffs. San Diego Section bosses will use the Calpreps.com ratings formula to seed the 64 postseason teams in five divisions.  Two weeks remain in the regular season.

San Pasqual’s Tony Corley also won his 100th, 41-6 over Rancho Buena Vista.  Closing in are Granite Hills’ Kellan Cobbs (99) and La Costa Canyon’s Sean Sovacool (97).

HELIX CONTINUES TO DOMINATE 

At 2-5 against a blood rival, Helix might have finally appeared ready to be taken when the Highlanders lined up against 4-3 Grossmont, which hadn’t won in this vintage East County rivalry since George H.W. Bush was in office in 1991.

Not yet, Foothillers.  The Scots beat them for the 29th consecutive time, 56-26.  The once “Little Brother” Helix now leads the series, 48-18.

Helix opened in September, 1951, with morning-afternoon, double-session classes at Grossmont while the Highlanders’ campus on University Avenue in La Mesa was under construction.

MAFFEI FEELS IT

John Maffei’s The San Diego Union Week 9 poll:
Points awarded on 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. *First-place votes. Previous ranking in (italics).
Bold indicates latest. NR–Not ranked. MaxPreps‘ and Cal-Hi Sports‘ are state rankings.

RANK TEAM/RECORD POINTS MAXPREPS CALPREPS.COM CAL-HI SPORTS
1. Lincoln (6-2) 30* 300 (1) 13 (13) 59.1 (57.8)  13 (14) 
2. La Costa Canyon (8-0) 253 (4) 25 (32) 47.7 (43.8)
 22 (33)
3. Cathedral (6-2) 252 (2) 32 (24) 45.3 (46.5) 31 (21)
4. Granite Hills (6-2) 200 (6) 65 (64) 33.9 (37.6) 35 (31)
5. Mission Hills (6-2) 189 (3) 55 (49) 37.1 (36.9) 39 (32)
6. San Marcos (7-1) 147 (5) 69 (58) 33.3 (31.3) 47 (46)
7. Carlsbad (6-2) 96(7) 71 (79) 33.1 (30.7)  On Bubble (Bubble)
8. Rancho Bernardo (7-1) 67 (8) 112 (113) 25.2 (23.3) NR (NR)
9. Mount Miguel (6-2) 52 (9) 113  (115)
 25 (23.2) On Bubble (Bubble)
10. Scripps Ranch
(8-0)		 36 (NR) 147 22.8 NR

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
Torrey Pines (3-4, 16 points),  El Camino (4-3, 6), Imperial (8-0, 2), Valley Center (6-2, 1).

VOTING PANEL

Twenty-nine sportswriters, sportscasters, administrators from San Diego County, plus Max Preps.com.

  • John Maffei (San Diego Union-Tribune).
  • Don Norcross, Steve Brand, Rick Hoff, Kevin Farmer (Union-Tribune Freelance contributors).
  • Joe Heinz, Todd Cassen, Ron Marquez (CIF San Diego Section).
  • Brandon Stone, Allison Edmonds, John Carroll, Chase Izidor (KUSI, Channel 51).
  • Rick Smith (partletonsports.com).
  • Braden Suprenant (97.3-FM The Fan).
  • Christian Pedersen (San Diego Sports Association).
  • Tom Helmantoler, (Southern Conference advisor).
  • Rex Johnson, Bruce Ward (CIF Advisory Committee).
  • Mike Dolan, Joe Evangelist (San Diego Coaching Legends).
  • Raymond Brown (sdfootball.net).
  •  Bodie DeSilva, John Kentera, Steve (Biff) Dolan, Dennis Ackerman, Eric Williams, Thomas Gutierrez, Tom Ronco, Adam Paul (Freelance contributors).


2024 Flag Football Week 8: Playoff Divisions Set; Brackets Later

San Diego Section playoffs will consist of four divisions/brackets of 12 teams each, to be chosen by a CIF committee. Only criteria given is that seeding is based on record and MaxPreps* ranking, and brackets will include all League champions. Brackets reveal is on Nov 6.

The top 4 seeds get a first-round bye, then meet the winner of the 4 lower seed games.  D-II and D-IV start play Nov. 12, and D-I and D-III on Nov. 13. Home team will be the higher seed.

D-IV and D-II quarterfinals are Nov. 14, with DIII and D-I two days later.  Semifinals are Nov.19, at the higher seeds and finals Nov. 23, all games at a single site, to be announced.

“The Top 10 Club” spots remain with state No. 3 Classical (18-4) and Mira Mesa (14-2) at the vertex. It welcomes Mission Hills (8-2) to replace Grossmont at No. 10. Brawley went 4-0 for the week but crept up only one to ninth. The movers are Cathedral (11-3), rising to fourth, and Our Lady of Peace (15-6) falling to No. 8, after a 1-2 week.

Complete season game schedules and results are here.

Top 10 San Diego Section teams, according to the MaxPreps ranking system*, as of Oct. 17:

# / Previous TEAM RECORD STATE RANK / Previous
 1 / 1 Classical  18 – 4  3 / 3
 2 / 2 Mira Mesa  14 – 2  17 / 17
 3 / 4 Calexico Vincent Memorial  11 – 1  19 / 33
 4 / 7 Cathedral  11 – 3  30 / 43
 5 / 5 La Costa Canyon  10 – 2  35 / 38
 6 / 9 Torrey Pines  12 – 7  39 / 48
 7 / 6 Otay Ranch  9 – 0  40 / 41
 8 / 3 Our Lady of Peace  12 – 3  44 / 29
 9 /10 Brawley  15 – 6  47 / 54
 10 / — Mission Hills  8 – 2  59 / 46

Others in MaxPreps top 100: 60 Grossmont (9-4), 62 Bonita Vista (9-5), 66 Westview (10-2), 74 Poway (11-2), and 88 San Marcos (11-3)

* The entirely computer generated and proprietary MaxPreps.com ranking algorithm, based solely on wins and losses, plus the opponents strength of schedule, is described here.

Henrik Jonson, Webmaster



2024 Football Week 8: It’s Winning Time for Hornets, Dons, Falcons, Centurions

Number 1 Lincoln is at No. 2 Cathedral and unranked Scripps Ranch visits No. 10 University City  Friday with the winners the likely  champions in the Western and Eastern leagues.

By the numbers:

Lincoln is No. 1 in the San Diego Section Top 10 and 13th in the state, according to MaxPreps.  Cathedral is No. 2 and No. 24, respectively.  Lincoln has a 57.8 Calpreps rating and Cathedral 46.5.

Lincoln coach David Dunn will be seeking his 100th career victory.

A win by Cathedral would be coach Sean Doyle’s 238th, tying Doyle with the late Bennie Edens, Point Loma’s coach from 1955-97, one year after Doyle’s appointment at the school then known as University of San Diego High on Kearny Mesa.

Cathedral leads the all-time series, 22-10, but Lincoln won, 40-14, in 2023.

Scripps Ranch and University City represent the fourth pairing of 7-0 teams since 1980, according to web master Henrik Jonson. Other similar matchups were Monte Vista-Mount Miguel in 1984, Cathedral-La Jolla in 1991, and Ramona-Valley Center in 2009.

Jonson also pointed out that 274 teams in County history have begun the season with 7-0 slates.

Scripps Ranch leads the all-time series, 10-3, but the Centurions won, 33-30, in 2023.  Falcons coach Marlon Gardinera is 52-29 since 2017 and Paul Lawrence is 27-17 at U.C. since ’21.

CENTURY HONOR

One has entered the Coach 100 Club.  Two are pounding on the door. Two others could use strong finishes in the regular season or playoffs, or wait till next year.

Forty-seven San Diego Section coaches have won at least 100 games, led by Herb Meyer, ensconced in the distant reach of the coaches’ universe with 339.

Jack Mashin of Grossmont won more than 100 games when the Foothillers were in the Southern Section. The careers of Meyer, Chick Embrey, Gene Edwards, Birt Slater, and Edens also overlapped with the Southern Section (see Coach 100 Club).

Records for 2024 are in parenthesis.

NAME SCHOOL WON-LOSS-TIE Pct. THIS WEEK
Thadd MacNeal Carlsbad 101-46-0 (5-2) .687 Torrey Pines (3-4)
David Dunn Lincoln 99-58-1 (5-2) .630 @Cathedral (6-1)
Tony Corley San Pasqual 99-90-1 (2-5) .524 @Rancho Buena Vista (1-6)
Kellan Cobbs Granite Hills 98-50 (5-2) .662 @Mount Miguel (6-1)
Sean Sovacool La Costa Canyon 96-65 (7-0) .596 Mission Hills (6-1)

MAFFEI FEELS IT

John Maffei’s The San Diego Union Week 8 poll:
Points awarded on 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. *First-place votes. Previous ranking in (italics).
Bold indicates latest. NR–Not ranked. MaxPreps‘ and Cal-Hi Sports‘ are state rankings.

RANK TEAM/RECORD POINTS MAXPREPS CALPREPS.COM CAL-HI SPORTS
1. Lincoln (5-2) 22* 284 (1) 13 (14) 57.8 (55.5 ) 14 (14) 
2. Cathedral (6-1) 8* 277 (2) 24 (35) 46.5 (41.8)   21 (41)
3. Mission Hills (6-1) 216 (4) 49 (45)  36.9 (36.0) 32 (32)
4 La Costa Canyon (7-0) 206 (5) 32 (40) 43.8 (39.9) 33 (35)
5. Granite Hills (5-2) 195 (3) 65  (47)  37.6 (40.7) 31 (17)
6. San Marcos (6-1) 154 (6) 58 (62) 31.3 (31.3) 46 (46)
7. Carlsbad (5-2) 118 (7) 79 (85)  30.7 (26.6) On Bubble (Bubble)
8 Mount Miguel (6-1) 90 (8) 115 (127) 23.2 (19.9)   On Bubble (Bubble)
9. Rancho Bernardo (6-1) 50 (9) 113 (113) 23.3 (23.1) NR (NR)
10. University City (7-0) 19 (NR) 197 11.5 NR

+Through Week 6.

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
Torrey Pines (3-4, 16 points), Scripps Ranch (7-0, 14). El Camino (4-3, 6) Imperial (8-0, 2), Valley Center (6-2, 1).

VOTING PANEL

Twenty-nine sportswriters, sportscasters, administrators from San Diego County, plus Max Preps.com.

  • John Maffei (San Diego Union-Tribune).
  • Don Norcross, Steve Brand, Rick Hoff, Kevin Farmer (Union-Tribune Freelance contributors).
  • Joe Heinz, Todd Cassen, Ron Marquez (CIF San Diego Section).
  • Brandon Stone, Allison Edmonds, John Carroll, Chase Izidor (KUSI, Channel 51).
  • Rick Smith (partletonsports.com).
  • Braden Suprenant (97.3-FM The Fan).
  • Christian Pedersen (San Diego Sports Association).
  • Tom Helmantoler, (Southern Conference advisor).
  • Rex Johnson, Bruce Ward (CIF Advisory Committee).
  • Mike Dolan, Joe Evangelist (San Diego Coaching Legends).
  • Raymond Brown (sdfootball.net).
  •  Bodie DeSilva, John Kentera, Steve (Biff) Dolan, Dennis Ackerman, Eric Williams, Thomas Gutierrez, Tom Ronco, Adam Paul (Freelance contributors).


2024 Flag Football Week 7: 414 Down, 152 To Go

State No. 3 Classical (17-4), with a 36-26 win over local No. 9 Torrey Pines (10-7), remains the team to emulate. A month is left in the season and more than 400 games have been played by 72 San Diego Section teams. The Caimans have played the most games (21) and the most out-of-section games (10).

With 152 more regular season contests scheduled, and the postseason creating an additional two dozen, the sum will near the Section preseason-predicted 600 total.

The local elite 10 remains a clique, with just minor reshuffling. Mira Mesa (13-2) stays at No. 2, with wins over San Diego (5-11) and Mission Bay (11-3). Our Lady of Peace (11-1), which was 12-3  in 2023, is once again a contender at No. 3, having bested Lincoln (4-3) and Kearny (6-8). The MaxPreps 100 welcomed Mission Hills (6-2) and dismissed Mission Bay (11-3).

Complete schedules and results are here.

Top 10 San Diego Section teams, according to the MaxPreps ranking system*, as of Oct. 10:

TEAM RECORD STATE RANK/Previous
1 Classical  17-4  3/3
2 Mira Mesa  13-2  17/20
3 Our Lady of Peace  11-1  29/34
4 Calexico Vincent Memorial  9-1  33/44
5 La Costa Canyon  9-1  38/23
6 Otay Ranch  8-0  41/31
7 Cathedral  9-3  43/44
8 Grossmont  8-3  46/30
9 Torrey Pines  10-7  48/57
10 Brawley  11-6  54/61

Others in MaxPreps top 100: 67 Westview (8-2), 70 Bonita Vista (7-5),  72 Poway (10-2),  86 San Marcos (10-2), 95 Mission Hills (6-2), 97 Imperial (10-5)

* The entirely computer generated and proprietary MaxPreps.com ranking algorithm, based solely on wins and losses, plus the opponents strength of schedule, is described here.

Henrik Jonson, Webmaster



2024 Week 7: No Poll Change From No.1 Through No. 7

MAFFEI FEELS IT

John Maffei’s The San Diego Union Week 7 poll:
Points awarded on 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. *First-place votes. Previous ranking in (italics).
Bold indicates latest. NR–Not ranked. MaxPreps‘ and Cal-Hi Sports‘ are state rankings.

RANK TEAM/RECORD POINTS MAXPREPS CALPREPS.COM CAL-HI SPORTS+
1. Lincoln (4-2) 26* 296 (1) 14 (16) 55.5 (54.2) 14 (16) 
2. Cathedral (5-1) 1* 267 (2) 35 (36) 
 41.8 (40.2)   41 (43) 
3. Granite Hills (4-1) 3* 248 (3) 45 (47)  37.6 (35.8) 17 (18)
4 Mission Hills (5-1) 195 (4) 48 (53) 36.0 (32.9)   32 (32)
5. La Costa Canyon (6-0) 190 (5) 40 (34)  39.9 (40.7) 35 (35)
6. San Marcos (5-1) 157 (6) 62 (59) 31.3 (30.3) 46 (46)
7. Carlsbad (4-2) 103 (7) 85 (54)  26.6 (32.7)
 On Bubble (Bubble)
8 Mount Miguel (5-1) 81 (9) 127 (126) 19.9 (18.6)  On Bubble (Bubble)
9. Rancho Bernardo (5-1) 40 (10) 113 (124) 23.1 (19.8)  NR (NR)
10.  Torrey Pines (3-3) 19 (NR) (111) 23.2 NR

+Through Week 6.

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
El Camino (4-2, 17 points), University City (6-0, 12), Brawley (6-0, 11) Mt. Carmel (5-1, 8)  Scripps Ranch (6-0, 6), Oceanside (3-3), Imperial (7-0, 2).

VOTING PANEL

Twenty-nine  sportswriters, sportscasters, administrators from San Diego County, plus Max Preps.com.

    • John Maffei (San Diego Union-Tribune).
    • Don Norcross, Steve Brand, Rick Hoff, Kevin Farmer (Union-Tribune Freelance contributors).
    • Joe Heinz, Todd Cassen, Ron Marquez (CIF San Diego Section).
    • Brandon Stone, Allison Edmonds, John Carroll, Chase Izidor (KUSI, Channel 51).
    • Rick Smith (partletonsports.com).
    • Braden Suprenant (97.3-FM The Fan).
    • Christian Pedersen (San Diego Sports Association).
    • Tom Helmantoler, (Southern Conference advisor).
    • Rex Johnson, Bruce Ward (CIF Advisory Committee).
    • Mike Dolan, Joe Evangelist (San Diego Coaching Legends).
    • Raymond Brown (SDfootball.net).
    •  Bodie DeSilva, John Kentera, Steve (Biff) Dolan, Dennis Ackerman, Eric Williams, Thomas Gutierrez, Tom Ronco, Adam Paul (Freelance contributors).


2024 Flag Football Week 6: Classical and Mira Mesa Still On Top

Floating at state No. 3, Classical (16-4) hoped for repeat success over #2 Newport Harbor (19-2), but the Sailors battened the hatches for a 37-0 win. The Caimans had keelhauled the seafaring club, 26-13, as well as #4 San Juan Capistrano JSerra (17-5) and #6 Huntington Beach (17-7) earlier this season.

Mira Mesa (11-2) bobbed at local #2, with a 47-0 win over Hoover (5-9). The next best all rose in the state rankings, as Brawley (11-6) and Torrey Pines (10-7) soared 18 and 16 spots, respectively.

Among the coverage-neglected, modest enrollment schools,  Santa Fe Christian (3-1), Tri-City (5-1), Francis Parker (3-1), and Escondido Charter (6-1) stand out, rated state 136, 165, 228 and 256, respectively, by MaxPreps. Tri-City  bowled over now one-loss Escondido Charter, 33-7, and bested larger Vista (2-7) and Canyon Crest (3-6).

Complete schedules and results are here.

Top 10 San Diego Section teams per the MaxPreps ranking system*, as of Oct. 3:

TEAM RECORD STATE RANK/Previous
1 Classical  16-4  3/3
2 Mira Mesa  11-2  20/20
3 La Costa Canyon  9-1  23/33
4 Grossmont  7-2  30/34
5 Otay Ranch  6-0  31/36
6 Our Lady of Peace  9-1  34/42
7 Cathedral  8-3  37/44
8 Calexico Vincent Memorial  8-1  44/52
9 Torrey Pines  10-7  57/73
10 Brawley  11-6  61/79

Others in MaxPreps top 100: 66 Imperial (10-3), 72 Bonita Vista (7-5), 77 Westview (8-2), 83 San Marcos (10-2),  95 Poway (9-2), 100 Mission Bay (11-2)

* The entirely computer generated and proprietary MaxPreps.com ranking algorithm, based solely on wins and losses, plus the opponents strength of schedule, is described here.

Henrik Jonson, Webmaster