The CIF Southern Section football playoff pairings were released Sunday, and the first round of games will be played this week.
The OCVarsity Blitz chased down Dan Albano, Steve Fryer and Michael Huntley, who are the three voters in the weekly Orange County Top 25, on Monday morning and hit them with a series of questions about the Orange County playoff picture.
What do they like? What don't they like? And early predictions.
Here comes the The Playoff Blitz: First Round ...
Steve Fryer: My reaction is the same as it always is ... the brackets are not perfect. There always has been, and always will be, a team or some teams that were dealt a difficult hand in where they were placed in their bracket, and who is the first-round opponent. Going with a 10-team bracket in Division 1 is fine. Inglewood might be a bad fit for Division 1, but maybe Inglewood beats Santa Margarita this Friday and the Sentinels show us that they do belong.
Dan Albano: Intrigued as always. There are numerous exciting first-round matchups throughout multiple divisions. Division 2 feels as wide open as any division in the section. Let's see what team gets hot.
Michael Huntley: I thought Division 1 should have been eight teams with just one first-round game. Inglewood had a great season and would have been a perfect candidate to be the top seed in Division 2. I was happy to see there were no major snubs in Orange County. Only two teams with the requisite five wins were left out.
Fryer: It's always a sad moment when a team that is eligible for an at-large berth and applies for the at-large berth does not get the at-large berth. Seniors who wanted at least one more week of practice with their teammates and friends, who wanted one more game in their high school football life, won't get that opportunity. Godinez and Rancho Alamitos are those teams this season.
Albano: It was interesting to see the placement of teams in relation to their league opponents or past playoff divisions. Take, for example, the Alpha League. We knew Mission Viejo would be in Division 1 but it was revealing to see San Clemente and Los Alamitos in Division 2 and Edison in Division 3. That's three different divisions for four teams that played some pretty close games. The computer-generated ratings can really separate teams.
Huntley: I was happy to see that the competitive-equity league model in Orange County was successful in helping lower-level teams get a fair chance to make the playoffs. Schools like Saddleback and Century got to play in an evenly-matched league and reach the playoffs for the first time in many years. I know it's the nature of the new system, but I don't like that 2-8 Cypress is playing 1-9 St. Pius X in Division 8. Those are programs that are traditionally above a Division 8 level and the winner of that game has a great chance to make a playoff run. I understand that there were more at-large spots in that division than others, but I'd rather give the top seeds a bye than reward teams that did not win a league game with a playoff spot.
Fryer: Could be, of course. I was hoping that somehow Mission Viejo would not be in Mater Dei's half of the Division 1 bracket, but the Diablos are in that half of that bracket. Because I think Mission Viejo is Mater Dei's top challenger in Division 1. Nothing against St. John Bosco, which is very capable of beating anyone in the CIF Southern Section. Bosco is in the opposite half of the bracket from Mater Dei. In the same half of the bracket as Bosco is Orange Lutheran. Orange Lutheran lost to St. John Bosco 28-24 on Oct. 4. If they meet again, and the Lancers roster is intact, then I would pick Orange Lutheran to win that game.
Albano: Yes. I predict the semifinals will be Mater Dei-Mission Viejo and St. John Bosco-Orange Lutheran. The Lancers certainly have a shot against St. John Bosco but the Braves are a tough matchup in that one because of their wideouts. Santa Margarita's potential has me intrigued if it stays hot this week against Inglewood. The Eagles could create problems for the Braves in the quarters.
Huntley: I think this will be a rare year that we see Mater Dei get a new opponent in the Division 1 championship. Orange Lutheran is better in the trenches than St. John Bosco and gave the Braves everything they could handle in the first meeting between the two teams. I'm disappointed that Mission Viejo is on the same side as Mater Dei in the bracket and would face the Monarchs in the semifinals. The Diablos have the best public school team I've seen in Orange County in years and I think they could have reached a championship game.
Fryer: Other than Division 1 ... Division 3 has five teams that are in the Orange County Top 25 in it: Crean Lutheran, Edison, La Habra, Tustin and Villa Park. Division 5 has six Orange County teams in it so there could be plenty of O.C. representation in that division's later rounds.
Albano: Don't sleep on Division 5. There's a lot of good county teams -- Huntington Beach, Western, Troy, Brea Olinda, Trabcuo Hills and Foothill -- and the competition looks tough. Western-Huntington Beach is an exciting first-round game.
Huntley: Division 3 is the most fun bracket for Orange County football fans. La Habra and Tustin are league champions on a roll. Edison and Villa Park are second-place teams in the two best public school leagues in the county. Crean Lutheran is a rising team but the Saints have a tough matchup in round one against an elite Millikan offense. Division 5 is a fun one as well with six county teams.
Fryer: The quarterback of the championship team usually gets those awards, so Mater Dei quarterback Dash Beierly is a logical pick. If Orange Lutheran gets to the Division 1 final, Lancers quarterback TJ Lateef will get due consideration. San Juan Hills is ready to rock in Division 2, so maybe Stallions quarterback Timmy Herr will have an MVP-type of playoffs. Tustin running back Eimesse Essis could lead the Tillers to glory in Division 3. Another running back, Edison's Julius Gillick, could do so for the Chargers. Maybe Mr. All-Purpose Nate Lewis of Villa Park is the guy, and El Modena quarterback Xzavior Guess is one to keep an eye on.
Albano: Mater Dei QB Dash Beierly is playing as well as any player in the county.
Huntley: Dash Beierly of Mater Dei has a chance to earn Player of the Year in Orange County with a strong playoff performance. The Washington commit has been on fire in league play and has long touchdown runs in each of the last three games. Nate Lewis of Villa Park has a chance to lead the Spartans on a run in Division 3 and Vanden Dugger could lead Dana Hills in Division 6.
Fryer: Mater Dei 33, Long Beach Poly 26 in the 1998 Division 1 championship game at Anaheim Stadium. The Matt Grootegoed Game. Long Beach Poly was favored. Grootegoed, playing running back and linebacker, was named the offensive and defensive player of the game. "Groots" rushed for 244 yards and two touchdowns on 33 carries and made a bunch of tackles, and after the game was unable to hold up the two plaques he earned because he played with a separated shoulder.
Albano: I've recently thought about the late '90s final that I covered between Santa Margarita-Tustin. I saw Carson Palmer at a Santa Margarita game two weeks ago and have been covering Tustin and watching the progress of DeShaun Foster. That will always be my favorite game because of how exciting it was, all the talent on the field and how fortunate I felt to cover it with a sidebar story as a young reporter with the late, great David Osterman.
Huntley: The first one that came to mind was when I covered the Division 13 championship game in 2017. Orange beat Silver Valley to win its first CIF championship since 1929. There was a big crowd in attendance at the old Fred Kelly Stadium and it was truly a community event. The best playoff game I can recall covering was the 2019 Division 8 semifinal game between Sunny Hills and Trabuco Hills. The game featured multiple lead changes and when Trabuco Hills was driving for the potential game-winning touchdown in the final minute, Carson Irons of Sunny Hills made a diving interception in the end zone. I follow a strict "no cheering in the press box" rule, but there is no rule against yelling "wow!" in the press box and I did that night.