mission viejo

A look at the top 25 high school football teams in the Southland after the final week of the regular season:

Rk. School (record) result; Next game; last week’s ranking

1. SANTA MARGARITA (10-0) def. Orange Lutheran, 43-21; vs. San Clemente, Nov. 13; 1

2. SIERRA CANYON (10-0) def. Bishop Amat, 56-7; vs. Mission Viejo, Nov. 13; 2

3. MATER DEI (8-2) def. St. John Bosco, 36-35; vs. Corona Centennial at Santa Ana Stadium, Nov. 13; 5

4. CORONA CENTENNIAL (7-3) def. Murrieta Mesa, 62-0; vs. Mater Dei at Santa Ana Stadium, Nov. 13; 4

5. ST. JOHN BOSCO (7-3) lost to Mater Dei, 36-35; vs. Orange Lutheran, Nov. 13; 3

6. ORANGE LUTHERAN (5-5) lost to Santa Margarita, 43-21; at St. John Bosco, Nov. 13; 7

7. MISSION VIEJO (8-1) def. San Juan Hills, 54-44; at Sierra Canyon, Nov. 13; 6

8. CHAPARRAL (6-4) def. Vista Murrieta, 49-14; vs. Orange, Friday; 18

9. SAN CLEMENTE (8-1) def. Huntington Beach Edison, 21-14; at Santa Margarita, Nov. 13; 10

10. BISHOP AMAT (8-2) lost to Sierra Canyon, 56-7; vs. Oxnard Pacifica, Friday; 8

11. SAN JUAN HILLS (8-2) lost to Mission Viejo, 54-44; vs. Tustin, Friday; 9

12. CREAN LUTHERAN (8-2) def. Villa Park, 49-21; vs. Rancho Cucamonga, Friday; 12

13. LA SERNA (9-1) def. Downey, 20-14; vs. Valencia, Friday; 13

14. INGLEWOOD (9-1) did not play; vs. Huntington Beach, Friday 14

15. SERVITE (4-6) def. JSerra, 38-35; no playoffs; 15

16. PALOS VERDES (9-1) def. Leuzinger, 45-0; vs. Gardena Serra, Friday; 16

17. CARSON (9-1) def. Mary Star of the Sea, 45-42; vs. Palisades, Nov. 13; 17

18. JSERRA (4-6) lost to Servite, 38-35; no playoffs; 11

19. CORONA DEL MAR (8-2) def. La Habra, 29-17; vs. Chaminade, Friday; 19

20. CHAMINADE (7-3) def. Loyola, 31-28; at Corona del Mar, Friday; 21

21. GARDENA SERRA (5-5) def. Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, 20-13; at Palos Verdes, Friday; 25

22. HUNTINGTON BEACH (10-0) def. Laguna Beach, 35-15; at Inglewood, Friday; 23

23. ORANGE (10-0) def. El Toro, 57-31; at Chaparral, Friday; 24

24. SHERMAN OAKS NOTRE DAME (7-3) lost to Gardena Serra, 20-13; at Capistrano Valley, Friday; 20

25. TUSTIN (6-4) def. Capistrano Valley, 21-7; at San Juan Hills, Friday; NR

Scoring 44 points in a league championship decider is usually enough to secure victory — but not against Mission Viejo.

The Diablos beat San Juan Hills 54-44 in an epic Orange County shootout to secure its third consecutive Alpha League crown, buoyed by a bevy of explosive plays.

It started in the first quarter as senior running back Carson Vandermade, who returned after missing the last two games, scored two touchdowns. He finished the game with 121 yards, including a big 52-yard run down the sideline, and three touchdowns but did not return for the fourth quarter.

His counterpart, senior Jack Junker, gained 132 yards, including a 28-yarder, and two touchdowns as the Diablos’ rushing attack dominated. Every time Vandermade and Junker took handoffs, there was a gift waiting. The offensive line — which has four players either committed to or with offers to Division I colleges — opened up huge running lanes.

Junior center Max Davidson attributed the group’s success to a deep camaraderie and hard work.

“It comes down to all the time that we put in together,” he said. “It comes down to the chemistry that we have between the five of us up front. We work together really well and that shows in all our games.”

Mission Viejo High center Max Davidson is all smiles after the Diablos won the Alpha League title with a 54-44 victory over San Juan Hills on Friday night.

(Caleb Otte / For The Times)

Sophomore quarterback Brett Burnor also got in on the rushing action, with 30 yards and two touchdowns. He had a solid night through the air, connecting on nine of his 12 passes for 188 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Burnor had four passes that went for more than 30 yards and connected most often with senior wide receiver Luke Karby, a Duke commit who had 122 yards on five receptions and made multiple contested catches. Karby also threw a two-point conversion to Burnor, in a quick role reversal, in the second quarter.

Mission Viejo coach Chad Johnson said before kickoff that the game would be decided by explosive plays, and he wanted to limit the opponent’s electric moments.

“Every game, San Juan Hills has six to 10 explosive plays on offense that are 40- to 60-yard chunk plays,” he said.

The Diablos allowed San Juan Hills to stay within fighting distance via those big gains that Johnson warned against. While the home team never trailed, San Juan Hills cut the score to 47-44 midway through the fourth quarter after an improbable onside kick recovery. Senior kicker Trevor Koko continued an impressive season with a looping ball that Mission Viejo wasn’t able to field, breathing life into a potential comeback. A quick touchdown drive ensued that made the final minutes extra nervy for the Diablos.

Ultimately, the rushing attack killed the clock and clinched the win by grabbing one more touchdown on an 11-yarder by Junker with 40 seconds to play.

San Juan Hills backup quarterback Parker Armstrong was given the reins to let the ball loose by coach Robert Frith. He completed 27 of 37 passes for 343 yards and four touchdowns with one interception. His longest of the night came on a quick dump down to senior wide receiver commit Luke Frith, a Texas State commit who took it 80 yards for a touchdown. Another long score came on a slant route to senior wide receiver Cooper Chila who broke multiple tackles to take it 57-yards to the house.

Those plays summed up much of the game for the Stallions. Athletic players making big plays, and never giving up on the game. San Juan Hills lost, but it never gave up.

Frith’s constant messaging to the players clearly got through.

The Stallions’ coach said he always tells the team: “When that ball snaps, it is seven seconds of everything you’ve got.”

The game was a high octane battle, but there will be a lot to parse through in the film room, especially for Mission Viejo. In the midst of the barnstorming action, the victors had three bad snaps on extra points and 18 penalties, including six personal foul calls.

Johnson lamented what he called poor officiating after the game but also told his team that the errors needed to be cleaned up by next week’s playoff opener. Mission Viejo likely qualified for the Southern Section Division 1 playoffs with this the win, and will learn of its opponent on Sunday. San Juan Hills will finish the regular season with two losses and wait to see if it makes the Division 2 playoffs.

A look at four of this week’s top football games in the Southland:

FRIDAY

Garfield (8-1) vs. Roosevelt (1-8) at East L.A. College, 7:30 p.m.

It’s rivalry week highlighted by the East L.A. Classic that annually draws the most fans for a regular-season game in Los Angeles. Garfield is heavily favored, led by running back Ceasar Reyes, who has gone past 2,000 yards rushing this season. Roosevelt was shut out last week by Bell, so the Rough Riders will need to improve fast. The pick: Garfield.

St. John Bosco (6-2) vs. Mater Dei (6-2) at Santa Ana Stadium, 7 p.m.

Second place in the Trinity League is on the line, along with a top-four seeding in the Southern Section Division 1 playoffs. Both teams have rising running backs, with Maliq Allen for St. John Bosco and Asir Nembhard for Mater Dei. Let’s see which team can deny the big play. The pick: St. John Bosco.

San Juan Hills (8-1) at Mission Viejo (7-1), 7 p.m.

This is the Alpha League championship game. Mission Viejo’s powerful offensive line allows the Diablos the option to pass or run. San Juan Hills’ defense got a shutout over San Clemente last week. The pick: Mission Viejo.

Bishop Amat (8-1) at Sierra Canyon (9-0), 7 p.m.

Bishop Amat has already taken a big leap in the second season for coach Kory Minor. But beating Sierra Canyon on its home field will be tough. Sierra Canyon’s ability to run the ball with Jaxsen Stokes is key. The pick: Sierra Canyon.

Anyone have a helicopter available for Friday night?

This is the weekend when high school football fans and sportswriters across the Southland need air transportation or multiple screens on a computer or cellphone or at a sports bar to watch the many top games during Week 8.

It doesn’t get any better than No. 1-ranked Santa Margarita (7-0) playing at No. 2 St. John Bosco (6-1) in a Trinity League game that will feature big-boy football at its best. The NFHS Network will be streaming the game.

It’s not the only game you’ll want to see.

Let’s review the choices so you can use Google Maps or a TV remote control or just never let go of your phone on Friday night.

Santa Margarita coach Carson Palmer, center, with offensive coordinator Lenny Vandermade, left.

(Craig Weston)

Santa Margarita at St. John Bosco, 7 p.m.

Last week, St. John Bosco avenged last year’s stunning Southern Section Division 1 first-round playoff loss to Orange Lutheran, a team it beat 48-0 in the regular season. This week, the Braves finally get to play Santa Margarita, the school that won the state Open Division championship because St. John Bosco was nowhere to be found. Santa Margarita has a 13-game winning streak since losing to the Braves last October.

This isn’t the same Santa Margarita team. Trent Mosley is now at USC, where he looks like a Heisman Trophy candidate when not injured. The Trojans are off this week, so look for Mosley to be on the sideline supporting brother Grant, an Eagles receiver. Santa Margarita’s strength is running the ball with undersized Adrian Petero (5 feet 5, 175 pounds) to set up the pass for quarterback Fletch Palmer, son of coach Carson Palmer.

St. John Bosco has become more of a running team with Maliq Allen, but quarterback Koa Malau’ulu remains a dangerous weapon with receivers DJ Tubbs and Kuika Moaalii. This game likely comes down to a chess match each play, testing defensive coordinators Steve Fifita (Santa Margarita) and Chris King (St. John Bosco). Both have great respect for each other. Turnovers, penalties and special teams must be watched closely. The pick: St. John Bosco.

Bishop Amat (6-1) at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame (7-0), 7 p.m.

Spectrum 1 chose to televise this game, which will decide who gets to finish second in the Mission League behind Sierra Canyon. Notre Dame is a surprise being unbeaten at this point, but Tahj Skinner has proven to be one of the best athletes at quarterback, and the Knights are filled with fast players on both sides of the field from their successful track program. Bishop Amat must worry about Notre Dame’s speed, but Notre Dame must deal with the Lancers’ physicality. The pick: Bishop Amat.

Mission Viejo (6-1) at San Clemente (7-0), 7 p.m.

Home-field advantage matters in this annual rivalry game in the recently renamed Alpha League. Mission Viejo’s offensive line is elite. Receiver Jack Junker got to play running back last week and showed his big-play skills. San Clemente has its own versatile star in receiver/safety Jaxson Rex. In the end, it’s about which young quarterback can avoid mistakes, with Mission Viejo relying on sophomore Brett Burnor and San Clemente turning to junior Preston Beck. The pick: San Clemente.

King/Drew (4-3) at Crenshaw (5-2), 7 p.m.

King/Drew has been the upstart trying to win the Coliseum League with Crenshaw always standing in the way. Quarterback Gerald Torres has put together a strong season, passing for 1,363 yards and 13 touchdowns. Crenshaw struggled against Palisades’ passing attack this season, so the Cougars’ defense will be tested. Crenshaw has added more balance on offense with quarterback Ethan Grant. The pick: Crenshaw.

Hamilton (3-4) at Palisades (3-3), 7 p.m.

There should be more than 100 passes attempted in a game that will decide the Western League title. Have ice available afterward for the elbows of quarterbacks Robert Holohan III of Palisades and Thaddeus Breaux of Hamilton. The pick: Hamilton.