2017 Top California Games of the Week 2 with National Title Implications

Written by Ryan Wright

Twitter: @RyanWrightRNG

The California high school football schedule does not let up in Week 2 after a thrilling opening weekend to the 2017 season. The match-ups square three California teams against top Utah squads with heavy hitters from Arizona, Florida, Hawaii, Las Vegas, and Maryland making their way into the Golden State for an action-packed weekend sure to give every fan their monies worth on price for admission.

The fireworks start on Thursday with a neutral site game featuring No. 7 Chaminade against visiting Mountain Pointe (AZ). Chaminade made quick work of Oaks Christian last week winning 47-10 while Mountain Pointe downed O’Connor in similar fashion in a 46-6 road win. Both teams feature strong ground games with the Pride using senior Gary Bragg’s 131 yards with three scores and Jakim McKinney’s nine carries for 104 yards for their win against O’Connor and Chaminade got behind Andrew VanBuren’s 18 carries for 140 yards with three scores. Junior field general Ryan Stevens hit 19-of-25 for 310 yards with two touchdowns in the opener for the Eagles.

There are two games with national title implications being played in California this weekend, No. 4 Bishop Gorman (NV) vs. No. 2 Mater Dei and No. 1 IMG Academy vs. No. 8 Centennial. The biggest game in the nation on Friday night is the showdown between Bishop Gorman and Mater Dei. The battle within the battle is Gorman’s four-star 2018 quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson (UCLA) against five-star 2019 gunslinger J.T. Daniels. A loss for either team still keeps them alive for a state title run but could greatly diminish prospects for a coveted national title.

The other game receiving national TV coverage is Florida’s IMG Academy against Corona’s Centennial High School. Four-star Miami commit, Arthur Sitkowski, hit 14-of-20 passes for 130 yards with one interception and also ran nine times for 31 yards in a 27-14 road win against Chandler (AZ) last weekend. The Ascenders were led on the ground by Trey Sanders’ seven carries for 143 yards with a score. TJ Pledger added 59 yards off 13 totes with junior Noah Cain muscling in two scores off seven carries for 59 yards. Centennial dispatched then- No. 20 Pittsburg 63-21 behind five-star 2018 quarterback Tanner McKee’s impressive showing. McKee hit 12-of-17 passes for 315 yards with three scores without tossing a pick. He also ran six times for 67 yards with three more scores posted on the board.

The 2017 Honor Bowl hosted at Cathedral Catholic in Del Mar Heights (San Diego) has the biggest accumulation of talent in one location. The two-day event kicks off on Friday at 4:00 p.m. PT with Christian High School taking on Boron High School in a small school showdown followed by a thriller with host team Cathedral Catholic lining up against Orange Lutheran. On Saturday, Sept. 2, the three-game schedule starts with Helix vs. Paraclete at 12:00 p.m., Serra (Gardena) vs. Punahou (Honolulu) set for 4:00 p.m., and the game billed as “The Rematch” with IMG Academy vs. Centennial at 7:30 p.m.

Click link for rundown of Week 1 California high school football action

*All rankings are in-state from MaxPreps, which seem to change day to day. Use as a guide, not an absolute. 

August 31

No. 7 Chaminade (1-0) vs. Mountain Pointe (1-0 – Phoenix) – No. 2 ranked in Arizona at Mission Viejo

September 1

No. 1 Bishop Gorman (1-0 – Las Vegas, NV) at No. 1 Mater Dei (1-0)

No. 1 St. John’s (1-0 – Maryland) at No. 4 De La Salle (1-0)

No. 18 Long Beach Poly (1-0) at No. 5 Narbonne (1-0)

No. 58 Oaks Christian (0-1) at No. 6 Edison (1-0 – Huntington Beach)

No. 32 Vista Murrieta (0-1) at No. 10 Mission Viejo (1-0)

No. 12 Orange Lutheran (1-0) at No. 31 Cathedral Catholic (0-1 – San Diego)

No. 16 Rancho Cucamonga (1-0) at No. 46 Norco (0-1)

No. 27 Del Oro (Loomis) vs. Timpview (1-1 – Provo) – No. 4 ranked in Utah

No. 37 Servite (1-0) at American Fork (1-1) at Mission Viejo – American Fork No. 11 ranking in Utah

September 2

No. 3 Centennial vs. IMG Academy (Bradenton, FL) in San Diego – IMG No. 1 ranking nationally

No. 8 Serra (0-1, Gardena) vs. Puhnahou (2-0 – Honolulu) in San Diego – No. 3 ranked in Hawaii

No. 13 Helix (1-0) vs. No. 52 Paraclete (1-0)

No. 25 Bakersfield (1-0) vs. Orem (1-1) at Mission Viejo – No. 6 ranked team in Utah

*RNG will be provide coverage from all games in italics

Photo credit: YouTube.com; No. 12 Tanner McKee and No. 4 Miles Reed vs. IMG Academy (2016)