It’s the final week of non-league action for the Foothill League teams in the Santa Clarita Valley, following a week featuring everything from heartbreak defeats to last-minute comebacks.
As for the private schools, Trinity secured its first win over Bosco Tech coming off a bye week and Santa Clarita Christian remains winless through three weeks.
Here’s a look at this week’s matchups:
Saugus at Hueneme
Saugus football is 3-0 for the first time since 2021, the last season the Centurions won the Foothill League title. And following Valencia’s defeat to Bishop Amat last weekend, the Centurions are now the only remaining undefeated team in the Santa Clarita Valley.
And this Thursday they have a favorable matchup to extend their winning streak at Hueneme before league action begins.
Saugus quarterback Jake Nuttall threw for 153 yards and two touchdowns in the comeback win over Camarillo, but the biggest performer from the Centurions’ offense was running back Ty Hall.
Hall, who ran 133 yards on 24 carries, recorded a touchdown and is coming off back-to-back 100-rushing-yard games. And the senior back is poised to extend that streak over Hueneme’s defense.
The Vikings have allowed 82 points over the course of three games and will have a tough time stopping Saugus, whose offense has scored 116 points in the same time span.
Thursday’s game between the Vikings and Saugus is scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m. at Hueneme High School.
Thousand Oaks vs. West Ranch
Following a 23-13 win over Antelope Valley on the road last week, West Ranch returns home on the heels of its first win of the season.
TJ Yonkers secured his first win as a head coach, and he and the Wildcats will look to carry that momentum into Thursday’s matchup as they host the undefeated Thousand Oaks Lancers.
If the Wildcats want to come out victorious, they’ll need to stop the Thousand Oaks offense, which has scored 102 points through three games, which may prove to be a challenge.
Through the first three weeks of the season, West Ranch’s defense has allowed 114 points but could be turning the corner this season after holding Antelope Valley’s offense to 257 all-purpose yards.
The most important player to watch at West Ranch this week is quarterback Blake Johnson, who’s returning from an injury that sidelined him the first two weeks of the season.
Johnson, who threw for 140 yards and two touchdowns in the first half in last week’s win, will be expected to play the whole game and be the game-changer the Wildcats are looking for to secure their second win of the season.
Thursday’s game between Thousand Oaks and West Ranch kicks off at 7 p.m. at Valencia High School.
Valencia at Paraclete
After back-to-back wins over Simi Valley and Chaminade, Valencia returned home, losing to Bishop Amat.
Despite the defeat, many Valencia players shined in the game, including Vikings quarterback Brady Bretthauer.
Bretthauer, who threw for 285 yards along with three touchdowns, also led his offense as it accumulated 496 all-purpose yards.
The biggest contributor alongside Bretthauer was University of Washington commit Brian Bonnor. The senior running back had two touchdowns as well as 243 all-purpose yards and is poised for another big game.
But this week, Valencia has a tough matchup with Paraclete, which defeated the Vikings’ Foothill League opponent Hart last week.
The Spirits had 585 all-purpose yards, with the team’s running back group contributing 232 yards on the ground. And after last week, when Valencia gave up 222 yards to Bishop Amat’s Ryan Salcedo, Valencia’s defense and Paraclete’s offense will be a battle to watch.
Friday’s game between Valencia and the Spirits is scheduled to kick off at 7:30 p.m. at Paraclete High School.
Heritage Christian vs. Hart
The Hart Hawks will be playing football this week.
Following Bishop Montgomery suspending its season, Hart was found without an opponent this Friday but has since then scheduled Heritage Christian in its place.
The Hawks football team will host the undefeated Warriors, who are coming off a 54-28 win over Centennial.
In that win, Heritage Christian’s offense racked up 432 total yards and is poised to take advantage of Hart’s pass defense, which gave up 585 all-purpose yards in the loss to Paraclete.
Although last week’s loss came on the road, Hart returns home this week looking to replicate its blowout home opener against Burroughs, when the team won 49-0 and Hawks’ quarterback Jacob Paisano threw for five touchdowns.
Friday’s game between Heritage Christian and Hart is scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m. at College of the Canyons.
South Pasadena vs. Golden Valley
Following three straight road games to start the season, Golden Valley finally has its first home game of the year.
The winless Grizzlies host the 1-2 South Pasadena Tigers and are in for another tough matchup this Friday.
In Golden Valley’s loss to Lancaster, the Grizzlies gave up 314 receiving yards to the Eagles and will need to limit the Tigers, who recorded 205 yards in their loss to Crescenta Valley.
In the loss to Crescenta Valley, junior Grayson Ebner had 111 yards receiving and a touchdown on four receptions and is poised for another big game against the Grizzlies pass defense, which allowed five touchdown passes last week.
If Golden Valley wants its first win of the season, the Grizzlies will need to limit the Tigers’ pass production and receivers.
Friday’s game between Golden Valley and South Pasadena is scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m. at Canyon High School.
Dominguez vs. Castaic
Following Castaic’s trip up the Interstate 5 last week, the Coyotes return home this week hosting the 2-0 Dominguez Dons.
Castaic is in for a tough matchup with Dominguez as the Dons’ defense has only allowed six points through its two blowout wins.
And after Castaic’s shutout loss to San Joaquin Memorial last weekend, the Coyotes’ offense has only scored 13 points all year while also allowing 119 throughout three games.
The last time Castaic played at home the Coyotes lost to Calabasas but recorded a season-high 340 all-purpose yards. With another home game this Friday, the Coyotes will be looking to replicate just as much offensive production.
Friday’s game between Castaic and Dominguez is scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m. at Valencia High School.
Canyon at Crespi
The Cowboys are one of three Foothill League teams that remain winless to start the season.
Following a 29-21 loss to Kennedy High School in the Cowboys’ homecoming game, Canyon begins the first of a three-game road trip matching up with Crespi.
The undefeated Celts are coming off a 44-16 win over Cleveland High School but have already faced Foothill League competition this season in a win over Golden Valley. And Crespi’s offense is hot as the team has scored 119 points through its three wins.
As for Canyon, although the team is 0-3, the Cowboys’ offense has been performing. The running back duo of Semaj Richardson and Keyshawn Wooten kept Canyon in last week’s game, with both rushing for touchdowns.
But if the Cowboys want to come out on top, they’ll need to limit Crespi’s high-scoring offense, which has scored over 40 points the past two games.
Friday’s game between the Celts and Canyon is scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m. at Crespi High School.
Gahr vs. Trinity
After a narrow 7-6 loss to San Fernando in the first week of the season, the Knights blew out Bosco Tech 42-0 on the road Saturday for their first win of the year.
Following the win, the Knights will only have four days of rest as Trinity will play again on Thursday, hosting the 0-2 Gahr Gladiators.
The Gladiators are coming off a bye week and will look to rebound this week after a 35-7 loss to Cerritos in their last game.
Thursday’s game between Trinity and Gahr is scheduled to kick off at 7:30 p.m. at College of the Canyons.
