Following another exciting week of Foothill League football, this round’s slate of matchups will be crucial for many Santa Clarita Valley teams that are in need of a win.
Following a win over Saugus at home, Valencia will be on a bye this week.
As for the private schools, Trinity hits the road facing off the Webb Gauls and Santa Clarita Christian kicks off Heritage League play at Desert Christian.
Here’s a look at this week’s matchups:
Castaic vs. Golden Valley
This week’s Thursday night game is going to be a late kickoff between the Grizzles (2-4, 1-1) and Coyotes (0-5, 0-2) as both seek to rebound after losses last week.
As for the Coyotes, the 2025 season is one to forget so far. With another shutout defeat, the Coyotes have been outscored by 136 points in the past three games, and if you want to find the last time the offense has scored, you’ll have to go back to the month of August.
It’s not a matter of not being competitive: Castaic has battled injuries and has a much smaller roster than its Foothill League rivals. As for this week, the Coyotes will be in for another tough matchup on the road with Golden Valley.
The Grizzlies are a run-heavy offense, with the quarterback-running back tandem of Jayce Johnson and Aaron McCormick. Golden Valley has the opportunity to win big at home just like its Canyon Country rival, Canyon, did last Friday.
Last week, Cowboys running back Keyshawn Wooten ran for a mighty 326 yards and two touchdowns in the win over Castaic.
And after that performance from Canyon, the Grizzles are looking to run all over the Coyotes defense like the Cowboys did a week ago and secure their second Foothill League win of the year.
Thursday’s game between Golden Valley and Castaic is set to kick off at 7:30 p.m. at Canyon High School.
Signal Staff Pick:
Ryan Romero: Golden Valley wins big, 45-14 Grizzlies
Saugus vs. Canyon
Just a few weeks ago the Centurions (4-2, 0-2) were perfect with a 4-0 record to start the year, but following back-to-back losses to open the Foothill League, Saugus needs a bounceback win to remain in the playoff conversation.
With only the top three spots of the Foothill League guaranteed a bid for the CIF playoffs, the Centurions are currently last and will need to win out if they want a shot at the postseason.
And although the Centurions remain winless in the league, they did face Hart and Valencia, two teams who hold a combined 9-3 record.
As for this week, Saugus hits the road again at Canyon (1-5, 1-1), a game that could prove to be difficult for the Centurions.
The Cowboys are coming off their first win of the year, a shutout victory over Castaic. In that win, Wooten ran for 326 yards on 13 carries along with Semaj Richardson and sophomore Benicio Wright contributing.
And in the past two games for Saugus, the Centurions’ run defense allowed a combined 468 yards.
With Canyon’s run game that has proved to be explosive, given the matchup, the Centurions could be in for a long night on Friday but have proven themselves to be capable of a big win.
Friday’s game between Saugus and the Cowboys is set to kick off at 7 p.m. at Canyon High School.
Signal Staff Pick:
Ryan Romero: Saugus wins on the road; 31-24 Centurions
Hart vs. West Ranch
The Hawks (4-2, 2-0) hit the road this week facing the West Ranch Wildcats (1-4, 0-1) following a win at home over Golden Valley.
The win over the Grizzlies marked the third straight game the Hawks have scored 40-plus points, a feat that that team aims to do again over West Ranch.
In every loss for West Ranch, the Wildcats have allowed over 40 points, including back-to-back games against Valencia and Thousand Oaks at home.
With an explosive offense that is Hart, one player to keep an eye out for is junior Matix Frithsmith.
Frithsmith rushed for 131 yards in the win over the Grizzlies and leads the Foothill League in receiving yards and total touchdowns with 12.
If West Ranch wants to come out on top, its defense will need to contain Frithsmith and the Hawks who have all the momentum behind them as the team is undefeated to open league play.
Friday’s game between Hart and West Ranch is set to kick off at 7 p.m. at Valencia High School.
Signal Staff Pick:
Ryan Romero: Hart remains perfect to start league, 42-21 Hawks
Trinity at Webb
The Knights (1-3) open Cottonwood League play this week on the road facing off with the Webb Gauls (4-1, 0-1).
Following a loss to Calvary Chapel, the Knights finished the non-league portion of the year with their lone win coming off Bosco Tech.
And this week the team is facing the four-win Gauls with Webb quarterback Mikey Pino who leads the Cottonwood League in passing yards.
The Gauls are coming off a loss to Riverside Prep on the road but return home looking to have a repeat performance over Trinity like they did with Channel Islands when Pino threw for six touchdowns.
If the Knights want to open league play with the win, they’ll need to contain Pino and Webb’s offense on the road, which may prove to be difficult with the high-scoring Gaul offense.
SCCS at Desert Christian
Santa Clarita Christian (0-5) kicks off Heritage League play on the road at Lancaster facing off with the Desert Christian Knights (4-1, 1-0).
The Knights opened league play already with a shutout win over Milken at home earlier in September. And in the win last week over the Desert Scorpions, the Knights won 55-14.
The Cardinals led the Chadwick Dolphins in the first quarter in last week’s loss but allowed 20 points in the second quarter and 22 in the third to fall, 54-14.
SCCS has gone winless in non-league play for the first time since 2021, a season in which the Cardinals didn’t win a single game.
If the Cardinals want to win the Heritage League for a third year in a row, it all starts on the road with a first win of the year over the Knights.
Saturday’s game between the Cardinals and Knights is set to kick off at 6 p.m. at Desert Christian.
