Playoff bids are up for grabs in this season’s penultimate week of high school football. And in the Foothill League, the Hart Hawks and Valencia Vikings will look to win their respective matchups on Friday before both duel it out in next week’s potential Foothill League title decider.
As for the private schools, the Trinity Knights are the lone team in play from the Heritage League with a non-league matchup as the Santa Clarita Christian Cardinals are on a bye.
Here’s a look at this week’s matchups:
Golden Valley vs. Valencia
This week, the Vikings (6-2, 4-0) are looking to win their 24th Foothill League game in a row and extend their streak dating back to the 2022 season.
But, the Vikings will face their toughest defensive test yet in Foothill League play in a home matchup against the Golden Valley Grizzlies (4-4, 2-2).
Throughout the season, the Grizzlies have allowed 22.5 points per game, and have only allowed 40 points or more once, in a loss to Saugus in the Foothill League opener.
Although Golden Valley’s defense has kept the Grizzlies’ season at .500, its defense will face and need to stop Valencia’s offense to come away with a win on Friday.
Sophomore quarterback Evan McCalister and senior running back Nico Funez comprise Valencia’s one-two punch that has led the Vikings to five wins in a row. And in each of the last five wins, the Vikings have scored 42 or more points.
Golden Valley will look to stop a high-scoring Valencia offense, but this week the Vikings look to have the edge.
Friday’s matchup between the Grizzlies and Vikings is scheduled for kickoff at 7 p.m. at Valencia High School.
Signal Staff Pick, Ryan Romero: Vikings win No. 24; Valencia 35, Golden Valley 14
Canyon vs. Hart
While the yearly matchup between Hart (7-1, 4-0) and Canyon (1-8, 0-5) has been lopsided in the past few years in favor of the Hawks, the annual rivalry remains a focal point of the season for both teams in 2026.
For Canyon, Friday’s matchup against the Hawks is the final game of the season and a must-win if the Cowboys want to end a seven-game skid to close out the year. And after losing in a 71-7 rout to Valencia last week, the Cowboys will look to try and end the season on a high note.
As for Hart, the Hawks will look to win on Friday and keep their title hopes alive for next week’s potential winner-takes-all matchup Foothill League championship against Valencia.
Although the game is at Canyon High School, the Hawks are the designated home team on Friday against the Cowboys with kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m.
Signal Staff Pick, Ryan Romero: Hawks extend winning streak; Hart 35, Canyon 0
Castaic vs. West Ranch
This week, it’s a matchup between No. 5 and No. 6 in the standings with both the Castaic Coyotes (3-5, 1-3) and West Ranch Wildcats (1-7, 1-3) in search of their second Foothill League win of the year.
As for who will come out on top Friday night, it’s a tossup.
The Coyotes are amid a two-game skid with only nine points scored offensively. The loss of sophomore quarterback Cody King has limited Castaic on offense in defeats to Golden Valley and Hart in the past two weeks.
For West Ranch, the Wildcats gave up 42 points in each of the team’s last three losses and only scored 19 points in that span.
In last week’s loss to Saugus, the Wildcats gave up 571 yards of total offense with 206 to the Centurions’ rushing attack. On Friday, the Coyotes will look to emulate Saugus’ success with senior Justin Priestly and sophomore Ryan Ortega leading Castaic’s running back group.
This week’s matchup looks to be a thriller, but Castaic seems to have the edge.
Friday’s game between the Coyotes and Wildcats is scheduled for kickoff at 7 p.m. at College of the Canyons’ Cougar Stadium.
Signal Staff Pick, Ryan Romero: Castaic 21, West Ranch 14
Trinity at Orcutt Academy
Following a 40-15 win over Sierra Lutheran of Nevada last week, the Knights (4-3, 3-1) improved to over .500 in the season and snagged their fourth win of the year.
In the win over Sierra Lutheran, the Knights recorded 311 yards with Aiden Visconti tallying four touchdowns on the ground.
With a strong rushing attack, the Knights will look to carry that momentum into next week’s contest and final road game of the season against the Orcutt Academy Spartans, who are 3-5 through eight games.
The Knights will look to end the season with back-to-back non-league matchups and extend its late-season momentum.
Saturday’s matchup between the Knights and Spartans is scheduled for kickoff at 7 p.m. at Pioneer Valley High School in Santa Maria.
