The high school football playoffs begin this weekend across the Bay Area.
After 11 weeks of regular season action, teams fortunate enough to still be playing will contend for section championships in a number of divisions, with the winners advancing to NorCal regionals on Dec. 5-6.
The NorCal champions advance to state title games in Southern California on Dec. 12-13.
The road to state begins Friday and Saturday with many matchups that should be close, given that the Bay Area’s two largest sections – North Coast and Central Coast – divide teams into competitive-based brackets.
Sure, there will be blowouts.
But probably not as many as there were before teams were separated more evenly.
As always, the Bay Area News Group will have coverage all weekend. Please sign up for a digital subscription if you have not already. Your contributions keep us going.
Here is a breakdown of the top matchups:
Friday
No. 7 Liberty (8-2) at No. 2 Pittsburg (9-1) in NCS Open/Division I playoffs, 7 p.m.: Bay Valley Athletic League rivals meet for the second time this season. When they played at Pittsburg on Oct. 17, the home team outscored Liberty 16-0 in the second half after leading by a point at halftime. In the 29-12 win, Carlos Torres threw for 203 yards and three TDs and Isaiah Harrison ran for 109 yards to lead Pittsburg. RB Jaxon Bell led Liberty that night with 105 yards and a touchdown rushing. The October result was Pittsburg’s eighth win in a row over Liberty. HSRatings.com’s computer projects Pittsburg to win 35-20.
No. 5 Marin Catholic (5-5) at No. 4 Acalanes (10-0) in NCS Open/Division I playoffs, 7 p.m.: Acalanes’ two NCS championships have come the past two seasons – Division IV in 2023 and Division III in 2024. Now the Dons find themselves in the section’s top bracket. They’ll get a test right away against North Bay powerhouse Marin Catholic, a 14-time NCS champion. Acalanes, in its first season under sun-glasses-wearing coach Joel Isaac, beat three CCS playoff teams (Mitty, Menlo-Atherton, St. Ignatius) in non-league play and then won the Diablo Athletic League’s strongest tier, the Foothill Division. HSRatings.com projects Acalanes to win 31-22.
No. 6 St. Francis (5-5) at No. 3 Los Gatos (7-3) in CCS Open/Division I playoffs, 7 p.m.: Rematch of last season’s CCS Division I championship game, which St. Francis won 27-7. The section title was St. Francis’ 17th, tops all-time in the CCS. Los Gatos has 16 CCS crowns. Both of these teams are battle-tested, with each side having played elite competition before moving on to league play. LG’s Callum Schweitzer has passed for 1,953 yards and 21 TDs and Grayson Doslak has rushed for 13 touchdowns. Motu Keanaaina leads the St. Francis offense with 739 yards and nine TDs rushing. HSRatings.com says Los Gatos wins 31-24.
No. 7 Amador Valley (4-6) at No. 2 Monte Vista (5-5) in NCS Division II playoffs, 7 p.m.: When these East Bay Athletic League Mountain Division teams played on Halloween night at Amador Valley, the home side won 31-14 behind Nicco Kovacs’ 320 yards and three touchdowns passing and Vincent Maiorana’s 100 yards and one TD rushing. Amador followed that win with another last week over California to qualify for the playoffs. Monte Vista started the season 4-1 but lost four of five to close the regular season. HSRatings.com says Amador will advance, 28-27.
No. 8 San Mateo (7-3) at No. 1 Woodside (10-0) in CCS Division III playoffs, 7 p.m.: Woodside’s best season since the program went 13-0 in 2004 included a Peninsula Athletic League Ocean Division championship. In Round 1 of the playoffs, the Wildcats will face an opponent from a higher PAL tier, De Anza Division runner-up San Mateo. These teams have played eight times since 2005, with Woodside going 6-1-1 in the previous matchups. Daniel Torres leads the Woodside rushing attack, with 782 yards and 12 TDs, and Charlie Dalrymple has passed for 15 TDs. For San Mateo, QB Lukas Fitzgerald has rushed for 1,264 yards and 16 TDs and passed for two scores. HSRatings.com projects Woodside to win 28-17.
Saturday
No. 7 Archbishop Mitty (6-4) at No. 2 Serra (6-4) in CCS Open/Division I playoffs, 1 p.m.: Winning at Serra on a Saturday afternoon is never easy. But it’s not impossible. Los Gatos beat the Padres in this round last year in San Mateo, and Mitty is coached by a former Los Gatos star QB, Danny Sullivan. Last month at Foothill College, Serra led Mitty by a point at halftime and after three quarters before pulling away over the final 12 minutes for a 28-13 victory. In that game, Iziah Singleton ran for 116 yards and two TDs to lead Serra. Joseph Engin threw for 164 and a touchdown for Mitty. In the rematch, HSRatings.com projects Serra to win 31-14.
Schedule
Central Coast Section
Open/Division I
No. 8 Salinas (7-3) at No. 1 Archbishop Riordan (10-0), Saturday, 1 p.m.
No. 7 Archbishop Mitty (6-4) at No. 2 Serra (6-4), Saturday, 1 p.m.
No. 6 St. Francis (5-5) at No. 3 Los Gatos (7-3), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 5 Soquel (9-1) at No. 4 Palma (10-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
Note: The first-round winners in the top half of the bracket will play for the Open Division championship in Week 2 of the playoffs. The loser of the Open Division championship will play the winner of the bottom half of the bracket for the Division I championship in Week 3 of the playoffs.
Division II
No. 6 North Salinas (5-5) at No. 3 Santa Teresa (10-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 7 Wilcox (6-4) vs. No. 2 Sacred Heart Cathedral (4-6) at City College of San Francisco, Saturday, 1 p.m.
No. 5 The King’s Academy (9-1) at No. 4 Menlo School (8-2), Saturday, 1 p.m.
No. 8 Alisal (5-5) at No. 1 St. Ignatius (4-6), Friday, 7 p.m.
Division III
No. 6 Stevenson (9-1) at No. 3 Menlo-Atherton (4-6), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 7 Sacred Heart Prep (5-5) vs. No. 2 Carmel (6-4) at Monterey Peninsula College, Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 5 King City (9-1) at No. 4 Live Oak (8-2), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 8 San Mateo (7-3) at No. 1 Woodside (10-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
Division IV
No. 6 Scotts Valley (8-2) at No. 3 Lincoln-San Jose (7-3), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 7 San Lorenzo Valley (8-2) at No. 2 Willow Glen (8-2), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 5 Half Moon Bay (7-3) at No. 4 Burlingame (6-4), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 8 Christopher (5-5) at No. 1 Branham (5-5), Friday, 7 p.m.
Division V
No. 6 South San Francisco (5-5) at No. 3 Terra Nova (7-3), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 7 Santa Cruz (7-3) at No. 2 Sobrato (6-4), Saturday, 1 p.m.
No. 5 Pioneer (6-4) at No. 4 Jefferson (8-2), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 8 San Jose (7-3) at No. 1 Piedmont Hills (7-3), Friday, 7 p.m.
North Coast Section
Open/Division I
No. 8 San Ramon Valley (6-4) at No. 1 De La Salle (10-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 7 Liberty (8-2) at No. 2 Pittsburg (9-1), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 6 San Marin (8-2) at No. 3 Cardinal Newman (9-1), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 5 Marin Catholic (5-5) at No. 4 Acalanes (10-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
Note: The first-round winners in the top half of the bracket will play for the Open Division championship in Week 2 of the playoffs. The loser of the Open Division championship will play the winner of the bottom half of the bracket for the Division I championship in Week 3 of the playoffs.
Division II
No. 3 California (7-3) at No. 6 American Canyon (9-1), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 7 Amador Valley (4-6) at No. 2 Monte Vista (5-5), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 5 Windsor (6-4) at No. 4 Clayton Valley Charter (5-5), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 1 Campolindo (8-2) at No. 8 Livermore (9-1), Friday, 7 p.m.
Division III
No. 6 Dublin (6-4) at No. 3 El Cerrito (8-2), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 2 Rancho Cotate (5-5) at No. 7 James Logan (7-3), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 4 Antioch (7-3) at No. 5 Ukiah (6-4), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 8 San Leandro (6-4) vs. No. 1 Vintage (6-4) at Memorial Stadium in Napa, Friday, 7 p.m.
Division IV
No. 6 Alameda (9-1) at No. 3 Miramonte (5-5), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 7 Redwood (5-5) at No. 2 Benicia (6-4), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 5 Deer Valley (6-4) at No. 4 Granada (5-5), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 8 Irvington (7-3) at No. 1 Hayward (7-3), Friday, 7 p.m.
Division V
No. 6 Northgate (5-5) at No. 3 Salesian (9-1), Saturday, 1 p.m.
No. 7 Arroyo (8-2) at No. 2 Ferndale (10-0), Saturday, 1 p.m.
No. 5 Maria Carrillo (7-3) at No. 4 Las Lomas (5-5), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 8 Analy (6-4) at No. 1 St. Vincent de Paul (9-1), Saturday, 1 p.m.
Division VI
No. 6 Mt. Diablo (6-4) at No. 3 Bishop O’Dowd (6-4), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 7 Sonoma Valley (9-1) at No. 2 St. Helena (10-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 5 Petaluma (7-3) at No. 4 Fortuna (6-4), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 8 San Rafael (7-3) at No. 1 St. Bernard’s (9-1), Saturday, 1 p.m.
Division VII
No. 6 Redwood Christian (8-2) at No. 3 Willits (7-3), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 2 Piedmont (6-4) at No. 7 St. Patrick-St. Vincent (7-3), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 5 Concord (6-4) at No. 4 Vallejo (7-3), Friday, 7 p.m.
No. 8 Archie Williams (6-4) at No. 1 Middletown (8-2), Friday, 7 p.m.