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High school football 2025 preview: EBAL Mountain Division

As part of our high school football content to get you ready for the 2025 season, we are rolling out previews of all leagues in our coverage area.

Today’s focus:

EAST BAY ATHLETIC LEAGUE MOUNTAIN DIVISION

(Predicted order of finish)

No. 1 DE LA SALLE

Coach: Justin Alumbaugh

Record in 2024: 12-1

What to expect: The Spartans returned to the top of NorCal last season, reaching the CIF Open Division state championship game for the first time since 2019. Facing national No. 1 Mater Dei-Santa Ana in the final, the Spartans trailed by just eight points in the second half before falling 37-15, their only loss of the season. While DLS graduated a number of mainstays – lineman Matthew Johnson and quarterback Toa Faavae among them – the Concord powerhouse has plenty of talent returning. “We have likely our best team speed ever and a lot of returners at key spots,” said Justin Alumbaugh, who played for DLS in the 1990s and has been the program’s head coach since 2013. “Our QB looks fantastic. Depth on the line is a concern, but the linemen we have I’m encouraged by.” Jaden Jefferson, who epitomizes the athlete position, is back after breaking the California high school record in the 100 meters at the state track championships in the spring. The North Carolina commit returns kicks and plays running back, receiver and defensive back. Brayden Knight now has a full-time role at QB after splitting time with Faavae in 2024. Cal commit Myah Telona is the team’s top returning offensive and defensive lineman. Wyatt Ferguson, a three-year starter, also provides punch in the trenches, and Emery Speight, who has Ivy League and Georgetown offers, brings added speed to the receiver position. He also stood out in track last spring. Duece Jones-Drew is the best of the returning running backs, and Trisshon Wright is a three-year starter at safety.

Season opener: Aug. 29 vs. Lakeland, Fla., 7 p.m.

Editor’s note: According to the EBAL website, De La Salle is ineligible to win the Mountain but receives the league’s automatic bid to the NCS playoffs and first-place votes for all-league recognition. The team with the most league wins (excluding DLS) is the Mountain champion. If a Mountain team beats DLS, that team receives the automatic playoff spot.

No. 2 SAN RAMON VALLEY

Coach: Aaron Becker

Record in 2024: 11-2

What to expect: After reaching the NCS Division I final last season for the second year in a row, the Wolves will try to move forward without all-everything linebacker Marco Jones, now at Texas A&M. Aaron Becker enters his 12th season as coach, having led the Danville school to nine consecutive winning seasons and double-digit victories in each of the past three. His outlook for this season: “We will be a young team looking to leverage returning players for their leadership and experience. We return key starters on the offensive line, tight end, and in the secondary. New players at other positions will be tested early and challenged to rise to the occasion.” Leading the way will be sophomore WR/DB Dietrick Burks Jr., who has multiple Division I college offers. Burks will be the “cornerstone” of the secondary and “a key component of our offense” as a receiver, Becker said. Spencer Reiland returns on the line after starting last season as a sophomore. Reiland is one of the East Bay’s best linemen and will play at the next level, Becker said. Tight end Max Lianides, now a senior, will be a featured presence after contributing multiple big catches last season. DB/WR Jack Pruitt is a returning starter on defense who will be asked to play a larger role on offense this fall. 

No. 3 AMADOR VALLEY

Coach: Danny Jones

Record in 2024: 10-5

What to expect: It won’t be easy to duplicate last year’s 15-game season that included NCS Division II and NorCal 3-AA championships and a narrow defeat in the 3-AA state title game. Among the graduates from that team was quarterback Tristan Ti’a, who received first-team all-Bay Area News Group honors after passing for nearly 4,000 yards and 34 touchdowns. He is now at Oregon State. But the cupboard is hardly empty for the Pleasanton school. Fifteen starters are back – eight on defense, seven on offense – and that presents reasons for optimism. Junior Bradley Canfield and sophomore Nicco Kovacs will split time at quarterback. The Dons also will use Tyson Jetter behind center in Wildcat formations. WR/DB Anthony Harrington has committed to Idaho State, and TE/DE McKay Kenitzer is being heavily recruited by New Mexico State, Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo and UC Davis. Cole Goldsworthy, another tight end/defensive end, is bound for UNLV, and SS/WR Nehemiah Fungula has committed to Northern Arizona. Coach Danny Jones will also count on RB/LB Ismael Duenas and returning linemen Jason Larson, Yair Espinoza and Calvin Albertson. WR Kade Robertson is another player to watch.

Season opener: Aug. 29 at Vanden, 7:30 p.m. 

No. 4 CALIFORNIA

Coach: Danny Calcagno

Record in 2024: 8-3

What to expect: Jhadis Luckey led the NCS in rushing last season with 2,053 yards but won’t be back at California for his senior year. He has transferred to Clayton Valley Charter, leaving a sizable hole for coach Danny Calcagno to fill as he enters his sixth season at the San Ramon school and 32nd overall. Calcagno noted that Arjun Banerjee, now a senior, is returning at quarterback but acknowledged that “we are going to be young up front.” He added, “Going to need some younger players to step up to the challenge.” Calcagno said Banerjee, a captain, has a strong arm and is a good athlete who works hard. He passed for 1,555 yards and 18 TDs last season. Seniors Jordan Lee and Mateo Young will carry much of the load at running back, trying to account for the 186.6 yards per game that Luckey gained on the ground last season. Calcagno called second-year starter Magnus Carlson an outstanding offensive tackle who “creates a lot of room” for the running backs. The captain also plays on the defensive line. Darius Brown will play receiver and defensive back. The junior is a “great athlete” with “huge potential,” said Calcagno, who added that the team “will need him to have a big year.” Senior Luke Taylor will be the Grizzlies’ go-to receiver, and senior middle linebacker Jacob Stickevers will anchor the defense.

Season opener: Aug. 29 at Patterson, 7 p.m.

No. 5 MONTE VISTA

Coach: Joe Wingert

Record in 2024: 5-6

What to expect: Monte Vista went 5-2 against non-league opponents last season but was winless in four EBAL Mountain Division games. New coach Joe Wingert says, “We’ve got a good high school team filled with players (who) have been dedicating themselves in the weight room and on the field for all the right reasons.” Senior Ian Ondricek and junior Christian Cermenelli-Johnson are competing to play quarterback. Both are extremely athletic muti-sport athletes, according to Wingert. They’ll get protection from the likes of 6-4, 280-pound senior Dakota Dickson, a three-star left tackle and defensive tackle who has committed to SMU. “Has great size and athleticism,” Wingert said. Senior LB/TE Torin Dunphy is a three-year varsity player who has an offer from Georgetown, and junior WR/SS Grant Maina will be heavily counted on as a two-way player. Maina has a Sacramento State offer. “Very fluid and athletic as our starting X,” Wingert said. “I expect him to have 80 catches and be one of the best DBs in the area.” Junior slot receiver/nickel back Caden Boscia is the team’s “hardest worker and has physical traits to take us to the next level,” Wingert added. LB/RB Justin Grisham also received praise from the coach, who noted that the 5-10 senior would have multiple Division I offers if he were a few inches taller. “The most instinctual LB I have ever coached,” Wingert wrote in a Bay Area News Group survey. “We literally can’t block him in practice.”

Season opener: Aug. 29 vs. Foothill, 7 p.m.

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