It’s time for the CIF football playoffs!

A BOUNTIFUL FIELD OF 11 SOUTH COUNTY TACKLE PIGSKIN TEAMS QUALIFY FOR THIS YEAR’S POSTSEASON PARTY

It’s called the second season and entry into this year’s San Diego Section tackle football playoffs will ring true for a bounty of 11 South County high school teams.

The Mater Dei Catholic Crusaders (7-3) lead the way with the Metro Conference’s lone berth in the Division I tier. But the Metro-Mesa League champions will have to be on the top of their game if they are going to find success in this year’s bracket as the No. 12 seed.

Mater Dei Catholic will find itself behind the proverbial eight ball right from the start by facing No. 5 Point Loma in Friday’s opening round. The Pointers are one of three teams in the section that finished with a perfect 10-0 regular season record.

The other undefeated teams include Santa Fe Christian (No. 1 seed in Division II) and Mission Bay (No. 3 seed in Division II).

The Crusaders carry the momentum of a 42-13 victory at Eastlake in the league championship game last Friday along with a six-game winning streak into their fateful first-round matchup.

“First off, I’m extremely proud of our players, coaches, and staff. Winning another Metro-Mesa League championship is always special because it reflects months of commitment, discipline and growth,” Mater Dei Catholic hea coach Rashard Cook said. “Eastlake came ready to compete, and our guys responded with great focus and execution on both sides of the ball. We emphasized finishing drives, playing fast and trusting each other.

“Now, it’s time to shift gears. The CIF playoffs are a different level everyone’s good, everyone’s hungry. For us to be successful, it’ll come down to the same core values: preparation, physicality and discipline. We have to stay humble and keep playing for one another. If we do that, I like our chances to make a deep run.”

It would certainly stack up to be an inspirational journey.

The Metro Conference is represented by three teams in the Division III bracket – No. 7 Olympian, No. 9 Montgomery and No. 12 Otay Ranch — and two teams in the Division IV bracket: No. 5 Eastlake and No. 8 Hilltop.

The Division V bracket is top-heavy with four South County squads: No. 1 Sweetwater, No. 5 Chula Vista, No. 10 Bonita Vista and No. 12 Mar Vista.

Eastlake, Chula Vista, Olympian and Hilltop all have first-round home games while Sweetwater as a first-round bye.

Hilltop qualified as the Metro-South Bay League champion while Mar Vista qualified as the Metro-Pacific League champion.

Hilltop defeated visiting Olympian, 28-13, last Friday to claim its first league title since 2019 while Mar Vista out-lasted host San Ysidro, 42-32, to hold onto its league title.

Hilltop enters the playoffs riding the crest of a seven-game winning streak. The Lancers faced the daunting task of facing an 8-1 Olympian team but passed the test to secure not only a place in this year’s playoffs but a first-round home game.

“Conceive. Believe. Achieve,” Hilltop head coach Bryan Wagner said. “That’s been our mantra.

“We found something that worked when we lost both our quarterbacks,” Lancer head coach Bryan Wagner said. “It was a tough game against Southwest (non-league on Oct. 10). We made adjustments at halftime (en route to a 42-14 win). We applied it to the offense the next two weeks (28-10 and 28-20 wins over Bonita Vista and Montgomery).

“The offensive line is the best I’ve ever had here.”

It all came together in the win over Olympian.

Junior Lajuan Johnson rushed for 100 yards and two touchdowns while senior Leo Mendoza carried the ball 30 times for 222 yards and scored one TD.

Olympian senior Jayden Fuentes passed for 322 yards and two touchdowns — one each to senior Patricio Flatts (two catches, 30 yards) and junior Gio Ware (one catch, 75 yards). But the Lancers limited the Eagles to 61 rushing yards. The Eagles held a 383-324 edge in total offense in the setback.

Hilltop junior Bryson Grant recorded two interceptions and junior Zion Almazon recovered a fumble in the endzone for a touchdown that made the score 21-0. Senior Manny Pablos averaged 49.7 yards on three punts.

Junior Jordan Sandoval had four catches for 137 yards for the Eagles.

The Hilltop-Coastal Academy winner will play at No. 1 Westview (6-4) in the ensuing quarterfinals. The Wolverines finished runner-up to El Capitan in last year’s final. The Vaqueros (4-6) are going for a repeat as this year’s No. 2 seed.

Coastal Academy enters Friday’s game as the Pacific League champion.

Team leaders for Hilltop include Mendoza (1,288 rushing yards, 11 touchdowns) and senior Juian Moran (452 receiving yards, five touchdowns).

Montgomery tuned up for the playoffs with a 21-0 league win over visiting Bonita Vista.

The Barons rematch with Santana in Friday’s opening round, though on the road this year.

“To be successful in the upcoming playoffs we will have to be able to run the ball effectively,” said BVHS coach Jay Hernandez, whose team finished 0-3 in Metro-South Bay League play but 3-4 in non-league games.

 “This will ultimately open up our play action pass game. Our defense has to tackle effectively and win the turnover battle and our special teams need to convert field goals if the opportunity arises. 

“Our team is young with only nine seniors and they are ready for the playoff challenge and show the underclassmen how to compete in the playoffs.”

 Season leaders include junior Matthew Romo with 306 passing yards and two touchdowns, senjuor Kenneth Watson with 254 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Juniors Cole Margetts and Edward Armenta each had two receiving TD.

Defensively, Margetts has six interceptions to his credit.

The Barons have scored nine rushing touchdowns and six passing touchdowns.

Santana counters with junior quarterback Ethan Miller (11 touchdowns), senior Caleb Carnes (four rushing touchdowns), sophomore Julian Mayers (three rushing touchdowns) and juniors Kolten Thornton (three receiving touchdowns) and Denton Goar (three receiving touchdowns).

The Sultans have scored eight rushing touchdowns and 12 passing touchdowns.

Bonita Vista jump-started last year’s playoff run to the Division V championship game with a 14-0 shutout win over the Sultans.

“We need to control the clock and keep our defense off the field as much as possible,” Santana coach Tim Estes said. “Establishing and maintaining long, sustained drives will be key to keeping our offense in rhythm. This means running the football effectively, staying ahead of the chains, and avoiding unnecessary penalties that put us in difficult situations.

“Our defense has done an outstanding job all season. They’ve consistently stepped up in critical moments and given us opportunities to win football games, even when our offense has struggled. They’ve shown great discipline and resilience, often making big stops when we needed them most. If we can give them time to rest and limit their snaps by controlling possession, I believe we can put together a complete game on both sides of the ball and put ourselves in a strong position to come out with a win.”

Top notch

Mater Dei Catholic season leaders include junior Jackson Munford with 13 touchdown passes, senior Jordan Dumaran with 11 rushing touchdowns, senior Larell Parker with six receiving TD, and senior Noah Cook with 55 tackles and six sacks.

•Mar Vista sophomore Holden Bell has passed for 1,479 yards with 21 touchdowns against five interceptions. His primary receivers have been senior Cionate Fewell (717 yards, nine touchdowns) and sophomore Braylon Shumate (541 yards, 10 touchdowns).

Sophomore Luke Everett has rushed for 364 yards and four TD while Shumate and senior Steven Santos each had scored three rushing scores.

Fewell, Everett and Shumate are the complete package. Everett tops the team with 96 tackles, followed by Fewell with 63 and Shumate with four interceptions.

Chula Vista rushing leaders include senior Isaiah Heard with 544 yards and five touchdowns and junior Elijah Richardson with 437 yards and four TD.

The Spartans have 12 rushing scores but only two passing.

Southwest, San Ysidro and Castle Park did not make the playoffs from the Metro Conference.

South County Football Log

Metro-Mesa League

                                    League/Overall

Mater Dei Catholic 4-0           7-3

Eastlake                    2-2           4-6

Otay Ranch              2-2           4-6

Sweetwater             1-3            4-6

Chula Vista              1-3             2-8

Friday, Oct. 31

Mater Dei Catholic 42, Eastlake 13

Otay Ranch 3, Chula Vista 0

Sweetwater, bye

Metro-South Bay League

                                    League/Overall

Hilltop                        3-0           7-3

Olympian                  2-1             8-2

Montgomery            1-2             6-4

Bonita Vista             0-4           3-7

Friday, Oct. 31

Hilltop 28, Olympian 13

Montgomery 21, Bonita Vista 0

Metro-Pacific League

                                    League/Overall

Mar Vista                  3-0           6-4

Southwest                2-1             5-5

San Ysidro               1-2             5-5

Castle Park              0-3           1-9

Friday, Oct. 31

Mar Vista 42, San Ysidro 32

Southwest 32, Castle Park 6

Sunset League

                                    League/Overall

Maranatha Christian 6-0       9-1

Mountain Empire   5-1             8-2

Victory Christian Ac.4-2        5-5

O’Farrell Charter    3-3           4-6

Rock Academy        2-4           4-6

Foothills Christian 1-5             1-9

Tri-City Christian   0-6           0-9

Friday, Oct. 31

Mountain Empire 54, Foothills Christian 12

Victory Christian Academy 15, O’Farrell Charter 12

San Diego Section Playoffs

Division I

First Round

Friday, Nov. 7, all games 7 p.m.

(12) Mater Dei Catholic (7-3) at (5) Pt. Loma (10-0)

Division II

(9) Grossmont (9-1) vs. (8) St. Augustine (4-6) at Mater Dei Catholic

Division III

First Round

Friday, Nov. 7, all games 7 p.m.

(9) Montgomery (6-4) vs. (8) Bishop’s (7-3) at University City

Division IV

First Round

Friday, Nov. 7, all games 7 p.m.

(9) Coastal Academy (9-1) at (8) hilltop (7-3)

(12) West Hills (4-6) at (5) Eastlake (4-6)

Division V

First Round

Friday, Nov. 7, all games 7 p.m.

(1) Sweetwater, bye

(12) Mar Vista (6-4) vs. Chula Vista (2-8) at Otay Ranch

(10) Bonita Vista (3-7) at (7) Santana (5-5)

Division V-AA

Quarterfinals

Friday, Feb. 8

(6) Victory Christian Academy (5-5) at (3) Mountain Empire (8-2), 1 p.m.