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October 1, 2026
By Loren Kopff
@LorenKopff on X
Five football games are already in the books; all seven area teams have had their byes and now league play begins with some interesting matchups. The leader of the pack will be a reunion of former Suburban League members as Cerritos High faces La Mirada High at Goodman Stadium in the HMG-Community News Game of the Week.
This is the first time the Dons and Matadores have faced each other since Sept. 29, 2017, which was a 56-7 La Mirada victory. It temporarily ended a stretch of seven straight meetings in which the Matadores outscored the Dons 389-22 with four shutouts. The last time Cerritos earned a victory in that series came in 2001, a 28-17 contest in which the Dons claimed a share of the league title.
But that was then and this is now as the two are part of the six-team Gateway League, which on paper, is even stronger than the old Suburban League. Cerritos (1-4) has not played on the field since Sept. 11 because six days later, Contreras Learning Center forfeited the Dons homecoming contest. Even though the black and gold don’t have a win on the field, its last two games have been more productive than the first two, when they were outscored 49-10.
Cerritos dropped a 50-28 decision to Valley Christian High on Sept. 4 and put up 56 points the next week against Marina High in a 10-point setback. Junior quarterback Evan McDonald has passed for 787 yards on 46 completions with 10 touchdowns opposite five interceptions and has a quartet of receivers who are his main targets-seniors Terrence Grissom Jr. (22 receptions, 412 yards, three touchdowns), Sam Reeves (10 receptions, 165 yards, three touchdowns), Matthew McCoy (nine receptions, 271 yards, five touchdowns) and junior Roman Bateman (seven receptions, 79 yards). Reeves is also the leading rusher with 265 yards on 43 carries and the only touchdown the Dons have scored on the ground.
Defensively, senior linebacker Uriah Archie leads everyone with 41 tackles, followed by Reeves, another linebacker with 37 tackles and senior linebacker Noah Schaffer (33 tackles).
La Mirada won its first three games before falling to Brea Olinda High 49-28 on Sept. 11. The next week, the Matadores edged El Rancho High 19-18 to bring their record to 4-1, matching last season’s victory total and the third time in the past five seasons the program has reached four wins. Senior running back Josiah Fregoso scored on an 80-yard run and hauled in a 24-yard touchdown reception against El Rancho.
Not only will this be La Mirada’s homecoming game, but a good chance for the Matadores to stay in the upper half of the league as two of the next three opponents are also 4-1.
Prediction: La Mirada 28, Cerritos 21
MID-CITIES LEAGUE
Paramount High (4-1) @ Gahr High (3-1-1)-If anything, there has been some consistency with Gahr on both sides of the ball through the five non-league games. In the first, third and fifth games, the Gladiators scored over 30 points while in the other two games, they totaled 16 points. Gahr shutout Gardena High 36-0 last Thursday and if you take away the 13 points Ocean View High scored in the fourth quarter on Sept. 18, Gahr has posted a goose egg in 12 of the past 15 quarters since its Week Zero game against Valley Christian.
It may be a new league, but this is a longstanding rivalry with Paramount dating back to their days in the former San Gabriel Valley League. A five-game losing streak to Gahr from 2006-2010 was promptly responded with a 10-game winning streak and 11 of the last 12 meetings by the Pirates including a 36-0 win on Nov. 1, 2024.
Paramount was all over Dymally High 65-0 on Sept. 18 and has won three straight contests after a 12-7 loss to Lakewood High. It’s the second shutout this season, both against CIF-Los Angeles City Section schools as the Pirates are averaging close to 35 points a game.
Prediction: Paramount 31, Gahr 24
Norwalk High (1-4) @ California High (2-3)-For first-year head coach Anthony Cobbs, the non-league portion of Norwalk’s schedule has been about who can play where and who is more successful at each position. The lone win was at Pasadena High on Sept. 4, and the Bulldogs have since dropped their program for the remainder of the season. Last Friday, the Lancers lost to West Covina High 51-23, the second time this season they scored more than seven points in a game.
Before the West Covina game, the Lancers were nearly even in their offensive statistics, passing for 487 yards and rushing for 417 yards. But as the new league season is now here, the slate is wiped clean as the Lancers face California for the first time since 2019 when they defeated the Condors 21-15. The previous season, it was California that came out on top 45-0.
The Condors have alternated losses and wins this season, dropping a 29-26 overtime affair to Bell Gardens High last Friday. After a scoreless opening quarter, the Condors took a 7-0 lead before Bell Gardens scored 10 straight points to take the lead going into halftime. The lead would change hands three times in the second half before the Lancers took a 26-23 advantage in the first overtime, then won the game with another field goal in the second overtime,
Quarterback Jake Welsh II passed for 157 yards off his 12 completions while Isaac Reynoso was six of seven for 85 yards and one touchdown. Isaac Castellon rushed for 97 yards on 22 carries and scored once and half a dozen receivers caught at least one of the 18 passes with Jayden Gonzalez collecting four of them for 84 yards.
Norwalk’s defense will be put to the test as California has rushed for over 1,100 yards and passed for nearly 750 yards.
Prediction: California 28, Norwalk 14
OLYMPIC LEAGUE
Capistrano Valley Christian High (3-2) @ Valley Christian (3-1-1)-Last season’s non-league record was 3-2 and had it not been for the opening-season tie against Gahr, the Defenders might be looking at a 4-1 mark with a less experienced team than last season. Still, the Defenders have scored at least 42 points in their last three games including a 47-22 victory over St. Anthony High last time out on Sept. 18.
Senior quarterback Graham Lunzer has been doing everything as advertised since a season-ending injury in the playoff opener last season. All he has done in the five games this season is complete 67 percent of his passes for 980 yards and throw 15 touchdowns opposite three interceptions. He also leads the team with 352 yards on the ground with six more touchdowns, accounting for 21 of the 24 touchdowns the team has scored.
Senior Blake Butler is next in the rushing department with 116 yards on 24 carries while seniors Byron Louis and Sam Melcher have combined for 551 yards, 10 touchdowns and nearly half of Lunzer’s completions.
Capistrano Valley Christian has lost two of its last three games, including a 49-14 contest against St. Margaret’s High on Sept. 18. In two of their three wins, the Eagles have scored nearly 50 points while allowing over 40 points in the two setbacks. Offensively, they are nearly a 50-50 pass to run team.
V.C. defeated C.V.C. 35-26 last season and 33-13 the previous season in the only two meetings between the teams since the Eagles became members of the Ironwood League.
Prediction: V.C. 35, Capistrano Valley Christian 14
RIO VISTA LEAGUE
Pioneer High (0-5) @ Artesia High (3-1)-It may be a new league, but it will still feel like the original 605 League of the past eight seasons as Artesia faces the Titans. Artesia has not played since defeating Buena Park High 17-7 on Sept. 11. The next week, San Gabriel High forfeited its game with the Pioneers but now, on homecoming night, the red and black are ready to get back into action.
Junior quarterback Zyir Lewis has passed for 223 yards, but the heart and soul of the offense is junior halfback Justin Pettus, who has gained 408 yards on 32 carries and with half a dozen touchdowns. Senior halfback Izayah Carranza is next with 189 yards on 34 carries while junior Andrew Quarles is the leading receiver with 121 yards on a dozen catches.
Artesia has won seven of the past 10 meetings in the series but has split the last four.
It hasn’t been the season that Pioneer was looking for as the Titans have averaged 11 points a game while the defense has allowed at least 35 points in each game. They led 7-0 in their opening game of the season before falling 48-7 to Santa Fe High and haven’t been able to get on track.
Prediction: Artesia 28, Pioneer 7
John Glenn High (4-1) @ Firebaugh High (3-2)-Even though Glenn dropped its first game of the season last Friday, a 33-0 decision to Alhambra High, the real season begins for the Eagles with a chance to advance to the postseason for the first time since 2019 and fourth time in 29 seasons. The first opportunity to be one of three league teams to start the circuit at 1-0 is against a comparable opponent in Firebaugh. The teams have faced each other twice, first coming in 2021 which resulted in a 40-8 Glenn win. The next season, the Eagles were victorious in a 49-8 contest.
Not only did Glenn lose last Friday, but it was also without the services of sophomore Kellen Huckelelberry, who injured himself in the opening quarter. If he can’t go against Firebaugh, seniors Andre Romo and Matthew Vasquez and junior quarterback Ryder Perez will have to pick up the slack even more.
The Falcons have won three of their last four games including a 33-0 decision over West Adams High, the second straight shutout it has collected. The other win came the previous week against the California Military Institute, a one-point decision. Glenn defeated CMI 43-6 on Sept. 4.
Firebaugh put its first football team on the field in 2008 and the Falcons went 1-8. Since then, the program has had just one winning season, which came two seasons ago when it went 6-4. In its 17 seasons of having a program, Firebaugh has gone 31-135 before this season, and at 3-2, it’s the fifth time it has won at least three games.
“Every game that we’re going to play moving forward is going to be a dogfight,” said Glenn head coach Dwon Drummer. “We’re going to have to fight for every win; every opportunity to win moving forward.”
Prediction: Glenn 35, Firebaugh 14
Last week’s predictions: 2-1
Season to date: 21-9
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