Recently in Citrus Hill High School Category

Now to the Eastern Division, which sees Citrus Hill as the bully that's won 38 games in a row. They have to be due right? Guess we'll see.

Summit at No. 1 Perris Citrus Hill
The SkyHawks ramped up their nonleague schedule so they'd be prepared for playoff action after being disposed of rather easily by Palm Springs in the first round last year. However, it's hard to believe that their schedule has properly prepared them for the juggernaut which is Citrus Hill. Deontae Cooper will get his and Summit will have it take it.
Citrus Hill 45, Summit 17

Barstow at Palm Springs
The Aztecs pulled off the upset of the then-No. 3 seeded Cardinals on the way to the CIF title game last year and Palm Springs will be looking for revenge. But looking for it and getting it are completely different things. Barstow's offense is one of the hardest in the area to prepare for and even harder to stop in practice. Going with the Aztecs to force a rematch of last year's title game.
Barstow 28, Palm Springs 17

Palm Desert at Kaiser
I've actually gotten a chance to see Palm Desert in action and they can score at a pretty high clip. However, they were overpowered by Silverado when I saw them and seem like a finesse squad. Finesse squads do about as well with Kaiser as I do wooing supermodels. Look for the Cats to punch Palm Desert in the mouth quite a few times.
Kaiser 26, Palm Desert 13

San Jacinto at No. 4 Rim of the World
A dangerous game for the Fighting Scots, as San Jacinto always has talent and athleticism and is capable of putting up some big point totals. Whether they are capable of stopping the Rim rushing attack, namely junior RB Dillon Pretzinger, is the million-dollar question. Only one has so far and I don't think No. 2 will come this week.
Rim of the World 28, San Jacinto 22

Apple Valley at No. 3 Silverado
This is where I'll be tomorrow night, as the Sun Devils will try to ride RB Daryon Mosley and play keep away from the Silverado offense. That hasn't been the best strategy, as the Silverado D has steadily improved throughout the Hawks' 8-game winning streak. I think the Hawks have a few too many weapons.
Silverado 31, Apple Valley 18

Riverside Norte Vista 30, Riverside Notre Dame 20
La Quinta 27, Ridgecrest Burroughs 16

Menifee Heritage at No. 2 Serrano
The Diamondbacks have won seven in a row coming in. The Patriots have lost three in a row and four of five. In Snowline Stadium with the temperature falling and the fans at full-throat, I see no reason why either trend would reverse. Serrano wins in a romp.
Serrano 34, Heritage 10

QUARTERFINALS
Citrus Hill over Barstow
Kaiser over Rim of the World
Silverado over Norte Vista
Serrano over La Quinta

SEMIFINALS
Citrus Hill over Kaiser
Serrano over Silverado

CHAMPIONSHIP
Serrano over Citrus Hill

Next up is the Eastern Division, which saw very little surprise in the awarding the top 3 seeds to Perris Citrus Hill, Serrano and Silverado, respectively. It got a little nutty after that though.

The matchups:

Summit (5-5) at No. 1 Perris Citrus Hill (10-0)
Barstow (7-3) at Palm Springs (7-2)
Palm Desert (7-3) at Kaiser (7-3)
San Jacinto (7-3) at No. 4 Rim of the World (9-1)
Apple Valley (5-5) at No. 3 Silverado (8-2)
Riverside Notre Dame (8-2) at Riverside Norte Vista (9-1)
Ridgecrest Burroughs (5-5) at La Quinta (7-3)
Menifee Heritage (5-5) at No. 2 Serrano (8-2)

My initial impression is surprised that Rim of the World got the final seed. While the Fighting Scots have an impressive record, their nonleague record wasn't as ambitious as teams like Kaiser or La Quinta, who were seeded below the Scots. Rim's seeding had a chain effect, putting La Quinta in the same quarterfinal bracket as No. 2 seed Serrano. Serrano coach Ray Maholchic wasn't too happy about the prospect of seeing the Desert Valley League champions that early. As for Kaiser, it will have a chance to prove it's case against Rim in the second round, provided it can get by a tough Palm Desert team in round one.

I also think that the top half of the bracket is loaded. You have the defending CIF champions in Citrus Hill, you have the CIF runner-ups in Barstow, which would have two rematch games if it beats Palm Springs in round one. You have Kaiser, Rim, Palm Desert - all teams capable of making long runs. Meanwhile, the bottom half of the bracket seems more negotiable. I like Silverado's draw a lot, as they should be able to take Apple Valley and will have a talent advantage over the Norte Vista-Notre Dame winner.

As far as a sleeper, I like Kaiser. In watching Citrus Hill's semifinal and championship wins last year, the Hawks had issues with Serrano and Barstow coming right at them physically. While it's possible that Citrus Hill has become more hard-nosed, there isn't a team in this draw that's as good at mixing it up as much as Kaiser is. I see Kaiser being able to overpower its first-round and quarterfinal opponents and having a puncher's chance against Citrus Hill.

Only a few hours before title games start, so here I go. I did OK last week, just missing Barstow-Silverado.

CENTRAL DIVISION

Upland at Rancho Cucamonga
Just to relieve Upland fans, Josh Nunes is starting at QB. There was a snafu in this morning's Daily Bulletin that ran the Cajon starting lineups instead of the Upland ones. For whatever reason, the correct Upland lineups were run in the Sun. Anyway, I could brag that I predicted this matchup, but the real bragging should go to the teams - Upland for shrugging off the Los Osos monkey and Rancho for continuing its undefeated march. I picked Rancho to win it all and I'm not turning back now.
Rancho Cucamonga 27, Upland 17

EASTERN DIVISION
Perris Citrus Hill at Barstow
Definitely an odd matchup. At one spectrum you have the Hawks, a No. 1 seed that killed everyone in its path before toughing out an 18-15 win over Serrano last week. Barstow, meanwhile, has bucked the odds all year to get to its first CIF title since 2000. Can the double-wing Aztecs pull the shocker? It should be fun in Barstow, but I got Citrus Hill in this one.
Citrus Hill 38, Barstow 26

EAST VALLEY DIVISION
Twentynine Palms at San Juan Capistrano St. Margaret's
I should save internet space and not write San Juan Capistrano again, but I did. In talking to their coach, Harry Welch, a few nights back, he was raving about the raw ability and size of the Wildcats, which he should. Twentynine Palms has some serious ballers. But I'm going to stick with the undefeated team here, even if its playing possum a bit.
St. Margaret's 31, Twentynine Palms 23

INLAND DIVISION
Temecula Chaparral vs. Corona Centennial
The Pumas were blasted by Centennial in the semis last year. They were also blasted by Norco in the title game two years ago. Chaparral got revenge on the Cougars last week and are looking to do the same against Centennial this week. But they won't. Centennial rolls to another title.
Centennial 38, Chaparral 10

SOUTHEAST DIVISION
Covina Charter Oak at Diamond Ranch
I met Diamond Ranch coach Roddy Layton for the first time Monday. I was expecting him to look like what the Scots expected William Wallace to look like - seven feet tall with an ability to fire lightning bolts from any place on his body. He wasn't quite that, but him and the Panthers deserve a lot of credit for getting to this point after a 1-6 start. That start involved a loss to Charter Oak, which will have Diamond Ranch's number again.
Charter Oak 24, Diamond Ranch 13.

Just got done with the Serrano-Citrus Hill game, which saw the Diamondbacks almost pull a huge upset before losing 18-15. Serrano held Citrus Hill, which came in averaging over 500 yards of offense per game, to 250 yards. But Hawks' star running back Deontae Cooper scored twice, including the game-winner with 2:09 left, and ran for 136 yards.

Also, received a text message from Clay Fowler confirming a 23-13 Rancho Cucamonga win over Cajon. Don't have any specifics on the game right now, other than it was delayed an hour and 15 minutes due to a power outage in San Bernardino.

Fun times in the high school ranks, even with some of my picks last week taking a beating. I went 10-6 this week, sweeping the Inland Division and splitting the other three. Oh well.

CENTRAL DIVISION

No. 1 Rancho Cucamonga at No. 4 Cajon
This should be a good one and after going to each campus this week to talk to coaches and players about it, I'm excited. I won't be covering, but Clay Fowler will have a jolly old time at this one. You have two big-play spread teams, with Greg Watson and his cadre of explosive wideouts carrying the torch for Rancho and RB Walter Kazee doing the same for Cajon. I picked Rancho to win the Central title before the playoffs started, and I have to stick with it. We'll see if Cajon burns me again.
Rancho Cucamonga 33, Cajon 28

No. 2 Los Osos at Upland
Now I will be at this game, which should also be a doozy. I guess its redundant to say that a CIF semifinal game should be good, but I really don't care. What I'm looking to see is if Josh Nunes can break the Richard Brehaut jinx. Yes, I know there are plenty of other players (Arby Fields, Davion Fleming, Osahon Irabor to name three) worth mentioning, but Nunes has never beaten Brehaut. Shoot, even the two schools he verbally committed to (Tennessee and then Stanford) lost to Brehaut's school, UCLA. Upland is hoping that Nunes is due. I'm thinking he is.
Upland 34, Los Osos 27

EASTERN DIVISION

Serrano at No. 1 Perris Citrus Hill
This is where I'll be tomorrow night and quite frankly, the more I read up on Citrus Hill, the more I'm blown away. The Hawks have won all of their games by more than 26 points, average over 50 points a game and have a Division I QB in Caleb Herring and a future D-1 RB in junior Deontae Cooper. Serrano won't be intimidated, having played at Upland and Hesperia this season, but the Diamondbacks will have their hands full. Gotta go with the Hawks, though Serrano will keep it close (relatively speaking).
Citrus Hill 41, Serrano 23

Barstow at Silverado
At the very least, the Desert Sky League will get some major street cred. With two teams facing off, the DSL will get one team in the title game, definitely helping it shed the rep of being the "other" High Desert league. As for the game, its a pretty fascinating contrast in styles, with Barstow's double-wing going against Silverado's frenetic no-huddle spread offense. The Aztecs will need to chew clock to keep red-hot Hawk QB Jemeryn Jenkins off the field. They'll have their moments, but Silverado seems to be on a mission.
Silverado 36, Barstow 20

EAST VALLEY DIVISION

No. 1 St. Margaret's 38, Pasadena Maranatha 27

Fillmore at Twentynine Palms
Both of these teams are surprises of sorts. For the host Wildcats, the surprise isn't that they are here, but the way they destroyed Aquinas to get here. Twentynine Palms had defeated the Falcons during the regular season, so a win wasn't shocking, but a 40-0 whitewashing certainly was. The Flashes were more of the conventional surprise, upsetting No. 2-seeded Brentwood to get here. I think the Wildcats, who have scored 103 points in the playoffs so far, continue to roll.
Twentynine Palms 42, Fillmore 17

INLAND DIVISION

No. 1 Corona Centennial 42, Murrieta Valley 13

No. 3 Temecula Chaparral at Norco
These two teams last faced off in the 2006 Inland finals, with Norco placing a 43-0 beating on the Pumas. Chaparral, making its third straight semifinal appearance, its pretty rough on defense, as they beat Redlands East Valley up front in a 20-0 shutout. Norco has made its living on physical play, so this should be a good one, but I feel Chaparral is due.
Chaparral 21, Norco 10

Last week: 10-6. Overall record: 242-60-4.

This is another division with huge local representation, as the High Desert schools and Sunkist League go at it here.

Rim of the World at No. 1 Perris Citrus Hill
It's impressive that the Fighting Scots are here, having made a 21-point second-half comeback at Apple Valley to do it. But Citrus Hill, with QB Caleb Herring having committed to UNLV and RB Deontae Cooper receiving D-1 interest as a junior, has way too much firepower. This will be like a 16-1 matchup you'd see in the NCAA men's basketball tournament.
Citrus Hill 48, Rim of the World 6

Riverside Notre Dame at No. 2 Hesperia
Speaking of Division I players, Notre Dame probably wishes it had RB Kenjon Barner, now a freshman at Oregon, back this year. The Titans will have a hard time matching up with Hesperia's physicality up front. And the Scorpions, with RB Gavin Santos and WR Jay Waddell, can beat you up top too.
Hesperia 38, Notre Dame 7

Summit at No. 3 Palm Springs
A lot of people are calling this upset. Ok, well maybe one reader, but still, this is an interesting matchup. The SkyHawks are young, but have a lot of speed, athleticism and moxie, as evidenced by their comebacks against Norte Vista and Bloomington. Palm Springs may be lacking in the speed department, but the Indians have size. Its that size that will make the difference late.
Palm Springs 23, Summit 20

Banning at No. 4 Kaiser
The Dick Bruich watch is going on, as any game could be the last for the legendary coach. But it won't be this game. Kaiser hasn't lost in six straight games and are coming off a dominating 435 rushing-yard performance against Riverside Patriot. Banning, which was 0-10 two years ago, is a great story, but it won't be the team that ends Bruich's career.
Kaiser 36, Banning 7

La Quinta at Serrano
As far as name matchups go, this one might be the most vibrant. Both of these schools are always in the CIF title discussion, but it might be far-fetched to get much of a run out of either school this year. La Quinta, though second in the Desert Valley League, was 0-5 and usually noncompetitive during the nonleague season, while Serrano lost three games as well. But I can't see the D-backs going down at Snowline Stadium.
Serrano 31, La Quinta 17

Barstow at San Jacinto
San Jac was a power in the East Valley Division, playing runner-up the last two years to Big Bear and Citrus Hill, respectively. I'm not sure they've gone up against a running attack as comphrensive as Barstow's double-wing though. It will be a physical matchup, but I think the Desert Sky represents here. Then again, I'm always wrong on Barstow predictions.
Barstow 24, San Jacinto 19

Silverado at Riverside Patriot
One look at the Hawks' 3-7 record could cause one to shudder, but Silverado took on one of the more brutal nonleague schedules in the section. That rugged slate will help Silverado immensely, as Patriot's physical running attack won't seem nearly as intimidating. It's been a long time for Patriot/Rubidoux, and it will be a short time in the postseason.
Silverado 20, Patriot 14

The other game of note between teams that aren't in San Bernardino County:
Palm Desert 34, Ridgecrest Burroughs 23

Quarterfinals
No. 1 Citrus Hill over Palm Desert
Serrano over No. 4 Kaiser
No. 2 Hesperia over Silverado
No. 3 Palm Springs over Barstow

Semifinals
No. 1 Citrus Hill over Serrano
No. 2 Hesperia over No. 3 Palm Springs

Final
No. 1 Citrus Hill over No. 2 Hesperia