Games to watch: Top Stanislaus District high school football matchups for Week 3
With Good Friday this week, we have a number of games on Thursday including another edition of an annual meeting between two powers.
There’s also one game on Friday, when bragging rights are on the line.
Here are the top games for Week 3:
Thursday
St. Mary’s (2-1) at Central Catholic (2-0), 7 p.m. at Central Catholic High School
The Holy Bowl is back and the two local powers having split the last four meetings.
The Rams are 2-1 but their loss was a 35-27 defeat to De La Salle and they beat Jesuit, the Sacramento Bee’s No. 17 ranked team, 43-20, in Week 2.
St. Mary’s is led by senior running back Tyrei Washington and junior athlete Jadyn Marshall.
Washington has a rushing touchdown in each of the last two games against Central Catholic and has 307 rushing yards and six touchdowns this year.
Marshall had 10 receptions for 184 yards and two touchdowns and added a rushing touchdown in the Rams’ 42-7 win over the Raiders last year.
He is also one of the nation’s top track and field athletes.
Central Catholic beat Merced in overtime last week and senior running back Jack Grisel has 289 rushing yards and four touchdowns in two games.
The key for the Raiders will be controlling the ball and sustaining long drives on offense.
Kimball (1-1) at Patterson (2-0), 7 p.m. at Patterson High School
If you like offense, this is the game for you.
Kimball enters the game averaging over 35 points per game while Patterson averages 52.
These teams originally were not supposed to play but with the Escalon football team still in quarantine, Patterson stepped in after its original opponent, Lathrop, was unable to play this week due to COVID-19 issues. Lathrop had to cancel last week’s game against Davis.
It’s been an interesting season for the Jaguars as their coach, Mike Kuhnlenz, was fired right before the start of the season according to the Tracy Press.
In an interview with the Tracy Press, Kuhnlenz said he was fired hours before the season-opener against Manteca without an explanation.
Junior quarterback Nicholas Coronado has 552 passing yards and seven touchdowns for the Jaguars.
Patterson is led by senior running back Jordan Imada, who has over 300 rushing yards in two games.
Friday
Central Valley (2-0) at Ceres (2-0), 7 p.m. at Ceres High School
There are two storylines entering the Western Athletic Conference tilt between the rivals located just two miles apart.
First, the Bulldogs are looking for their first victory over the Hawks since 2014. Ceres is off to its best start in over 25 years and have been led by junior Verlis Smith.
Smith had seven receptions for 201 yards and two touchdowns in the Bulldogs’ 34-32 win over Davis in Week 1 and stepped in at quarterback last week and had 142 rushing yards and two touchdowns in a 12-0 victory over Johansen. He also had 98 passing yards.
The other storyline is the two first-year coaches, who happen to be brothers with Derrick Goblirsch at Central Valley and older brother Clint at Ceres.
“No extra smack talk this week, haha,” Derrick said. “Just business as usual.”
The Hawks have been led by senior Isaiah Hidalgo, who has 374 rushing yards and four touchdowns and two passing touchdowns.
Enochs (2-0) at Turlock (2-0), 7 p.m. at Joe Debely Stadium
Spirits are soaring on the Sylvan Avenue campus after Enochs beat Downey in Week 2 for the first time since 2010.
The Eagles are led by their defense, which forced seven turnovers in Week 2.
Meanwhile, Turlock is on a roll to start the season, outscoring its opponents 130-37 after beating Modesto, 74-13, last week.
The Bulldogs have not lost a Central California Athletic League game since entering the league in 2018.
Orestimba (2-0) at Waterford (1-1), 7 p.m. at Waterford High School
A Southern League duel at Waterford where the Warriors have won the last nine meetings between the schools.
Orestimba’s offense has been in sync to start the season with nearly 400 yards per game and a balanced rushing attack. Five players have at least one touchdown.
Defensively, the Warriors have allowed six total points and sophomore Kai Brazil has 23 tackles and five tackles for a loss.
Waterford beat Mariposa County, 34-32, last Saturday and junior quarterback Aaron Adams has three passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns.
Hughson (2-0) at Atwater (1-1), 7 p.m. at Atwater High School
The Huskies head to Atwater to face the Falcons in a non-league matchup.
Hughson is off to a strong start and a win will secure its first 3-0 start since 2016.
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Stanislaus District Week 3 Football Schedule
All games at 7 p.m. unless otherwise noted
Thursday
CCAL
Downey at Gregori
VOL
Oakdale at East Union
Non-League
St. Mary’s at Central Catholic
Kimball at Patterson
Friday
CCAL
Enochs at Turlock
Pitman at Modesto (at Downey HS)
WAC
Beyer at Los Banos
Pacheco at Johansen
Davis at Mountain House
Central Valley at Ceres
CCC
Hilmar at Merced (at Golden Valley HS)
SL
Denair at Riverbank
Orestimba at Waterford
ML
Sonora at Summerville
Non-League
Hughson at Atwater
Le Grand at Mariposa
This story was originally published April 1, 2021 at 4:00 AM.
