Jordan Mims will try to lead Menlo-Atherton to the Open Division 1 championship with a win over Milpitas.
(Cameron Ormiston/Prep2Prep)
Prep2Prep CCS Playoff Brackets
UPDATED 11/27/2016
The Central Coast Section playoffs conclude this weekend as Prep2Prep continues to take a look at each
matchup in depth and predict all the games. If you have a prediction you would like to share, please tweet us @Prep2PrepSports
with the hashtag #p2pnation or fire away in the comments section below.
The three winners of the Open Division playoffs automatically advance to the Northern
California playoffs with two of the three runner-ups advancing as well. The season will end for all the Division 4 and 5 teams at the conclusion of the section playoffs.
LAST WEEK'S RESULTS: 3-2 (.600)
OVERALL: 26-9 (.743)
The Open Division championship games went as we expected with Menlo-Atherton's stifling defense carrying the Bears to a 17-0 win over Milpitas in the Division 1 title game. Serra
broke open a close game late to knock off WCAL rival Mitty to capture the Division 2 title. And Valley Christian won a defensive struggle with Palma, 14-10, in Division 3.
Where it broke down for us was in Divisions 4 and 5. Soledad capitalized on a late Westmont fumble to edge the Warriors 17-13 in Division 4 and Half Moon Bay made it a season sweep
of PAL-Ocean rival Menlo to capture its second straight Division 5 championship.
NOTE: Predicted scores are in parentheses and the home team is listed in CAPS.
OPEN DIVISION 1:
For a detailed preview of Open Division 1, please click
here.
For printable bracket, please click
here (PDF).
No. 3
MILPITAS (0-0-0)
vs. No. 1
MENLO-ATHERTON (0-0-0)
Friday 11/25 (7:00 PM), Independence High School
HEAD-TO-HEAD: None
COMMON OPPONENTS: Menlo-Atherton 2-0 (def. Los Gatos, 35-28; def. Wilcox, 42-14), Milpitas 0-2 (lost to Los Gatos, 23-13; lost to Wilcox, 25-21)
All the numerical analysis points to Menlo-Atherton finishing the job to capture the Open Division 1 title, but Milpitas' playoff form has looked more like the team that stunned
Antioch than the one that suffered league losses to Los Gatos and Wilcox, resulting in a third-place finish.
Both teams feature explosive offenses keyed by two players - twins Tariq and Tyree Bracy for Milpitas and the senior QB-RB combination of Aajon Johnson and Jordan Mims for Menlo-Atherton.
There is very little separating these teams so we will lean slightly to the one that has been consistently excellent all season.
PREDICTION: Menlo-Atherton 31, Milpitas 24
OPEN DIVISION 2:
For a detailed preview of Open Division 2, please click
here.
For printable bracket, please click
here (PDF).
No. 6
ARCHBISHOP MITTY (0-0-0)
vs. No. 5
SERRA (0-0-0)
Friday 11/25 (7:00 PM), Westmont High School
HEAD-TO-HEAD: Serra def. Archbishop Mitty, 41-14
COMMON OPPONENTS: Serra 6-2 (def. Bellarmine College Prep, 48-13; lost to Pittsburg, 48-25; def. Archbishop Riordan, 49-14; def. Sacred Heart Cathedral, 41-7;
def. St. Francis, 41-40; def. St. Francis, 31-17; def. St. Ignatius, 51-14; lost to Valley Christian, 35-28), Archbishop Mitty 3-4 (lost to Bellarmine College Prep, 28-21);
lost to Pittsburg, 41-14; def. Archbishop Riordan, 56-0; def. Sacred Heart Cathedral, 41-0; lost to St. Francis, 42-0; def. St. Ignatius, 37-21; lost to Valley Christian, 38-31)
This is obviously not the same Mitty team that lost 42-0 to St. Francis. The Monarchs have excelled in the playoffs behind a power running game led by senior Zondre Faraj-Washington
and efficient play at quarterback from senior Phillip Tran. Also, the defense has been outstanding, limiting public school powers Oak Grove and Los Gatos to just 28 points combined.
But Serra has taken its game to even higher heights, as the Padres' eight-game winning streak includes a pair of wins over St. Francis and four 30+ point demolitions, including one
of perennial power Bellarmine. Sophomore QB Luke Bottari has given the Serra offense a new dimension and the Padres could be a threat in the CIF playoffs if they can get past rival Mitty.
PREDICTION: Serra 40, Archbishop Mitty 21
OPEN DIVISION 3:
For a detailed preview of Open Division 3, please click
here.
For printable bracket, please click
here (PDF).
No. 2
VALLEY CHRISTIAN (0-0-0)
vs. No. 1
PALMA (0-0-0)
Friday 11/25 (7:00 PM), Oak Grove High School
HEAD-TO-HEAD: None
COMMON OPPONENTS: Palma 1-1 (def. Aptos, 38-20; lost to St. Francis, 8-7), Valley Christian 1-1 (def. Aptos, 35-7; lost to St. Francis, 13-10)
Emilio Martinez continues to carry Palma as he has run for 603 yards and 11 touchdowns during the postseason. He will obviously not find the running lanes quite so generous
against Valley Christian, which has allowed just one touchdown in the playoffs. Offensively, senior Javon Sturns carried the Warriors into the championship game with
145 yards rushing and 4 TDs in an easy win over Aptos.
PREDICTION: Valley Christian 21, Palma 17
DIVISION 4:
For a detailed preview of Division 4, please click
here.
For printable bracket, please click
here (PDF).
No. 2
SOLEDAD (0-0-0)
vs. No. 1
WESTMONT (0-0-0)
Saturday 11/26 (7:00 PM), Independence High School
HEAD-TO-HEAD: None
COMMON OPPONENTS: Westmont 1-0 (def. Silver Creek, 30-13); Soledad 1-0 (def. Silver Creek, 37-13)
Westmont goes for its first-ever CCS football title after having dispatched Homestead with relative ease behind the play of senior Nolan Berry, who has taken his game to an even higher
level in the playoffs.
Soledad, meanwhile, hung on to defeat Gilroy by stopping a two-point conversion with five minutes left.
PREDICTION: Westmont 30, Soledad 24
DIVISION 5:
For a detailed preview of Division 5, please click
here.
For printable bracket, please click
here (PDF).
No. 4
HALF MOON BAY (0-0-0)
vs. No. 3
HALF MOON BAY (0-0-0)
Saturday 11/26 (7:00 PM), Sequoia High School
HEAD-TO-HEAD: Half Moon Bay def. Menlo School, 36-27
COMMON OPPONENTS: Menlo School 6-0 (def. Sacred Heart Prep, 31-14; def. Sequoia, 29-14; def. South San Francisco, 45-0; def. The King's Academy, 31-21;
def. The King's Academy, 39-7; def. Woodside, 45-35), Half Moon Bay 4-1 (def. Sacred Heart Prep, 16-13; def. Sequoia, 41-40; def. South San Francisco, 35-25; lost to The King's Academy, 49-35;
def. Woodside, 57-14)
The PAL-Ocean rivals meet again with a CCS title on the line. Menlo comes in as the hot team, having won seven in a row since suffering its only defeat of the season on September 30
at home against Half Moon Bay. The Cougars, on the other hand, lost two of their final three regular-season games, but have righted the ship with solid victories over Scotts Valley
and Sacred Heart Prep to earn a shot at the title.
PREDICTION: Menlo School 27, Half Moon Bay 20
