Oaks Christian vs. Sherman Oaks Notre Dame among top Friday games

Bishop Amat-Long Beach Poly also is an intriguing matchup in high school football playoffs.

By Eric Sondheimer

November 8, 2012, 4:03 p.m.

Westlake Village Oaks Christian (8-2) at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame (7-3), 7 p.m. Oaks Christian is making its Pac-5 Division playoff debut. The Lions opened a 21-0 lead over top-seeded Ventura St. Bonaventure last week before losing in the Marmonte League championship game, so it's clear they have the ability to play against the best,. They're led by quarterback Brandon Dawkins and linebacker Cameron Judge. Notre Dame's offense has reached peak form in Week 11, led by standout running back Khalfani Muhammad and improving quarterback Kelly Hilinski. The pick: Notre Dame.

La Puente Bishop Amat (7-2-1) vs. Long Beach Poly (7-3) at Veterans Stadium, 7 p.m. Poly won the Moore League championship, but it remains to be seen whether the Jackrabbits have improved enough to be a Pac-5 playoff threat, because everyone still remembers their 56-0 loss to Narbonne in a nonleague game. Bishop Amat has a high-powered offense, featuring quarterback Koa Haynes and receiver Darren Andrews. The pick: Long Beach Poly.

Comments (3)

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NDHSFan at 9:40 PM November 08, 2012

OC and SO ND had only 1 common opponent this year, Chaminade. OC beat Chaminade whereas NDHS did not. If we assume just by this score, OC would prevail over NDHS, I would agree. But I agree with Eric S. that ND is a much improved team that is hitting on all cylinders (my words) at the right time. Key to an NDHS win will be protecting Kelly Hilinski and the balanced offense. Passing attack has drastically improved and the running game is anchored by Khalfani Muhammad and bolstered by a very good Colarassi (sp?). Defense is steadily improving, and I hope for the sake of ND, they can do better than they did against Alemany, Serra, and Chaminade. This might be the deciding factor for the Knights. Get get em, boys!

sniper at 5:07 PM November 08, 2012

I saw the Narbonne vs. Mater Dei game (Narbonne won) To be quiet frank, I think Bishop Amat can beat both of these two teams. Mater Dei's line was massive, but very slow. Narbonne advantage was due to their speed. Mater Dei could not match Narbonne. My pick: Bishop Amat over Long Beach Poly!

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