BIG GAMES : Claremont vs. Pomona

It will be a feast for college recruiters when these teams meet in a Baseline League showdown at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Cal Poly Pomona. Claremont has one of the most heavily recruited quarterbacks in the nation in 6-8 senior Dan McGwire, and Pomona has one of the premier running backs in senior J. J. Flannigan. Both have glittering statistics. McGwire has completed 78 of 141 passes for a San Gabriel Valley high of 1,253 yards and 12 touchdowns and Flannigan has rushed for a CIF high of 1,212 yards and 16 touchdowns. Both teams have 5-1 records. Pomona will be trying to bounce back from its first loss of the year, a 28-0 setback to Don Lugo last week. Flannigan was held to 46 yards, his lowest rushing figure in two years as a starter. Claremont blasted Upland (35-10) last week. The Wolfpack, defending CIF Eastern Conference champion, also has the top receiver in the valley in senior Travis Watkins with 37 receptions for 543 yards and 7 touchdowns. Claremont’s strong defense is led by linebacker Sean Telish.

Charter Oak vs. San Dimas

With an offense that has scored 294 points, Charter Oak has had little difficulty in rolling over its first six opponents. The fewest points the Chargers have scored was 35 in their opener against Montclair. The acid test may come when they meet undefeated San Dimas in a Montview League game at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Bonita High. San Dimas is 5-0 and one of the big reasons is its defense, which has allowed only 25 points. The offense hasn’t been that bad, either. The Saints, who average 29 points a game, are led by quarterback Tim James, running back Shawn Clark and wide receiver Tim Metcalfe. That should provide a challenge to Charter Oak, which has allowed only 26 points. Charter Oak, which leads the CIF in scoring, has an outstanding rushing attack that features 6-2, 230-pound fullback Jeff Obert and brothers Mike and Mark Smith. Obert rushed for three touchdowns in Charter Oak’s 47-8 victory over Bassett last week. Charter Oak also has a promising quarterback, sophomore John Strycula.

Bishop Amat vs. Mater Dei

Bishop Amat may be the team to beat in the Angelus League, but the Lancers are not going to have an easy time. After a 36-12 win over Bishop Montgomery last week, the Lancers figure to face a much tougher test at Mater Dei at 7:30 tonight in Santa Ana. Mater Dei, 4-2, demonstrated its strength in a 17-14 upset of undefeated St. Paul last week. That should give the Monarchs plenty of momentum for Bishop Amat, which is off to one of its best starts ever with a 6-0 record. Mater Dei is led by one of the finest sophomore quarterbacks in the state, Todd Marinovich, who completed 17 of 28 passes for 161 yards last week. The Monarchs also have steady running backs in Paul Cardenas and Matt Spencer. But Mater Dei does not have a running back as talented as Bishop Amat junior Eric Bieniemy, who has rushed for 857 yards and 14 touchdowns. Bieniemy scored five of those touchdowns in the Bishop Montgomery game. Other standouts in a strong Bishop Amat backfield are quarterback Rick Carter and running back Lee Barrett.

San Gabriel Valley’s Top Ten Prep Teams

Rank, School, League Record Opponent 1 Bish. Amat. (Ang.) 6-0-0 Mater Dei 2 Diamond Bar (Hacienda) 6-0-0 Etiwanda 3 Muir (Pacific) 5-1-0 Glendale 4 Los Altos (Sierra) 5-1-0 HH Wilson 5 Claremont (Baseline) 5-1-0 Pomona 6 West Covina (Sierra) 5-0-0 Walnut 7 Charter Oak (Montview) 6-0-0 San Dimas 8 Rowland (Sierra) 5-1-0 Nogales 9 San Dimas (Montview) 5-0-0 Charter Oak 10 Pomona (Baseline) 5-1-0 Claremont

OTHERS: Arroyo (6-0-0), Ganesha (3-3-0), Pasadena (4-2-0), San Marino (4-1-0), South Hills (3-1-1).