Rankings Not as Easy as No. 1-2-3 : Football: Many factors are weighed to determine which team belongs at the top of the poll each week.

Quick quiz: The best high school football team in Orange County is:

A) Esperanza

B) Mater Dei

C) None of the above

The logical choice is Esperanza, which has a 22-game winning streak over the past two seasons. The Division III Aztecs were voted the top team in the Orange County Sportswriters’ Assn. poll this week.

Mater Dei? The Division I Monarchs fell from the ranks of the unbeaten--and to third in the poll--after losing to defending Division I champion Loyola, 28-20, Saturday. But quarterback Billy Blanton is considered the best pure passer in the county, and the team still merits consideration.

What about Valencia, which benefited from the Mater Dei loss by moving up to No. 2?

Valencia is ranked second in the county poll and has some fine skill-position players such as twins Korey and Kevin Alexander. But the Tigers are a Division VI school and play a weak schedule, making it difficult to consider them for the top spot.

The question of who is No. 1 in the county and what it takes to be No. 1 is open to debate.

Certainly an impressive record with victories over quality opponents is a must. A strong defense, a good quarterback and talented running backs and receivers also helps.

Los Alamitos Coach John Barnes says skill-position players make the difference in winning championships.

“Defense is fine, but look at most of the CIF (Southern Section) champions, and they have a great quarterback,” Barnes said. “If you’re going to be No. 1, you have to have a quality quarterback.”

Such as Mater Dei’s Blanton.

Loyola defensive coordinator Jon Dawson saw Esperanza on film while preparing his team for Mater Dei last week. He thinks Mater Dei would beat Esperanza.

“Blanton would riddle them,” he said. “Don’t get me wrong. Esperanza is good, but Mater Dei would spread Esperanza’s defense all over the field, and Blanton would pick them apart.”

Mater Dei Coach Bruce Rollinson agrees. Blanton is the great equalizer, according to Rollinson, helping to balance the Monarchs’ weaknesses and set them apart from the rest of the teams.

St. John Bosco Coach Gabe Soumakian, whose team has played Esperanza, Mater Dei and Valencia, can find reason for putting all three teams in the top spot.

“Each team has different strengths,” Soumakian said. “Mater Dei has the best personnel, and Blanton is the best quarterback. Defensively, their front seven is very good. Mater Dei is the best team I’ve seen.

“Valencia has the fastest backs (Ryan Roskelly and Willie Barnes) of the three teams. I thought they had the best balanced attack.

“I felt we should have beat Esperanza. They have the toughest defense overall and an excellent power-running game.

“If all three played, it would come down to who has the hot hand throwing. I don’t know. I like Blanton, but then Mater Dei should have never lost to Loyola.”

St. John Bosco lost all three games. Valencia won, 20-12, in the first week of the season; Esperanza won, 12-6, in the third, and Mater Dei won, 35-7, in the sixth.

Mark Tennis, editor of Cal-Hi Sports, ranks the top teams in the state by a system of statistics. In Division I, he currently has Esperanza fifth and Mater Dei 12th. In Division III, he has Valencia fifth.

Even though there isn’t a dominating team in the county, Tennis said, he would chose the Monarchs to rule Orange County.

“Mater Dei is the county’s best team by a close call,” Tennis said. “They have more depth and better skill-position players than Esperanza.

“Esperanza’s quarterback (Josh Buscaglio) has really improved. It would be a close game if they played.

“I saw Valencia and was really surprised how good they were. The (Alexander) twins are really good, and Roskelly is impressive. But I question Valencia’s depth.”

Mater Dei became the county’s top-ranked team after a 42-7 victory over Mission Viejo in the fifth week of the season, but Rollinson said Esperanza can have the No. 1 ranking.

“They should be No. 1 because of the streak,” Rollinson said. “They’re a team on a roll that’s been going strong for two years. It’s nice being No. 1, but it’s tougher to defend it than to get it.”

Esperanza Coach Gary Meek said his team is as good as last year’s team that won the Division III title and was ranked fourth in the final county poll.

“We’re better defensively this year,” Meek said. “I think we would match up pretty well with Valencia, and Mater Dei would be a challenge trying to defend their passing game.

“But we won’t play either of those teams, so it’s out of our hands. The poll is something for the fans. It creates interest. We don’t talk about being No. 1.”

Which leads to the third choice in the opening quiz: C) None of the above.

“(Rialto) Eisenhower is a possibility, but it’s pretty wide open in the state,” Tennis said. “There is no dominating team in the state this year.”

Meek, whose team will carry the No. 1 ranking in the county for the moment, agreed.

“I don’t think there’s a dominating team like the El Toro teams with Bret Johnson or Fountain Valley with David Henigan in the ‘80s,” he said.

The Heavyweights

The game-by-game performances of Esperanza and Mater Dei, the two leading claimants to the title of Orange County’s No. 1 high school football team: Early Week Esperanza was idle Mater Dei 34, Iolani 20 Sept. 7 at Aloha Stadium Roger Morante caught touchdown passed of 46, 31 and 10 yards from Billy Blanton to spark the Monarchs in Honolulu. Blanton completed 14 of 19 passes for 297 yards. Week 1 Esperanza 21, Santa Ana 9 Sept. 13 at Santa Ana Stadium The Aztecs, the defending Division III champions, outrushed Santa Ana, 218-70, as Garrick Emry gained 125 yards in 19 carries and scored a touchdown. That advantage helped Esperanza overcome 11 penalties for 106 yards. Mater Dei 27, Capistrano Valley 21 Sept. 13 at Orange Coast College After rolling to a 27-0 first-half lead, the Monarchs withstood a second-half rally, running out the final 1:03 after the Cougars’ final touchdown. Morante caught two of Blanton’s three touchdown passes. Week 2 Esperanza 42, Santa Ana Valley 0 Sept. 20 at Valencia High School Emry scored on runs of 38, 18 and four yards, and the Aztecs needed only 10 first-quarter plays to score their first three touchdowns. Josh Buscaglio passed for one touchdown and ran for a second. Mater Dei 47, St. Paul 9 Sept. 20 at Santa Ana Stadium Chris Ruperto caught two of Blanton’s four touchdown passes, and the Monarchs broke open a 12-point halftime lead with a 20-point third quarter against their former Angelus League rival. Week 3 Esperanza 12, St. John Bosco 6 Sept. 27 at St. John Bosco High School The Aztecs recovered a St. John Bosco fumble inside their own 10-yard line with less than two minutes to play to preserve the victory. Emry and Marcus Tayui each ran for first-half touchdowns. Mater Dei 17, Santa Ana 3 Sept. 27 at Santa Ana Stadium Jason Thies had two of Mater Dei’s four sacks, as Santa Ana failed to score a touchdown despite rushing for 185 yards. Ruperto gained 74 yards in 11 carries and scored on a 17-yard run. Week 4 Esperanza 24, Long Beach Jordan 12 Oct. 4 at Jordan High School The Aztecs took a 21-0 lead, then held off Jordan, clinching the victory on Clay King’s 34-yard field goal with 3:18 to play. Emry rushed for 127 yards and scored on a one-yard run. Mater Dei 27, Riverside Poly 14 Oct. 4 at UC Riverside Blanton accounted for three touchdowns, running three yards for one and throwing passes of 33 yards to Ruperto and 15 yards to David Knuff for the others. Week 5 Esperanza 28, Sunny Hills 7 Oct. 11 at Valencia High School Tayui rushed for 154 yards in 15 carries and Emry scored twice for the Aztecs in their final nonleague game. “As far as I’m concerned this year, they’re the No. 1 team in the county,” Sunny Hills Coach Tim Devaney said of the Aztecs. Mater Dei 42, Mission Viejo 7 Oct. 10 at Santa Ana Stadium The Monarchs stunned the top-ranked Diablos behind the passing of Blanton, who completed 13 of 23 passes for 337 yards and three touchdowns. Knuff returned an interception 16 yards for a touchdown early in the second half. Week 6 Esperanza 26, Katella 0 Oct. 17 at Valencia High School Tayui’s 25-yard touchdown run broke a scoreless tie midway through the third quarter, leading the Aztecs to victory in their Empire League opener. Tayui also scored on a 21-yard run, finishing with 105 yards in 17 carries. Mater Dei 35, St. John Bosco 7 Oct. 18 at Santa Ana Stadium The Monarchs easily won their Angelus League opener. Blanton completed 14 of 20 passes for 227 yards and two touchdowns, giving him 20 touchdown passes for the season. Week 7 Esperanza 28, Los Alamitos 7 Oct. 25 at Gahr High School Despite playing without three injured offensive linemen, Esperanza ground out 349 yards in total offense. Emry rushed for 116 yards in 19 carries and scored two touchdowns, and Buscaglio completed eight of 13 passes for 150 yards. Mater Dei 44, Servite 0 Oct. 24 at Orange Coast College Servite’s five turnovers led to four touchdowns and a field goal. Brian Broadbent kicked three field goals, including a 47-yarder, and Brian Barajas scored touchdowns on a six-yard pass and a 29-yard interception return. Week 8 Esperanza 21, Loara 0 Nov. 1 at Valencia High School The Aztecs held Loara to 46 yards in total offense, with defensive end Jimmy Stewart getting two sacks and a key pass deflection. The victory was the 22nd in a row for Esperanza. Loyola 28, Mater Dei 20 Nov. 2 at Glendale High School The Monarchs fell behind by two touchdowns at the half and lost their first game of the season. Blanton passed for 255 yards, but completed only 12 of 27 passes and was sacked on consecutive plays after guiding Mater Dei to the Loyola 31 with 4:30 to play.

Mater vs. Esperanza Unbeaten Valencia, Tustin, El Modena, Garden Grove and Rancho Alamitos might disagree, but most feel the county’s top spot in high school football will belong to one of two teams at season’s end.

A Statistical Look at the Big 2 Season to Date/Team Comparison

Esperanza Mater Dei Record 8-0 8-1 Points for 25.1 32.5 Points against 5.8 12.1 Rushing yards/game 214.3 110.7 Passing yards/game 85.4 263.4 Total yards/game 299.6 374.2 Turnovers/game 1.4 1.6 Takeaways/game 1.5 2.0

Individual Leaders Rushing:

ATT YDS AVG Emry/Esperanza 125 670 5.4 Ruperto/Mater Dei 64 449 7.0

Scoring:

TDS PATS PTS Emry/Esperanza 11 1 68 Ruperto/Mater Dei 11 3 72

Tackles:

Tackles Beckett/Esperanza 40 Thies/Mater Dei 60

Passing:

CP ATT INT YDS Buscaglio/Esp. 125 670 5.4 Blanton/MD 64 449 7.0

Receiving:

CP YDS AVG Corbett/Esperanza 18 349 19.4 Knuff/Master Dei 42 704 1.8

Interceptions:

INTS Long/Esperanza 2 Barajas/Mater Dei 6